London Construction - Development News Thread #1

[QuantumLeap]

I'm not able to upload any images at this time due to my primitive software (I will work on this). Re: 724-746 Dundas: more great news!
-more retail: the applicant is proposing about 15,000 sq ft of retail, with retail and offices directly facing Dundas, English and the parking lot behind
-the applicant is proposing green roofs!
-150 unit building (440 units/ha)

[QuantumLeap]

http://www.northpointlofts.ca/
43 loft-style units just West of Richmond, north of Fanshawe

[MolsonExport]

Western Mustangs win the Yates cup for the second year in a row. Now, off to the Vanier cup!

[london2020]

What I'd really like to see in London is a new building in the 60 story range.

Here's the new Hilton in Niagara, 52 of 60 stories complete.

I don't believe this type of building is inefficient from a cost perspective.

Why, for example, is the Renaissance project two towers instead of one taller one? I'm sure it's slightly more cost effective that way, but the added allure of the tallest building in the city might bring more tenants and higher rents.

Perhaps we need a condo project like this in downtown london!

This tower is a $100 million project. Isn't the Renaissance as much?

[GreatTallNorth2]

Sorry, but that Hilton tower in Niagara Falls is ugly as sin. I wouldn't want it. Hard to believe, but it's uglier than the Renaissance buildings. What London really needs is a developer to come and build a classy residential tower so the rest of our cheap developers can see there is a demand for more than just stucco & concrete buildings.

[QuantumLeap]

I wouldn't mind a 60-floor building in London, but frankly I don't care much. And I have heard that engineering constraints would make anything much taller than 25 commercial/30 residential floors nightmarishly expensive. What I would like to see, as Great Tall suggests, is some better design. And not just Vancouver-style glass cylinders, but Mississauga-style Absolutes, and the like. Something to really get people excited about design. They don't even frankly have to be skyscrapers at all. As I have suggested to you, there are some projects already approved or soon to be approved by the city that will boost the urban design calibre in London (though you will also be seeing a few more Drewlo and Tricar nightmares before 2009 is out). But these projects are pretty architecturally mundane. Still, they will be a stepping stone.

[QuantumLeap]

By JOHN MINER, SUN MEDIA

The University of Western Ontario has been asked to bid to build an $88-million AIDS vaccine manufacturing plant that would be a Canadian first.

Paid for by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the federal government, the facility would supply vaccine for clinical trials.

Bill Gates, founder of software giant Microsoft, is one of the world's richest men.

Ted Hewitt, vice president of research at the University of Western Ontario, said London is one of only four centres asked to submit full proposals and is the only one in Ontario.

Hewitt said he did not know the identity of the other three centres. For the facility, $28 million will come from the Gates foundation and the rest from Ottawa.


"This premiere facility would place this city and this region at the forefront of vaccine development and manufacturing in the 21st century," Hewitt said.

The news of London's bid came at the same news conference where it was announced a vaccine developed by Dr. Chil-Yong Kang at Western is now being manufactured in the United States for testing on humans.

Kang said if the vaccine manufacturing facility had already been built in Canada, he would have been able to start testing months earlier.

Western has until March 25, 2009 to submit its bid.

Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best said the AIDS announcements are of global importance.

"We are making history in a way that is going to change the face of mankind," she said, noting the announcement was covered by media networks from Korea.

[QuantumLeap]

By Communications Staff (Western News)
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
The University of Western Ontario is one of four organizations in Canada under consideration by the federal government to build an HIV vaccine manufacturing facility.

Western is the only Ontario organization to submit a proposal.

In February 2007, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Bill Gates jointly announced collaboration between the Government of Canada and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to support the Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative (CHVI).

One component of the initiative is a total of $88 million in funding from the government and the foundation to build a Pilot Scale HIV Vaccine Manufacturing Facility – a high-tech facility that would produce a vaccine to be used in clinical trials around the world.

“This is exhilarating and promising news for London,” says Ted Hewitt, Vice-President (Research and International Relations) at Western. “We have our work cut out for us, as I am sure the competition will be tough, but London and Western have a great history of research and manufacturing success. This is exemplified by the leading research of Dr. Chil-Yong Kang in developing an HIV/AIDS vaccine.”

The leading research of Dr. Chil-Yong Kang in developing an HIV/AIDS vaccine could help Western in building a HIV vaccine manufacturing facility in London.



Later today, details of progress on Kang’s work will be made by Western and Sumagen Canada, including the fact that an HIV/AIDS vaccine for toxicology tests and clinical trials has recently been produced – at a U.S. facility. Had a facility been available in Canada, the vaccine could have been produced here.

The letter from the federal government states its decision to request a proposal from Western “was informed by Canadian and international experts working the fields of HIV vaccine research and vaccines manufacturing.”

Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best was hopeful Western would be asked to forward a full proposal.

“HIV/AIDS has taken more than 25 million lives and today 35 million people are living with HIV,” she says. “London now has an opportunity to show that we can play a key role in saving lives around the world. We are ready.”

The London Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) has been working closely with the university on steps taken to date to win the facility and will play a key role in the proposal going forward.

“This is an unprecedented opportunity for London to showcase its strengths in research and life sciences, and to further the city’s reputation as a leader,” said LEDC’s President and CEO Peter White.

Western and other not-for-profits who have been invited, must submit a full proposal for the bio-safety level 3, GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) facility by March 25, 2009.

More information is expected to be made available following a press conference scheduled this afternoon.

[ldoto]

London Receives Massive Infrastructure Boost

London has received an early Christmas present from the McGuinty government.

The province has announced today that London is in line for more than 33-million-dollars in new infrastructure funding.

MPP Khalil Ramal made the announcement at London city hall this afternoon.

"We believe strongly that it's important, especially at this time, to flow the money to municipalities," said Ramal. "It will help the municipalities deal with many different issues."

Mayor Anne-Marie DeCicco-Best said the cash will help the city in several ways.

"We certainly have been trying year-after-year to increase the amount of money and investment we put into our infrastructure," said DeCicco-Best. "We recognize that a good infrastructure is going to help us compete."

The money has been earmarked for some road work and recreational projects.

[MolsonExport]

"Massive"? would that even cover one overpass?

[Snark]

Agreed! Why not let constructive ME comments speak for all instead:

heh, heh. I guess I am reluctant to do just that. It is no big deal anyway...I get my name in the papers relatively often given my career.

Speaking for myself, I feel eminently qualified to comment on such phenomena

I am quoted in the LFP today
I have appeared on A-Morning a couple of times (interviewed...I am in academia). Oh well, there is still the LFP

I have no idea what the cost would be.

<deleted>

Sorry, I was barely awake, and I just tune out of all the bad news of late, for the sake of my sanity.

Landmark? Looks like a pile of shit.

A mountain of locusts? Change the name. Likewise, would you want to live on Cheapside (major street in London).

Middlesex (what the hell is this, a hermaphrodite?)

Yeah, aren't they vile?

I am glad, then. So that I will not have to waste my time instructing such retarded deadbeats.

Take London (ON), multiply it by 10, and maybe then, you would have something that could, very possibly, be a candidate for world-class.

Not the Shriners thing again. Fer fvcksakes, when will it ever end?

It's the new building for West Park Baptist Church (currently near Wonderland & Hyde Park Rd.). Damn. Not another one.

London has long ceased being a head-office city, to being a back-office city.

Whats the news of the new Walfart that is supposed to go up at Sprawldale and unWonderland?

Man, the Galleria has gotta be one of the biggest urban disasters in Canada. I was there yesterday...unfuckingbelievable how empty the place is.

A veritable ghostown of a mall, with more than 40 vacant stores to better serve you!

overmalled....but Westmount will still be a mall? Sounds like the managers are lacking a solid strategy. If I were a tenant in the mall, I would be worried.

The "rebirth" of the Galleria is rather like a woman experiencing 72 months of gestation followed by 24 months of labour.

could this be the first signs of Masonville mall going the way of Westmount mall??

Nice, but I hear that they do not serve BEER at Labatt Park...extremely ironic and moronic.

allow Labatt park to serve beer...and I will go to see London Majors games.

Wharnecliffe is going down the toilet. At least half of it (from Oxford to Commissioners) sits at the bottom of the bowl, with the other turds. A charming slice of East London in western London.

YEAH! more commie-blocks!

I am getting pissed off at the so-called leaders of London.

Nostalgia for the status quo = today's london leadership = mediocrity

yup: london planners/council-->think small.

I have to agree that the current administration really comes up short in their 'vision' for what London ought to aspire to.

London busses are horrible. They smell, have no seats, and constantly lurch. Not to mention, the schedules, and the asinine amount of time it takes to get from point A to point B

very overdue. I can't understand why they rezone/develop areas prior to improving the infrastructure.

too bad that it will probably be years before it goes back up again for phase II

More bad news for London. The daily dose

For Gawd's sake, London has only 2 complete East-West and North-South roads:
East-West: Fanshawe Park Road and Oxford
North-South: Wonderland and Highbury.
That's it. Everything else does not go through all the way.

Council should wake up...given the lousy local economy, taxpayers are not feeling generous, and frankly, a little tired of property (et al.) tax increases that have long outstripped inflation

London has the third-busiest airport in Canada, after Toronto and Vancouver. Really? Ahead of Montreal, Calgary, Ottawa, Winnipeg, etc.? Must be freight. Would like to see the supporting statistics.

thats a tall proposal for a shitsville corner. Love to see it happen....but in this market?

Visonary. 30 years, I will be approaching 70. I can then look forward to a quick way to Fanshawe Park Road. Yay.

Any info on the proposed Walfart at Exeter and Wonderland Rd. South?

Does the Ash Borer also eat jobs? I ask because the London area has lost so many in the past 6 months.

Weird. Hope that it is better than the aborted pseudo-freeway blip that is Highbury Ave.

I think that London's city planners look towards the 905 area as an urban model, rather than say, more concise urban fabrics like those found in Europe.

Looks like a run-down 70's era Las Vegas motor inn.

Quite frankly, who gives two-shits what Jack Layton says?

And the commie-blocks keep-a-comin' in London, esp. in the Oxford-Wonderland area.
I'd rather have no construction, than more of those ugly commie-blocks. Parts of London could easily pass for Irkutsk or Dniepreprovetsk.

I am not too impressed, having bought a home in the neighborhood.

Not again.

Good, but if it happens, I will eat my shoes.
I refer to them as Dumbcentres.

Ultra 80s, Ultra Smell (Bell) Canada. Smell has a building like this in every single major city in Canada.

This actually looks pretty good. I was in the area this weekend past, and it currently is about as gritty and shitty as anywhere in the country.

Yeah, just what I expected, city council is totally in cahoots with the big box sprawl developers. Who gives a shit if inner London looks like shit,

Yeah, I live about 1 km from that shitty bridge. and cross it from time to time. It is the Marie-Anne de Cicco way: rezone, build, but do not expand the infrastructure.

More of Anne-Marie's "Best and Brightest" (aka, highest salaries and sick-days, and moreover, mediocre results

yep. exactly. anyone else, it would be front-page news. And you'd think, "wow, the mayor's husband...for sure the LFP will have something"...but it is buried like a skeleton in the closet.

And while we are at it, how on earth did Best get the exemption for that lousy deck/patio along Richmond? Fishy, fishy.

What do you all think about the Mayor's husband's little adventure last saturday? Must be pretty damned embarassing for Anne-Marie, to say the least.

Same shit they smoked when they decided to bury the drunk-driving adventure of Mr. A-M deC-Best.

No news on Mr. AMdeC-Best? Still got his drivers' license, I presume?

If he got drunk (and then drove) in his own bar...could he be at risk of losing his liquor license? Did you sit out on the cheapo patio at Friday Fright Nites?

Not because of, but despite the current administration on dufferin st.

[MolsonExport]

http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/Sports/UniversitySports/2008/11/17/7433951-sun.html

Mustangs Vanier bound
London Free Press
Mon, November 17, 2008

Coach Greg Marshall gets to the final for the first time in six tries
By MORRIS DALLA COSTA, FREE PRESS SPORTS COLUMNIST




Greg Marshall and the Western Mustangs are heading to the promised land.

Like anyone trying to reach hallowed ground, the journey has not been without heartache and bumps along the way.

It took two seasons for Marshall to lead the team to the Vanier Cup. It's the first time the Mustangs have been there since 1995, when they lost to Calgary, but it's the first time Marshall has made the national university football championship in six tries, four of them with the McMaster Marauders.

The Mustangs got there with a 28-12 win over the Saint Mary's Huskies yesterday in the Mitchell Bowl in front of 4,759 fans.

When it was over, the Mustangs stood on the television platform chanting "Vanier Cup, Vanier Cup." There was a long line of people wanting to hug Marshall and a stadium full of people happy Marshall was able to take the next step.




"Everyone talked about how it must be nice to get the monkey off my back," he said. "It didn't make a difference to me. It's nice to win, but I've been at Western two years. It was my record, not the team's. I have a wonderful group of boys here."

His team delivered and while it may not have been their neatest effort of the year, it was a game in which they manufactured the big plays. That allowed them to take control and put away a tough team.

The Mustangs will take on the Laval Rouge et Or Saturday in Hamilton, seeking their first title since a 1994 victory over Saskatchewan. Laval demolished the Calgary Dinos 59-10, making a stunning statement about how difficult Western's task is going to be.

"We're going to celebrate for a few hours, then start preparing," Marshall said between well-wishers. "We have to learn to put the ball in the end zone. It was a great effort, but we have to be better against Laval.

"We're playing against a great football team. We aren't going to be able to do it with smoke and mirrors. We have to score points and we have to catch some breaks."

The Mustangs had a surprisingly difficult time stopping the Huskies offence, operated by rookie quarterback Jack Creighton. The Huskies outgained Western 422 to 369 with 231 yards on the ground.

Marshall was disappointed at the yardage total. He knows if the Mustangs can't contain the run better against Laval, it's going to be a long Vanier Cup afternoon.

"They played a solid game and were well prepared," Huskies coach Steve Sumarah said. "On defence, they were dominant."

That Mustangs dominance stood out on two interceptions.

With the Huskies up 12-11 in the second quarter, linebacker Adrian Kaiser stepped in front of a Creighton pass and returned it 32 yards to the Huskies' two-yard line. John Leckie punched it in from there, giving the Mustangs a lead they never relinquished.

The crusher, though, was by the game's most valuable player, defensive back Craig Butler.

With less than a minute to go in the first half, he picked off Creighton and thanks to a great block by linebacker John Surla, took it back 57 yards for a touchdown. It gave the Mustangs a 25-12 halftime lead and the Western defence took over after that.

"It's a great feeling coming into this game and getting a victory," Kaiser said. "Everyone on defence came up with a big play. I just saw the receiver doing a hook. I just went there and that's where he threw it.

"It's not about me. Everyone on the defence has played well this year. I'm just lucky to have a good defensive line in front of me."

While the defence came up with several big plays, the offence did enough to control the game. On a cold day with intermittent snow and gusting wind, Faulds' short passing game, particularly to Nick Trevail, allowed the Mustangs to win the battle of field position. Trevail, a rookie, caught nine balls for 111 yards.

"You know, I'm excited about winning but I'm not really excited," Faulds said. "The Vanier Cup is what we all want. Winning the Mitchell Bowl means nothing if you don't win the Vanier Cup."

The Mustangs played Laval in a preseason game in August in Quebec City, with the home team winning 37-9.

"Going to the Vanier Cup is special," Marshall said. "How long have I been coaching and I haven't gone? This is a big deal."

[ldoto]

One London Place remains city's tallest

Mon, November 17, 2008

BRAGGING RIGHTS: The new Renaissance has more storeys but isn't as tall as the 15-year-old office building


With final touches being put to its newest downtown tower, there'll be no battle for skyline bragging rights in London.

That honour remains with One London Place, the 15-year-old glass and steel office tower built by Sifton Properties and standing 107 metres (350 feet).

The new kid on the skyline, Tricar Group's Renaissance tower, is the second highest at 95 metres (312 feet).

Still, the 28-storey Renaissance will be London's tallest apartment tower, and maybe one of its poshest addresses.

Its penthouse units, starting on the 24th floor, with commanding views of the downtown and the forks of the Thames River, account for many of the 500 inquiries so far by potential Renaissance renters, said Tricar's Adam Carapella.




Most of the penthouses have already been leased. The 3,200-square-foot penthouse on the top floor -- the size of two average bungalows -- rents for about $3,000 a month.

Even though the Renaissance has more floors than One London Place, 28 versus 24, it's shorter because the office tower has taller storeys.

London's tallest tower dwarfs that of regional rival Kitchener, but Hamilton hits the tallest heights in Southwestern Ontario cities with its 127-metre Landmark Place.

TALLEST BUILDINGS

London

One London Place, 107 metres

The Renaissance, 95 m

City Centre, south tower, 91 m

City Centre, north tower, 80 m

Elsewhere

Landmark Place (Hamilton), 127 m

Caesar's-Augustus Tower (Windsor), 111 m

Wellington Place (Kitchener), 61 m

[ldoto]

Children's Hospital Attracts 11 New Doctors

Children's Hospital Attracts 11 New Doctors

Children's hospital at London Health Sciences Centre has attracted 11 new paediatric physicians from around the world.

With the help of the Children's Health Foundation, Children's Hospital hired doctors from as far away as Australia, Germany and Switzerland.

"Children's hospital is extremely pleased to welcome these fine physicians as we continue with our commitment to providing high-quality care to our patients and their families," said Dr. Guido Filler, Chief, Department of Paediatrics, Children's Hospital.

The hospital recruited specialists in cardiology, general paediatrics, genetics, haematology, metabolics, neurosurgery, childhood obesity, ophthalmology, respirology, and urology.

"I am delighted with the talented new surgeons we have recruited to London," said Dr. Kellie Leitch, Chief, Paediatric Surgery. "Our ability to attract this many prominent and experienced physicians and surgeons in such a variety of fields speaks to our commitment to excellence and contributes to our ability to provide the broadest range of children's services in Southwestern Ontario."

[QuantumLeap]

By Paul Mayne
Thursday, November 13, 2008
In the face of a broad economic downturn the university is reviewing its list of building and renovation projects to determine which should move ahead as planned, and which should be delayed.


Construction continues just north of London on a building for the Institute for Chemicals and Fuels from Alternative Resources.

Western Provost and Vice-President (Academic) Fred Longstaffe says all projects currently underway will be finished.

As such the Claudette MacKay-Lassonde Pavilion (Green Building), the Student Services Building and the Institute for Chemicals and Fuels from Alternative Resources will continue.

As well, two renovation projects set out in the Long Range Space Plan - the Stevenson-Lawson Building and University Community Centre renovations - will continue the planning and renovation process.

The emptying of Stevenson-Lawson in preparation for renovations to support the departments of Philosophy, Classical Studies, and Women's Studies and Feminist Research, and the Program in Writing, Rhetoric and Professional Communication is well underway, and renovations will begin soon.

“The renovations of UCC are also urgently required to provide classroom space to meet needs arising within the 2009-10 academic year,” says Longstaffe.

Other projects, such as the New Ivey Building, Campus Sustainability Initiatives and renovations to the Physics & Astronomy Physical Plant buildings are being examined.

“It is too early to say how much the original schedules might be affected,” says Longstaffe. “I hope to be able to be more definitive by January 2009.”

One area where Western has not been affected is in access to borrowing. In 2006 Western announced its $230-million plan for expansion, renovation and construction, the largest in the university's history.

Western issued its inaugural debenture for $190 million in May of 2007, with an interest rate of 4.798% for money due in May 2047 - that is, a 40-year bond.

Favourable investment returns over the last several years also contributed to the much-needed modernization and new facilities to support educational and research programs.

“This funding has helped to finance the construction currently underway,” says Longstaffe. “We certainly would not have been able to secure such a favourable interest rate in today's world marketplace, where the availability of credit is substantially poorer than it was when Western made its arrangements.”

[QuantumLeap]

Public's turn on Thames' future
Sat, November 22, 2008

By RANDY RICHMOND


Does the river need a few restaurants? How about some washrooms?

Where should developers be able to build on the river?

Are views of the river worth protecting? Should there be more nature or development, along it?

Many questions surround the Thames River's future in London. Next week, residents get a chance to answer some of those and to ask their own.

At a public open house Wednesday, dozens of issues will be open for debate as the city winds its way to finishing a full-scale plan for the river.


"This will not be a background study that sits on a shelf," says city planner Bruce Page, shepherding the plan through.

"This implementation plan will identify the hierarchy of what we do and when. It will answer the question, 'How do we bring back the river to the great celebration it should be?"

For the past five years, planners have been working on the Thames Valley Corridor Plan.

The first stage, released last year, broke down issues within the Thames corridor into four main areas -- natural heritage, celebration (including recreation and tourism), the working river (the city's storm- and waste- water system) and land-use planning.

The second stage of the plan, to be released Wednesday, has broken those four general areas into almost 80 points of discussion.

Page doesn't expect people to have an opinion on all the items, but welcomes the input.

"Yes, there is a lot out there to digest. However, I think people have specific visions of the river and the corridor system."

It's pretty clear, Page says, many of the issues come down to one basic question: Does the river corridor need more protection and enhancement of its natural environment?

Or, could it use the boost of some urban flair to bring more people to its banks?

"That is the exciting challenge. How do we take those components and find common ground?" Page says.

An advisory committee that's been helping the city to prepare the report includes a wide range of people sitting on either sides of issues, yet its members recognize a balance is needed, Page says.

Some river areas in London, such as the Forks, the South Street hospital campus -- eventually being returned to the city -- and along the south branch behind London Hydro lend themselves to urbanization, he says.

One unusual talking point is the idea the city should protect not only the river and its banks, but also certain views and vistas along the river.

The views can be from the land looking out, or from the river looking back to the land.

"It has become an issue with many Londoners who have lost views of the river," Page says.

Some vistas are already identified in the report, but Page is looking for the public to identify more.

[ssiguy]

$12 million isn't much but I think the feds are going to, finally, break open the piggy banks and provide REAL money into infastructure. I think its a sure thing so I this is just the start of money flowing to the cities.

[MolsonExport]

Just got back from seeing Bill Clinton at the JLC. Great speech.

[london2020]

I don't recall this being covered here before.

http://www.altlondon.org/article.php?story=20081021190318292

Advance word is that Goodwill is proposing to build a 30-storey highrise complex which will include retails shops at ground level, several floors of office space and then apartments or condominiums.

Anyone know of any documents on the london city website dealing with this?

[LondnPlanr]

Originally Posted by london2020

I don't recall this being covered here before.

http://www.altlondon.org/article.php?story=20081021190318292



Anyone know of any documents on the london city website dealing with this?

Hmmm, I haven't seen anything go through the city. I have a feeling this was just GoodWill feeling out what the community would have to say about a development like this.

I can tell you this: I did some work for GoodWill on this project while I was at Fanshawe College for GIS and Urban Planning a few years back. They approached our class to do a sort of 'mock-proposal' for this area, and I do know that my proposal was one that was retained by GoodWill for 'future use'. If I had of known about this meeting on Oct. 29, I would have been in attendance for sure to see just what 'their' site plan for the area looked like... interesting indeed.

As far as 30 stories go, I don't think they were dreaming that big. We were told 8-12, possibly 15. At no time was 'condos' or 'expensive penthouse suites' mentioned at all. This was to be strictly affordable housing, but placed within a strong redesign of the existing GoodWill property.

If anyone else on here attended that Oct. 29 meeting, I am very curious to see what came out of that. I do plan on contacting someone down at GoodWill to see what they have to say... I can't help but think they incorporated some of my 'proposal' into their plans. Interesting.