SkyCity Centre Winnipeg | 45F | 575 Ft | 175.26 M | Cancelled

[DowntownBooster]

Originally Posted by The Unknown Poster

Darren Ford?

No, it was someone else that seemed to enjoy posting negative comments similar to NorthStarsProject.

[The Unknown Poster]

Originally Posted by DowntownBooster

No, it was someone else that seemed to enjoy posting negative comments similar to NorthStarsProject.

Ford committed to Manitoba Polar Bears name. Powder blue jerseys. lol

[esquire]

Originally Posted by The Unknown Poster

Ford committed to Manitoba Polar Bears name. Powder blue jerseys. lol

Well, in fairness to him, it almost happened until it became clear that fans demanded 'Jets'. The Manitoba Moose wore those jerseys for a special polar bear theme night:



If you ask me it's a much better logo and jersey than what we got saddled with, but I concede that those considerations are easily trumped by re-establishing the Jets name which is better than 'Polar Bears'. Especially considering you have to go like 1,000 km north to catch sight of one in the wild... not exactly locally relevant unless you count the ones in the zoo (in which case, why not the Winnipeg Lions).

The Moose also wore this polar bear variant this last season which I'm less fond of. I'm not sure if this was intended to be an alternate logo, or what:



Anyway, I'm digressing badly here. Sorry. Back to Skycity.

[dennis]

Unfortunately the lions (asian?) are gone. The cougar might still be there

[BuildUpWpg]

Weird how in Calgary the developers spring these new towers up almost overnight without even having a major tenant for them. I guess the mindset, "If you build it, they will come (eventually)" won't work in Winnipeg??? Sad considering that that our economy grows slow but steady.
It should HERE that investors put their trust in, NOT in boom and bust cities.

Originally Posted by thefourthtower

Winnipeg developers planning to build a 45-storey, $200 million condominium/commercial tower – to be called SkyCity Centre – have been given a 12-month extension to finalize their plans.

Angela Mathieson, president and CEO of CentreVenture Development Corp., said Fortress Real Developments Inc. and Edenshaw Developments Ltd. have until April 30, 2018, to demolish the St. Regis Hotel on Smith Street and begin constructing the new complex.

Bank financing required the developers to pre-sell 60 per cent of the units, and thus far, only 50 per cent have been sold.

“[Buying a pre-sale] is a newer phenomenon in Winnipeg and there is some reluctance for people to buy them. It’s taking some time. They are marketing them like crazy but they have a ways to go,” Mathieson said.
http://www.westerninvestor.com/news/...les-1.16725799

[Finessing]

How do we know that even 50% have been presold? Has there been any verification of that number?

[robertocarlos]

Originally Posted by Finessing

How do we know that even 50% have been presold? Has there been any verification of that number?

It's right there on the big sign in the parking lot. You have to trust people sometimes.

[robertocarlos]

Originally Posted by The Unknown Poster

Ford committed to Manitoba Polar Bears name. Powder blue jerseys. lol

Winnipeg Boston Pizzas would have been good too.

[jmt18325]

Originally Posted by Finessing

How do we know that even 50% have been presold? Has there been any verification of that number?

What proof do you have to refute it?

[Wolf13]

Originally Posted by lilwayne

i think shoppers drug mart should relocate there from winnipeg square.. or possibly have 2 or 3 smaller chains take up the space maybe a restaurant and a 7-11 convenient store, our dt needs a 7-11

Shoppers' has great thing going with Wpg Square, Artis REIT, and the connectivity to all major downtown buildings and office clientele. Even if SkyCity turned into a raging success, Shoppers would be crazy to leave. Not to mention the tower over top going up.

Originally Posted by BuildUpWpg

Weird how in Calgary the developers spring these new towers up almost overnight without even having a major tenant for them. I guess the mindset, "If you build it, they will come (eventually)" won't work in Winnipeg??? Sad considering that that our economy grows slow but steady.
It should HERE that investors put their trust in, NOT in boom and bust cities.

Most developments do in fact have tenants lined up, and it's not that they "build it and they will come" but rather that the market is already there so they will build it.

Despite the current economic climate in Cgy, downtown rental markets haven't really slipped much, nor have condo prices. Downtown and the east village have momentum so the proof is in the pudding and the market is there.

Absolutely they should invest in "boom and bust" Calgary, because the rental market has proven sustainable despite the bust. They're going to be geniuses when the next boom comes up.

Winnipeg may be steady Eddie but it's still pulling teeth to get the market to flex its reliably conservative muscles.

Originally Posted by jmt18325

What proof do you have to refute it?

Considering that anyone who has met the required pre-sales usually gets going, you're guilty until proven innocent ie shovels in the ground (because pre-sales and thus construction financing have been secured). And in this case, the grant has been approved. The only thing standing in the way of construction is whether or not they've achieved the required presales... so...

[bomberjet]

Pretty sure SkyCity has said they've met the condo pre-sales target. But they're still figuring out the commercial aspect.

What more can you do with any of this information? Why would any private company need to answer to a person on a forum?

From now on when you post some info on here, you must:
1. Release tax returns
2. Provide 3 references, business not personal
3. Provide a notarized statement

[jmt18325]

Originally Posted by Wolf13

Considering that anyone who has met the required pre-sales usually gets going, you're guilty until proven innocent ie shovels in the ground (because pre-sales and thus construction financing have been secured). And in this case, the grant has been approved. The only thing standing in the way of construction is whether or not they've achieved the required presales... so...

but they don't claim to have achieved the required pre-sales (60%). They claim 50%. Unless you have other evidence....

[cheswick]

Originally Posted by esquire

Well, in fairness to him, it almost happened until it became clear that fans demanded 'Jets'.

Well if we're going to be technical here, Chipman has refuted that they were considering the name "Manitoba Polar Bears". He was considering simply "Manitoba Bears" with the logo being a Polar Bear.

[bomberjet]

Might as well go with Cowboys or Patriots if we're following NFL names!

[esquire]

Originally Posted by cheswick

Well if we're going to be technical here, Chipman has refuted that they were considering the name "Manitoba Polar Bears". He was considering simply "Manitoba Bears" with the logo being a Polar Bear.

TIL our hockey team was destined to share the name of a NFL team one way or the other. Maybe the third choice was Winnipeg Browns...

[DowntownBooster]

Originally Posted by The Unknown Poster

Ford committed to Manitoba Polar Bears name. Powder blue jerseys. lol

I think by that point he was probably just happy to finally have the NHL back in Winnipeg. I would assume that he was glad they ended up using 'Winnipeg Jets' for the team name.

[Finessing]

Originally Posted by jmt18325

What proof do you have to refute it?

How can I possibly refute something like that? The burden of proof is on the person that makes the statement.

At least one year ago Fortress was claiming presales of over 50%. They also originally claimed they only needed 40%-50% presales to start construction.

So in a year they haven't sold any units? Either they lied about the 50% or there is ZERO sales momentum, both of which don't bode well for this project.

Like all of Fortress' projects as a developer, it's a never-ending string of excuses for why it's not being built.

[lilwayne]

Originally Posted by Finessing

How can I possibly refute something like that? The burden of proof is on the person that makes the statement.

At least one year ago Fortress was claiming presales of over 50%. They also originally claimed they only needed 40%-50% presales to start construction.

So in a year they haven't sold any units? Either they lied about the 50% or there is ZERO sales momentum, both of which don't bode well for this project.

Like all of Fortress' projects as a developer, it's a never-ending string of excuses for why it's not being built.

ya i find it kind of strange that theyve been stuck at 50 percent presales for a year now..

but i guess it would take roughly 40 sales to go from 50 percent to 60 percent so i mean its understandable in this market..

i think they may be 5 - 10 sales away from that mark.. thats what happens when you have over 380 units to sell and ask for 15 percent down payment prior to construction.

on those 350000 dollar units thats a lot of money...

[The Unknown Poster]

Originally Posted by cheswick

Well if we're going to be technical here, Chipman has refuted that they were considering the name "Manitoba Polar Bears". He was considering simply "Manitoba Bears" with the logo being a Polar Bear.

Bears are his favorite NFL team. I have a hard time believing the Bruins would allow it. The way I heard it, Zinger was pushing hard to keep "Moose" for the NHL team.

Bettman was already pushing for Jets as publicly said the NHL owned the rights and would gladly transfer them to True North if they so requested. Bettman is a smart guy. And Thomson was asked at the original Presser about a name and he said "Winnipeg Jets is a fine name". With that, plus the fans all chanting Go Jets Go constantly plus the media behind it, it would have been difficult to go with something else.

Full marks to Chipman for recognizing public opinion. He wasnt as emotionally connected to the Jets (though he was apart of the Save The Jets efforts) so it would have been easy for him to go with something more personally meaningful.

Now if only the NHL would officially have the Yotes give the histoy back.

Anyway...to relate this to Skycity, if it gets built, you have that many more people in the area for some game time support.

[GreyGarden]

I also have been curious about the stall in sales. It might have something to do with bad press/optics. I think it also has to do with a more general idea of people being tentative about putting money down for something they have only seen in renderings.

I have a friend who has a parent in glasshouse. We were having a conversation about the building and I asked if she had pre-bought the unit, she said no and that she needed to actually experience the space to see if it would be something she'd actually like to live in. She loves it now.

I have a feeling that this might be a popular sentiment amongst potential buyers. Unlike in Toronto or Vancouver where a developer can reach their pre-sale targets on investors alone I think the majority of people buying units in skycity actually intend on living in them.
I don't know but I feel like this may be contributing to the stall in sales.