The Connolly (98 James St S.) | 105.1 m | 31 fl | Planning

[Wigs]

any updates on this project? I had such high hopes for this like 5 years ago hahah

[spaghettisam]

for this and the the moderne ive honestly given up on seeking updates and will treat is as a bonus one day if they get built

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by Wigs

any updates on this project? I had such high hopes for this like 5 years ago hahah

Or 9+. Since the thread began.

[Crapht]

Emphasis on “Con”

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by Crapht

Emphasis on “Con”

Had this remained the child of the original purchaser I'd agree... the latest one gets benefit of doubts from me, for now.

[Crapht]

Originally Posted by ScreamingViking

Had this remained the child of the original purchaser I'd agree... the latest one gets benefit of doubts from me, for now.

I had thought this was on the 3rd? owner at this point but it doesn’t really matter. As far as I’m concerned the lot should be cleaned up and the sidewalk on James street should be given back to pedestrians. That tunnel is sketchy.

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by Crapht

I had thought this was on the 3rd? owner at this point but it doesn’t really matter. As far as I’m concerned the lot should be cleaned up and the sidewalk on James street should be given back to pedestrians. That tunnel is sketchy.

I do wonder about the condition of what's left of the church.

Yes this is the third owner. But it has been about 9 months with no news... is no news good news?

[Wigs]

I don't get it. That Toronto based development company paid around $24M for the site, yet they are just sitting on it?
Doesn't make sense to me.

[mikevbar1]

Originally Posted by Wigs

I don't get it. That Toronto based development company paid around $24M for the site, yet they are just sitting on it?
Doesn't make sense to me.

Ignore what I said before. I thought this was the project on John at first. I’ve removed my comment.

I’d imagine they’re trying to time the market… it’s not like they need to go through too many hoops to get this construction ready again, so it might just begin sales out of nowhere.

Edit: also, I thought it was a SE Asian investment firm.

[Wigs]

I think you're thinking of Hue the previous owners are a Vietnamese conglomerate/investment firm. Toronto's Milborne Group owns it now.
They are the developers of 75 James
https://milborne.com/projects/

Originally Posted by SteelTown

The Connolly: Historic Hamilton church property sold to Toronto developer

https://www.insauga.com/the-connolly...DD-2t5H8lQwMG8

After a series of owners and failed development projects, Toronto’s Milborne Group is taking The Connolly reigns. The same company that is affiliated with the 1 Jarvis condo development and the 75 James Condominiums.

Milborne Group reportedly paid $24 million for The Connolly property — an “astronomically high price”, according to Alex Manojlovich of Forge & Foster.

“It could make sense at an estimated value of $80 per buildable square feet, although that’s still very high for Hamilton,” says Manojlovich. “Alternatively, the price could include some other form of value, like an approved site plan or pre-construction deposits.”

The Connolly has been hanging in limbo since the building was demolished in 2014. The historic front stone facade was preserved, however, to make way for an $80 million, 30-storey condo development by Louie Santiguida.

That project was placed in receivership in 2017, a tool to assist creditors in recovering funds in default. Essentially, a receivership makes it easier for a lender to recover funds owed to them if a borrower defaults on a loan.

In 2018, it was sold to Hue Developments, which proposed a 31-storey tower with 315 units.

The former James Street Baptist Church was built in 1882. In 2022, it belongs to the Milborne Group, which will be looking to bring more residential units to the downtown core.

[Innsertnamehere]

There could be a bunch of things holding them up here. That said, they have yet to even have their FC for any new site plan application here so don't expect an application too soon.

[Chronamut]

God doesn't want them to build here LOL.

..after what they did to the church.

[TheHonestMaple]

I noticed that a new sign has been put up here, "financing provided by MarshallZehr".

[urban_planner]

Originally Posted by TheHonestMaple

I noticed that a new sign has been put up here, "financing provided by MarshallZehr".

This has been up for at least 2 months.

[Chronamut]

This plot is doomed..

DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMED.

[ScreamingViking]

And so we wait, yet again


Long-stalled James Baptist project hit by marketplace ‘complications’
Developers seek another extension of heritage permit for future Connolly condos.

Teviah-Moro
The Hamilton Spectator
Monday, May 27, 2024

https://www.thespec.com/news/hamilto...8ba150919.html


A partially demolished downtown Hamilton church and an aspirational 30-storey condo tower a decade in the making remain in flux as weeds grow on its rubble-strewn site.

Developers behind the James Street Baptist property, where the Connolly project has been planned since a previous owner partly razed the 146-year-old church in 2014, say they’re reassessing their plan.

In an email to the city requesting an extended heritage permit, a representative said “several setbacks” have delayed the James Street South project.

“As you know the current marketplace is experiencing complications with elevated interest rates and delays due to supply-chain disruption, labour shortages and cost escalation,” wrote Michael Budovitch, a principal with 98 James South (2022) Inc.

“We have been working with our architect on the building mix to design a mix of products that is appropriate for today’s marketplace, as larger suites have resulted in price points that are not affordable,” he said.

“Several options are available to us, however, will need more time with consultants to finalize the marketing mix. The goal is to achieve the ultimate product mix which will be saleable and create profit at the end.”

The target for a sales launch is this fall or spring next year, noted Budovitch, who didn’t respond to a request for comment.

His correspondence asks the city to extend by one year a heritage permit the developers need to move their project forward.

That extension to March 2025 follows the recent expiry of a previous year-long extension granted in the spring of 2023.

In a report before the heritage committee Friday, staff noted the newly extended permit would hold the developers to property- and building-related tasks laid out in their request letter.

The Connolly project has had more than one false start since a Toronto developer knocked the old church down in 2014.

Louie Santaguida had aspired to incorporate the facade into a future condo building, but amid financial troubles in 2017, those efforts fell apart.

In 2019, Hue Developments bought the property and announced plans to resurrect the project with an infusion of capital.

Then in 2022, Allen Le Nam said his firm, a subsidiary of a larger Vietnam-based corporation, had to pull the plug due to pandemic-related woes.

In August that year, 98 James South (2022) Inc. bought the parcel.

The long-stalled project is troubling, Coun. Cameron Kroetsch said.

“It bothers me. There are many sites downtown like this.”

The development industry faces headwinds, but Hamilton is struggling through a housing crunch, the Ward 2 councillor said.

“So I get it, but we’re in a housing crisis and so when there’s a housing crisis, you have to build housing.”

...

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by Chronamut

This plot is doomed..

DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMED.

Have to have the builders in synch with the local market though. Housing "crunch" be damned... these developers aren't profiting on goodwill.

[drpgq]

Wow 10 years since the razing. Given interest rates and investor demand, I don't see a lot of hope for anything soon.

[Chronamut]

Timeframes like these makes me aware of just how long some of us have been on these forums hehe..

[ShavedParmesanCheese]

This is why you don't cheap out on church demolitions, you run the risk of supernatural curses

I remember seeing it after demolition on a field trip in elementary school... I'm halfway through a university degree now..