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Posted Dec 28, 2012, 2:15 AM
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Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Charters Settlement, NB
Posts: 73
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We made it to 100 million again!
Quote:
City tops $100 million in construction in 2012
By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN
Fredericton had another strong development year in 2012, including some landmark facilities that were completed after years of construction.
The new $30-million Grant•Harvey Centre threw open its doors a few months late in September, while work on the privately owned adjacent indoor tennis facility was finished in December.
Retail growth in the capital continued at the Corbett Centre at the top of Regent Street with several new stores opening.
And there was residential development of all kinds all over the city, including the new 32-unit Westpointe by the River apartment building on Queen Street.
'We did get above the $100-million mark again this year and that is a benchmark that we have achieved for the last six years,' said Coun. Dan Keenan, chairman of the city's development committee.
'Any time we hit that benchmark it's an indication that the development community has a lot of confidence in the Fredericton market and in bringing projects forward to fruition here,' he said in a year-end interview.
The variety of development is positive, he said.
'It's not all based in one particular area. We see new apartment buildings being constructed, new condo units. Our housing sector is still relatively solid.' On the north side of the city, a major new residential complex on Union Street was announced consisting of two 30-unit apartment buildings plus nine townhouses in front of the apartment buildings.
The developers eventually dropped the proposal for the townhouses in the face of neighbourhood opposition.
The city's November building permit report shows there was $61.2 million worth of residential development in the capital for the first 11 months of 2012 compared to $59.2 million for the same period in 2011.
Keenan said the city has had high development numbers in past years, but that was when the city was spending on municipal capital projects such as the new arenas and the downtown Fredericton Convention Centre.
'To see us continue to hit that ($100 million) benchmark at a time when there's very little institutional government (construction) occurring ... that's pretty positive,' said Keenan.
'Of course, we've got the commercial development at the top of the hill with the Corbett Centre and continued strong interest in the malls.' 'You look at what that will generate for us going forward in terms of drawing people to the city, improving tourism. That's something that will generate more economic impact as we go along,' he said.
There was $6.7 million in new commercial construction in the first 11 months of this year compared to $3.7 million for the same period last year.
Commercial additions totalled $3.2 million in 2012 versus $5.1 million in 2011.
In commercial renovations, companies spent a whopping $18.9 million from January to November, compared to $8.9 million for the first 11 months of 2011.
Keenan said from the municipal perspect ive, hav ing t he Gra ntHa r vey Centre open was a highlight.
The GrantHarvey Centre features two ice surfaces: an NHL-sized surface with 1,500 seats and an Olympic-sized rink with 560 seats.
The Olympic arena is fully accessible and has special features such as clear glass in the players' benches for sledge hockey.
The community room can accommodate 200 people for a reception, and the three-lane athletic track is available for both running and walking.
The GrantHarvey Centre is also equipped with Ice Kube Systems technology, which uses geothermal energy to heat and cool the building.
Keenan said he doesn't like to pick favourites when it comes to development.
'They all really, truly do contribute to moving our city forward,' he said.
When it comes to institutional building permits, there was a huge drop in 2012.
The building permit report shows that in the first 11 months of 2011 there was $20.7 million worth of construction compared to $2.6 million for the same period in 2012.
But institutional renovations and repairs were up slightly at $4.1 million in 2012 compared to $3 million in 2011.
In the retail sector, the popular new H and M women's clothing store opened its doors in the Regent Mall and so did Bath and Body Works.
Several other stores in the mall carried out major renovations.
The mall was purchased in December by Primaris Management Inc. for $317 million, in a deal that also included McAllister Place in Saint John.
Krista Ross, president and CEO of the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, said the city's retail sector is in good shape.
'We've actually had a lot of new stores opening, and that's going to bode well for all the retailers around,' she said.
'Having the critical mass for some of the popular stores will draw people to our community from the outlying areas. As well it will give people more reasons to shop at home and support their local businesses.' Ross said Fredericton shoppers no longer have to travel to Moncton to find a great combination of retail outlets, ranging from locally owned stores in the downtown to the new chain stores.
'We've got a great combination of retail options in our community,' she said.
But Ross said the city faces some development challenges.
'I would say the biggest challenge that our community is going to face going forward ... is the impending closure of Enterprise Fredericton,' she said in a year-end interview.
'What we're seeing and what we're anticipating is some gaps in the service provision to entrepreneurs in the city through the closure of Enterprise Fredericton.' Enterprise Fredericton announced it was closing early in 2013 after the federal, provincial and municipal governments announced they were withdrawing their funding from the organization.
Mayor Brad Woodside said at the time the city would continue to invest the same amount of money in economic development that it had provided to Enterprise Fredericton.
'We are anticipating and hopeful that the community will work together to come up with some solutions for services we're going to lose when they close,' said Ross.
She said she was reassured by the mayor's comments that the city will still be in the economic development game and involve all the stakeholders.
In 2012, the province launched its strategy for innovation, and the chamber would like to see several centres of expertise located in Fredericton, including the centre for rapid commercialization of products and services.
'Fredericton has more than 70 per cent of the province's knowledgebased industr y here, and I really think we can build on that momentum,' she said.
When it comes to disappointments in 2012, Ross said she was hoping to see construction start on the new hotel on the east end of Queen Street.
That hotel is vital to the Fredericton Convention Centre.
'The spinoffs of having conferences coming to our community is just tremendous for the local businesses,' said Ross.
In the downtown, the city announced it was spending $800,000 to buy land on Queen Street to ensure the construction of a new downtown hotel.
In mid-December, Woodside announced the city was negotiating with Aquilini Investment Group/ Pacrim Hospitality Services Inc. to build a new hotel on the site. That's the group that owns the Crowne Plaza Fredericton Lord Beaverbrook Hotel on Queen Street.
Work is also continuing by the province to finish the interior of its new downtown government office building called Chancery Place.
The province bought the office tower from the city in March 2010 but seemed to be in no rush to move in.
In May, the Liberal Opposition grilled the government about contracts to finish the internal work at the office tower.
In October, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Claude Williams said government departments would not be moved into the new building until spring, even though earlier in the year the Tories had said they hoped to have people moved into Chancery Place by the fall.
One of the big development controversies in 2012 was the fate of a popular strawberry U-pick field on Fredericton's north side.
The property is city-owned and has been undeveloped for many years, but residents were shocked to learn it was zoned for residential use and could be developed.
The property was worth about $700,000 if sold and would generate hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in property taxes if it were developed for residential use.
Local residents said the property is a unique combination of fields, forests and wetlands that's used for hiking, jogging, cross-country skiing, a tot's sliding hill and children's play area.
Council eventually voted in September to zone the property from residential to agricultural and open space.
Meanwhile, the Fredericton Convention Centre entered its second year of operation after exceeding its targets in 2011.
In 2011, the facility hosted 204 events, 32 of which were new business, and attracted about 24,000 delegates. The annual operating cost of the facility is $950,000.
During the city's annual development awards on Dec. 18, several developers praised city planning staff for being helpful.
Keenan said when it comes to helping developers, the city has to balance ensuring standards with encouraging construction.
'That's why we set the bylaws and the restrictions so that we don't get haphazard development around,' he said. 'By the same token, we want to be responsive to developers and be able to be there to assist them through the process.' Everyone wants a good development for the city as an end result,' said Keenan.
'Hopefully next year there will be some good activity as well.'
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