THE "NIAGARA" NEW CONDO TOWER OVERLOOKING THE FALLS
Condo will attract new people to city: Developer
COREY LAROCQUE
Local News - Wednesday, July 12, 2006 @ 02:00
Condominiums with a view of the Niagara River will be attractive to retirees from Toronto looking to downsize to the "condo life," as well as to international investors who might want to live in Niagara part-time, says the business development director for The Niagara condominium residence.
"When somebody can actually see those kinds of views from their residences, that's pretty incredible," said Marc Baronette, the business development director for ORE Development Corp.
The Mississauga company plans to build The Niagara, a 29-storey condominium residence on River Road. By building the tallest residential building in Niagara Falls, it will attract new people to the city.
"How you make great cities greater ... It's really residents that make a city greater," said Baronette, who grew up in St.
Catharines and has kept in touch with the Niagara region during his career as a developer.
"As a company, we really like the peninsula," he said.
This is the first residential condominium project for ORE Development, which has previously developed industrial property throughout southern Ontario. The company is the Canadian office of the Opus Group of real estate development companies that has completed more than 2,300 projects.
ORE Development issued a press release Tuesday announcing plans to have Harvey Kalles Real Estate act as the exclusive sales agent for the 250 units.
That announcement came the day after city council passed the bylaw authorizing the official plan amendment for the project.
Until now, their marketing had been confined to signs erected on River Road near the corner of John Street and a website.
ORE hopes to have all the city and regional council approvals in place by the fall. They would start construction next spring and open in 2009, Baronette said.
The company advertises condos starting at $169,900 for the smallest of the units. An average two-bedroom condo would go for about $250,000.
The company still has some details to work out about sales prices, Baronette said.
At an average price of $250,000, a 250-unit building would bring in about $62.5 million in sales revenue. But the press release says it will be a $70-million project.
"Seventy million is a round figure. There's parking revenue as well ... There's some penthouse units that are going to sell for even more. We haven't really figured out those things yet," Baronette said.
Some people have asked about buying an entire floor in the building, which will measure about 7,500 square feet.
While ORE said The Niagara will be a good addition to the city's residential real estate mix, some existing neighbours haven't been as welcoming. More than 200 people signed a petition urging council not to approve it. Council voted for it despite its planning department's recommendation against the tower. Now, a group of neighbours are planning to appeal the city's decision to the Ontario Municipal Board.
"Anybody can appeal anything. If a group of ratepayers decides to pursue that avenue, that's something we have to deal with as a developer," Baronette said.
THE REVIEW