[Moncton] Downtown Developments

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Photo of the new entrance to SNB at Assumption Place, and the new elevated parking lot that will serve the SNB clientele.



The new elevated parking lot will help make SNB much more accessible to people with mobility issues. SNB will now be fully wheelchair accessible.

And, as previously noted, this new entrance and parking lot are necessary preconditions for Ashford's ambitious plans for the lands in behind Assumption Place.

I wonder if they had to elevate this parking lot because the new east-west street will also be elevated.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by jonny golden

I wonder if they had to elevate this parking lot because the new east-west street will also be elevated.

I think it had more to do with the new entrance into SNB, and the need for the entryway to be wheelchair accessible.

[habs33]

GNB posted on their facebook page that the new SNB will be opening on monday

[MonctonRad]

LaRouere Chocolat is now open in the Hakkim Optical Building (NW corner of St. George & Weldon):

https://larouere-chocolat.com
https://www.facebook.com/choclarouere

[MonctonRad]

Staples Pharmacy on St. George Street is closing after 87 years in business (due to owner retirement). The last day of business will be December 23rd.


T&T photo

This business has been a fixture on St. George for generations, renowned especially for it's candy and chocolate selection. It will definitely be missed.

[L'homard]

I knew John only by his reputation as an opiniated guy who speaks his mind - nothing at all is wrong with that but that's not really the kind of person who I would usually gravitate towards.
THen I got to know him.
He's actually a kind and brilliant man, a great citizen who loved his city and worked tirelessly, usually out of the limelight, to make Moncton a better place for us all.
I hope he has a long and enjoyable retirement. He has certainly earned it.

[MonctonRad]

There is a public meeting of Moncton city council tomorrow evening. This is an interesting item found under "planning matters"

They are apparently seeking "Public Comments on the Potential Disposition of a Portion of PID 70288790 (1299 Main Street)".

This PID corresponds to the parcel of city owned land on the NW corner of Main & Vaughan Harvey.

By itself, this parcel would be difficult to work with (at least for a substantial development), but if neighbouring properties on the east side of Atlantic Avenue could be included, then this would be a prime development property.

I wonder if there is anything going on behind the scenes???

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

There is a public meeting of Moncton city council tomorrow evening. This is an interesting item found under "planning matters"

They are apparently seeking "Public Comments on the Potential Disposition of a Portion of PID 70288790 (1299 Main Street)".

This PID corresponds to the parcel of city owned land on the NW corner of Main & Vaughan Harvey.

By itself, this parcel would be difficult to work with (at least for a substantial development), but if neighbouring properties on the east side of Atlantic Avenue could be included, then this would be a prime development property.

I wonder if there is anything going on behind the scenes???

I believe there absolutely is something going on behind the scenes. I remember a few months ago there was discussion on the forums about this corner. In June 2021 the adjacent lot with the old commercial building on it was sold. So with the lot at 1299 Main coming up for discussion at a city council meeting, it appears that something is afoot.

And I hope so, because this is a first rate location for a project that would compliment The Junction development across the street.

[MonctonRad]

According to Mayor Dawn Arnold's FB update following the meeting, this is what city council approved:

From a previous Private Session we approved the release of a “Request for Development Proposal” for 1299 Main Street.

So, it appears they are seeking input from interested parties regarding development proposals for this parcel of land (essentially an RFP).

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

According to Mayor Dawn Arnold's FB update following the meeting, this is what city council approved:



So, it appears they are seeking input from interested parties regarding development proposals for this parcel of land (essentially an RFP).

I wonder if whoever purchased the adjacent lot in June would put forth a development proposal with both lots combined? They'd have a lot more land to work with. Looking at the property map, perhaps they could do an L shaped building.

[MonctonRad]

A nice photo of the restored Higgins Block at Main and Botsford in downtown Moncton.

I noticed all the recently installed signage on the building the other day, and intended to snap a photo, but they have already posted this one on Retail Talk and Share, so I decided to "borrow" it.



On a side note, it seems to be taking a long time for the new restaurant "Harvest" to open up. The windows have been papered over with their logo for several months now. Checking their website, they still list the Moncton location as "coming soon." They also to intend on new locations in Charlottetown, Wolfville and Dartmouth.

[MonctonRad]

Paywalled article in Huddle about the Higgins Block. Here is a short quote:

The Higgins Block’s tenants include Mexicali Rosas, Japan Go Restaurant, and Harvest Farm-to-Table-Eatery, which is taking over the space formerly occupied by Freshii, on the first floor.

Quebecois software firm Thinkmax is the sole second-floor tenant. The third floor is occupied by the Bella Promessa bridal shop, MACC Commercial Properties, and Into Designs New Brunswick.

Dupuis said five more suites are available on the second and third floors, running about 1,300 square feet each.

“We’ve had some interest from a few law firms, and a small accounting firm,” said Dupuis. “We’re confident we’ll fill it up in the next couple of months.”

So, they are looking at full occupancy on all three floors by the springtime. That's pretty damned good and is a testament to what can be accomplished with thoughtful redevelopment of historic or architecturally significant properties.

Now, if only they could do something similar with the Subway Block........

[BlackYear]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Paywalled article in Huddle about the Higgins Block. Here is a short quote:



So, they are looking at full occupancy on all three floors by the springtime. That's pretty damned good and is a testament to what can be accomplished with thoughtful redevelopment of historic or architecturally significant properties.

Now, if only they could do something similar with the Subway Block........

Very impressive.
Owner be like, why didn't I do this 20 years ago!

[jonny golden]

For years, every time I drove down Main Street those boarded up windows on the upper floors bothered me. So much potential, but the ply wood wasn't a good look for downtown Moncton. It's great that they're having success with this project. As MonctonRad mentioned, I wonder if these developers would consider the subway block, or is it too far gone to salvage? It's been vacant for a long time, and likely would cost a small fortune to redo it.

[MonctonRad]

(Paywalled) article in the T&T:

Construction on the new Atlantic Science Enterprise Centre at the DFO Gulf Fisheries Building on Universite Avenue will begin in 2022!!!


Rendering of the lobby, showing the blue whale skeleton they have stored and ready to mount in the rafters

Construction cost of the facility will be about $300M (considerably less than the $700M originally announced) but it was noted in the article that tens of millions of additional dollars will be spent on state of the art equipment for the new research centre, so the final cost of this building could still easily top a half billion dollars.

- site prep will start in 2022
- more significant construction will begin in 2023
- full build-out will be in 2030
- there will be 700 federal research scientists and employees working in the facility
- partners include DFO, NRC, Canadian Space Agency, Environment Canada and Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
- this is the largest single federal investment in Atlantic Canada since the building of the Confederation Bridge.

Contracts have been issues to Diamond-Schmitt Architects ($23.6M) and Pomerleau Construction ($5.8M).

[MonctonRad]

This proposal will definitely require another project specific thread, either once more renderings become available during the PAC approval process, or once ground is broken next spring.

[MonctonRad]

Here's a previously published render from upthread:

[mylesmalley]

Curious what the timeline is if the project will be built over 8 years.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by mylesmalley

Curious what the timeline is if the project will be built over 8 years.

Not sure, but they did say that the last thing to be done would be renovations to the current DFO building.

So, if I was to guess:

2022 - site prep
2023-26 - construction of the new building
2027 - removal of the wings of the old DFO building
2028-29 - renovations to the remainder of the old building
2030 - final interior fit-up

This does seem like a protracted time frame however, but it is a government project, so time and money is no object, and if the construction time frame lasts a couple of election cycles, well, then all the better!!!

[jonny golden]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Not sure, but they did say that the last thing to be done would be renovations to the current DFO building.

So, if I was to guess:

2022 - site prep
2023-26 - construction of the new building
2027 - removal of the wings of the old DFO building
2028-29 - renovations to the remainder of the old building
2030 - final interior fit-up

This does seem like a protracted time frame however, but it is a government project, so time and money is no object, and if the construction time frame lasts a couple of election cycles, well, then all the better!!!

Will the remainder of the old fisheries building be connected to the new building? Hard to tell for sure by looking at the render.