[TAS]

Here’s the issue. When OEG designed this whole thing, part of the momentum behind the retail, especially massive tenants like city market, was that there would be thousands of new permanent residents literally connected to these buildings or within 2 blocks. OEG was entirely in control of the entire vision and promises made to retailers coming in.

Then, through a mix of bad luck with covid, a growing drug crisis, etc, things got harder. OEG also made some poor choices like the copy cat Toronto sky residences which had no chance of succeeding in a very different condo market. Then they scaled back other plans, delayed the 3rd tower, lost momentum, didn’t move on phase 2 at all, and boom, here we are.

Obviously there were lots of external factors. But I’d argue they hurt themselves a lot too. Mega projects can create momentum of their own, but when you stop 20% into them, you jeopardize the success of it all. City Market needed 3000 new residents in the area. And OEG barely gave them 500…

Agreed. But also things were well set up before COVID to proceed with the planned residential towers. And the parks, falcon and switch were all initiated in 2021 during the same conditions

The value of the Oilers had skyrocketed by start of 2020.

In 2018, OEG sold the Edmonton Tower to the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo).

OEG sold the commercial portion of the Stantec Tower to German real estate company Deka Immobilien in 2019. This sale involved over 620,000 square feet of office space and 62,000 square feet of retail space.

With those sales, OEG freed up a ton of capital before 2020 to keep the momentum going and were even given a municipal incentive in 2021 to proceed with tower. But everything stopped except its activation of the 101st parking lot for events - and we see the result with Connect Centre bank proliferation.

 

[thommyjo]

Agreed. But also things were well set up before COVID to proceed with the planned residential towers. And the parks, falcon and switch were all initiated in 2021 during the same conditions

The value of the Oilers had skyrocketed by start of 2020.

In 2018, OEG sold the Edmonton Tower to the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo).

OEG sold the commercial portion of the Stantec Tower to German real estate company Deka Immobilien in 2019. This sale involved over 620,000 square feet of office space and 62,000 square feet of retail space.

With those sales, OEG freed up a ton of capital before 2020 to keep the momentum going and were even given a municipal incentive in 2021 to proceed with tower. But everything stopped except its activation of the 101st parking lot for events - and we see the result with Connect Centre bank proliferation.

That’s what I don’t understand. How does the rental tower not work when the foundation and everything is already built…. Yet multiple other concrete towers have proceeded since.