Saskatoon Construction

[mike474]

Originally Posted by jrm857

Yea by population we are 17th, but economically we compete with in the big city list. if you look at a lot of those cities above us most are suburbs of somewhere bigger, last time I checked kitchner, victoria, st catherines were not considered as real stron economic cities. Just sayin . . .

What exactly did you check to come to that conclusion? Anecdotally I'd say Kitechener and Victoria are doing great. Statcan data on income and growth would also back that up (of course it's from the census, before the "boom"), but I wouldn't let and economic blip blind your judgment. This province has boomed before and yet our population is hardly larger than it was in 1931. I'd say Saskatoon isn't really on the major Canadian city radar.

[kgc087]

I'm def on board for riverlanding, I find it to touch on some key points in architecture and will bring forward the more modern edge of Saskatoon. I still have not figured out why people would want some mega hotel or mega building in general right on the banks of the river, to me quaint, inspiring structures should be built there to maximize the feeling of space. I think Riverlanding is just the perfect development for that spot AND will hopefully get other developers at that level in the city!! FINGERS ARE CROSSED! I didn't write my councilor but I talked to Darren Hill about it so he knows I support it!

[drm310]

Lake Placid back in the game
In a 10 to 1 vote, council voted to enter negotiations with Lake Placid Developments

By David Hutton, The StarPhoenix
April 12, 2010 11:17 PM

City council hooked itself Monday to Lake Placid Developments’ $200-million megaproject, hoping this time the deal to build River Landing’s signature development sets sail.

In a 10-1 vote, council decided to enter into negotiations with Lake Placid, which has a partnership in place with philanthropist Karim Nasser’s Victory Majors Investment Corp. to build the hotel-office-condo project on the contentious Parcel Y in Saskatoon’s south downtown.

The company must now settle with the city on the price of the land and show an independent auditor it has the wherewithal to see the project through to completion.

Lake Placid CEO Michael Lobsinger told reporters he is “absolutely” confident the group will clear the audit and says it now has new financing in place to build the signature River Landing Village megaproject in its entirety.

“We have the financial capability now to go forward,” he said. “There will be no risk of a hole being left in the ground.”

The meeting wasn’t without intriguing bureaucratic twists and turns.

Coun. Maurice Neault introduced a motion to enter into negotiations to sell the Lake Placid partnership the land for the initial price of $4.8 million as long as the company passed the audit.

Two recent land appraisals, which will be made public at a city committee next week, have placed the value of the land at $11 million, more than double the previous price.

Five councillors spoke in favour of the motion to sell the land to Lake Placid at the price that was agreed on almost three years ago.

“First of all, ($4.8 million) for the land is not giving it away,” said Coun. Myles Heidt. “Let’s go back 2 1/2 years; how many proposals did we have? One proposal, and that’s the individual (Lobsinger) sitting here tonight. If we increase the price of the land what makes you think they’d bid on it now if they didn’t bid on it then?”

Several councillors balked at the idea of selling the land for less than the new values without first negotiating with the company to see what it is willing to pay or looking at the appraisals to see where the $11 million figure came from.

“We don’t have to be in a state of desperation,” said Coun. Charlie Clark, the only councillor to vote against the deal. “I understand there’s a state of urgency but that doesn’t mean we have to go down this path of giving a break on the land.”

“What kind of damage will we be doing to land values in Saskatoon if we approve this?” said Coun. Pat Lorje.

Eventually, the city solicitor and city manager advised that including the sale price of the land in the motion wouldn’t be possible because public notice is necessary when selling land for less than an appraised value. The motion that eventually passed set out that the city must sell the land for no less than $4.8 million.

When Mayor Don Atchison was asked whether he hoped to still get a higher price for the land than the original price, given discussions Monday night, he said “that’s the trouble when you have to negotiate land deals in public.

“We want to make sure we get value to our citizens but there’s a question of fairness as well,” Atchison added.

Lobsinger and Nasser have been clear they are looking for the initial deal to be reinstated, including the land price that was set out when the company failed to make an outstanding payment for the land after council had granted several extensions.

“When I found that the initial purchase price of $1.6 million (to Ellen Remai in 2005 for a hotel-spa project), I thought I was getting badly treated when I had to pay $4.8 million . . . so am I getting a deal?” Lobsinger said.

Atchison said the land deal “holds the key to downtown and it holds the key to Riversdale.

“The University of Saskatchewan has five cranes but how many cranes have we seen in downtown?” he said.

Council requested the administration report back no later than May 25 on the agreement to ensure there aren’t more delays in getting the project moving.

[email protected]
© Copyright (c) The StarPhoenix

[jrm857]

its that so called "blip" that has put the provincial population as well as the cities at all time highs, and pushed us into a statistical tie for the 2nd highest wage in the country. and if you read further saskatoon has been leading canadian cities for economic growth for a few years now, dating to pre boom "blip". Saskatoon competes against the big cities in the country now, we are too far from a major centre not to. its not the little cities we need to fight anymore.

[drumuser]

Originally Posted by jrm857

its that so called "blip" that has put the provincial population as well as the cities at all time highs, and pushed us into a statistical tie for the 2nd highest wage in the country. and if you read further saskatoon has been leading canadian cities for economic growth for a few years now, dating to pre boom "blip". Saskatoon competes against the big cities in the country now, we are too far from a major centre not to. its not the little cities we need to fight anymore.

so answer me this one. where does this rank Regina in all this? they must be contending with the big cities also, just like Saskatoon. right?
haha.... you dream big but, you are still stuck with that small town mentality that drives people away from this province.....

[gopher65]

I think that the reason that everyone here supports the current River Landing project is simple: there are no other projects on the table. If there was even a single competing design for the site we'd be split. But right now no one else has expressed even remote interest in building anything substantial at RL, so we have no choice but to support the currently proposed project.

Personally I'd say that Lake Placid's design is fairly... meh... but since they're the only game in town I *have* to support their vision.

[Jerry]

Originally Posted by rrskylar

Thanks for the pictures Jerry, gives us from outside SK who have an interest in Saskatoon a better perspective on what's going. Hope city hall stands firm with Lake Placid and demands all money from site up front and a bond be posted with stipulations when work will begin and commence.

Glad you found some use for the pictures rrskylar.

In regards to City Hall, I watched city council last night and they stood by the wishes of the majority of Saskatoonians and is in the process of giving us the largest project in Saskatoon's history. The one thing City Hall can't do is predict a downturn in the economy that puts all developers at risk. This project would of been well underway if it wasn't for a one off world recession. I'm very proud of how our council handled itself throughout the whole process. It was done with respect, fairness and understanding which is something Saskatoon is known for.

Originally Posted by Ruckus

You da man Jerry!

I'm concerned about the sewage lift station. Save for the 2009 Saskatoon construction map, I could not find any info on the City's website; no project description or rendering. I hope they bury most of it or cover it up with trees and hedges. Regardless of its visual impact, it will beautifully complement the AGS across the river.

Yes, I am the man lol. I'm sure the lift station will turn into a grassy knoll or a small nondescript building that will keep us wondering whether it's the entrance to the bat cave.

[kgc087]

Originally Posted by drumuser

so answer me this one. where does this rank Regina in all this? they must be contending with the big cities also, just like Saskatoon. right?
haha.... you dream big but, you are still stuck with that small town mentality that drives people away from this province.....

If I recall correctly Saskatoon was invited to join the major cities of Canada group while Regina was not. That was 1 or 2 years ago now. I agree completley about the big dreams but small thinking. I feel Saskatoon is at a turning point, it's going from small town to big city so we are obviously having a lot of growing pains while making this transition but it will eventually happen. The only downturn is, is that so many rural people move into the city but still bring their rural mentality, they don't understand or realize living in a city is not like living in a small town, there is a different way of life. So somehow that has to be overcome

[socialisthorde]

Originally Posted by kgc087

If I recall correctly Saskatoon was invited to join the major cities of Canada group while Regina was not. That was 1 or 2 years ago now. I agree completley about the big dreams but small thinking. I feel Saskatoon is at a turning point, it's going from small town to big city so we are obviously having a lot of growing pains while making this transition but it will eventually happen. The only downturn is, is that so many rural people move into the city but still bring their rural mentality, they don't understand or realize living in a city is not like living in a small town, there is a different way of life. So somehow that has to be overcome

Like my neighbor with the 15,000 watt yard light, three half tons that never get used to haul anything other than gym bags and the weekend bonfire in his backyard?

[shmakim]

Originally Posted by drm310

“The University of Saskatchewan has five cranes but how many cranes have we seen in downtown?” he said.

This from our own mayor at a meeting with his council. WOW, he sounds like one of us! We should directly forward him links to this board.

Is Saskatoon a major Canadian city?
Well if the number of sushi restaurants is anything to go by...... <ducks shoe>
I think to be taken seriously as a major city contender, we need to lure larger businesses here, and have grander structures like RLV and the new Lighthouse... and maybe a Cameco tower. It feels a little superficial for me to say these things but that's what people notice. And to draw professionals in from other provinces (like me), more professional companies need to be established here.... preferably, more high tech and software.

RLV's architecture? I wouldn't call it "meh" - those apartment buildings running along 25th St by the bridge are meh - I can't stand them. This will be a curved structure of mostly glass with a central plaza, big pond, and a waterfall over big rocks at one end, if I'm not mistaken. What else in Saskatoon looks even remotely like that? We just don't have exciting architecture in this city. Think of how the agriculture building was received when it was built.

Parcel Y price: I think it's awesome that 5 councillors support selling for the original price. That sends a clear message to Lobsinger and Nasser, especially in the face of the appraisals, that Saskatoon is on board to help make it happen. The only bummer is that we're now waiting until May 25 to "get back"..... on what, final sale price? Shit guys, LP said they could be DIGGING by May...

[Morogolus]

Well that's good that RL worked out, hopefully he actually has the money. Not sure why they need six weeks to figure that out.

I like Saskatoon but I'm sick of how frickin expensive everything has gotten. Everything just goes up and gets more expensive yet myself and most people I know aren't making much more money on average then they were 3-4 years ago. I used to be able to take out 40 dollars from an ATM and that was good for me for a night out now I'm lucky if that lasts an hour. I paid 34 dollars for 12 cans of beer and 13 dollars for a pack of cigarettes on Saturday, like holy sh*t. A simple dinner and a movie costs 100 dollars easy these days.

I had to move back in with my parents cuz I got a notice saying my rent was going up to 1200 dollars a month from 900 for a 2 bedroom apartment in Lakeview which is just under half my income never mind utilties. My sister tried getting a mortgage on a condo and she has to pay a 20% deposit on a 160k condo which equals about 30k. Who can afford that? Most single mothers I know barely have enough money for groceries.

It's not a sustainable economy, the service sector is barely getting by making 10 bucks an hour and all these fat cats working in the natural resources and technology sectors are amassing huge fortunes.

The Canadian economy could see a collapse similar to what happened in the states. People are borrowing way too much and don't have the income to support it.

Sorry I know that doesn't have much to do with construction but how is this city supposed to attract people when everything is so ass raping expensive. Although Friday and Saturday night every restaurant, movie theatre and night club is completely jam packed and going to any of the malls in this city over the weekend is certainly a trying experience so maybe it's not that bad.

The only thing this boom did was double the price of everything and turned me from a middle to lower class citizen as far as I'm concerned

[drumuser]

Originally Posted by Morogolus

Well that's good that RL worked out, hopefully he actually has the money. Not sure why they need six weeks to figure that out.

I like Saskatoon but I'm sick of how frickin expensive everything has gotten. Everything just goes up and gets more expensive yet myself and most people I know aren't making much more money on average then they were 3-4 years ago. I used to be able to take out 40 dollars from an ATM and that was good for me for a night out now I'm lucky if that lasts an hour. I paid 34 dollars for 12 cans of beer and 13 dollars for a pack of cigarettes on Saturday, like holy sh*t.

I had to move back in with my parents cuz I got a notice saying my rent was going up to 1200 dollars a month from 900 for a 2 bedroom apartment in Lakeview. My sister tried getting a mortgage on a condo and she has to pay a 20% deposit on a 160k condo which equals about 30k. Who can afford that? Most single mothers I know barely have enough money for groceries.

It's not a sustainable economy, the service sector is barely getting by making 10 bucks an hour and all these fat cats working in the natural resources and technology sectors are amassing huge fortunes.

The Canadian economy could see a collapse similar to what happened in the states. People are borrowing way too much and don't have the income to support it.

Sorry I know that doesn't have much to do with construction but how is this city supposed to attract people when everything is so ass raping expensive. Although Friday and Saturday night every restaurant, movie theatre and night club is completely jam packed and going to any of the malls in this city over the weekend is certainly a trying experience so maybe it's not that bad.

same thing happening here in Regina. it sucks.

[Caswellian]

I was in the Lobby of City Hall during the media scrum last night, at no point did Lobsinger or Nasser state specifically that they have the financing in place despite several very specific questions by reporters. Additionally, they would not confirm or deny that his new financing involves the old European financing deal that has been "one signature" away since last spring.

It was quite evident from Council last night that the majority wanted to plow ahead, heck, they even went against their own City Solicitor's legal advice that they not discuss land price in public.

I'm ambivalent towards the Lake Placid proposal, but Council has made a mockery of City policy and procedure time and again over the past two years and that will have repercussions beyond River Landing in its future dealings.

It will be interesting to see if Lobsinger/Nasser can actually come up with the financing, to date they haven't proved they have.

[Chaps]

Originally Posted by kgc087

If I recall correctly Saskatoon was invited to join the major cities of Canada group while Regina was not. That was 1 or 2 years ago now. I agree completley about the big dreams but small thinking. I feel Saskatoon is at a turning point, it's going from small town to big city so we are obviously having a lot of growing pains while making this transition but it will eventually happen. The only downturn is, is that so many rural people move into the city but still bring their rural mentality, they don't understand or realize living in a city is not like living in a small town, there is a different way of life. So somehow that has to be overcome

Probably because Regina was already in that group...

Both Regina and Saskatoon are about to enter a bigger scene. I wouldn't be calling either of them "major cities" in Canada as that would put them on the same platform as Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal...and they certainly are far from that. Regina and Saskatoon may punch above their weight considering population.

But with the 3-4 highrises and stadium on the table for Regina, and the LP development and rumours of a Cameco tower on the table for Saskatoon...visually, both cities are about to "look" like bigger players.

[ZachPerkins]

Originally Posted by dsim249

I love the SoCa idea.

I came across an interesting site, called the Bridge Citizen. Anyone familiar with it? Someone from this thread definitely could have written this page. It's got some great points/ideas.

The man behind it all, Craig Leontowicz. What awesome local talent! Check out his blog, Facebook fanpage, portfolio etc. You'll definitely recognize his work from around town.

Thanks for posting a link to The Bridge Citizen. A bit of clarification, we did a story on Craig Leontowicz early on, but the site is actually the work of myself and local writer and musician Jordan Kurtz. Definitely check out Craig's work though. The man is talented. http://craigleontowicz.com/

[lbird]

Originally Posted by Caswellian

I was in the Lobby of City Hall during the media scrum last night, at no point did Lobsinger or Nasser state specifically that they have the financing in place despite several very specific questions by reporters. Additionally, they would not confirm or deny that his new financing involves the old European financing deal that has been "one signature" away since last spring.

It was quite evident from Council last night that the majority wanted to plow ahead, heck, they even went against their own City Solicitor's legal advice that they not discuss land price in public.

I'm ambivalent towards the Lake Placid proposal, but Council has made a mockery of City policy and procedure time and again over the past two years and that will have repercussions beyond River Landing in its future dealings.

It will be interesting to see if Lobsinger/Nasser can actually come up with the financing, to date they haven't proved they have.

QFT. Lobsinger has zero credibility, I still think it is highly unlikely this current proposal goes forward as long as he is involved.

[dsim249]

Originally Posted by ZachPerkins

Thanks for posting a link to The Bridge Citizen. A bit of clarification, we did a story on Craig Leontowicz early on, but the site is actually the work of myself and local writer and musician Jordan Kurtz. Definitely check out Craig's work though. The man is talented. http://craigleontowicz.com/

Wow, Sorry about that. I guess I should have gotten to know the site a bit more before posting that. At any rate, keep up the good work guys, I've really been enjoying the site.

The men behind The Bridge Citizen, Zach Perkins and Jordan Kurtz!

[dsim249]

Originally Posted by djforsberg

Ya, and Mayor Pat Fiacco is the chair of the Big City Mayor's Caucus, if that's what we are talking about.

Yes, yes, yes. No need to start the debate. I believe it was our mayor who motioned for Fiacco to be chair, this time around.

Both cities are in the caucus, along with 20 other cities across Canada.

[prairieguy]

Re: River Landing

Relieved to hear that council was open and receptive to negotiating with Lake Placid rather then going back to square one and putting out RFPs. Once again, however, we are faced with what seems like an undue delay in an actual decision. I have no problems with vetting out the financial viability of Lake Placid to proceed with the project, but that it is going to take an additional 5 weeks to come to a decision???? Come on guys, lets move this thing along! If for some reason, Lake Placid cannot demonstrate their financing (which I hope will not be the case, although they sure still seem evasive about it, at least with the media) then we need to be ready to make some decisions about the land (i.e. dividing up land; changing restrictions for development; etc.)

I really hope RL Village proceeds and we see excavation starting May 26th!

[EarlyByrdProductions]

Originally Posted by dsim249

I think we're all so unified (note that rrskylar is not a resident of Saskatoon) with the RL project because we want change. It would be very typical for the city to break up the land, put in crappy little parks (which already line the Meewasin), they can be nice, but it's not exciting, it's not innovative and it's not progressive. I want LP's River Landing to be built, because I think it would be the start of a true renaissance within our city. I see so much potential in Saskatoon, and I don't want to have that potential ruined by mere mediocrity, which currently abounds here.

What are your feelings towards the project EarlyByrd?

I am definitely for it.
Yet sometimes I am still in the mix between, being 'for it' since it's the only thing on the table and wondering what else it could have been, even if that took a couple more years of waiting.
Maybe it is from living in Europe that you get a new respect for beautiful architecture that takes decades or hundreds of years to plan and build.

I am by no means expecting the Notre Dame to pop up on the river bank but I am fed up with North American cities building in the short term, ugly buildings or mediocre buildings then tearing them down and putting something else up when mindsets change.

I just want everyone on this board to be in favour of the project, because of the project, and not just because it will bring a crane to town.