The Vancouver Business Thread

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by GenWhy?

Looks like a major university out of Boston.

I thought Mr. Wang has until 2025 until this particular restriction is enacted, no? I haven't been keeping up.

Northeastern University has a campus n Vancouver? Who knew.

One would have thought Mr. Wang would just go to the main campus in Boston, if he was a successful investment banker in New York. But then of course, you don't get Canadian citizenship.

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by GenWhy?

Looks like a major university out of Boston.

I thought Mr. Wang has until 2025 until this particular restriction is enacted, no? I haven't been keeping up.

Sounds like it's January 2025?

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by GenWhy?

Looks like a major university out of Boston.

I thought Mr. Wang has until 2025 until this particular restriction is enacted, no? I haven't been keeping up.

LOL, just checked and according to our own now Councillor Meiszner Northeastern University Vancouver is, of course, located in a Westbank building (at least a former one). Deloitte Summit. Who says Class A office doesn't get blue chip tenants in Vancouver!

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by whatnext

LOL, just checked and according to our own now Councillor Meiszner Northeastern University Vancouver is, of course, located in a Westbank building (at least a former one). Deloitte Summit. Who says Class A office doesn't get blue chip tenants in Vancouver!

What's your problem with Northeastern University? They seem to be a credible private university with a large main campus, and satellite smaller centres around the US, and in Toronto, London and now Vancouver. They don't appear to be in the same category as the Diploma in Marketing colleges that have been identified as the reason for the high number of overseas students in the past couple of years.

The article said Mr Wang chose Vancouver because he hoped to settle here. As a master's degree from Northeast is apparently a respected qualification, and given our demographics it seems like a reasonable choice. It's likely he wasn't aware of Vancouver's sinophobes, but fortunately there aren't too many of them.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Changing City

What's your problem with Northeastern University? They seem to be a credible private university with a large main campus, and satellite smaller centres around the US, and in Toronto, London and now Vancouver. They don't appear to be in the same category as the Diploma in Marketing colleges that have been identified as the reason for the high number of overseas students in the past couple of years.

The article said Mr Wang chose Vancouver because he hoped to settle here. As a master's degree from Northeast is apparently a respected qualification, and given our demographics it seems like a reasonable choice. It's likely he wasn't aware of Vancouver's sinophobes, but fortunately there aren't too many of them.

LOL, a predictable response. Yes, Northeastern has a long and storied history at their main campus in Boston. In Vancouver they date back all the way to.... the opening of Deloitte Summit.

So yes, they're a notch above Happy Golden Maple College but it is clear they set up here to take advantage of the abuses your beloved NDP are targetting with the new rules for the provincial nominee program.

It would be fascinating to know how much of our office space is taken up with all these colleges and "universities".

[kja384]

Originally Posted by whatnext

LOL, just checked and according to our own now Councillor Meiszner Northeastern University Vancouver is, of course, located in a Westbank building (at least a former one). Deloitte Summit. Who says Class A office doesn't get blue chip tenants in Vancouver!

Yea this Northeastern University may be well established in the US, but it definitely just exists as an immigration loophole in Canada. Guarantee that next to nobody has ever heard of it, it's only a few years old though.

The whole post secondary institutes snapping up office space is not unique to Vancouver though.

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/gta-offi...oung-1.1995174

niversity Canada West is the true diploma mill in the lower mainland. Private university with like 30k students that are opening a campus for 2.2k more.

[FarmerHaight]

Originally Posted by whatnext

One would have thought Mr. Wang would just go to the main campus in Boston, if he was a successful investment banker in New York. But then of course, you don't get Canadian citizenship.

Zongwang Wang was in asset management in NYC, not investment banking. They are worlds apart in terms of prestige.

Originally Posted by whatnext

Yes, Northeastern has a long and storied history at their main campus in Boston.

Originally Posted by kja384

Yea this Northeastern University may be well established in the US, but it definitely just exists as an immigration loophole in Canada.

It's incredibly common for American universities to have multiple global campuses. Do you think the Texas A&M campus in Doha is just there to help international students jump through Qatari immigration loopholes too?

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by kja384

Yea this Northeastern University may be well established in the US, but it definitely just exists as an immigration loophole in Canada. Guarantee that next to nobody has ever heard of it, it's only a few years old though.

The whole post secondary institutes snapping up office space is not unique to Vancouver though.

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/gta-offi...oung-1.1995174

niversity Canada West is the true diploma mill in the lower mainland. Private university with like 30k students that are opening a campus for 2.2k more.

Yes, UCW was second only to Ontario's infamous Conestoga College in the number of international student permits it had last year.

[IMG]college by bcborn, on Flickr[/IMG]
Credit: CBC

No wonder UCW had to lease more space in B6 in addition to their space in Westbank-built Vancouver House.

[jollyburger]

4D Chess on Squamish City Council.

The ship arrived in B.C. waters in January after a 40-day journey from Estonia, where it had sheltered Ukrainian refugees, but Woodfibre LNG didn’t obtain a permit from the district to operate the so-called “floatel.”

Squamish councillors voted three to four against a one-year permit at a meeting on Tuesday that raised concerns about the safety of women and girls, traffic issues, waste management and potential natural hazards.

https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2024/0...ing-work-camp/

[jollyburger]

Just make it all pickup.

Canada Post lost $748 million last year, warns of 'critical' financial situation

"Even with Canada Post's recently proposed stamp price increase, the Corporation projects that, without additional borrowing and refinancing, it will fall below its required operating and reserve cash requirements by early 2025," the report says.

Canada Post has been losing money since 2018. In the last six years, its losses have totalled $3 billion.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/can...2023-1.7193944

[jollyburger]

RBC integrates HSBC, reveals details about Vancouver banking hub

What RBC really committed to when it agreed to create a banking hub in Vancouver is something completely different than simply having a larger general RBC workforce.

It committed to create a 1,000-worker banking division in Vancouver within five years.

RBC workers from various cities across North America are set to relocate to Vancouver and be joined by a net total of 440 new workers to create this stand-alone hub.

“Hopefully we will do this sooner than five years,” Thibodeau said.

He said customers will not interact with workers in the banking hub. Instead, the hub’s workers will create software as well as security systems to prevent cyberattacks, and other core parts of RBC’s internal bank infrastructure.

“As you build more stuff, you need larger pipes,” he said of the need for the future banking hub's improved infrastructure.

“It's like a highway: you need to improve the highway and have more lanes.”

The increasing staff presence would get RBC to more than 9,500 employees when the hub is fully activated, and Thibodeau said he is looking ahead to a staff count near the round number of 10,000.

That growth means RBC has no plans to shed any of HSBC’s former real estate, Thibodeau said.

The former HSBC building at 885 West Georgia Street has RBC branding at ground level and is awaiting new RBC branding atop the structure

https://www.biv.com/news/economy-law...ng-hub-8746245

[officedweller]

None of the HSBC signage spaces really fit the dimensions of the RBC logo.
All of the other signs on the former HSBC building at grade have the RBC logo awkwardly fitted.

[jollyburger]

Seems like it was installed on the roof. Black background with just the RBC logo in gold.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

Seems like it was installed on the roof. Black background with just the RBC logo in gold.

By me today:

[whatnext]

Speaking of HSBC, DailyHive reports the Chinatown branch is to become a hotel! Nice to see someone invest in the area and the building lends itself to it IMHO.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/610-...-vancity-hotel

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Speaking of HSBC, DailyHive reports the Chinatown branch is to become a hotel! Nice to see someone invest in the area and the building lends itself to it IMHO.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/610-...-vancity-hotel

It's been a VanCity branch for years. I suspect the owner (who developed the building years ago) is struggling to find office tenants, so it's a sensible choice.

[whatnext]

I thought Heidelberg was included in the most recent strike action a while back?

]Looming Lower Mainland concrete strike could be ‘huge hit’ to construction industry
By Michael Williams
Posted May 29, 2024 6:20 pm. Last Updated May 29, 2024 6:27 pm.

A looming strike involving one of the Lower Mainland’s bigger players in concrete is casting a shadow over the construction sector in the region.

The union claiming to represent workers at one of the region’s largest concrete companies, Heidelberg Materials, issued a statement on social media Monday, asserting that if negotiations with the German-based company fail on Wednesday, it would prompt their bargaining team to call for a strike.

It added that their members had “voted overwhelmingly by 98.6% to authorize it.”

One construction professional fears a strike may result in significant disruptions.

“It affects the whole industry, but it would affect the small and medium sized builders quite a bit,” said Sal Nasery, a lead project manager for Vancouver General Contractors.

He told CityNews, “it [could also] realistically mean a lot of the larger projects get put on hold or delayed.”.....

https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2024/0...tion-industry/

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by whatnext

I thought Heidelberg was included in the most recent strike action a while back?

I think in 2022 it was Rempel was on strike and workers didn't cross pickets for the other sister companies.

Rempel Bros. Concrete, Ocean Concrete and Allied Ready Mix (Lehigh Hanson)

https://ca.style.yahoo.com/news/3-we...120000699.html

Lehigh Hanson becomes Heidelberg Materials in 2023

https://www.on-sitemag.com/concrete/...ls/1003978511/

They signed a four-year deal in 2022

On Sept.1 of this year there’s a 2.75 per cent hike. On Sept.1, 2023, a three per cent raise. On Jan. 1, 2024, another three per cent increase. And on Jan. 1, 2025, the final year of the contract, a two per cent bump.

https://canada.constructconnect.com/...-strike-in-b-c

[BaddieB]

Related to the strikes, does Vancouver need limestone quarrying at Texada to expand significantly to reduce current prices and met supply, or can we get enough in the long term from other quarries abroad?

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by BaddieB

Related to the strikes, does Vancouver need limestone quarrying at Texada to expand significantly to reduce current prices and met supply, or can we get enough in the long term from other quarries abroad?

They said there's enough limestone for another 200 years. Another article around the same time said 100 years.

https://www.biv.com/news/resources-a...xada-i-8237557

Report from 1992 on the limestone/dolomite supply

https://cmscontent.nrs.gov.bc.ca/geo..._OF1992-18.pdf