Commercial Real Estate News

[J.OT13]

Did we know Promenades was sold? Also, surprised we don't have a dedicated thread for Les Promenades. Seems late now that the expansion was completed like a decade ago.

Promenades Gatineau =SNIP==. Cette transaction enregistrée à la toute fin de l’année 2024 qui a fait passer le centre commercial des mains d’Oxford Properties à la société par actions Promenades Gatineau Holding compte à elle seule pour 12 millions de dollars en droits de mutation encaissés par la Ville.

https://www.ledroit.com/actualites/actua...-de-la-ville-XJCM2GQQ2VEFXF66XWX5SPXHQ4/

[J.OT13]

Ottawa’s downtown office vacancy rate at 15 per cent through the spring
By Josh Pringle, CTV Ottawa
Published: July 02, 2025 at 8:09AM EDT

Ottawa’s office vacancy rate improved slightly in the spring, with a new report suggesting there is demand for mid to large-sized office space in the core and in Kanata.

CBRE Canada’s second-quarter Canada Office Figures report shows Ottawa’s vacancy rate dropped from 12.7 per cent in the January-March period to 12.5 per cent in the April-June period.

“Uncertainty regarding the economic landscape continued to obfuscate occupier decision making, although demand still exists for mid to large-sized space, as observed in the core and in Kanata,” the report says.


The vacancy rate in downtown Ottawa was 15 per cent in the second quarter, while the office vacancy rate in the suburbs was 10.5 per cent. Toronto’s downtown vacancy rate was 18.5 per cent in the spring, while Montreal’s downtown vacancy rate was 18.6 per cent.

CBRE Canada says “sizeable deals” were reported at 160 Elgin Street in the spring, with the Royal College of Physicians taking 62,000 sq. ft. of space and Telesat occupying 28,000 sq. ft. of space.

According to the report, there was “notable activity within the submarket” in the spring, including the sale of a full vacant building on Solandt Road to the Manitoba Metis Foundation for potential owner occupancy and Mitel sublisting 33,000 sq. ft. of space on Innovation Drive.

CBRE Canada says industrial construction “has hit a peak” in Ottawa, with Amazon starting construction on their third distribution facility. That will add a proposed 3.1 million sq. ft. to Ottawa’s future industrial inventory.


“While trade negotiations have resulted in some short-term supply and increased uncertainty, many deals are still being completed or remain in the pipeline,” CBRE said.

The industrial vacancy rate in Ottawa was 2.2 per cent in the spring.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/article/ot...-rate-at-15-per-cent-through-the-spring/

[J.OT13]

Confirmation that 77 Metcalfe's days are numbered. This very square building with two blank walls could not be converted to residential.

Ottawa’s office vacancy rate falls in Q2 as 77 Metcalfe St. pulled from leasing market

David Sali, OBJ
July 3, 2025

Ottawa’s office market showed “mixed signals” in the second quarter as leasing activity picked up in the city’s core while the suburban vacancy rate rose for the first time in nearly two years, a new report from a major real estate firm says. The city’s overall office vacancy rate fell to 10.8 per cent at […]

==Paywalled==

https://obj.ca/ottawa-office-vacancy-rate-falls-in-q2/

[rocketphish]

TCC Canada to take over Spaces co-working location on Slater Street

David Sali, OBJ
July 10, 2025

The Ottawa-based co-working company that occupies part of Shopify’s former headquarters on Elgin Street is poised to more than double its downtown footprint with a deal to take over up to 75,000 square feet of real estate on Slater Street now occupied by flexible workspace giant Spaces. TCC Canada has signed a 10-year lease that will see it occupy about 62,000 square feet on the first five floors at 66 Slater St. starting Dec. 1, with an option to take over the sixth floor. The new space will be TCC’s second location in downtown Ottawa. The firm made headlines in 2021 when it subleased several floors in nearby Performance Court at 150 Elgin St. from Shopify after the e-commerce firm vacated the downtown office tower following its shift to a remote-first work model during the pandemic.

The addition of Slater Street boosts TCC’s total downtown footprint to 110,000 square feet. It continues a years-long expansion spree for the Ottawa company, which recently added a 25,000-square-foot location at 1900 City Park Dr. in Gloucester to its portfolio and is set to take on an additional 15,000 square feet of space on Innovation Drive in Kanata, where it already operates a 30,000-square-foot co-working facility that opened in 2022. When its 15,000-square-foot location on Fitzgerald Road in Bells Corners is factored in, TCC will soon manage more than 200,000 square feet of co-working space in Ottawa.

The company, which also operates three locations in Vancouver covering nearly 80,000 square feet as well as a 30,000-square-foot facility in downtown Toronto, says the Slater Street deal will make it the largest Canadian-owned co-working provider with a total portfolio in excess of 300,000 square feet.

“We’re starting to spread out a little bit, which is fun,” said TCC president Sean Cochrane. Cochrane says occupancy rates at TCC’s sites – which feature a mix of individual office space, collaboration and event space and lounges – typically sit around 95 per cent.

The rate is as high as 97 per cent in Kanata North, where “demand’s been the highest of any of our locations in Canada,” he explained. “We’ve had wait lists of people.”

While many employers turned their backs on the office during the pandemic amid the rush to remote work – a sentiment captured by Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke in his much-talked-about 2020 tweet “office centricity is over” – Cochrane says the pendulum is now swinging the other way, and his company is reaping the rewards. He says business is booming at most of TCC’s locations, especially in the suburbs, as more and more tech companies, professional services firms and other users seek office space that’s close to where their employees live but don’t want to get tied down to long-term leases on chunks of real estate they might never fully use. “Right now, everybody is starting to really get serious about getting back into the office again,” Cochrane said. Still, like many commercial real estate operators, TCC has found it tougher to fill office space downtown, where foot traffic has not recovered from the pandemic. Occupancy at the Elgin Street location has averaged about 75 per cent, well below the company’s other Ottawa properties. But Cochrane says he’s starting to see signs of life in what’s been a moribund office leasing environment in the city’s core. “We’ve seen a lot more action downtown, and people are starting to really think a little bit more seriously about it – especially some of the technology groups that, when the pandemic hit, really seemed to pull out of downtown,” he said. “Now we’re starting to see it pick up again, which is really nice.”

TCC’s deal at 66 Slater comes after the building’s property manager, Colonnade BridgePort, inquired about six months ago if the local co-working provider would be interested in taking over the site from Spaces, which had occupied six floors in the downtown highrise since October 2019. The division of Amsterdam-based co-working giant International Workplace Group renegotiated its lease at Slater Street when demand for flexible workspace cratered early in the pandemic. The reworked agreement gave Colonnade BridgePort a share of any profits Spaces generated from the facility. But when those profits failed to materialize, the co-working firm was paying “basically zero net rent,” Colonnade BridgePort vice-president of leasing Brent Arseneau told OBJ. “From a profit-sharing perspective, there were never any profits shared,” he explained. “That facility has never been full. After five years, there was just no value in that lease. It becomes detrimental.” Meanwhile, Colonnade BridgePort, which also manages 1900 City Park Dr., saw the success TCC was having in its east-end building. Earlier this year, the property manager decided to break off its 15-year lease with Spaces using a clause in the agreement that allowed the parties to reassess the deal after a certain period of time. “That (TCC) facility (in Gloucester) is doing well. We know the one in Kanata is doing extremely well,” Arseneau said. “We thought we’d rather hitch ourselves to somebody who comes with clients, who is successful in the market, who is in a growth pattern and has really good connections among the business community.” Cochrane says he’s confident the new Slater Street location will be a hit. A “big enterprise client” that rents space at other TCC sites has already agreed to a three-year deal to lease about a third of the new site, he said, and he’s hoping his firm can convince the current Spaces tenants to stay put. Meanwhile, TCC keeps eyeing new opportunities to expand, even as the overall amount of flexible office space in Ottawa has stagnated. According to CBRE, co-working space made up just 1.3 per cent of the city’s total office inventory – about 540,000 square feet – last year, roughly the same amount as in 2021. But Cochrane, who credits much of TCC’s success to what he describes as the firm’s reputation for strong customer service, is undaunted. He says TCC is in talks with a “couple of other landlords” in the National Capital Region about adding more locations, while Montreal, Calgary and Halifax remain on his “wish list” of future expansion cities. “We’re just waiting for the right opportunity and the right time.”

https://obj.ca/tcc-canada-to-take-over-spaces-location/

[J.OT13]

Is the great downtown office tear-down coming? Not so fast, real estate insiders say

David Sali, OBJ
July 14, 2025

A Montreal-based developer’s decision to topple 77 Metcalfe St. could trigger a domino effect that sees more obsolete downtown office towers turned to dust – but logistical and economic hurdles will likely give property owners pause before going the demolition route, real estate insiders say. Groupe Mach last week announced plans to demolish a vacant […]

==PAYWALLED==

https://obj.ca/is-downtown-office-tear-down-coming/

[rocketphish]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Is the great downtown office tear-down coming? Not so fast, real estate insiders say

David Sali, OBJ
July 14, 2025

A Montreal-based developer’s decision to topple 77 Metcalfe St. could trigger a domino effect that sees more obsolete downtown office towers turned to dust – but logistical and economic hurdles will likely give property owners pause before going the demolition route, real estate insiders say. Groupe Mach last week announced plans to demolish a vacant […]

==PAYWALLED==

https://obj.ca/is-downtown-office-tear-down-coming/

Is the great downtown office tear-down coming? Not so fast, real estate insiders say

David Sali, OBJ
July 14, 2025

A Montreal-based developer's decision to topple 77 Metcalfe St. could trigger a domino effect that sees more obsolete downtown office towers turned to dust – but logistical and economic hurdles will likely give property owners pause before going the demolition route, real estate insiders say. Groupe Mach last week announced plans to demolish a vacant 12-storey office highrise at the corner of Metcalfe and Albert streets and replace it with a new rental apartment complex. The same company is already in the midst of tearing down another aging former government office building at 110 O’Connor St., a site that will also eventually be home to a new rental highrise. In both cases, Group Mach felt it made more financial sense to rebuild from scratch rather than attempt to convert the existing structure into housing or another use – a process that typically costs almost as much as constructing a whole new building. While 77 Metcalfe and 110 O’Connor are the first prominent downtown office towers to face the wrecking ball in decades, real estate experts say more and more building owners in downtown Ottawa might start to follow Groupe Mach’s lead as the vacancy gulf widens between top-end office towers with all the bells and whistles and a growing stock of older inventory that’s gotten long in the tooth. “I think we’re going to see more of this,” said Darren Fleming, CEO of Ottawa-based commercial real estate brokerage Real Strategy Advisors. “These are high-vacancy, older-inventory buildings. The return on investment to stick a whole bunch of money (into a renovation) to attract an office tenant who’s paying historically low rent is not a good one.” Built 60 years ago, the 140,000-square-foot tower at 77 Metcalfe St. hadn’t had a substantial facelift in three decades and was “functionally obsolete,” Fleming noted. The previous tenant, Nav Canada, left in late 2022 and moved to nearby 151 Slater St., a former class-C building that was gutted and totally remodelled by Metcalfe Realty a few years ago in a bid to lure a blue-chip tenant. Metcalfe Realty’s strategy paid off when Nav Canada decided to jump ship from 77 Metcalfe to take over 12 floors in shinier new digs a few metres away on Slater. And it’s that so-called “flight to quality” that has other owners of past-its-prime downtown real estate mulling their options, Fleming explained. “The vacancy kind of waterfalls downhill to the lowest class of buildings,” he said. There are a number of ways owners of such properties can try to solve the vacancy problem, he added. They can do a complete makeover, like Metcalfe Realty did on Slater Street. They can convert the building to residential or some other use. Or they can tear it down and start all over. Yet while examples of the first two options are easy enough to find in downtown Ottawa – about half a dozen highrises are in some stage of being turned from office space into housing, for example, and several marquee office complexes have undergone multimillion-dollar renos in recent years – demolitions remain a rarity.

A big part of it is simple economics, industry insiders say. The cost of painstakingly dismantling a decades-old office tower in an environmentally friendly way isn’t for the faint of heart – even if the alternative is carrying the cost of maintaining a virtually empty building. “When a building is physically and functionally obsolete, it’s still a tremendous cost to demolish a building and hope that you can put out the right plan (to replace it),” said Marc Morin, founder and president of Ottawa’s Seva Commercial Real Estate. Morin said he was “surprised” that 77 Metcalfe is being torn down, “but if the owners are well capitalized, I’m sure it makes great sense to take that approach. “You either need to have exceptionally deep pockets or it needs to be almost a generational-type building where you’ve owned it long enough that you’ve depreciated it to the point that if it is physically and functionally obsolete, that it makes sense to tear it down and start over. I think conversion is still the better way to go if the building has the capacity.” But not all obsolete office towers lend themselves to being repurposed as something else. The floor plate might not be the right shape to accommodate apartments, for example, or the building might be plagued by so many structural issues it would need to be gutted and rebuilt virtually from scratch anyway. And even if an aging office complex still has strong enough bones to be rebuilt, it’s a task that’s often easier said than done. For example, Brent Arseneau, vice-president of leasing at real estate firm Colonnade BridgePort, told OBJ in a 2023 interview he figured it would cost about $60 a square foot to remediate the one-million-square-foot C.D. Howe Building at 240 Sparks St. to current health and safety standards – a $60-million pill that would be tough for most developers to swallow. Another decaying office building dating from the 1970s, L’Esplanade Laurier, is now on the federal government’s disposal list. As Arseneau noted two years ago, it’s got a laundry list of structural woes, and he summed up many developers’ thoughts about the best course of action to remediate it. “I think the theory that’s been rolling around (for L’Esplanade Laurier) is you just have to blow that place up and then develop a better plan for new buildings,” he said then. In an interview last week, Fleming also cited the marble-clad, two-tower complex on Laurier Avenue as a top candidate for a tear-down. “We’ve got some buildings with big question marks sitting over their heads,” he said. “So 77 (Metcalfe) was one of them. Now we know the answer. L’Esplanade Laurier is another one.” But Fleming also noted that the cost of demolishing one million square feet of real estate could make anyone kicking the tires on L'Esplanade Laurier think twice about buying it with the goal of redeveloping the property. “At least 77 Metcalf is small enough that you don’t need a government subsidy or (own) a hockey team to reposition the asset,” he said. “These are things that a group that’s entrepreneurial with some cash like Groupe Mach can take on.”

Fleming said it’s not hard to find smaller buildings in the downtown core that are ripe for the wrecking ball if that’s the route the new owner wants to go, pointing to a four-storey mixed-use building at Bank and Cooper streets that was recently put up for sale as an example. Morin, who is marketing the building at 263 Bank St. on behalf of the current owners, said the 30,000-square-foot structure was “substantially upgraded” since the current owners purchased it in 2012 and remains a viable asset in its current state. But he also said the building would be “ideally suited to a residential conversion” down the road, adding a new buyer might “look at ground-up development in the long term” should it suit their needs. Fleming said government incentives aimed at spurring more rental housing construction, such as the federal government’s 2023 move to unlock $20 billion in additional low-cost financing for new apartments, senior residences and student housing, could make demolitions a more attractive option for developers. “It made a lot of these types of decisions easier,” he explained. “It de-risks it. The combination of lower-risk mortgage financing and political will to get more apartments built is strong. I think there are going to be some folks with older buildings taking long, hard looks at them.” In an interview with OBJ last week, Arseneau said he hopes Groupe Mach is just the first of many developers that are willing to tear down the old with the aim of creating a revitalized urban core that attracts a new generation of residents. “Ottawa is conservative, so it’ll be like a rain just starting. I don’t think it’ll be a downpour,” he said of the likelihood of more demolitions happening soon. “Conversions (take) two to three years to occur and starting from scratch can be a little bit longer than that. So it’s going to require some patience. They’re on the right path now, and I hope that in about five years, we see a much more vibrant downtown Ottawa beginning.”

https://obj.ca/is-downtown-office-tear-down-coming/

[rocketphish]

Sense of trepidation in Ottawa's office market
Questions remain whether federal government's return-to-office initiatives, and the city's tech sector, will fuel recovery in the near term

Don Wilcox, RENX
Oct. 15 2025

Two key sectors have driven the Ottawa and National Capital Region office market over the past several decades, the federal government and the tech industry. Questions about both were front and centre during the 2025 Ottawa Real Estate Forum.

In particular, a sense of unease remains about the federal government’s return-to-office plans, and whether the feds could even accommodate and enforce a four- or five-day-a-week return mandate if it is firmed up either via the Nov. 4 budget or a separate announcement.

In addition, Ottawa’s tech sector has not become a silver bullet for reducing vacancy - in the downtown nor the suburbs where the city is home to Canada’s largest technology research and development business park in west-end Kanata.

With citywide vacancy languishing at 12.8 per cent according to CBRE’s Q3 2025 report - roughly where it’s been for the past three years - owners and industry executives at the Oct. 9 forum at the Rogers Centre expressed a wide range of views.

“I think office is going to be in the penalty box for several years,” Groupe Mach president Vincent Chiara said during the day’s closing panel. Montreal-based Mach has been one of the largest investors in Ottawa office in recent years and in fact, it has been a significant national buyer of office buildings.
Return-to-office mandates vs. enforcement

While Chiara was the most blunt, others also expressed reservations including Altus Group vice-president, data operations Ray Wong. During a commercial real estate overview panel, he said he does not foresee the feds enforcing a five-day-a-week return to office, as many in the city have called for.


<more>

https://renx.ca/sense-of-trepidation-in-ottawas-office-market

[rocketphish]

This site has future redevelopment written all over it...

No changes to tenant mix expected as Montreal group buys Carling Ave. property for $30M

Mia Jensen, OBJ
January 14, 2026

A Montreal-based investment group has purchased the site of a Cineplex theatre, strip mall and other commercial buildings on Carling Avenue, according to Zinati Realty Commercial Brokerage.

Broker of record John Zinati told OBJ on Tuesday that the current owner, RioCan, has sold the property in an off-market deal that closed at $30 million.

The sale represented a 7.5 per cent cap rate, he said.

“Nothing in commercial real estate is quick but, relatively speaking, it was a very smooth and efficient transaction,” said Zinati.

The 15-acre property at 3098 Carling Ave. includes 127,000 square feet of real estate. In addition to the circular Cineplex surrounded by a parking lot, the site includes two standalone buildings housing a Shoppers Drug Mart and Moores Clothing menswear store, as well as a strip mall that contains a dentist, various salons, restaurants and LifeLabs.

“If you’re looking at an aerial view, (the parcel) is pretty much a perfect rectangle from Carling all the way back,” Zinati said.

While Zinati said he couldn’t disclose the name of the group of investors that made the purchase, he said there aren’t any current plans to make major changes to the property.

“It’s a generational investment,” he said. “The intent is to keep the tenants and keep the property status quo. It’s a good investment with a great tenant mix for a long-term hold on a very sizable piece of land.” Located off Britannia Bay, the property is surrounded by suburban residential neighbourhoods such as Fairfield Heights, with the Bayshore Shopping Centre to the south. Across the street is the Ottawa River Pathway, which connects to the nearby Andrew Haydon Park and Nepean Sailing Club to the west.

https://obj.ca/no-changes-montreal-group-buys-carling-ave-property-30m/

[OTSkyline]

Oh god, that's the better cinema (and closest to me) so I hope they don't plan on getting rid of it, there is such a shortage of cinemas these days (there would be none from Lansdowne to Kanata).

There is definitely opportunity along Carling and perhaps in the back (too much existing surface parking space for sure).

[rocketphish]

2079 Artistic Place GP Inc. is proposing a light industrial development at 1319 Johnston Road, comprised of approximately 14,484 square metres of gross floor area across eight (8) buildings. The 8 buildings are divided into multiple units and have been located on the site to allow for truck movement to the rear of each of those buildings, while the other side serves as a main entrance for employees and clients with easy access from the parking spaces available to each building from the front. The site shall be accessed from frontage on Johnston Road, 380 metres from the intersection at Bank Street. Parking is interspersed throughout the proposed development. The development will be a phased Condominium comprising 177 units in five phases.

1319 Johnston Road is on the eastern side of Sawmill Creek, severed from an existing property, 2059 Artistic Place. The site was occupied for many years by a landscaping company that still owns and operates the property west of Sawmill Creek (2059 Artistic Place). Over the past 15 years, the property was incrementally altered and developed in an uncontrolled manner as the operation expanded.

The proposal was approved on Oct 28, 2024.


Architect: Alan Stone Architect


Development application:
https://devapps.ottawa.ca/en/applications/D07-12-24-0096/details


Location:






Siteplan:






Renderings:

[ponyboycurtis]

If you go look on google maps you'll see its even more under utilized looking that that aerial. I don't goto ALD that often but I don't think they will miss this space. Easy walk from Greenboro station as well which isn't something most office parks can say.

[rocketphish]

Feds to acquire 14-storey office tower at 131 Queen St. for $148M

David Sali, OBJ
February 24, 2026

As civil servants prepare to head back to the office four days a week, the federal government has acquired a downtown office tower in one of the city’s largest real estate transactions in recent history.

Public Services and Procurement Canada has agreed to purchase the 14-storey tower at 131 Queen St. from Morguard Corp. for $148.2 million in a deal that’s expected to close before the end of August.

Morguard announced the sale last week in its year-end financial report, although it did not identify the buyer. PSPC told OBJ two years ago it had an option to purchase the building, and confirmed this week it is acquiring the property. In an email to OBJ, PSPC spokesperson Jean-François Létourneau said the 20-year-old building was “constructed for government use and will continue to serve as a key administrative facility to support the long-term accommodation of the House of Commons.” Morguard did not immediately respond to OBJ’s request for more details on why it decided to sell the property. It’s the second time in two years that PSPC, the region’s largest owner and occupier of office space, has acquired a downtown office building from Morguard. In March 2024, the federal department exercised an option to purchase an 11-storey tower at 181 Queen St. from the Mississauga-based real estate firm for $125.3 million. PSPC said at the time that the acquisition of 181 Queen, which is home to CBC headquarters and also houses House of Commons staff, was part of its “long-term vision and plan” for the Parliamentary Precinct.

PSPC did not address this week whether the decision to purchase 131 Queen St. was related to its decade-long project to restore and modernize a prominent collection of historic buildings near Parliament Hill.

But Shawn Hamilton, a principal at Proveras Commercial Realty, told OBJ Tuesday the acquisition appears to be part of a government strategy to gain control of more real estate near the properties bounded by Wellington, Sparks, Metcalfe and O’Connor streets that the feds are renovating.

“It makes sense to me,” Hamilton said. “It’s, in my view, entirely a strategic play.” PSPC owns more than 65 million square feet of office space across the country, with more than half of that real estate located in the National Capital Region. Its decision to acquire 131 Queen St. comes just months before federal public servants will be mandated to return to the office a minimum of four days a week starting July 6. A Treasury Board spokesperson told Radio-Canada last week there might not be enough room in some offices to accommodate all the returning workers this summer. But Treasury Board President Shafqat Ali said in an interview with CBC Monday he believes there will be enough office space for everyone.

Hamilton said he’s not convinced the feds’ return-to-office campaign will go smoothly. A large chunk of federally owned office space in the downtown core is in “critical or poor condition,” he said, “because the federal government hasn’t been able to secure its own internal funding to look after the buildings.” Hamilton said he worries that 131 Queen St. will “gradually decay” like much of the government’s other downtown office inventory, adding it’s fair to question whether buying another building is the best use of taxpayers’ money when so much of the feds’ existing office portfolio is in urgent need of repair.





“I’m hoping they also find capital to invest in their own infrastructure in downtown Ottawa,” he added. “But strategically, pricewise, no alarm bells are going off.” The acquisition comes as other large downtown office buildings that were on the market, including 150 and 275 Slater St., have failed to change hands. Hamilton said that while the feds “have been chipping away strategically” at buying buildings near the Parliamentary Precinct, he doesn’t expect to see a flood of big office sales to private-sector buyers any time soon. “I think institutional investors are waiting to see what the future of the government footprint is in downtown Ottawa,” he said. “Right now, there are so many different conflicting stories of (the federal government’s office needs). I think now that there’s been the (four-day-a-week) return-to-office mandate, I think it will take a few months to sort of see how things play out.

“Having some sort of stability and understanding of what’s happening will be attractive to institutional investment.” Morguard remains one of the capital’s largest owners of office space, with a portfolio of more than 1.9 million square feet. Its Ottawa holdings include a 50 per cent stake in Performance Court at 150 Elgin St., where Shopify was headquartered until it vacated the building in 2020, as well as a 50 per cent share of Jean Edmonds Towers at 300 Slater St.

https://obj.ca/feds-to-acquire-queen-street-office-tower/

[J.OT13]

If return to office happens, it should be 5 year strategic plan, not a "we'll force all of you back within the year". New office space is needed to replace aging stock with lifecycle issues that provide a subpar environment for their employees.

I'd like to see the Feds commission new buildings (owned or leased to the Feds) at Zibi, LeBreton and Downtown.

The re-opening of Chaudière and partial Portage III should help, but I'm not sure when that will be.

[rocketphish]

Ottawa company looks to rezone seven-acre site near airport for commercial development

Mia Jensen, OBJ
February 26, 2026



An Ottawa-based investment company is seeking approval to rezone a vacant property near the Ottawa International Airport to allow for commercial development.

The site is more than three hectares (seven acres) and is located on the Rideau River at 2175 Prince of Wales Dr., near the intersection of Hunt Club Road.

The area west of the site is mainly occupied by commercial properties, including retail stores, restaurants and religious institutions, with a low-rise residential neighbourhood to the south. Across the Rideau River to the east is the airport, which limits potential uses for the site.

Ottawa company Zena Investment Corp. is seeking approval to rezone the property for commercial development, while also increasing the maximum building height to 12 storeys.

“These uses will be appropriately located near other employment and commercial uses and will be complementary to the nearby airport use,” said a planning rationale document prepared for the company by Novatech.

Properties near the airport are constrained by Airport Operating Influence Zone (AOIZ) requirements, which limit building heights and prevent “sensitive uses” such as residential, according to the planning rationale.

The document said the proposed height increase would not affect airport operations. “The proposed increase in height will fit in with the neighbouring office uses and will comply with the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport Zoning Regulations’s maximum height limit,” it said.

According to the planning rationale, the site carries the designation “Neighbourhood in the Outer Urban Transect,” which restricts building heights to four storeys.

It is also zoned “development reserve,” which recognizes it as a site for future urban development while limiting, but not preventing, future development options. The application proposes rezoning the property to a “general mixed use zone,” which allows for residential and commercial uses, as well as mixed-use developments.

“The type of use has not been determined at this time,” the document said. It said the proposal “will facilitate the development of a vacant site with commercial and employment uses in an area that cannot be developed with residential uses,” adding the site “is well located and is an adequate size to support commercial and employment uses.”

Though details have not yet been determined, possible developments could include automotive businesses, retail shops, office buildings or hotels, the document said.

https://obj.ca/zena-rezone-seven-acre-airport-commercial-development/

[Kitchissippi]

I suggest a chicken cannon to shoot St Hubert orders across the river to avoid traffic on the bridge.

[eltodesukane]

By the way, that bridge is too narrow. Terrible traffic problem there.

[rocketphish]

Minto Place to get makeover under new management team at Crown Realty

By David Sali, OBJ
July 7, 2026

One of Ottawa’s largest office complexes is poised for a major renovation under a new management team that wants the downtown property to keep up with other class-A buildings that have received makeovers in recent years. Toronto-based Crown Realty Partners announced this week it has taken over management of Minto Place effective July 1. The three-building complex, which is bordered by Laurier Avenue West as well as Kent, Slater and Lyon streets, includes about 950,000 square feet of leasable retail and office space. “We’re excited to do what we do best — take over office properties, reinvigorate them and improve leasing at them,” Crown Realty managing partner Scott Watson told OBJ on Monday. “That’s what the owners have kind of entrusted us to give advice on … and get it back to being best-in-class in the marketplace.” Minto Group, Mackenzie Investments and LaSalle Investment Management each hold a one-third interest in the complex. Colliers will continue to lead leasing efforts at the marquee downtown property, which currently has five empty floors covering a total of about 100,000 square feet. Top-tier downtown office and retail properties such as the World Exchange Plaza, Constitution Square and the Sun Life Financial Centre have all been spruced up in recent years with redesigned food courts, common spaces and other amenities designed to lure tenants who are keen to upgrade their workspaces as employees return to the office.

Now, Watson said, it’s Minto Place’s turn to be modernized in a bid to cash in on the “flight to quality” that’s become the hallmark of downtown Ottawa’s office leasing market. “Most downtown complexes have had a major overhaul in the last five years,” he explained. “Minto is next to go to get some cosmetic work to bring it up to today’s standards.” Minto Place was constructed in phases, with the 14-storey Enterprise Building on Laurier Avenue and the 18-storey Canada Building both completed in 1988. The 19-storey office tower at 180 Kent St., which houses Minto Group’s headquarters, opened in 2009.

Crown Realty’s first order of business will be refurbishing the main office tower at 180 Kent St. The building's fitness centre was recently upgraded and a new conference centre was added last year, but Watson said Crown plans to work with the owners to renovate the main lobby and continue other modernization efforts on upper floors.

“We’ve got some cool plans and ideas that we’ve started to work on,” he said, adding it’s “a bit premature” to release details or offer an estimated price tag for the proposed upgrades.

Watson said renderings of the new-look lobby and other changes should be ready by the end of this year, with work expected to get underway in the first half of 2027. Besides the real estate firm for which the complex is named, Minto Place’s other tenants include federal departments such as Infrastructure Canada, the Canada Revenue Agency and the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, as well as major law firm Soloway Wright and professional services giant BDO Canada. Lindsay Hockey, a vice-president at Colliers who handles leasing for the complex, told OBJ earlier this year that Minto Place’s vacancies are drawing strong interest from private-sector companies. Hockey said he also sees opportunities for the feds to help backfill some of the empty floor space. “What better way to deal with a significant amount of vacancy than if you can convince the feds to look at your building?” he added. “We’re trying.”

Watson said the modernized Minto Place will be designed to appeal to a broad mix of tenants, including tech companies and other private-sector firms as well as the federal government.

“The sooner you do (the renovations), the sooner you get the results,” he said. With most federal government managers already back in the office four days a week for the past few months and most other employees following suit as of July 6, Watson said downtown Ottawa is poised for a revival.

He believes Minto Place is “the right setting” for organizations looking to be close to the action.

“I think the (increase in) defence spending is definitely going to help,” he added. “The technology sector is back. It’s all good things, and those things typically happen downtown. In Ottawa, they specifically happen close to Parliament.”

The addition of Minto Place to its management portfolio means Crown Realty now owns or manages about 4.5 million square feet of commercial real estate in the National Capital Region. Its local holdings include a 50 per cent stake in Place de Ville and full ownership of the four-building Park of Commerce in Gloucester. The new contract to manage Minto Place comes a month after the firm sold another well-known office complex, the Carling Executive Centre, to Montreal-based Brasswater for $53 million.

Crown Realty bought the three-building, 290,000-square-foot property at 1525, 1545 and 1565 Carling Ave. from QuadReal Property Group for $56.5 million in 2019. It was the firm’s first transaction in the Ottawa market. Crown acquired the property “with a specific plan,” managing partner Emily Hanna wrote in an email to OBJ this week.

The firm wanted to “reposition the asset through targeted capital investment and an active leasing program” aimed at boosting its occupancy, she said.

“We did just that, investing in the onsite amenities and improving the tenant experience, which ultimately drove occupancy, rents, and income, even throughout the shock of COVID.”

Hanna would not comment on whether Crown has any other sales or acquisitions in its Ottawa pipeline, saying only that the company evaluates opportunities in the region “the same way we look at those in any of our target markets: we look asset by asset where we can acquire where pricing makes sense and devise an asset strategy that will lead to us driving improvements in income, occupancy and value. “Similarly, in line with our investment thesis, we plan to sell assets wherever we've completed our value-add work,” she added.

https://obj.ca/minto-place-to-get-makeover/

[rocketphish]

Department of National Defence acquires two office, industrial properties for $59M

By David Sali, OBJ
July 8, 2026

The federal government has purchased another major commercial complex in one of the largest real estate transactions of the past year in the National Capital Region. The Department of National Defence has acquired two office and industrial properties at 1600 and 1630 Star Top Rd. from Arnon Corp. for $59 million, a DND spokesperson confirmed this week. The two-building complex at the corner of Star Top and Innes roads covers a total of 279,263 square feet. The Department of National Defence has leased the four-storey, 223,000-square-foot building at 1600 Star Top Rd. since it opened in 2004. According to Arnon’s website, the building includes about 210,000 square feet of office space and 13,000 square feet of industrial space. DND also leases the neighbouring facility at 1630 Star Top Rd. In an email to OBJ, DND spokesperson Andrée-Anne Poulin said that, after considering its “evolving long-term requirements,” the department decided its “needs would be best served through direct ownership of the properties.”

The facilities will “continue to support longer-term DND and Canadian Armed Forces operational requirements in the National Capital Region,” she added. The acquisition comes as the federal government ramps up military spending as part of its pledge to spend the equivalent of five per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product on defence by 2035, up from two per cent today. The military has also stepped up recruiting efforts in the renewed push to protect Canadian sovereignty. Defence Minister David McGuinty said in April the Canadian Armed Forces brought in more than 7,300 new members in the previous 12 months, a 30-year high. It’s the federal government’s second significant real estate purchase in the National Capital Region in the past few months.

Public Services and Procurement Canada said in February it agreed to acquire a 14-storey tower at 131 Queen St. from Morguard Corp. for $148.2 million in a deal that’s expected to close before the end of August. The federal government’s real estate footprint is in the spotlight this week as most of its employees are expected to return to the office a minimum of four days a week, up from the three-day-a-week minimum that had been in place since September 2024. A spokesperson for PSPC told OBJ in late April the department “does not anticipate any challenges” finding enough room in its existing portfolio for workers who will need to be in the office an extra day each week. However, PSPC also said its analysis of workspace needs showed that the expanded return-to-office mandate will mean certain departments will require more workstations and other space in certain locations. The government is eyeing a number of options to boost its real estate footprint should the need arise, a spokesperson for the department said in an email to OBJ in April, including “optimizing underutilized space, renewing existing leases and potentially acquiring additional space where requirements cannot be met within the existing portfolio.” DND is the federal government’s largest occupier of floor space, with more than 100 million square feet across the country.

https://obj.ca/department-of-national-defence-acquires-properties/

[rocketphish]

Plenty of room for expansion on these combined properties:

[kwoldtimer]

Great transit links ....