Office Space Conversions

[rdaner]

This G&M article suggests that the City is going to abandon its office replacement policy.

Toronto planners mull allowing more office to residential conversions

Eliminating the strict replacement policy would provide a route to transforming underused and vacant buildings into much-needed housing

www.theglobeandmail.com

 

[rdaner]

Opinion: Commercial real estate is in a growing crisis that seems to have no end

A new report by Trepp Inc shows a significant jump in U.S. office loan modifications, as more office space owners extend their loans

www.theglobeandmail.com

 

[Northern Light]

This G&M article suggests that the City is going to abandon its office replacement policy.

Toronto planners mull allowing more office to residential conversions

Eliminating the strict replacement policy would provide a route to transforming underused and vacant buildings into much-needed housing

www.theglobeandmail.com

That's not what the article suggests.

Its also rather unlikely as a wholesale policy change.

And not desirable.

The City's current approach is correct, site by site, considering the merits of the application.

They've been very fair to applicants and they've empowered their planners in a way not seen in a very long time to exercise independent judgement. I like it!

 

[Northern Light]

Opinion: Commercial real estate is in a growing crisis that seems to have no end

A new report by Trepp Inc shows a significant jump in U.S. office loan modifications, as more office space owners extend their loans

www.theglobeandmail.com

Not terribly insightful, though not inaccurate either, on a large scale.

But I don't see a massive contraction in class A space in Downtown Toronto.........

Rather, I see a contraction of B and C level space, some in downtown, more in the inner and outer burbs.

Much of the latter is not suited to 'conversion', but wholesale raising of some 'employment lands for residential' is already underway {see Mr. Christie lands)......suburban office parks will soon follow.

 

[Jonny5]

The Wall Street Journal covering this in Calgary today

https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/com...e-space-that-is-too-cheap-to-pass-up-84a108a0

 

[afransen]

I found this interesting. On the London thread of SSP it is being said that an office building at 376 Richmond Street has been sold by court order to a numbered company. It is a smaller structure that will most likely be torn down and developed as residential. I wonder if this is going to become more common as the residential market heats up?

Heats up? Sure seems to me that the residential market has cooled off dramatically, especially pre-construction.

 

[taal]

The Wall Street Journal covering this in Calgary today

https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/com...e-space-that-is-too-cheap-to-pass-up-84a108a0

Seems like desperation ... I hope Toronto never gets to that point unless they're mandating affordable housing to go along with the conversion.

I'm not sure why anyone would harrold that as a model to copy. Maybe the thought is they do it enough it get's traction and then can start to decrease the supplement they're providing.

The only other thing potentially at play - I'm not sure if they have property tax rebates for "empty buildings" - and they're thinking if they convert to residential they get more tax. If so fair enough.

 

[Jonny5]

Seems like desperation ... I hope Toronto never gets to that point unless they're mandating affordable housing to go along with the conversion.

I'm not sure why anyone would harrold that as a model to copy. Maybe the thought is they do it enough it get's traction and then can start to decrease the supplement they're providing.

The only other thing potentially at play - I'm not sure if they have property tax rebates for "empty buildings" - and they're thinking if they convert to residential they get more tax. If so fair enough.

I'm not familiar with Calgary, but I know people from there who told me that Calgary's business district definitely was overbuilt in the 2010's and also there was a swath with near-zero residential, so it had some stretches of several blocks much like Toronto's financial district did in the 1990's where after 7:00 p.m. it was a ghost town with totally empty sidewalks and no commercial business open. It looks like maybe a geography issue amplifies that in Calgary as the rivers and the railway corridor make the business district there a kind of island, and having it totally empty out each night, aside from an occasional Flames game, was not very good land use.

 

[Northern Light]

I'm not familiar with Calgary, but I know people from there who told me that Calgary's business district definitely was overbuilt in the 2010's and also there was a swath with near-zero residential, so it had some stretches of several blocks much like Toronto's financial district did in the 1990's where after 7:00 p.m. it was a ghost town with totally empty sidewalks and no commercial business open. It looks like maybe a geography issue amplifies that in Calgary as the rivers and the railway corridor make the business district there a kind of island, and having it totally empty out each night, aside from an occasional Flames game, was not very good land use.

This is correct.

Calgary's downtown is/was primarily commercial with very low residential. Been that way for a very long time. I remember being in Calgary............more than 30 years ago, and touring the downtown on a weekend, and it was a ghost town. Clean, orderly, modern......but empty.

Its added a bit of residential since........but there's room for a lot more.

 

[rdaner]

This is a CofA application to convert unused commercial space in a 2s Main Street building on Bloor. It would be interesting to find out how many of these are happening and where.

I know that some will disagree but the conversion of use on such a small-scale shouldn’t require an application but should be automatic.