November 30, 2009
Real estate outlook
Will Vancouver experience the post-Olympic blahs?
Vancouver and its thriving real estate market will get a boost from the upcoming Winter Olympics. The big question is what will happen after the flame is extinguished, says the author of a new report on North American real estate trends.
"Will (Vancouver) have a case of the post-Olympics blahs that a lot of markets that have had the Olympics suffer from, or will it benefit from all the world focus?" said Jonathan D. Miller, author of ‘Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2010,‘ in a presentation to the Urban Land Institute in Toronto earlier this month.
"I think the expectation of interviewees is that it may not matter,” he said. "Vancouver will hold up one way or another."
Miller went on to discuss Toronto’s prospects for the year ahead.
The city is Canada’s global gateway, he said, but there are concerns about overdevelopment in the office building market and the ever-growing number of new condos slated for construction.
"You have to wonder how long this condo boom can continue," Miller said.
Check back here in the coming days for more video from the Urban Land Institute presentation.
VIDEO: Buildex Vancouver 2012 at the Vancouver Convention Centre
Buildex Vancouver brings together the construction, design and real estate industries on an annual basis into a giant, two day show at the Vancouver Convention Centre.
VIDEO: Pre-Construction begins on the Evergreen Line
Pre-construction work has begun on the Evergreen Line, an extension of the Skytrain rapid transit system that currently spans Vancouver, Richmond, Burnaby and some of Coquitlam. The new line will extend from Coquitlam all the way to Port Moody, alleviating traffic and offering a green alternative to motorized vehicles.
VIDEO: The Vancouver Regional Construction Association's U35 initiative
Construction industry experts have long warned of an "experience gap" between senior management and young workers just entering the sector. Due to the bottoming out of the industry in the 1990s, the industry has lacked a core group of younger managers and executives to take over once the baby boomer generation retires.
Toronto IIDEX trade show to have renewed focus
The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) will be a co-presenter of this year’s IIDEX/NeoCon Canada conference and expo, which has traditionally been a contract furniture show but will start placing a greater emphasis on construction products, architecture and technology, the event organizer has announced.
Brook Restoration safety training includes swing stage, hazardous materials
Brook Restoration recently opened its own safety centre. In addition to regular safety training like WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System), Brook offers training in aspects such as swing stage, boom and elevated work platform, asbestos, lead, Bobcats and confined spaces.
VIDEO: Remembering the Bentall Four
On January 7, 1981, Gunther Couvreux, Brian Stevenson, Donald W. Davis and Yrjo Mitrunen fell thirty-six floors to their deaths when a fly form attached to the Bentall building in downtown Vancouver came loose.
Efficiency is Ontario trades college goal
Ontario’s current apprenticeship system has failed the province’s youth, says the Ontario College of Trades new chair, Ron Johnson.
Ontario College of Trades chair hopes ratios will be reviewed in first two years
Ron Johnson, the new Chair of the Board of Governors of the Ontario College of Trades and Deputy Director of Interior Systems Contractors Association of Ontario and the Interior Finishing Systems Training Centre, said every individual who has an issue with a compulsory certification and ratio review application will have an opportunity to represent their arguments to a review panel.
VIDEO PROFILE: The Peace Bridge in Calgary, Alberta
The Peace Bridge, a pedestrian and cycling bridge crossing the Bow River in Calgary, Alberta is both a bold project in terms of aesthetics and design and a magnet for controversy.
