London Construction - Development News Thread#1

[Blitz]

Uh, does ldoto work for the London Free Press? If so, tell them to stop calling me!

[the pope]

i'm going to be in london this weekend, and i'll be over at colborne place (with king of colborne), i'll go urinate on the building for you

[Lucky 24]

I haven't gotten a LFP call in a while....look at me get a call today.

[Blitz]

^ Yeah, they're rather high on my list of annoyances right now. Another being that full of shit 'homeless' guy who hangs out in the middle of the intersection at Wonderland and Oxford bothering people waiting in their cars at the light. Also, the uggs boots seem to be out in full force at UWO these days - although I'll admit some girls do look pretty good in them.

[ldoto]

The election of Andre Boisclair as the new leader of the Parti Quebecois has taken referendum talk off of the back burner.
Boisclair says he will push for an independence vote as early as 2007 if he becomes Premier.

As a result, many people, including the chair of London's Shriners Hospital Bid, figures that London may be back in the race.

Tony Dagnone says Boisclair's statements will unsettle Shriners across the continent. He says, "The Shriners are very wise. They will not make a term 100 million dollar investment in a province that may turn out to be another country."

Nonetheless, there is still some hesitation because another bid would mean not only having to convince the public that a third attempt will be successful but also it would require more money.

Yet, Dagnone says he and others think they can rally the troops again, although it can't happen unless there is a formal request from the Shriners themselves.

[Blitz]

ldoto, you're a very mysterious forumer.

[the pope]

and this unmysterious forumer will be boozing in london this saturday.....

if i had to guess it would start at the brass door

[Lucky 24]

Start rolling the blunts..the pontiff is coming to town.

[the pope]

i want a seven blunt salute

[Blitz]

Originally Posted by the pope

i'm going to be in london this weekend, and i'll be over at colborne place (with king of colborne), i'll go urinate on the building for you

His banishment from SSP was quite unjustified.

Are your clubbing activities going to be chronicled by the LFP again?

[the pope]

one can only hope!




thats me with king of colburne

(dear god this is turning into MCT of ontario)

[Lucky 24]

I always thought that Ben looks really wierd in that pic.

[ldoto]

This is great news for the downtown core it is booming down here. I also heard that there will be a big project announce in the next couple weeks.



Park Lane Hotel to be reborn as condo project

Wed, November 23, 2005

By HANK DANISZEWSKI, FREE PRESS BUSINESS REPORTER




Jeffrey Roher, left, and Joel Kwinter of the Rose Corp. are converting the Park Lane Hotel on King Street into condominiums. (DEREK RUTTAN, The London Free Press)
Two Toronto developers think it's time for a downtown London building with a checkered past to be reborn as a hip, downtown condo project.

Joel Kwinter and Jeffrey Roher are spearheading a plan to create time Condominiums with a $12 million to $15 million renovation of the former Park Lane Hotel at 186 King St.

The developers say downtown London is on an upswing and ready for the kind of urban condo conversion that has swept larger centres such as Toronto.

"London's time has come . . . We want London youth to stay in London by offering them a hip place to hang their hat and call home," Kwinter said.

The units will vary in size from 330 square feet to 800 square feet and range in price from $69,990 for a studio to $159,000 for a two-bedroom or large one- bedroom.


Kwinter and Roher are partners with the Rose Corp., a Toronto-based real estate investment company that bought the building last year.

Kwinter said the building will have a "South Beach -- New York City" feel, both inside and out and will be aimed at the 18- to 35-year-old market.

The sales office and a model suite should be open in a few months, but the renovations will not start until a minimum number of units are pre-sold, he said.

If the sales campaign is successful, the new condo owners should be able to move in by the end of 2007.

Kwinter said the main floor will stay commercial and the developers will be looking for a high-end lounge/restaurant to locate there.

Other amenities will include exercise facilities, a private lounge, a study and two screening rooms with large-screen televisions.

The developers are planning a major marketing campaign and have a website -- www.timecondos.com -- where potential buyers can register.

If the project is a success, it will be a turnaroud for a building that has suffered a lot of bad luck since construction began in 1961. The building has changed hands several times due to lawsuits and financial failures and was empty for a couple of years in the 1990's.

"I know there's a bit of history involved in this building but we think it's time for a big change. This building has great bones and a great location and that's what were working with," said Kwinter.

Last night Kwinter and Roher received a Downtown Champion award at the Mainstreet London annual general meeting in recognition of the initiative.

Mainstreet manager Janette MacDonald said the time Condo project is exactly what downtown needs. She said the affordable prices makes the condos attractive to young professionals.

"If we can these young people into the real estate market in London, it will be a tougher for them to leave," she said.

HISTORY OF 186 KING

1961: Construction begins, but financial problems delay the opening for three years.

1964: The 10-storey building opens as the Jack Tar Motor Hotel.

1966: The building is sold and renamed the Kingsley Building, the result of a lawsuit.

1973: It is converted into the Park Lane Motel.

1988: The Park Lane is converted into a Ramada Inn.

1992: The Ramada Inn closes after prolonged financial troubles and the building sits vacant for two years.

1994: A plan to turn the building into a private student residence called King's Inn falls apart, leaving 130 people locked out.

1995: London realtor Paul Mitchell steps in, revives the project and opens the student residence.

2002: The building is sold to Dutch entrepreneur Willem Fijneer, who reopens it as the Park Lane Hotel.

2004: The building is sold to Toronto-based real estate developer the Rose Corp., which plans to turn it into condos.

[ldoto]

New airline, service for city vacationers

Thu, November 24, 2005

By NORMAN DE BONO, FREE PRESS BUSINESS REPORTER



London International Airport has added a new airline and expanded its service.

Sunwing, the warm-weather tour operator, has established its own airline, which next month will begin offering three flights a week out of London to Cuba and the Dominican Republic.

"This is a significant change for London," said Steve Baker, president and chief executive of London airport.

"Historically, charter operators have leased aircraft from airlines, but this means Sunwing can control the product they are offering, from hotel reservations to air transportation. It will mean greater customer service."

The news comes at the time the airport has seen a 20-per- cent rise in traffic this year over last, with more than 400,000 travellers now using the airport, said Baker.

And Sunwing's new service may push that total upward, he said.

"What travellers will see is an entire travel itinerary organized by the operator, from hotels to transfers and the return home. It will make for a better experience overall," said Baker.

In an era of reduced services and no-frill airlines, Sunwing is returning to full service offering a "champagne" package including hot meals, free wine, in-flight entertainment, leather seats and even hot towels, said Mark Williams, president of Sunwing Airlines.

"This is just the evolution of our company. We have had significant growth and we're at the point where it supports having our own aircraft."

The service will begin Dec. 18 and last until March 26. It will operate two aircraft flying out of Toronto, London, Ottawa, Sudbury and Thunder Bay. Sunwing will fly Boeing 737-800s, which seat 189.

This is Sunwing's third year of service out of London, but last year it offered flights with the now-defunct Jetsgo. In past years, it has operated in the "90-per-cent occupancy range" out of London, added Baker.

Sunwing has been listed by Profit Magazine for the past two years as one of the fastest -growing companies in Canada.

[ldoto]

Eight courtrooms and more private areas are to be added with $17.5M in provincial funds.



Eight courtrooms will be added to the London courthouse as part of a $17.5-million upgrade announced yesterday.

Liberal MPPs Deb Matthews (London-North-Centre), Chris Bentley (London West) and Khalil Ramal (London-Fanshawe) announced the funding at the courthouse.

"It's no secret that this court house is in need of upgrades and has needed upgrades for some time," Matthews said of the 31-year-old building at 80 Dundas St. "If we can make changes to the facility, that'll mean faster access to justice -- that is a good thing."

The funding will be spread over four years. It will be used to add eight courtrooms, expand basement holding cells for prisoners and add more private areas and conference rooms.

Susan Fullerton, vice-president of the Middlesex Law Association, said the courthouse is inadequate.

"A big issue is the use of the space. We don't have enough. In the family law (area) on the second floor, there are a lot of small court rooms, but very few private areas," she said.

"If you've got a couple in the middle of a divorce, you want, as a lawyer, to be able to keep them away from one another."

Bentley, who practised criminal law for more than 20 years before becoming an MPP, said the changes will make delivery of justice more efficient. There will be more places for families to meet to discuss issues, he said, which could lead to agreements without having to go before a judge.

The funds are part of the government's ReNew Ontario plan to invest $30 billion in Ontario's infrastructure.

[ldoto]

Vat's dat, Labatt?

Thu, December 8, 2005

Giant beer tanks are set to slowly snake through London tomorrow.

By NORMAN DE BONO, FREE PRESS BUSINESS REPORTER



Two truck convoys will descend on London tomorrow, knocking out power and cable lines as they slowly snake toward the city core.

If that sounds like something out of a military exercise, you're not far off.

Labatt Breweries is shipping eight giant beer vats to its London plant in two truck convoys, each carrying four vats -- one from Toronto, the other from Sarnia -- in a $3.6-million operation.

The vats, actually called uni-tanks and used to age and ferment beer, are so large that each convoy is employing electrical and cable crews -- and is being escorted by nine OPP cruisers -- because power lines have to be taken down in their snail's-pace path.

"I wouldn't call it a logistical nightmare, but it has been a challenge," said Dave Ford, project leader at the London Labatt plant.

"The biggest problem we have had is that we have two different trucking companies handling the load and they need to co-ordinate arriving in London at the same time."

Anderson Haulage is carrying the Sarnia load, while Sand Rock is hauling tanks from Toronto.

The weather has also been tricky. The convoy was to arrive in London today at noon, but snow squalls delayed the move and the Toronto convoy had to stop overnight just south of Listowel while the Sarnia trucks stopped for the evening at Wyoming on Highway 21.

The trucks are expected to meet at Highbury Avenue and Fanshawe Park Road tomorrow at 10 a.m., where they will join in a 700-metre-long convoy that is expected to take four hours to travel to the Horton Street plant.

"It is easiest for all the utilities if they join up and come in together. That way, we just have to shut things off once," said Bob Chant, Labatt spokesperson.

The uni-tanks are part of a $40-million expansion of the Labatt plant that will see it increase yearly brewing production to 4.1 million hectalitres from 2.7 million -- about 50 million cases of beer. The expansion will also see the plant adding a keg line.

Two convoys are needed because the London plant is bringing in four new uni-tanks from Germany, shipped from Rotterdam and unloaded in Sarnia, and four used ones from Labatt's recently closed Toronto brewery.

"Hydro and cable officials are travelling with the convoys. The overall objective here is to minimize disruption for citizens," said Chant, adding the power outages should last about an hour and a half.

The new German-made tanks spent three weeks on the water before landing in Sarnia.

They were loaded onto trucks and began their road journey yesterday, travelling about 20 kilometres an hour.

THE UNI-TANKS

- Eighteen metres high

- Six metres wide

- Each can hold 4,000 hectalitres, or about one million bottles of beer

- Used for aging and fermenting beer

THE COST

- $1.6 million to manufacture the four new tanks.

- $1 million to ship them from Germany.

- $1 million to truck all eight tanks to London.

EIGHT HUGE BEER TANKS LONDON BOUND

- Labatt Breweries is moving eight 18-metre tall fermentation vats to their London brewery from Sarnia and Toronto.

THE TANKS

- The tanks, are part of the $40-million London brewery expansion project. Each tank can hold the equivalent of about a million bottles of beer.

TRAVELLING THROUGH LONDON:

- The tanks are expected to meet at Highbury Avenue and Fanshawe Park Road in London tomorrow. From there, they will begin a four-hour trek to the London brewery, travelling at 20 km/h. The tanks will be escorted by police cars and Hydro trucks.

[ldoto]

http://www.tricar.com/condominiums/r...hill/index.htm Welcome to... Richmond Hill





1985 Richmond St. North of Masonville Rd.
Prime View Overlooking London
Prices from $300,000K to $650,000K

[ldoto]

A Toronto-based day-care chain serving corporate clients is expanding to London.

Kids & Co. is setting up a new centre at Mount St. Joseph, the former convent and private girls' school on Richmond Street North recently sold by the Sisters of St. Joseph.

Renovations have begun for the 9,000-square-foot child-care centre in the north wing of the building. Another part of the building is being redone to create 100 upscale retirement suites.

The child-care centre is scheduled to open in June and will employ about 25 early childhood education teachers. The centre will provide a secure webcam site to allow parents to check on their children through the day.

Kids & Co. chief executive Victoria Sopik said the company scouted locations in downtown London, but couldn't find one with suitable outdoor play space.

Kids & Co. cares for about 1,000 children at seven sites in Toronto, including large office towers such as the TD Centre and Commerce Court. It also has operations in Calgary, Ottawa and Waterloo.

Sopik knows a lot about child care from personal experience.

She and her husband, Jeffrey, are raising eight kids, ages eight to 19. One of her sons attends the University of Western Ontario.

"I've always been a working mom, so I've always known what parents wanted to have," said Sopik, who studied business administration at Western.

Sopik said Kids & Co. works on contract with about 200 corporations, supplying a specified number of spots for children of employees.

The parents usually pay for the child care, but the contracts often provide for emergency backup care for employees who unexpectedly find themselves without child care.

"If you're a busy working parent, your child care can fall through because of something as simple as a snow day at school," said Sopik.

She said companies have found that the emergency care can keep parents on the job and help them balance their work and family life.

Sopik said national corporations with employees in London will use the service, but her

[Blitz]

Just heard on the news that London will be home to Canada's first Wal-Mart SuperCentre. Surprise, surprise.

[ldoto]

First Pro Shopping Centres says the Wal-Mat in London's north end will be expanding by a third.
The retailer says it is responding to consumer demand for a mix of groceries and general merchandise at a location that has been profitable ever since it was built 11 years ago.

The Wal-Mart Supercentres that have been created in the States have had a devastating impact on some supermarkets and some Londoners are concerned that the same thing will happen here.

The 13 million dollar expansion which will be completed by the end of next year will mean an addition of 60 employees to the 200 currently working in the store.