Some news about the news.

Last week, Abbotsford-based SiteMedia Group announced their acquisition of Storeys, which paused operations after September. Storeys was founded a decade ago in Toronto, I joined in August 2022 as their first (and only) staff member outside of Ontario, so I take a lot of pride in knowing I helped grow Storeys’ presence in Western Canada to the point that the company was acquired by a BC-based company.

As Storeys ramps up again, I will be contributing articles on a freelance basis, which means The Realist will carry on and I will continue to be a freelance contributor for Western Investor and RENX on a regular basis and The Tyee on a less-regular basis.

My work at Storeys could be categorized into the following buckets: development (projects, industry concerns), housing policy (BC + Federal), commercial real estate (transactions, REITs and institutional investors), and insolvencies. Here’s a rough breakdown of how those buckets will be split:

• Western Investor: CRE (Western Canada), insolvencies (Western Canada)

• RENX: CRE (National), insolvencies (non-Western Canada), REITs/institutions

• Storeys: Development (BC), housing policy (BC + Federal), CRE

The Realist will then have a bit of everything and be the HQ for my work, with all my freelance stories included in my weekly Rundown, as well as a series of resources such as trackers for municipal housing targets, real estate insolvencies, and more.

Knowledge is power.

Time is a flat circle.

• Wesgroup has submitted a rezoning application for 7525 Cambie Street in Vancouver, where they have proposed a 12-storey mixed-use rental project.

• A rezoning application has been submitted for 1743 Burrard Street in Vancouver, with a proposal for a 17-storey strata project. The property is currently a Petro-Canada gas station owned by Suncor Energy, according to the Land Owner Transparency Registry.

• A development application has been submitted for 6486 Chester Street in Vancouver, with a proposal for a six-storey rental building. The applicant is Ledcor Properties, according to City of Vancouver records.

• Genaris Properties has submitted a rezoning application for 14010, 14028, 14036, 14046, and 14054 104 Avenue in Surrey, where they are planning a 25-storey mixed-use tower.

• Landa Global Properties has opened registrations for SIENA, the project set for 4451 Hastings Street in Burnaby they acquired out of receivership last summer.

• QuadReal has proposed a 44-storey and 56-storey tower at 2901 Bayview Avenue in Toronto as part of its Bayview Village master-planned project.

Everything is available for the right price.

• Allon Shapiro of Lennard Commercial Realty has listed 2803 W Broadway, a commercial property in the Kitsilano neighbourhood of Vancouver.

• Garth White, John Lecky, and Ryan Kerr of Avison Young have listed a long-term ground lease redevelopment opportunity at 11480 River Road in Richmond on behalf of the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.

• Jon Buckley, Curtis Leonhardt, and Joe Genest of Marcus & Millichap, alongside Connor Eden of Tetra Realty Advisors, have listed the Fraser Gateway Centre in Chilliwack, a newly-developed commercial property that’s home to a Fairfield by Marriott Inn & Suites and a retail building. The project was developed by Denciti.

Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.

Those who put the “real” in “real estate.”

• After 35 years, Jim Szabo and Tony Quattrin are stepping back from day-to-day operations at CBRE Vancouver’s National Investment Team. They will serve as Executive Chairs and the team will be co-led by Duncan MacLean and Cynthia Jagger in partnership with Vincent Minichiello and Anthony Liang.

• Robert Horvath has been named President of Metro-Can Construction.

• Josiah Siemens has been promoted to CFO at Stober Group.

• Adam Frizzell has been promoted to SVP at Cushman & Wakefield.

• Stephanie Yeargin has been promoted to VP at Avison Young.

• Michelle Child has joined Advantage Capital Group as VP.

• Mina Smidstra has joined Morguard as Director of Retail Leasing, after three years at SHAPE.

• Juliet Van Vliet has joined UVic Properties as Manager of Planning.

• Thomas Fyfe has been promoted to Development Manager at QuadReal.

• Kloe Wong has been promoted to Assistant Project Manager at Concord Pacific.

• Monty Virk has joined Colliers as a Research Coordinator.

• Lucas Chavez has been promoted to Associate at London Pacific.

• Liza Bauer has been promoted to VP of Property Management at Concert Properties in Toronto.

When a door closes, a window opens.

A look into the future.

Some interesting stories I read this week that you may like.