[Moncton] Downtown Developments

[MonctonRad]

I found this interesting graphic on the DMCI website - from their recently presented annual report:



So, it appears the city will be spending a total of $11M between 2020-2023 to completely redo the infrastructure along St. George St, including street reconstruction.

Hopefully at the end, St. George St. will be equipped with all the amenities necessary to create a unique urban ambiance.

I've always felt that the success of downtown Moncton depends as much on St. George St. as it does Main St. If both these arteries are attractive and prosperous, then the whole downtown core between these two streets will also benefit, and will vicariously become more attractive to further development as well.........

[jonny golden]

There's a lot of under developed property along St. George Street. It would be great if this reconstruction becomes an incentive for developers to invest in this area.

[MonctonRad]

Slightly different angle of the new Hilton Garden Inn, currently under construction on Highfield Street (found on the Spitfire Design FB page).



This view highlights the outdoor patio off of the main floor restaurant.

[jonny golden]

Driving down Highfield tonight, there's not much left of the V Hotel. (Colonial Inn years ago) The site looks huge when you can actually right see through to Elm Street. A lot bigger than I thought it was. The Hilton Garden Inn is going to be a substantial upgrade.

[MonctonRad]

Demolition of the old "V" Hotel is now about 75% complete.



Patrons will now have to wait another 18 months or so (until the Hilton Garden Inn is built) before having "breakfast, lunch or supper" on this site again............

[David_99]

The Euston Park Beer Garden on the corner of Euston & Waterloo has opened. Food looks great. They have weekend brunches and weekday lunch rush specials.







Photos from Derek Haggett / T&T

[jonny golden]

Machinery busy at the V Hotel site today. Demolition continuing. There isn't much left standing.

[MonctonRad]

Moncton council rejects 365-space parking lot for Blue Cross building
Building owner Slate REIT sought to increase downtown parking to retain tenants
Shane Magee · CBC News · Posted: May 22, 2019 6:44 AM AT | Last Updated: an hour ago
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/moncton-council-blue-cross-building-slate-1.5144322

So, city council has voted to reject the plan to convert the old Co-op location downtown into surface parking.

I am heavily conflicted on this issue.

I certainly do not support the expansion of surface parking downtown. Surface parking is a blight, and a very poor use of a precious resource (downtown land for development).

Slate however spun this as a temporary parking solution while they explored with the city the possibility of a jointly funded parking structure closer to the Blue Cross Centre. I could have supported this.

Instead, by outright rejecting the proposal, the city has put Slate in the position of possibly losing tenants in the Blue Cross Centre, and may have put the possibility of future expansion of the Blue Cross Centre at risk. I am very uncomfortable with this. The city of Moncton is still not so secure that it should be thumbing it's nose at potential downtown developers........

On CBC Information Morning this morning, they interviewed a couple of the interveners who presented at the city council meeting. They were both eco-activists from UdeM, and they were both overjoyed at what they felt was a major victory in the WAR AGAINST THE CAR. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and the CBC host was actively enabling them.

This is not what this issue is about.

This shouldn't be a war against the car. The issue should be about how to proceed with downtown development in a logically coherent manner that best suits the interests of most people.

This includes the car driving public.

Not everyone can bicycle to work, and cycling is only really an option around here about seven months a year. Not everyone can take public transit to work. Codiac Transpo has a labyrinthine and inefficient routing system which only works for a minority of the population. Personal transportation is the only viable option for many people.

A war against the car would ultimately kill the downtown core. I have no doubt about this.

We need to start now with a plan to replace surface parking in the core with several new enclosed parking garages, while at the same time repurposing the former surface parking lots to alternate used, including new and expanded downtown residential options. This is the way to go.

By appearing to bend to the eco-activists, I think the city has dropped the ball on this file.............

[Mattyyy]

I couldn't agree more with you on this. While I support most things environmental, I was very confused as to why the city decided to reject this proposal. If it basically meant that we need to build this surface parking to keep tenants but also promise a large parking structure as well as another office building, it sounds like a good deal. The eco-activists on this one seem very misguided and lack a bigger picture view. Considering the world is moving towards electric vehicles and will do so at a much faster pace over the next 10 years, they should be arguing for the installation of charging infrastructure in new lots versus trying to keep cars out of downtown period. They seem to imagine a world where everybody bikes to work 12 months of the year - certainly not going to happen.

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Moncton council rejects 365-space parking lot for Blue Cross building
Building owner Slate REIT sought to increase downtown parking to retain tenants
Shane Magee · CBC News · Posted: May 22, 2019 6:44 AM AT | Last Updated: an hour ago
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/moncton-council-blue-cross-building-slate-1.5144322

So, city council has voted to reject the plan to convert the old Co-op location downtown into surface parking.

I am heavily conflicted on this issue.

I certainly do not support the expansion of surface parking downtown. Surface parking is a blight, and a very poor use of a precious resource (downtown land for development).

Slate however spun this as a temporary parking solution while they explored with the city the possibility of a jointly funded parking structure closer to the Blue Cross Centre. I could have supported this.

Instead, by outright rejecting the proposal, the city has put Slate in the position of possibly losing tenants in the Blue Cross Centre, and may have put the possibility of future expansion of the Blue Cross Centre at risk. I am very uncomfortable with this. The city of Moncton is still not so secure that it should be thumbing it's nose at potential downtown developers........

On CBC Information Morning this morning, they interviewed a couple of the interveners who presented at the city council meeting. They were both eco-activists from UdeM, and they were both overjoyed at what they felt was a major victory in the WAR AGAINST THE CAR. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and the CBC host was actively enabling them.

This is not what this issue is about.

This shouldn't be a war against the car. The issue should be about how to proceed with downtown development in a logically coherent manner that best suits the interests of most people.

This includes the car driving public.

Not everyone can bicycle to work, and cycling is only really an option around here about seven months a year. Not everyone can take public transit to work. Codiac Transpo has a labyrinthine and inefficient routing system which only works for a minority of the population. Personal transportation is the only viable option for many people.

A war against the car would ultimately kill the downtown core. I have no doubt about this.

We need to start now with a plan to replace surface parking in the core with several new enclosed parking garages, while at the same time repurposing the former surface parking lots to alternate used, including new and expanded downtown residential options. This is the way to go.

By appearing to bend to the eco-activists, I think the city has dropped the ball on this file.............

[jonny golden]

It will be interesting to see what Slate Office REIT does in response to the decision by Moncton city council to reject their rezoning request for the parking lot at 20 Record Street. This temporary solution to their parking issues at the Blue Cross building would have given them time to come up with more permanent solution. Their hand has now been forced. City council wants to reduce surface parking to increase density and assessment values on down town property. I think working with Slate by approving a one-off rezoning, conditional on them building a permanent parking structure would have been a better decision.

[Monctoncore]

We also should take into consideration that there may be more to the cities decision than just eco-activists. Slate may have asked for more than the city was willing to give. We know what was originally offered, but between then and now, they may have asked for a longer time frame or other things that the city just wasn’t able to stomach. This may force them to develop a parking structure sooner rather than later.

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by Monctoncore

We also should take into consideration that there may be more to the cities decision than just eco-activists. Slate may have asked for more than the city was willing to give. We know what was originally offered, but between then and now, they may have asked for a longer time frame or other things that the city just wasn’t able to stomach. This may force them to develop a parking structure sooner rather than later.

Slate director Jeremy Kaupp didn't appear to be too pleased with the decision.

"I think the potential growth is imminent with the approval of this plan, otherwise they may look elsewhere," Kaupp told councilors before the vote.

Will Slate come back to council with a new proposal in order to get the rezoning approved? Perhaps a quicker timeline and a specific development proposal. Or will they just forget this and proceed with their plans without this parking lot.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by jonny golden

Will Slate come back to council with a new proposal in order to get the rezoning approved? Perhaps a quicker timeline and a specific development proposal. Or will they just forget this and proceed with their plans without this parking lot.

Hopefully Slate has a plan "B" that includes Moncton. Plan "B" may include trying to accommodate their tenants somewhere else (Dieppe, Riverview or further afield even - perhaps Freddy or Halifax). That would be my greatest fear.........

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Hopefully Slate has a plan "B" that includes Moncton. Plan "B" may include trying to accommodate their tenants somewhere else (Dieppe, Riverview or further afield even - perhaps Freddy or Halifax). That would be my greatest fear.........

No doubt Slate is considering their options. It would be great to see this company expand their holdings in Moncton. I would imagine that they prefer to invest where it's easy to do business. Making things difficult for them could cause them to look for opportunities elsewhere.

[Ammn_guy]

They can look elsewhere all they want the reality is there's not a top 30 city in Canada that is going to let you build a surface parking lot in their dt core. This about Moncton finally Stepping in line with the bigger cities. The fact is slate dropped the ball on their Clint needs. Clients now want InSite indoor parking and they just don't want to pony up the cash they have been collecting as a free ride
They should have put in parking long ago, they have the land and unlimited funds.
I don't really think there is a danger of not filling space at that building.

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Hopefully Slate has a plan "B" that includes Moncton. Plan "B" may include trying to accommodate their tenants somewhere else (Dieppe, Riverview or further afield even - perhaps Freddy or Halifax). That would be my greatest fear.........

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Ammn_guy

They can look elsewhere all they want the reality is there's not a top 30 city in Canada that is going to let you build a surface parking lot in their dt core. This about Moncton finally Stepping in line with the bigger cities. The fact is slate dropped the ball on their Clint needs. Clients now want InSite indoor parking and they just don't want to pony up the cash they have been collecting as a free ride
They should have put in parking long ago, they have the land and unlimited funds.
I don't really think there is a danger of not filling space at that building.

I hope you're correct.

In any event, I think we can all agree that regardless of the motivation, the era of the surface parking lot in downtown Moncton is coming to an end. People will just have to get used to the idea of paying a little more for enclosed parking within parking structures.

I have no problem with this transition occurring. The change is inevitable. The thing I'm concerned about is the manner in which this paradigm shift is handled. If poorly implemented, Moncton could develop a reputation as being a business unfriendly city, and this is the last thing we should want to have happen..........

[MonctonBoy]

Originally Posted by Ammn_guy

They can look elsewhere all they want the reality is there's not a top 30 city in Canada that is going to let you build a surface parking lot in their dt core. This about Moncton finally Stepping in line with the bigger cities. The fact is slate dropped the ball on their Clint needs. Clients now want InSite indoor parking and they just don't want to pony up the cash they have been collecting as a free ride
They should have put in parking long ago, they have the land and unlimited funds.
I don't really think there is a danger of not filling space at that building.

This is exactly what will drive the people and companies out of the downtown core... This is an exact replica of what happened in Halifax and is currently happening in St. John's... Companies will leave the downtown core to go find places to better accommodate their employees outside of the core.
All of this for a piece of land that is below the flood level and that will never be developed because of it.
Let's not forget that this was only supposed to be temporary with a plan to build a structure down the line...
Not to mention pissing off a big company that had to be convinced that Moncton was a great place to do business.
I wouldn't be surprised if they sold all of their assets and left.

[David_99]

Originally Posted by MonctonBoy

Let's not forget that this was only supposed to be temporary with a plan to build a structure down the line...

I'm sure the "down the line" part was the issue. Had they had shovels in the ground for a new parking structure next to Blue Cross, there's no way it wouldn't have been approved.

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by David_99

I'm sure the "down the line" part was the issue. Had they had shovels in the ground for a new parking structure next to Blue Cross, there's no way it wouldn't have been approved.

Five years with a possible extension on top of that was too long. If Slate had stepped up with specific plans to build the parking structure at the Blue Cross building, and/or develop 20 Record Street within a reasonable time frame, they might have received permission for the rezoning. Their commitment wasn't firm enough.

[Sunnybrae]

I'm fairly ignorant about these things but what is the advantage for Blue Cross being downtown or any large employer for that matter? Things like traffic and parking can become issues for employees and attracting new employees.