London Construction - Development News Thread #1

[MolsonExport]

Quite frankly, who gives two-shits what Jack Layton says?

[ldoto]

Thu, February 28, 2008


It has been a Ramada Inn, Park Lane Hotel, King's Inn and for a brief stint a stylish, edgy condominium project in downtown London.

Now, Park Tower, the 163-unit, 45-year-old residence at 186 King St. is an inexpensive home to students, people at a crossroads in their lives or business people needing a long-term residence in the city.

This is looking good stylish, edgy condominium project in downtown London.



"Our strategy is to provide accommodation that's affordable and we have a mixed demographic of customers," says Darren Cooper, who manages the building for owner Rose Corp. in Toronto.

In fact, about 30 per cent of the tenants are students, the balance are people here on business for several months "or needing a new start," adds Cooper.

The units now rent from $550 a month inclusive for a bachelor to $850 for one-bedroom suites, and are fully furnished. There's a communal kitchen on every floor and the building is 94 per cent occupied, with about 200 residents, he adds.



"We have had a really good response," says Cooper.

Janette MacDonald, general manager of MainStreet London, believes Park Tower has a role to play in the core's revitalization. While recent residential developments downtown have focused on high-end rental units, a mixed demographic is needed to sustain long-term growth, she believes.

"They have done a terrific job there and the new facade is beautiful," she says. "Every resident is important to downtown, we will never be revitalized until people live here and we need a diverse group."

In addition to the apartments, Park Tower also offers 7,000 square feet of commercial space for lease on a month-to-month basis for new, start-up businesses, says Cooper. Those leases range from $7 a square foot to $18 a square foot.

But it's the Time Condominium project in 2005 that was perhaps the most ambitious concept for the former hotel, Cooper believes. In fact, the building's website -- parktower.ca -- still boasts an artist's rendering of the project. For four months they tried selling the units -- bachelor, one- and two-bedroom units -- ranging in price from $69,999 to $149,999.

"The sales were just not there," says Cooper. "It had a tired look to the front and it was hard to get people to understand the vision.

Rose Corp. has owned the building since 2004.

[MolsonExport]

"The sales were just not there," says Cooper. "It had a tired look to the front and it was hard to get people to understand the vision.

No kidding. Looks like a run-down 70's era Las Vegas motor inn.

[ldoto]

Big News

"Original Cakerie" Coming to London

500 Jobs Are Icing on the Cake

http://www.achannel.ca/london/news_54247.aspx

The British Columbia based company "The Original Cakerie" is coming to London, and with it will be 500 new jobs for Londoners.
A ground-breaking ceremony was held today for the new 245-thousand square foot manufacturing plant.

Company President David Hood says London beat out several other communities competing for the plant.

Hood says London's location was key. It is close to the Golden Horseshoe market, and has easy access to future American markets.

Original Cakerie provides baked good to grocery stores and prepared food products for companies like M&M Meat Shops.

The announcement reversed a recent trend of industrial plant shutdowns, mostly in the autoparts sector.

[MolsonExport]

^good news.

[ldoto]

Lots of communities were after it, but London took the cake.

A Vancouver-based cake and pastry company has chosen London as the site of a new manufacturing plant that will employ about 400 people with potential for hundreds more jobs in the future.

"We did a North American- wide evaluation and we had a really good feeling for this area," said David Hood, president of the Original Cakerie.

The $40-million plant will be built on a nine-hectare site in a municipal industrial park in the southeast corner of the city.

The first phase of the plant will be 125,000 square feet. The second will double its size and add at least 100 more jobs.




Construction should begin within a few weeks and hiring is a few months off. The plant is slated to open next March.

With the price of basic commodities such as wheat soaring, Hood admitted it is a tough time to be in the bakery business. But the company is in for the long haul and London looked like the best place to expand, he added.

"These are North American issues and if we went to the States we wouldn't avoid them," he said.

The Ontario government is providing $2.5 million toward construction of the plant through a program targeted at rural development.

London-Fanshawe MPP Khalil Ramal said the grant was appropriate because even though the plant is in London, it will buy $30-million worth of flour, milk, eggs and sweeteners from rural producers.

Peter White, chief executive of the London Economic Development Corp., said London faced tough competition.

The company considered sites near Toronto and Kitchener as well as locations in Illinois, Wisconsin and Washington state. He said the provincial grant helped seal the deal.

White said London has good access to eastern Canadian and American markets.

"We are great as a food-processing location with ties to regional agriculture," said White.

Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best said called it a "sweet, sweet" announcement for the City of London. In the last two months the city has also landed the new Hanwha manufacturing plant and an expansion of the Diamond Aircraft plant.

DeCicco noted that the Original Cakerie plant would more than offset the loss of 275 jobs at the McCormicks biscuit and candy plant, which was closed last January, and could provide jobs for any former McCormicks employees still looking for work.

The Original Cakerie was founded in Victoria, British Columbia, in 1979 and is privately owned.

Hood said consumers in this area may not be familiar with the Original Cakerie's name, but have likely eaten their premium, European-style products in restaurants, cafeterias and stores.

"If you went into a hospital, coffee shop, or restaurant you will see our product," said Hood.

The company sells its products to restaurant and food service suppliers such as Sysco and Sodexho and provides in-house brands to retailers such as M&M Meats and Sobey's.

---

REACTION

- "We are more than happy to supply them with quality wheat. We have a record number of acres of winter wheat in the ground."

Larry Shapton, general manager of the Ontario Wheat Producers Marketing Board

- "Rural Ontario has been suffering and this an opportunity to strengthen the economic base."

London-Fanshawe MPP Khalil Ramal.

- "This is excellent news that will diversify the London economy."

Gerry Macartney, general manager of the London Chamber of Commerce

BY THE NUMBERS

250,000 sq. ft.: size of new Original Cakerie plant when both phases completed

9 hectares: size of new factory site

400: jobs created in the first two years

100: jobs created in future planned expansion

$30 million: value of flour, eggs, milk, fruit and sweeteners the plant will buy annually

$40 million: construction cost of plant

$2.5 million: provincial grant for construction

[ldoto]

Pain gets long-term look

Mon, March 3, 2008

A London-based study will try a new approach to study medications for intense pain.


Lawson Health Research Institute scientists are tackling one of the worst pains for humans in a $1-million, three-year research project.

Dr. Dwight Moulin and Dr. Patricia Morley-Forster at London Health Sciences Centre are leading the investigation to find the best way to treat neuropathic pain.

Unlike the more common chronic pain, such as that caused by arthritis, neuropathic pain is due to nerve damage and is more intense.

"It could be from trauma, a car accident, it could be from shingles or diabetes. Some drugs can damage nerves as well," Moulin said.

"It's a type of pain that is particularly severe and difficult to manage."




Neuropathic pain can be triggered by activities as simple as getting dressed.

The over-the-counter drugs typically used for common pain don't work against neuropathic pain, he said.

Several drugs have shown promise in treating neuropathic pain, but the trials have involved giving one group of patients the drug and another a placebo.

That's limited the studies to two months, because it's considered unethical to give a placebo for pain beyond two months.

"In the real world, people want medication and they want to know how good it is going to be for more than two months. They want to know how good it is going to be for one year or two years, or perhaps the rest of their life," Moulin said.

The Lawson Health Research Institute study, involving five pain treatment centres in Ontario and Quebec, will try to answer the long-term question by following about 1,000 pain patients over two to three years.

To evaluate the effectiveness of the pain treatment, the researchers will measure how well people do over the years compared to when they started.

"We want to know if the results in the short-term trials can be confirmed in the long term," Moulin said.

Major funding for the study is coming from Pfizer Canada.

[ldoto]

Tue, March 4, 2008


Officials at the University of Western Ontario were starry-eyed yesterday at a $9-million boost from the Ontario government to upgrade the astronomy and physics building.

“The physics and astronomy building is one of Western’s oldest and grandest,” said UWO president Paul Davenport.

Completed in 1924, the structure in the “modified, collegiate gothic” style of architecture was originally the natural sciences building. It’s the second-oldest on campus, opened shortly after University College, the arts building.

Davenport lauded the gift as one that will “allow Western to expand research capacity, improve the student experience and help foster innovation.”

The money is earmarked to upgrade the structure so it can house four leading research programs and new teaching facilities.




The Ontario government recently contributed $13 million to Western to improve energy efficiency and campus safety and for other improvements. The money is part of a $1.4-billion, provincewide investment in strategic public works included in the government fall economic statement.

Deb Matthews, the Liberal MPP for London-North-Centre, said the latest contribution “will help ensure that there is the appropriate space for the development of research and the training of those who will become the workforce behind the next generation of jobs.”

[SlickFranky]

The physics building is really one of the coolest on campus (love that courtyard), but I'm not sure how much research space they're going to be able free up there. If anyone's ever been in that basement they know that no space is wasted in physics and astronomy. 9 mil should give the interior a much needed reno, but that's about it. The labs in the upper floors are pretty ghetto.

[MolsonExport]

^yeah, I taught in the bowels of the Physics and Astronomy building a couple of years. The classrooms were really run-down, and the halls were quite decrepit.

[flar]

There used to be some top-secret research funded by the US military going on in that basement.

[GreatTallNorth2]

I was speaking to the leasing manager at Sifton Properties and he told me that their vacancy rate is quite low for downtown London. One London Place, which someone in the KW forum said had a 26% vacancy, actually has 7% vacany. This person also told me that they are still considering building a structure beside OLP, but it would be a smaller structure. He said they are considering this because they are getting serious inquiries about leasing in downtown and they don't have the space to accomodate.

I think there are some other exciting things going to happen downtown including more residential and possibly a new hotel.

[QuantumLeap]

GreatTall, this doesn't surprise me, given the (ahem) worldwide office boom. However, the building next to me is practically empty (Dufferin and Richmond) and I know there are vacancies at their other buildings. Why doesn't Sifton build residential at Two London Place? There are lots of sites downtown, so there is no point in banking a site for offices til a sunnier day.

[GreatTallNorth2]

Hey, I don't work for Sifton. I am just telling you what the man said. I guess you would have some empty space if their buildings have 7% vacancy. They probably have a lot of space overall downtown, so some must be empty.

I did ask him about residential. He said they have never built any residential towers downtown, but he stressed they had not done it in the past but from his tone it sounded like they might consider it in the future. Sifton is really a first class developer and if they built something downtown (residential), I think they would do it right. No more commie towers please!

London indeed has a ton of space downtown to develop. I hope we see some good things happen in the future.

[ldoto]

There is some good info and news in that Thread!!! Hope to see if some thing happens!!!!
News Headlines
News Release
2008-02-27


London, Ontario, businesses benefit from new Primus Internet Data Centre
Information technology infrastructure assures 100% uptime allowing businesses to concentrate on core competencies
London, Ontario February 27, 2008 - Primus Telecommunications Canada Inc. (Primus Canada) today announced the opening of a new state-of-the-art Internet Data Centre (IDC) in London, Ontario. The new facility houses and manages mission critical computer server hardware and software assets and addresses a demand from local small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) for better IT support.

Small businesses with fewer than 100 employees and medium-sized firms that have between 100 and 500 employees make up 97.7 per cent of businesses in Canada. To address common challenges faced by SMBs, such as lack of resources to dedicate to IT staff and infrastructure, Primus' London IDC provides a cost-effective, secure, safe and reliable location to house IT infrastructure.

"Primus customers across the country have told us they want locally based solutions to their IT needs," said A.J. Byers, Senior Vice President, Primus Business Services. "This new IDC in London allows small- and medium-sized businesses across southwestern Ontario to become more productive and focus on their specialized business operations so they can in turn innovate more aggressively."

According to the London Economic Development Corporation (LEDC), Primus's new facility offers local and regional businesses options for a local IDC that serves London's growing technology and business sectors. By easing the significant up-front cost for technology investment and providing critical IT solutions, the alternative offered by Primus allows SMBs to focus on their core business functions.

"This new facility demonstrates Primus's commitment to the London market and is a very positive indication of the growth of the small- and medium-sized business sector in London," said Peter White, President and CEO, LEDC. "We look forward to working with Primus in its support of London businesses."

The first phase of the new 22,000 square foot Class-A data centre includes 3,500 square feet of raised floor area. Located in an unmarked location with a single secure entrance, the IDC offers protection for servers allowing for maximized up time during a power failure using redundant Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS), and a backup diesel generator.

"Our global multimedia company offers a high degree of engineering in the multimedia products we offer," said Geoff Wagget, Vice President, Operations, for EK3, a global multimedia company based in London, Ontario. "Without proper network fail-safe infrastructure like what Primus is offering, we cannot deliver our solutions. Primus's superior value-added services such as higher security, redundant transmission links, environmental controls and power failure backup systems put us in a class above our competition to provide reliability in our solutions."

The facility offers industry leading managed services, fire suppression, enhanced power management and disaster recovery systems. A state-of-the-art cooling system with full redundancy ensures guaranteed climate control for high density servers available today and in the future.

About Primus Business Services
Primus Business Services is a leading provider of advanced voice communications, data centre infrastructure and managed information technology (IT) solutions to the small and medium sized business market. Its dedicated group of certified technicians, system administrators and network engineers deliver and support innovative solutions for over 45,000 businesses. As a division of Primus Canada, Primus Business Services leverages a national network for voice and data services, and a world-class telecom infrastructure. Primus Business Services operates Internet Data Centres in Vancouver, Ottawa, Toronto and London.

About PRIMUS Canada
Primus Telecommunications Canada Inc. is the largest alternative communications carrier in Canada. The Company offers facilities-based voice, data, e-commerce, Web hosting, VoIP and broadband Internet services utilizing ADSL2+ technology. Primus Canada's national network consists of nationwide switches with international connectivity through its parent company's global network, ATM and IP nodes, and colocation facilities at major cities across the country. Primus Canada is also one of Canada's largest MVNO's (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) offering Primus Wireless service. Primus Canada is a wholly-owned subsidiary of McLean, Virginia-based Primus Telecommunications Group, Incorporated (OTCBB: PRTL). Primus Canada news and information are available at the Company's Web site at www.primus.ca.

[SlickFranky]

One London Place is well occupied, but there is plenty of vacant commercial space downtown. I wouldn't expect to see any new office towers for quite a while. City Hall has hinted they would like to see more residential development DT, though the massive "renaissance" building may absorb demand a bit in that market as well. Hopefully they throw some incentives at the developers and we get a few new residential towers in the near future. Ideally they would throw Farhi a bone and get that library project back on the table.

Speaking of vacancies, does anyone know what's happening with the building at Richond + Dundas? (the one that used to be a bank, BMO I think) It's such a beautiful building, sitting on a key location...something better happen there, and soon. Isn't that Farhi's as well?

[GreatTallNorth2]

That former bank building is being turned into a massive Moxies. They have been working on it for some time.

Yes, there is ample office space downtown, but I do not believe there is ample "class A" space. Sifton has a low vacancy and if they can secure tenants for a new building, then they will build.

From one I read in the freeps, Galleria is practically 100% occupied now (office space).

[WaterlooInvestor]

<deleted>

[WaterlooInvestor]

Originally Posted by ldoto

Mon, January 21, 2008
There is about 700,000 square feet of vacant office space downtown.

[MolsonExport]

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