WINDSOR | Construction - News and Development

[GreatTallNorth2]

The park looks fantastic, but are they not worried about the cars driving off the end of the earth?

[Blitz]

www.greenlinkwindsor.ca is the website for the highway plan.

[westerntragedy]

^ thanks Blitz! was hoping they'd have something online, somewhere

[Michi]

I forgot to post these when I took them about a month ago (Oct. 1stish).

Showing up on the Detroit skyline!


From the tunnel.

[Carlos_x3]

Nice pics Michi. Its nice to see pics from stateside. The Casino is lookin big.

[Carlos_x3]

Anyone figure this would happen?

Engineering building doubtful for city core

Gord Henderson, Windsor Star Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Fed up with its inability to get straight answers from the University of Windsor on proposals for a downtown campus, the city has moved on to talks with St. Clair College that could bring hundreds of additional students downtown while creating a new family oriented attraction.

Possible museum

St. Clair College president John Strasser and Mayor Eddie Francis have been kicking around ideas for a second downtown facility, potentially with museum and hall of fame components, that would enable the college to build on its success in transforming the money-losing Cleary into the St. Clair Centre for the Arts with close to 500 students and instructors.

Francis had been hoping for a blockbuster campus cluster involving the university as well as the college, which could have brought at least 2,000 additional students into the core.

But his hopes have been dashed by what he reads as a thumbs down from a cash-strapped university.

Francis, who sounded exasperated, said it's clear from conversations with university officials that their new pride and joy, the $110-million Centre for Engineering Innovation, won't be located downtown.

University president Ross Paul said Tuesday at a board of governors meeting that a decision on a site for the sprawling structure will be made in the next six weeks. "Your patience won't be tested for too much longer," he commented.

For Francis, it's beyond testing. "My sense is that the engineering campus is not going downtown. I don't expect it, based on the conversations I've had." That stings, given that Francis played a key role in persuading the university to chase a more ambitious project than initially planned and was a member of the team that successfully pitched the proposal to the province.

What really rankles is that the university dangled attractive consolation prizes for the downtown, including a law school and school of social work, under the city's nose and then yanked them away.

"We were given false hope that this was do-able, and then, after checking the numbers, we were told it was not do-able because their financial numbers didn't add up," said Francis. Excited by the possibilities, he had city planners do preliminary work which confirmed a dream campus would fit on city-owned land south of the art gallery. He also contacted area museum and heritage backers who showed interest in relocating. And then came the letdown.

A couple of weeks ago a university delegation offered Francis a mea culpa, explaining that they had goofed in mentioning other downtown campus candidates, because the money simply isn't available. "They told me I had every right to be angry and frustrated," said Francis. "They said they were sorry, that they should have done the number crunching first."

The mayor insisted he's not bitter, just disappointed an opportunity has been missed to boost the university's image and create a better student experience by integrating it into a redeveloped downtown. "You only build something like this once every 75 or 80 years. This is a huge missed opportunity."

Board of governors chairman Marty Komsa wasn't available for comment but Dave Cooke, who'll take over in December, said the board is trying to make the right decision for the university and the community with limited financial resources.

"We're trying to do the best we can but we're not the University of Toronto," said Cooke, explaining that just the interest on U of T's fundraising drives exceeds what the U of W can raise over two years.

"We want to do as much as we can with the city. But let's not do the Windsor thing and focus only on the negative," said Cooke. He said the engineering and medical schools, regardless of location, are massive achievements that would have been inconceivable a few years ago.

But the city, which might have contributed $10 million or more in cash and land toward a downtown engineering campus, will be far less likely to crank open its wallet for a site with fewer spinoffs.

And so the focus switches to the college, with its track record of working with the city. "There's nothing concrete at this time. We're just at the exploratory stages of stuff that might work," said Strasser. He said theatre arts, interior design, health sciences and business information technology would be among candidates for a move downtown in the event of a deal.

"I have a lot of faith in the mayor and I'm sure he'll come up with another idea to have a coffee at Tim's and move the idea forward," said Strasser.

[Carlos_x3]

Council gives thumbs up for big box
Dave Battagello, The Windsor Star


A promise of 1,500 jobs and new major commercial development proved too much for city councillors to ignore as they gave thumbs up Monday to building a big box development on the city's far west end.

The move was approved with a 9-1 vote despite the objections of several residents and the Town of LaSalle to adding a shopping centre at the intersection of Sprucewood Avenue and Matchette Road.

Coco Development Group owns the property and will create a major retail centre that will be anchored by four big box stores on property adjacent to Windsor Raceway, on the edge of the city's border with LaSalle and across the road from the protected tallgrass prairie preserve.

"The reality is this is privately owned land to be developed to create 1,500 jobs," said Coun. Bill Marra. "That's money into this community and almost $5 million (annually) in taxes."

"This is going to benefit the entire region, including the Town of LaSalle," added Coun. Percy Hatfield. "I believe if there was a boundary adjustment and this was in LaSalle I don't believe they would be opposing this."

Council's approval was given despite the objection of several residents who came to council and voiced concerns about the environmental impact on nearby Ojibway lands they anticipate will be created by the added vehicle traffic from the shopping development.

"This will compromise (Ojibway)," said Nancy Pancheshan, a LaSalle resident. "The future of our finest park in Windsor is in your hands tonight. Please take action where future generations will commend you."

"The more we shrink nature, the more we are going in the wrong direction. I consider this an incompatible development," added another LaSalle resident, Anna Lynn Meloche, who has lived nearby the proposed site for 45 years.

Other fears were expressed to council by the president of the Ottawa Street BIA, who believes the addition of another big box centre in this city will destroy small local retailers.

"It's quite clear Windsor is over-retailed," said Arnie Blaine. "You have cross-border shopping, Walker Road, Manning Road, the Outlet mall. It's had a devastating effect on your core area.

"This should be your major concern. Is anyone but these developers crying out for another megastore in this city? I think not. If this isn't a classic case of utterly useless urban sprawl, I don't know what is."

Coun. Alan Halberstadt who cast the only vote against the plan, agreed, citing fears the big box development will further erode core-area retail efforts.

"There should be some obligation of our developers to look at the downtown area," he said. "Coco Development wants to put a big box by LaSalle, but what about the obligations to the areas being cored out. Just drive around and you can see the condition of our core area.

"They always want to do things outside the city or on the fringes. I think they should have an obligation to help our core as well."

Council's approval did include recommendations calling for road intersection improvements for Matchette and Sprucewood to be done in consultation with LaSalle, and also for a species-at-risk review to be conducted by the Ministry of Natural Resources in conjunction with the plan.

The vice-chairman of the city's Environmental Planning Advisory Committee, Rob Spring, told council he has had discussions with the developer and seems content environmental issues will be adequately addressed.

He also strongly emphasized to council how the big box plan was a preferable option compared to the option of a residential development .

"The water table is a major consideration," Spring said. "If you had 500 or 600 basements on the property it would have much more of a negative impact versus footings of big box stores.

"Also, lawn care practices of homeowners is not sustainable or friendly to the environment with that volume of chemicals being put on the ground next to nature. Nobody is calling this utopia, but commercial is more compatible than residential development."

Coun. Fulvio Valentinis said it's been proven that if the city doesn't provide local shoppers what they want, they will go somewhere else to find it.

"Big box has a role to play," he said "We may not like it, but the fact is the consumer wants it. If we don't provide it, someone else will.

[y2k_pony]

that big box outlet is gonna piss off alot of people in Lasalle. On another note, The pouring of the concrete for the casino tower is complete. I guess they are working on the crown now.

[upinottawa]

Any word on how GreenLink is perceived by Sandra and Dwight?

[upinottawa]

I guess Gord Henderson is trying to answer the above question:

Friends in high places here

Gord Henderson, Windsor Star
Published: Thursday, November 01, 2007

Peering into my cloudy crystal ball for 2013, I see Ontario Premier Sandra Pupatello, no wait, maybe that's Dwight Duncan, smashing a magnum of bubbly over the hood of the first 18-wheeler given the honour of thundering through the six tunnels of the spanking new GreenLink Windsor Parkway.

To say the stars are lining up in favour of a resolution of the infrastructure standoff that has become the bane of Windsor's existence would be an understatement.

The process took a leap forward this week with Dalton McGuinty's widely anticipated retention of Pupatello as economic development minister and his promotion of Duncan back to the finance portfolio to replace party brainiac Greg Sorbara, who wanted out of the fast lane.

If Windsor had serious clout at Queen's Park before the election, it has that much more with Duncan -- call him Spanky Moneybags -- holding perhaps the third-most powerful post in cabinet as keeper of the public purse, next to the premier and George Smitherman, deputy premier and health minister.

The appointments, which leave Windsor behind only Toronto and Ottawa in influence, vindicate the pragmatism of Windsor-area voters who, recognizing what was at stake, choked back the overwhelming urge to throttle the Dalton Gang on Oct. 10 for its multiple broken promises.

Duncan took a congratulatory phone call from Mayor Eddie Francis Tuesday night, before the swearing-in celebration really took off, and they're scheduled to meet again in Windsor on Nov. 9 to go over details of the GreenLink plan. The odds grow better every day that it, or something similar, will receive the green light after a bit of tweaking, given that our provincial politicians want this issue off the table sooner rather than later, so work can begin that would give the foundering Windsor economy a huge boost while alleviating a perennial provincial trade bottleneck.

'WE JUST WANT TO MOVE ON'

As one Queen's Park insider put it Wednesday, if GreenLink can meet technical requirements, there's no reason why it wouldn't be given the green light. The insider said it's a wrong perception if anyone thinks Duncan has been less enthusiastic than Pupatello about Windsor's efforts to find a solution. "Everybody here, we just want to move on and get a shovel in the ground."

The other big plus this week was the appointment of veteran St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley as transportation minister, replacing Donna Cansfield, who became minister of natural resources.

Bradley, a holdover from the doomed David Peterson regime and a strong minister who'll be less dependent on advice from civil servants, represents a border region that has much in common with Windsor and he knows this area and Francis well from his numerous visits as tourism minister.

"I like Bradley. He's well-informed and he's quick to understand an issue and act. It's a good thing," said Francis. "God. I'm old," he quipped, explaining that he's dealt with three transportation ministers, Bradley, Cansfield and Harinder Takhar, in less than four years as mayor.

There will be some fine-tuning. But if Duncan and Pupatello are half as influential as most of us believe, they should have no difficulty slam-dunking a favourable decision for Windsor through cabinet.

As former NDP cabinet minister Dave Cooke explained in a recent interview, bureaucrats do analysis and make recommendations, "but at the end of the day people are elected to govern." In his case, a major battle was fought over the location of Windsor's temporary casino which opened in 1994. The bureaucrats wanted it at Windsor Raceway to maximize revenues. But Cooke and then finance minister Floyd Laughren insisted it go downtown, on the grounds that economic development in a recession-battered city was as important as pumping up the provincial treasury. And we all know who won that nasty showdown.

Speaking of showdowns, the jockeying for position in the inevitable race to succeed McGuinty took an interesting turn with Duncan's elevation to the high-profile finance job. Instead of fretting over blackouts and figuring out how to finesse new nuclear plants, he'll be front and centre as Ontario's money guy. And, if the provincial economy doesn't follow Windsor into the tank, he could be a popular figure, a jolly tax-cutting Santa like his federal counterpart, Jim Flaherty.

They might have to wait a while, given that McGuinty is a youthful 52. It could be long after the GreenLink ribbon cutting. But Duncan versus Pupatello (and a host of others) for the Liberal leadership? Spanky versus the Warrior Princess? You know it's only a matter of time.

[email protected]




© The Windsor Star 2007

[Carlos_x3]

Arena budget grows
$1 million in additional spending for non-hockey events
Dave Battagello, Windsor Star
Monday, November 05, 2007

Over $1 million in various equipment will be added to the city's new east-end arena to help attract non-hockey related events.
Council approved the spending for the $64.9-million WFCU Centre Monday night with no discussion or debate.
"There was a good business case and that's why there was no debate," said Coun. Joanne Gignac.
"The return on the dollar is pretty quick in terms of additional events we will be able to entertain at the facility if we make this investment."
Gignac said she originally voted against funding for the added equipment at an earlier arena committee meeting because it was simply a request for money with no business case provided by city administration overseeing the project.
"There was no business case planned and I did vote against it," she said. "I said come back to council with a solid business plan. They did and that's why we moved forward."
The $1 million will pay for decking to cover the ice, specialty event lighting, storage compartments for hockey glass and boards, a portable stage and blackout curtains - each intended to attract family events and concerts to the new arena.
To break even on the extra expenditure, the city will have to book 16 additional events annually, according to the administration report to council.
A ticket surcharge could also be introduced for the additional events to pay for future needs at the arena, the report suggested.
The $1 million will come from the $4-million provincial grant provided to the city to support costs of the new arena.
Just under $1 million of those grant funds were allocated during the summer to provide washroom upgrades, ceiling tiles and lighting improvements.
Council also decided Monday night that the remaining $2 million of that grant will be used to pay down the cost of the project.
Chairman of the arena steering committee Coun. Dave Brister was happy to see council quickly approve purchasing the added equipment so the new arena can attract additional acts outside of hockey and ice shows.
It was previously determined that the WFCU Centre's 40 Ontario Hockey League games and 8 additional nights each year will be enough to provide a profit.
"What we are going after now are additional event nights over and above that, so we can turn additional profits," Brister said. "We want to bring in more events and ensure it's success long-term."
The new arena is slated to open around Christmas of 2008.

[westerntragedy]

Humm! Some real skyscraper news out of the Windsor Star today:


Major downtown development on horizon
Dave Battagello, Windsor Star
Published: Friday, November 09, 2007

Windsor's downtown may be on the verge of a renaissance as local and Toronto investors are jockeying to build a 14-storey office tower, as well as up to two new bank headquarters and a parking garage.

"Bring it on," said Larry Horwitz, president of the downtown business improvement association. "Lets change the texture of downtown.

"We can start pushing downtown as smart city and not sin city. The process is about to happen. It might take time, but it can happen. Downtown is ready to make the leap. That's why (investors) are coming. They know now is the time."

Petretta Construction, a local firm, has reached conditional property purchase agreements with a couple of business owners on the east side of the 100 block of Ouellette Avenue and is in negotiations with others in a bid to lure a major Toronto corporate investor who is considering levelling those properties to construct a commercial building.

"I have nothing I can add at this point," said owner David Petretta on Friday, citing sensitivity around negotiations.

But several sources pointed to TD Bank, which has been exploring options to build a new downtown headquarters in Windsor to replace its outdated building at Ouellette and Wyandotte Street.

"With a business of 58,000 employees, we are always evaluating our (property) arrangements based on evolving needs," said TD spokesman Nick Petter. "In this case, no decision has been made.

"Beyond that, there is not a lot I can add."

Sources say that among those agreeing to sell with Petretta is Coco Developments, owner of the crumbling former Royal Bank building at 156 Ouellette, one of the city's worst eyesores.

The landmark Shanfields-Meyers Jewellery Shop on the same block is among those who have been approached, but owner Jack Shanfield would not comment on any pending property acquisition.

"Best I don't say anything right now," he said.

Sources say a deal is also close to completion with the owner of the building which is home to O'Ryan's Pub, behind the old bank building on Pitt Street.

Plunkett's bar is located on Chatham Street behind Shanfields, but owner Michael Plunkett said he has not been approached and knew nothing of a pending offer for properties on his block.

"Nobody has called me," he said. "I'm quite willing - this is the stuff Windsor needs. I'm geeked."

Asked if he would relocate his business, Plunkett responded: "Hell no, I'd be going to Disneyland.

"But this would be awesome if this is true. I hope it is - this is what Windsor needs."

At the same time, Mikhail Holdings, owner of the CIBC office building at the foot of Ouellette, is also in talks with TD Bank to instead locate on a vacant parking lot on Ouellette and Pitt Street - the former Smith's Department store site - where the developer has plans to construct a new four-story bank building.

Even if a TD deal falls through and it locates elsewhere, other banks have expressed interest, said co-owner Joe Mikhail on Friday.

The local development company will release artists' renderings in the next couple of weeks of its proposed bank building, plus a new 14-storey Riverside Drive office tower around the corner, wedged between the Travelodge Hotel and Papa Cheney's Whiskey Well bar, he said.

The prime riverfront property has remained vacant since the 1970s when it housed a variety of storefronts, that included a back entrance to the Smith's store and Adelman's Department Store.

Conditional agreements have already been reached with tenants to occupy seven of the planned 14 floors - with 10,000 square feet on each floor, said Mikhail, who would not release identities.

He plans to begin construction on the new tower in about a year with completion the following year.

Mikhail is confident the tower can be filled citing hopes some provincial government jobs could be relocated to Windsor, given the high price of office space in downtown Toronto, up to three times what he plans to charge in the new tower.

"We are not asking anybody for anything," he said. "We own land and we will build it with our money. Nothing is for sure yet, but we have commitments for seven floors."

A new parking garage on Pitt Street is also part of the plan which would link with both the new bank building and office tower, he said.

"I don't know what Mr. Petretta is trying to do - whether we are trying to attract the same players - but we have been dealing with this for the last year and a half," Mikhail said.

"We are happy if the other side of (Pitt) street is being assembled. The more, the better."

Mayor Eddie Francis is aware of the proposals being considered for downtown, which he described as being in the early stages of planning.

"If they do take off and we are able to move them from planning, it would be an exciting opportunity and welcome addition to downtown core," he said. "It will bring a more balanced use to downtown."

Nobody should look at the troubles associated with the nearby Chrysler headquarters, the former Canderel building, as a comparison to the potential new office developments being planned, Francis said.

"That project will not be replicated in terms of a business case," he said. "The cash flows in Canderel are satisfactory (to the building's owner). There is not any incentive to fill in the retail."

Chanoso's restaurant owner Mark Boscariol said speculation around the development deals has excited other downtown business owners who said the 100 block of Ouellette has been a "dead zone" for too long.

"I hold the record for buying the ugliest building on Ouellette and turning it into something nice," he said. "But this is going to be a new record.

"This will be immensely important. That block is a barrier to the riverfront. It's like there is razor wire around it - nobody wants to walk by there. It's a dead block and this will bring it back to life."

O'Ryan's Pub owner Chris Ryan said he has heard plenty of rumours about the development deals and is curious what the future will hold after being in his 25 Pitt St. E location for 10 years, with six years still remaining on his lease.

"I'm in the dark," Ryan said. "Obviously, it would be detrimental to my business and we will go from there. We have been anticipating a turnaround when (casino) convention centre gets going.

"Selfishly, if I have to relocate it's so not good for me. I've heard a lot of rumours, but won't believe it until something is put in front of me."

--------------

My question: they're talking about a 14 story office tower between Papa Cheneys and the Travelodge -- hasn't it been said before that nothing with a serious footing could go there due to the tunnel below? Thought I read something in this thread about that.. hmm

[Blitz]

^ I thought I heard that somewhere before too but maybe it's not the case. This all came out of nowhere.

[arnold]

this all sounds interesting, although my inner skeptic is having a hard time believing it.
someone should post a map highlighting these new proposals...
if they had some time to kill.

[OhioGuy]

Is there a reason the city decided to build the new arena on the east side instead of finding some space in the downtown core? (sorry if this was discussed previously, but I haven't been checking out the Ontario section all that often)

[westerntragedy]

^ Well, the major reasons I remember hearing were:

• not enough space downtown for a 4 pad arena + plus recreational complex
• something to do with Casino Windsor's "no competition" clause, which apparently wouldn't allow the arena to host shows at a downtown location...
• they got a good 'deal' by making a land swap with a London, ON developer who is planning to eventually build high on the site he picked up downtown
• not enough parking downtown for a 4 pad complex
• uncertainty over what to use the "Western Super Anchor" site for, urban vilage, (recently) University Engineering School, or some other undecided development

[Blitz]

^ yeah, the arenas in the east end are falling apart too.

[Carlos_x3]

Interesting news about the development proposal for the downtown. But can the downtown fill 14 storeys of extra office space, what is our office vacancy rate? Is this proposal realistic? Toronto corporations moving hear for cheaper office space, what do you guys think?

[westerntragedy]

Some shots from the Casino Expansion site:



It's been nearly two years since the first concrete pour for the foundation at the Casino Expansion site began; at last, the new Casino Tower has reached its top floor (I've heard 28 floors, although I count 27).




The "crown" is now going up on what could be considered the "27th" floor.
On the other side of the tower, the mounting for the Caesars sign is up.



On the existing tower, mounting for what looks to be the large Caesars sign is up.



The Casino Tower from City Hall Sq.

Here's a few things I learned about the expansion project from a worker cujo8400 and I spoke with:

• not expected to be finished until ~December 2008, even though expectations were mid 2008
• the concrete sections on the city side of the above photo are the hotel tower's stairwells
• next to the stairwells are the elevator shafts
• the "river facing edge" is the end of the hallway, for public 180 degree viewing of the riverfront
• crews are racing to get all the windows put up, and the building sealed for this winter
• attempts to get inside the work area have been pretty much in vain for us, security is super tight... although the worker we spoke with told us a story of a few drunk kids who climbed the stairwells up 26 stories recently and were not caught

It's looking good! I can't wait to see what the interior will look like, and hell, I'd love to get my hands on some floor schematics for the conference center area.

[Happy Habib]

Work (finally) begins on Docherty hole
Dave Hall, The Windsor Star
Published: Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Excavation and remediation of the site began Wednesday and filling in the infamous hole at the intersection of Riverside Drive West and Church Street should be completed by Jan. 18, said a spokesman for the City of Windsor.

Chief building official Mario Sonego said the first step in the process, being carried out by Dunn Contracting, will be to clear debris from the site, including wooden forms, steel beams and concrete buckets.

Once that's complete, a nine-metre high retaining wall will be built along the west wall of the Raddison Riverfront Hotel before the site is filled in.

As to the exposed insulation material on the wall of the hotel, Sonego said "right now, we're dealing with one issue at a time but that may well become the subject of a property standards complaint."

Once the site is filled in, it will likely remain vacant until such time as owner Bill Docherty decides what to do next.

Docherty, a Windsor developer who dug the hole in the 1990s for either a hotel or condominium which were never built, will be billed for the work under terms of a legal ruling made earlier this year in the city's favour.

It's expected that Church Street between Riverside Drive and Pitt Street will be closed during daylight hours for the duration of the project.

Dunn was the low bidder in a recent request for proposals process conducted by the city and will be paid $592,000 for the long-awaited work.