Barrel Yards | 25 floors | 1006 units | revised proposal - Page 9

bauer123 · #**161** Posted **Jun 12, 2009, 11:37 PM**

They need to get this going. Seems like every condo development in this area is delayed for soooo long. That's why I laugh at the optimistic timeframes 144 park sales people tell me.

myfaceisonfire · #**162** Posted **Jul 13, 2009, 5:10 PM**

Looks like Auburn is sending out their cronies to tonight's council meeting. They'll be updating council in regards to the plans for the hotel on the site.

I guess this project isn't completely dead, thought most of the time I wish it was.

bauer123 · #**163** Posted **Jul 13, 2009, 11:58 PM**

i was hoping they would start this year. Doubt it's happening just me and my wishful thinking...

Leaffan · #**164** Posted **Jul 14, 2009, 12:22 AM**

Yeah, just like arrow lofts, Westmount Grand, 45 degrees, X-flats etc all hanging in total limbo, looks like the 42 is starting to get going though.

metropolis · #**165** Posted **Jul 14, 2009, 3:52 AM**

almost afraid to ask but did anyone attend?

mpd618 · #**166** Posted **Jul 15, 2009, 9:09 PM**

From 570 news:

Quote:

New hotel to go up in Uptown Waterloo
570 News WATERLOO | Tuesday, July 14th, 2009 1:55 pm

WATERLOO - Construction will soon begin on a new hotel in Uptown Waterloo.

The Domain Hotel is going up in the BarrelYards community at the former Canbar site.

The developer, Decade Group, says the eight-storey, 160 suite hotel will give a boost to the local economy, and provide jobs. Over 25 million is being invested into the project.

Construction is expected to begin in the Spring of next year, with the hotel opening in Spring of 2011.

rapid_business · #**167** Posted **Jul 15, 2009, 9:18 PM**

I'm very afraid to see a rendering...

bauer123 · #**168** Posted **Jul 15, 2009, 10:26 PM**

I googled Domain Hotels and it seems to be a boutique hotel chain. Maybe it will be nice. Had a hard time seeing pictures of the outside of one in Sunnyvale California .

Crossing my fingers. Next spring annoys me.

WatDot · #**169** Posted **Jul 20, 2009, 1:04 PM**

New hotel for Waterloo

July 20, 2009
Liz Monteiro
RECORD STAFF

WATERLOO

A boutique hotel is coming to Waterloo.

Domain Hotel, an eight-storey, 160-suite hotel, will be located in the BarrelYards project at Erb Street and Father David Bauer Drive.

Domain Hotel will be owned and operated by Decade Group Inc., a real estate development company which owns the Station Park All Suite Hotel in London, Ont.

Construction of the $25-million high-end hotel is expected to begin next year. The hotel is expected to open in the spring of 2011, councillors were told at a recent meeting.

Last September, Waterloo politicians unanimously approved the $250-million downtown development with two condo towers, apartments and the hotel.

The project includes 1,000 residential units on the former Canbar lands.

"This will be a landmark destination," Bob Siskind of Decade Group told councillors.

Siskind said travellers to Waterloo, including business people, will have a facility that will accommodate short stays as well as long-term stays.

Chris Pidgeon, an urban planner for Decade Group, said market research showed that Waterloo is a strong market for a luxury hotel. The hotel will accommodate business travel with groups coming to the local universities, RIM, Sun Life, the Perimeter Institute and the Balsillie School of International Affairs.

The 130,000-square-foot hotel property will feature a conference room that can accommodate up to 300 people for conferences or wedding receptions. It will also include a pool, a restaurant and patio, spa and fitness centre and underground and surface parking.

The first phase of the BarrelYards project will include the construction of two apartment towers, each 21 storeys high, and 10 brownstone townhouses. The second phase will include the hotel.

Pidgeon said he hopes building permits will be approved by the city by the end of this year.

lmonteiro@therecord.com

---------------------------------------------------

So if the second phase includes the hotel and construction is to begin next year, why aren't shovels in the ground for the two 21 storey condos now?

Do like having more competition in the region though. Another hotel choice, including facilities to host receptions... great news. I'll let others go on about the design of the building... I am sure that will be heard!!

tony_danza · #**170** Posted **Jul 20, 2009, 1:17 PM**

The rendering for the Domain Hotel looks like something you'd see next to the 401. No question, the Westin was better.

Duke-Of-Waterloo · #**171** Posted **Jul 20, 2009, 2:21 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by tony_danza

The rendering for the Domain Hotel looks like something you'd see next to the 401. No question, the Westin was better.

I would much rather see the Westin than this. I'm sure many of you can agree. I totally agree that this Domain Hotel looks just like one of those ordinary hotels near any large international airport. With this hotel proposal, the likelihood of the Westin being built now is highly unlikely.

The City should have just gotten their act together, realized what the Westin Hotel proposal would do for Uptown, and just payed for the parking garage. Sure it would have cost them a couple million, but the benefits to that area of Uptown would eventually pay for it, and the City would've also likely been able to use the garage too. If they would have acted on this opportunity when it was proposed last year, we probably would've seen shovels in the ground by now (before the economy tanked and when financing was more readily available)...Like come on, what other city of Waterloo's size could say that they have a nice new Westin Hotel in their downtown?

WatDot · #**172** Posted **Jul 20, 2009, 3:07 PM**

Agreed Duke that the City should have acted sooner. I won't say Westin is over until they start building this "generic" hotel though... and even then I think a Westin would be in a league of its own for around here and could be prosperous.

It's kind of like saying Waterloo has enough restaurants because they aren't all packed. It's more like 80% are crap and are still running because there's no competition and can skim by. This area is so under-serviced its not funny. Look at the chains (restaurants, hotels, etc.) London and Oshawa has or even Guelph... sometimes I think Waterloo Region has a curse. Don't let quantity override quality!

CMA Kitchener-Waterloo is closing in on London to take the 10th most populated metropolitan area in Canada.

#**173** Posted **Jul 20, 2009, 3:30 PM**

I do prefer the Westin over this, but this is certainly better than the stucco block proposed in the initial BarrelYards rendering. I'll take it

.

diegaxo · #**174** Posted **Jul 20, 2009, 6:16 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cambridgite

I do prefer the Westin over this, but this is certainly better than the stucco block proposed in the initial BarrelYards rendering. I'll take it

.

This doesn't look that different to stucco to me.

rapid_business · #**175** Posted **Jul 20, 2009, 8:29 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duke-Of-Waterloo

I would much rather see the Westin than this. I'm sure many of you can agree. I totally agree that this Domain Hotel looks just like one of those ordinary hotels near any large international airport. With this hotel proposal, the likelihood of the Westin being built now is highly unlikely.

The City should have just gotten their act together, realized what the Westin Hotel proposal would do for Uptown, and just payed for the parking garage. Sure it would have cost them a couple million, but the benefits to that area of Uptown would eventually pay for it, and the City would've also likely been able to use the garage too. If they would have acted on this opportunity when it was proposed last year, we probably would've seen shovels in the ground by now (before the economy tanked and when financing was more readily available)...Like come on, what other city of Waterloo's size could say that they have a nice new Westin Hotel in their downtown?

Unfortunately that is not how city economics work. Especially in such a cash-sensitive municipality like Waterloo. It doesn’t make any sense to pony up cash to aid a private company, when another private firm is willing to do ‘essentially’ the same thing on it’s own dime. Sure the location nor the design is as good, but that isn’t something a city should be subsidizing. I understand the concern here, and share the sentiment, but they did what they did because this isn’t SimCity…

bauer123 · #**176** Posted **Jul 21, 2009, 12:45 AM**

I agree A Westin would be better from the rendering i saw before but i agree with the comment made about the city subsiding private companies. City's don't like doing it all the time.

I just think this thing should get going they say the hotel is in the second phase and phase 1 hasn't even happened and I would be surprised if it even started this summer/fall.

First Gulf and Waterloo should have came to a agreement. It would have helped First Gulf with a hotel in there whole complex of investments. A ton of the lower retail they have is vacent and a hotel in there complex would help it I think. Although they market the space by Starbucks for a "restaurant " and I'm not sure if that would work with the Charcol Group putting one at Bauer and the rest in the area. Unless it's a Chain restaurant that isn't too high end.

I'm just annoyed at the snail pace of the projects in Waterloo Region. Everything seems to take forever and all these grand plans and dates are set which end up being bs.

DHLawrence · #**177** Posted **Jul 21, 2009, 12:52 AM**

Does the announcement of this hotel mean that the Westin is ruled out entirely, or could they still build downtown? It's not completely impossible until something else is built there--and the way things are going, it doesn't look like anything else is going to be built there any time soon.

mark76 · #**178** Posted **Jul 21, 2009, 1:08 AM**

westin for sure, I am not disappointed but city of waterloo could do better.

If you want to make money,you have to spend some first.Kinda weird things is going with Waterloo ,on one side they spent money easy ,on other they are greedy.

Either Waterloo is not big enough for Westin ,not attractive or not popular who knows?

bauer123 · #**179** Posted **Jul 21, 2009, 1:35 AM**

Westin isn't ruled out they have said it. Although they say it might have to be scaled down (no conference center). It isn't dead.

mark76 · #**180** Posted **Jul 21, 2009, 1:37 AM**

bauer123 if its not ruled out,possible location?
anybody?