was quoted as saying. “You have got stuff to do, so the reason (to live downtown) isn’t because you’re a slave to work. There’s actually enter- tainment options to fill it out,” he said. Other significant downtown Win- nipeg projects include: • RBC Winnipeg Convention Centre, with a new Sutton Place Hotel next door. • Centrepoint, with the Glasshouse Skylofts, in a $130 million develop- ment across from the MTS Centre. Stantec Architecture is the office building’s major tenant. • MBLL (Manitoba Liquor and Lotter- ies) headquarters, in a renovated Medical Arts Building on Kennedy St, with a $66 million, 75,000 sq. ft. expansion to the existing 15- storey building. ONTARIO OCS cautiously optimistic about 2016 industry growth Ontario’s construction industry is cautiously optimistic about growth in 2016. Thirty-one per cent of contrac- tors across Ontario’s construction in- dustry are expecting to grow their business this year and 52 per cent say they will maintain current work levels. The findings are contained in the an- nual Construction Confidence Indica- tor, released today by Ipsos Reid and the Ontario Construction Secretariat (OCS). The indicator, with a score of 57 in this year’s survey, reveals contrac- tors’ perceptions of business condi- tions for the next 12 months. “The construction industry is still expecting to grow, but remains cau- tious,” OCS CEO Sean Strickland says in a news release. “While the Con- struction Confidence Indicator still shows an overall expectation for growth, it has been on a downward trend since rebounding from the 2009 recession, which clearly speaks to the current state of the economy.” Detailed geographic data collected for the first time by the OCS suggest certain regional economies and cities will significantly outpace others. Firms in London, ON expressed the greatest increase in confidence during 2015, surpassing last year’s most confident contractors in the GTA. Firms in north- ern Ontario, where just over half of firms expect to see business decline as they look ahead to 2016, expressed the least optimistic economic outlook in the province. Findings from the province wide survey also indicate only a small mi- nority of construction firms – six per cent – expect to “benefit greatly” from the federal government’s $125 billion infrastructure spending plan. “Ontario’s construction economy is a regional patchwork of diverse and changing business opportunities,” Strickland says. “It’s critical that firms have timely information that helps them grow their business and antici- pate skilled labour needs. This in- cludes a more clear and substantive conversation with federal and provin- cial governments about how firms can make the most of infrastructure dollars in the future.” Reflecting the diversity of the con- struction industry in Ontario, contrac- tors expect different sectors to lead growth in different regions. The resi- dential sector is expected to lead growth in the GTA and Niagara Region, while the institutional and engineering sectors are expected to lead growth in Ottawa and Niagara. Increasing confi- dence in manufacturing is adding mo- mentum for construction in the industrial sector, particularly in Wind- sor and Sarnia. Toronto Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and the Ministry of the Attorney General have issued a request for qualifications (RFQ) for a consortium to design, build, finance and maintain a new Toronto courthouse. Located steps from St. Patrick sub- way station, directly north of the court- house at 361 University Ave., the new courthouse will bring together many of Toronto’s Ontario Court of Justice criminal courts operating across the city. Amalgamation of justice pro- grams and services will reduce opera- tional and facilities costs, make court administration more efficient, and bet- ter serve the community. IO says in a news release that “the new courthouse’s design will be mod- ern and accessible.” The RFQ is the first step in the process to select a team to deliver the project. Submissions will be reviewed to shortlist project teams with the de- sign and construction experience, as well as the financial capacity to deliver a project of this size and complexity. Shortlisted teams will then be invited to respond to a request for proposals (RFP), expected to be released in the fall. Ottawa: NCC selects preferred proponent, but second place finisher expresses concerns The federal National Capital Com- mission (NCC) has selected Ren- dezVous Lebreton as the preferred proponent for a planned multi-million dollar development of Lebreton Flats, a parcel of federally government owned land near central Ottawa. While four shortlisted consortiums were invited to prepare detailed pro- posals, in the end only two completed the process, and the finalist plan – lead by developers, construction busi- nesses and the Ottawa Senators hockey team, received the highest marks in an evaluation process. The Senators plan to build a new arena on the site and move their hockey team from the suburban Kanata community. NCC planning director Steve Willis said the evaluation committee thought the decision to cover the LRT was “bold” and vital to the redevelopment strategy. NCC chief executive officer Mark Kristmanson said after the meet- The Canadian Design and Construction Report — May-June 2016 – 23