[Moncton] Downtown Developments

[jonny golden]

I am still very disappointed with the final product of the West Gate apartment complex with its stunted height and tiny windows and balconies. They really "cheaped" out once they cowered to the neighbours. I'd imagine if the developers followed through on their initial proposal, we would see more pictures of that intersection as a gateway to the downtown.

Agree. It's really disappointing, especially in this important location. The thing is, that we only had one opportunity to create a project that would help make this intersection a western gateway into downtown.

I hope that the Junction developers come up with a signature building on their Main Street frontage. They have the two smaller wood frame buildings that they purchased which will be demolished, giving them a larger footprint to build on.

If they're still working to have a hotel in their development, I'd like to see them do a mixed use building with residential units above. This would be a way to obtain more height - it worked out pretty good for 55 Queen.

[EnvisionSaintJohn]

Saw this earlier on Facebook from the NB Retail group.



Talk about a big time improvement for the Moncton skyline.

[Photo1]

Originally Posted by reflist

A pro transit youtuber from Europe, "Not Just Bikes", made a video about his trip on the Ocean train service from Halifax to Montreal. He shows Moncton at about the 22:30 mark of the video. He remarks on the poor Canadian land use around train stations while in Moncton. This video really puts into perspective how much the passenger rail service in this country has declined.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2MGauUIUNc&ab_channel=NotJustBikes

He's not wrong, the area around the station is just devoid of any personality whatsoever. The station is in a 'no mans land', if you get off the train at Montreal's Central station or Toronto's Union for example there is so much to see, do, eat, enjoy "right there" for example...here it's just parking lots and the back side of buildings facing main street. Stepping out the front door of the Moncton station is very much a "why did I come here" moment.

[Leroy321]

There is some fencing going up and heavy equipment on the corner of Lester street and Victoria street. Does anyone know what’s going there? I imagine just a 2-4 story apartment but it is also really close to 55 queen and where St. Bernard place is suppose to be built.

Untitled by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/202492647@N05/]

[stephan.richard]

Originally Posted by Photo1

He's not wrong, the area around the station is just devoid of any personality whatsoever. The station is in a 'no mans land', if you get off the train at Montreal's Central station or Toronto's Union for example there is so much to see, do, eat, enjoy "right there" for example...here it's just parking lots and the back side of buildings facing main street. Stepping out the front door of the Moncton station is very much a "why did I come here" moment.

What I would do is try to look at the redevelopment of that part of the downtown core without compromising on parking in that area. I must agree that it’s not a very appealing part of town to have a train station and not very welcoming. But hope someone will have vision to do so.

[MonctonRad]

Night time paving work on East Main Street.


Infinity Aerials photo

The long civic nightmare of major infrastructure work which has stretched over the entire summer in nearly over.

Will this herald the start of work on the Infinity Tower next spring???

[Clamdigger]

Good morning!

Not sure if this has been commented on here but in recent weeks, a 2 storey steel structure building is being built on Université, on the lot facing Providence. Does anyone have insight into what this will be?

[KnoxfordGuy]

Is there any development planned for the corner of Robinson and St. George?

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by KnoxfordGuy

Is there any development planned for the corner of Robinson and St. George?

Not as far as I know. There had been an apartment building planned for that area, but, it fell through.

Why? Do you know something???

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by KnoxfordGuy

Is there any development planned for the corner of Robinson and St. George?

The old Delux building and the 3 abutting lots to the west of it were purchased back in 2022. That created a pretty significant sized lot for that part of downtown. I remember there was a lot of speculation at the time that there could be a nice development built on the property, but nothing ever happened.

Now we see that Taj Mahal is moving into the old Delux building. There is still a small vacant parcel that could hold a modest new building, but it's too bad that the Delux building wasn't demolished in favour of a bigger development.

[bridgeoftea]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Night time paving work on East Main Street.


Infinity Aerials photo

The long civic nightmare of major infrastructure work which has stretched over the entire summer in nearly over.

Will this herald the start of work on the Infinity Tower next spring???

Love this!
It's criminal that there isn't more night time construction around here. It helps alleviate more headaches when trying to commute through this stuff.

[Photo1]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Night time paving work on East Main Street.


Infinity Aerials photo

The long civic nightmare of major infrastructure work which has stretched over the entire summer in nearly over.

Will this herald the start of work on the Infinity Tower next spring???

Another view of the impact that the "three sisters" is having on the skyline...when some of these other "proposed" places go up things are going to look so different.

[David_99]

Originally Posted by Audevourahn

One of Moncton's own, The Timeister, is creating a series where he builds Moncton in Cities Skylines 2! I can't wait to see how he does! He used the map I created for the game of the city too!

Timeister has come out with his latest Moncton Skylines video, attempting to fix the traffic circle and Wheeler/Botsford intersection. A fun “what if?” and worth a watch.

• Video Link

[BlackYear]

Originally Posted by Photo1

He's not wrong, the area around the station is just devoid of any personality whatsoever. The station is in a 'no mans land', if you get off the train at Montreal's Central station or Toronto's Union for example there is so much to see, do, eat, enjoy "right there" for example...here it's just parking lots and the back side of buildings facing main street. Stepping out the front door of the Moncton station is very much a "why did I come here" moment.

I disagree. Walking out the doors of the Moncton train station, you can get on a Maritime bus to finish your journey, 3 minute walk to three hotels, several restaurants/bars, sports/concert venue and much more. Anything closer, the train would need a rail directly on Main street.

With that said, why redevelop anything more in the surrounding small parking lots for VIA rail with extremely low amount of passengers getting off the train? If I was getting off the train coming in from Halifax or Montreal, first thing I would want to do is go to my hotel room.

I would prefer to see something for Maritime Bus. A bus station dedicated for Maritime Bus on that empty lot between Via and Shoppers would be fantastic. Both Via and Maritime could have a corridor connecting both location with maybe a centralized area with something to entertain the passengers while they wait.

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

They were completing the final touches to the cladding for the new Baton Rouge at the Crowne Plaza today. Looks pretty sharp. I have high hopes for the eventual recladding of the entire hotel.

Has there been anything on the Crowne Plaza refresh, any idea on a timeline? It would really elevate the look of that whole block.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by jonny golden

Has there been anything on the Crowne Plaza refresh, any idea on a timeline? It would really elevate the look of that whole block.

<crickets> AFAIK.

I am not worried however. They have the plans and the design. I'm sure it will get done, perhaps next year.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Leroy321

There is some fencing going up and heavy equipment on the corner of Lester street and Victoria street. Does anyone know what’s going there? I imagine just a 2-4 story apartment but it is also really close to 55 queen and where St. Bernard place is suppose to be built.

[

This info was on Facebook:

We’re breaking ground on a new 12-unit project in the heart of Downtown Moncton!

At CASA, we’re not only about building happy custom homes, we’re also bringing investment properties to life and shaping communities.

Stay tuned as this, and more projects, come to life.

I wonder if this is a market value development, or, social housing???

[J81]

Originally Posted by Photo1

He's not wrong, the area around the station is just devoid of any personality whatsoever. The station is in a 'no mans land', if you get off the train at Montreal's Central station or Toronto's Union for example there is so much to see, do, eat, enjoy "right there" for example...here it's just parking lots and the back side of buildings facing main street. Stepping out the front door of the Moncton station is very much a "why did I come here" moment.

The majority of train stations in small towns and cities are the same even in Europe. You using Toronto and Montreal as an example is comparing apples to oranges.

The rail lands in downtown Toronto took decades to redevelop into what it is today and that is in Canadas largest city.

The land around the Moncton station and to the west was all rail lands with shops, sheds and tracks. Expecting Moncton to look like Toronto is silly. I also wouldnt say the station is in “no mans land” considering it is a 1 minute walk south of Main street and currently surrounded by the largest developments currently being built in the city.

Be patient.

[MonctonRad]

I think it is time for a very serious discussion regarding the future of these two buildings.

the Flat Iron Building is empty again. The Aboriginal "wellness centre" (cannabis store) is gone, and I see that there is now a basement window covered with plywood, presumably from an attempted break-in.

Meanwhile. the Subway Block remains in a derelict condition, and, this is rapidly deteriorating. Recently, scaffolding has appeared on the sidewalk in front of the Subway Block because the facade has started to crumble, posing a risk to passing pedestrians. The building itself borders on being beyond repair.

Hard decisions need to be made.

I very much like these two buildings, and, their juxtaposition with the adjacent CNR overpass provides for one of the most visually interesting streetscapes in the downtown core. If they could be repaired and repurposed, this would be my preferred option.

BUT

There are no white knights on the horizon. It would be horrendously expensive to bring the Subway Block back up to code. Finally, the proximity of these two buildings to the CNR mainline prohibits many different types of use (especially upper level residential).

I reluctantly suggest it is time to knock these two buildings down, and for these properties to have a chance for a fresh start with new construction.

The time has come.

Thoughts???

[jonny golden]

I understand the heritage factor with these buildings, but there comes a time when you just have to admit that some buildings are beyond saving. I think that the amount of money it would cost to bring these buildings up to code would likely prohibit any property developer from making the investment. If they're too far gone, they should be demolished.

Perhaps there could be some kind of a deal made with the current owners (whoever that is) so that the land could be redeveloped by a credible builder. And if both properties were consolidated into one, it would create a larger footprint to work with.

What I'd like to see is a building that would look similar to the existing buildings. If redeveloped, it would be nice to pay homage to them, i.e. a modern design that would remind us of what was there before. Especially the Flat Iron building.

I'm just not sure the appetite is there for anyone to take the initiative to deal with this.