Calgarian looks back to change Saskatoon skyline
David Parker, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, March 11, 2008
When the premier and mayors of Saskatchewan came calling on Alberta to try to persuade former Saskatchewan residents to participate in its growth, they struck a chord with Michael Lobsinger. The Calgary-based developer re-introduced himself to the mayor of Saskatoon with the result that his company, Lake Placid Group, is building the largest privately funded project in the province spread over a whole block of land in his hometown.
After graduating from its university, Lobsinger worked for many years in the commercial real estate sector in Saskatoon. His business expanded throughout Western Canada, but after moving to Calgary he switched to oil and gas and then formed a high-tech company.
Its expansion into international business meant opening offices in the U.S., Europe, Asia and South America. Wherever he travelled, Lobsinger began acquiring land in a family trust.
His vision was to launch a family-run development company and Lake Placid was born as soon as his sons graduated in business -- Michael from the University of Saskatoon and Richard from St. Mary's in Halifax.
The first project was Centuria Urban Village in Kelowna on land in a run-down area that had been vacant for five years. Lobsinger says it was a tough job but today people are moving into the 151 condo units -- only eight are left to be sold -- in a stunning terraced brick building by BKDI Architects with 1.2 hectares of underground parking.
Centuria on the Park is his first large Calgary development. Designed by IBI Group, it is 14 storeys of high-end condominiums cascading down to a four-storey podium of city homes and town homes to its desirable beltline location across from Central Memorial Park on the corner of 13th Avenue and 2nd Street S.W. The design allows for huge patios ranging from 400 to 1,000 square feet.
The Saskatoon River Landing project is being welcomed by that city as a new downtown meeting place that will convert three acres of prime land along the river bank that have been vacant for far too long into a mixed-use development of three distinct buildings connected through public amenities and architectural features into a landmark urban village concept.
Calgary's S2 Architecture's design of River Landing was inspired by the South Saskatchewan River, incorporating the curvature and movement of the water through the river valley, while accenting its erosion and terracing through the shape and structure of its buildings.
It has a central plaza area around a pool that will become an ice rink in winter with a podium for a huge Christmas tree. The elevated feature is visually tied to the river valley by a waterfall over huge blocks of river rock.
With all approvals expected to be in place within 60 days, work will begin this fall on the 700-stall parking levels that cover the site. Four distinct buildings that all follow the curvature of the central pond will provide a hotel, residential tower and two office towers.
Only two blocks away from Saskatoon's famed Bessborough, the new hotel will be eight storeys high and contain between 120 and 150 rooms, along with banquet and meeting facilities. All vehicle access/egress will be through the underground parkade eliminating significant street traffic, but there will be a hotel drop-off loop along Second Avenue.
Two hundred and thirty units will be available in the 20-storey residential tower, which includes two levels of townhouses while the 130,000-square-foot office component will feature two five-storey towers with retail/restaurant spaces on the main floors.
River Landing will provide a wide variety of amenities unifying downtown Saskatoon with the South Saskatchewan riverfront as well as producing an economic value to the city of around $500 million.
But Lobsinger is not forgetting Calgary while undertaking this massive project.
We are awaiting news of how he will use the King Edward School, which Lake Placid recently purchased and it has also bought the two-storey building on the southeast corner of 4th Street and 13th Avenue -- a great location shared by First Baptist Church, Central Memorial Park and the Sheldon Shumir Centre -- which is going to be renovated for its own head office use.
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United States Ambassador to Canada David Wilkins will be in Calgary on April 1 at the invitation of the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada -- Western Chapter.
Elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in 1980 where he served for 25 years, he became the 21st U.S. Ambassador to Canada in June 2005.
The event will take place at the Westin Hotel and tickets go on sale March 21. E-mail
[email protected].
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I guess people in positions that require continually moving have to get used to severing ties. It's more difficult for us who remain in one place to accept that we may lose touch with some fine people.
This city will surely miss Soemu Horie, Consul General of Japan, when he leaves Calgary at the end of this month after completing his tenure here.
A true gentleman, in the 27 months he has served his government here, he has worked hard to establish the relocated consulate in Calgary and to strengthen the ties between Japan and Canada. We wish him well.
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David Parker appears Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. He can be reached at 830-4622 or e-mail
[email protected]
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