NEWS BRIEFS
“It includes making maximum use
of available federal funding under
Phase 1 of the Investing in Canada
Fund and committing our full provin-
cial allocation under the established
Building Canada. And it enables our
ability to effectively leverage funding
support for shared provincial and mu-
nicipal priorities and for the protection
and development of vital provincial as-
sets,” Pallister said.
The speech has also reaffirmed the
province’s promise to support munici-
pal governments through the Fair Say
initiative. It highlighted that Manitoba’s
partnership with communities have re-
sulted in “historic infrastructure pro-
jects” such as Bus Rapid Transit in
Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba.
Pallister also announced that an “ex-
pert advisory commission of Manito-
bans” will be established to create
laws strengthening water conserva-
tion efforts, as well as establishing a
new licensing authority for water man-
agement. The commission will also
work with private landowners to con-
serve wetlands and natural habitats.
ONTARIO Toronto to see first
purpose-built affordable
homes after more than 10
years After more than 10 years of not hav-
ing any purpose-built residential devel-
opment, Toronto will finally see 22
affordable housing units, which are to
be developed by St. Clare’s Multifaith
Housing Society for Kensington’s
homeless population.
The charitable foundation an-
nounced on Dec. 6 that an excavator
has already broken ground on the site
beside St. Clare’s existing property on
Leonard Ave., east of Bathurst St.
Construction of the three-storey
building is slated to commence in the
spring of 2018. It is supported by
neighbours and funded by govern-
ment and corporate donors.
Companies who have pitched in to
finance the affordable homes are:
Aspen Ridge, Brown Group, Great Gulf
Homes, Greenpark Homes, Heavy
34 – Winter 2018 — The Canadian Design and Construction Report
CONSTRUCTION ACROSS CANADA
Construction Association of Toronto,
Laurier Homes, Liberty Development,
Lindvest, LiUNA Local 183, LiUNA On-
tario Provincial District Council, Mat-
tamy Homes, Menkes, Ontario
Formwork Association, Silvercore,
Tridel and Yorkwood. Together, these
companies and other construction
partners have raised $1 million.
“We chose to support this project
because we believe the construction
industry should give back,” said
RESCON chairman emeritus Phil Rubi-
noff. The project will also receive finan-
cial assistance from the city through
its Open Door Program. On top of
waived municipal fees and develop-
ment charges, the developer will be
given $500,000.
“I applaud the hard work and vision
of St. Clare’s to make this innovative
project a reality. St. Clare’s is a model
that works. Their partnership-based
approach has created new opportuni-
ties for those seeking a safe, clean, af-
fordable place to call home,” said Ana
Bailao, Toronto deputy mayor and
chair of the affordable housing com-
mittee. Developers propose 42-
storey addition for 415
Yonge office building
A rezoning application has been
submitted to the City of Toronto for
415 Yonge St. proposing a 42-storey
residential addition above the existing
19-storey office building, Urban-
toronto.ca reports. The site includes
409 through to 415 Yonge St,, as well
as 9 and 17 McGill St.
Winnipeg-based Marwest Group of
Companies owns the site and the pro-
ject has been designed by Kirkor Archi-
tects & Planners, the website reports.
If approved, the addition would rise to
a final height of 239.35 metres, in-
creasing residential density along the
Yonge subway line.
The architects have designed the
addition from the 20th floor to a final
height of 61 storeys, with a “pinch” de-
sign around mid height. “To create vi-
sual interest, translucent bands across
the north and south massing cut
through the glass facade and an angu-
lar vertical design is seen rising up the
east elevation,” Urbantoronto reports.
Two interstitial floors between the ex-
isting tower and addition would be in-
cluded for structural and mechanical
support. “High-rise additions to existing of-
fice towers is not common, but it is
not a new concept for the Toronto de-
velopment scene, with construction
continuing at 488 University Ave. right
now,” the site says. “The 1968-built 18-
storey office tower has been com-
pletely refaced with an energy-efficient
curtainwall cladding system over a
new support structure, while the con-
struction of 37 new residential floors,
reaching a height of 55-storeys, is un-
derway above.”
Trades start working on
$2.7 million renovation for
new OCA headquarters
Tradespeople have started work on
the $2.7 million renovation at the Ot-
tawa Construction Association’s (OCA)
new headquarters.
Ron Eastern Construction Ltd.
(RECL) is overseeing the project as
construction manager, says OCA pres-
ident John DeVries. RECL “has as-
sisted us through the process of
architect and engineer selection under
a CM (Construction Management) con-
tract.” McRobie Architects has de-
signed the renovated structure.
“The renovations have started this
past week (in early January), with the
second phase of the interior demoli-
tion,” DeVries says. “Contracts with all
the sub-trades are being concluded
this week following trade tender pro-
cess in November.”
The OCA says it will have 3,790 sq.
ft. of tenant space available for lease
when the building opens on July 1.
QUEBEC The Hewitt Group
completes the sale of its
business to Toromont
Industries The Hewitt Group based in Pointe
Claire says that it has completed the
sale of its business to Toromont Indus-
tries. “Over the last 65 years in the case
of Hewitt Equipment and 90 years in
the case of Atlantic, successive gener-
ations of dedicated team members
have made huge contributions as our
customers have shaped and built our
infrastructures and economies across
Québec and Eastern Canada,” said Jim
Hewitt, chairman and CEO of Hewitt
Equipment. The announcement says the organi-
zation will become part of an extensive
Canadian network covering Central
and Eastern Canada and Nunavut.
Company employees will continue to
support customers through the enter-
prise’s combined branch facilities with
high quality products, talented work-
forces, as well as the expertise of both
companies, Hewitt says in its news re-
lease. TV station apologizes for
false mosque construction
worker discrimination report
A TV station has apologized for and
retracted its story that a mosque asked
for female construction workers to be
excluded from a worksite.
TVA had originally reported that the
Ahl-Ill-Bait mosque in Cote des Neiges
had asked for women to be removed
from a construction site near their
place of worship — however there
never was any such request, CTV news
says. As soon as the report was issued,
the leaders of the mosque said that no-
body had ever made such a request,
and said the only thing it had asked for
was that people be able to park near
the mosque on Fridays.
Mosque representatives said that
they would never ask for women to be
banned from a worksite.
TVA stood by its story about the
banning of women for several days,
even saying that this clause was writ-
ten in the contract, but was never able
to prove any such clause existed – nor
that any women were actually re-
moved from the worksite.
Diane Lemieux, president of Que-
bec’s construction commission, said
investigators had examined the con-
tracts and talked to the mosque, as
well as the construction workers at the
site, and found no evidence for any-
thing that TVA had claimed.
“There is no indication, no sign, ab-
solutely no sign that would lead us to
believe that anyone from the mosques
asked for this,” CTV quoted Lemieux
as saying. “There is no such clause in
the contract indicating that women
should be removed.”
Since the story aired, the mosque
said it’s been flooded with hateful
comments and threats. “It’s baseless
accusations that happened, and we
have women, we have children who go
to this place, we have never had any
problem,” said Boshra Garawi. “This
escalates more the hate and the opin-
ion against Muslims.”
The story prompted a white nation-
alist group to schedule a protest out-
side the mosque – a protest which the
group later cancelled, with members
saying they felt they had been deliber-
ately deceived.
TVA eventually issued a retraction,
indicating that the situation had
“evolved,” and the next day issued a
second retraction, stating that it “re-
grets the situation and wishes to apol-
ogize to the various parties and
viewers who have been affected by
this report.”
NEW BRUNSWICK
Moncton approves
120-room Hyatt Hotel
development plan
Moncton council has approved the
$3 million sale of a piece of prime
downtown real estate to the Corey
Craig Group to be developed as a 120-
room Hyatt Hotel, costing about $17
million. Craig O’Neill, president and CEO of
Corey Craig Group, told the CBC that
the purchase has been in the works for
about two years. “Construction is
going to start in the spring of 2018,
with an 18-month window so we
should be able to turn that around by
early 2020.”
O’Neill owns 37 Tim Hortons restau-
rants across southeastern New
Brunswick. His company also owns
Wendy’s outlets and the Holiday Inn
Express, near Greater Moncton Roméo
LeBlanc International Airport.
Rice Contracting Ltd. of Moncton
will build the structure and Architects
Four Limited are providing the planning
and design work. The downtown cen-
tre is scheduled to be finished in
September. The Canadian Design and Construction Report — Winter 2018 – 35