All delegates will automatically be registered to attend the Colliers International Market Update Presentations.
Scott Addison, President, Eastern Canada, Colliers International
An insightful examination of key trends in the North American and then global economy with a specific view towards their future direction over the short and medium terms, including the outlook for GDP growth, interest rates, and liquidity. What will the ultimate outcome in the EuroZone? Will the U.S. recovery be able to materialize over the next twelve months? How much employment growth can we expect in Canada over the next year? What will be the key indicators that we will be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel?
Sherry Cooper, Executive Vice President and Chief Economist BMO Financial Group
A panel discussion that will explore current trends impacting commercial real estate demand in today’s market and looking into the future. Using a Question & Answer format, the participants will examine the role infrastructure and construction, technology, sustainability, and manufacturing play in today’s world. The session will provide some intriguing insights into the office, industrial, and investments markets across the Greater Toronto Area and to some extent also on a national basis.
Speakers:
Scott Addison, President, Eastern Canada, Colliers International
John Arnoldi, Executive Managing Director, Toronto Region,Colliers International
Ken Norris, Managing Director, Toronto Region,Colliers International
Moderator:
Ian MacCulloch, National Research DirectorColliers International
Take advantage of this opportunity to participate in informal discussions on the dynamics of key legal issues, market trends, and transaction activity. Tap into the minds of experts, gain insight into proven strategies, and share experiences with your peers. You will have an opportunity to be part of one of the following small discussion groups that will be held as an extension of the luncheon. Click here for the 2012 Mini-Roundtable Discussion topics.
The Canadian retail market is poised to experience some dramatic change. One of the most significant is the range of U.S. and European retailers who have entered Canada and the potential implications of these new entrants on landlords, developers, existing retail tenants, and consumers. What will be the most significant changes as a result of this influx on new retail developments, tenant profiles, and leasing activities? What does the future hold for the renewal of older retail? How much change are we likely to see in formats and size, e.g. bigger is not always better? What impact is inner city condominium development having on urban retail formats to serve that new market segment? How different are ethnic retail centres with respect to tenant profiles and the demographic of these consumers? What will the new premium outlet malls mean to the Canadian retail landscape? Who are now the real anchors in retail centres?
Moderator:
John Crombie, Senior Managing Director, National Retail Services, Cushman & Wakefield Ltd.
Panel:
Glenn Featherstone, Vice President, Retail Leasing, Morguard Investments Limited
Anne Morash, Vice President, Development, Primaris Retail REIT
Geoff Stollery, Vice President, Real Estate, Best Buy Canada Limited
Chris Tarrant, Executive Vice President, Toronto, Oberfeld Snowcap Inc.
Virtually every new development in today’s market is being designed with LEED certification or some high performance metric in mind. However, new construction still only represents about 1% of the building stock. What are the options facing the remaining 99% of buildings with respect to enhancing their energy and environmental performance in general? What steps can owners of existing buildings take to improve the operational efficiencies of their properties and to ensure that their space remains competitive in the market? What can you do with B or C buildings to maintain or improve its Net Asset Value? What costs are considered to be capital expenditures and which ones fall under operating costs? What are the rights of landlords and tenants in retrofitting or doing major renovations to an existing building? This session will examine specific asset management, marketing, and capital strategies that you can lead to improvements in energy, water conservation, waste efficiency, and your building’s overall environmental management and performance.
Moderator:
Brett Miller, President, Canada, Jones Lang LaSalle
Panel:
Jonathan Fleischer, Executive Vice President, Central Region, Triovest Realty Advisors Inc.
Sylvia MacLeod, Vice President, Leasing, GE Capital
Michael Pittana, Managing Partner, Crown Realty Partners
Chris Tambakis, CEO, North America, Adgar Investments & Development Inc.
Landlords must understand the value of tenant engagement as an important element of successful renewal of a property and keeping high occupancy levels during the process. How do you involve your existing tenants in developing your strategy, getting their input and their buy-in? Although critical to the success of a high performing building, occupants remain the missing link primarily because of the complexity in addressing human behavior. True engagement results in purposeful action, which is the outcome of collaborative efforts that align and ultimately inspire occupants to adopt conservational behaviours and use the building in a way that is sensitive to its high performance needs and attributes. This session will explore the myths of occupant engagement through the lens of the real world implementation of an occupant engagement program at Toronto-Dominion Centre (TDC). It will provide a landlord and tenant perspective on an industry leading approach which includes real metrics on the most recent energy campaign that was deployed at the TDC. Discussion will focus on tools and strategies for implementation, occupant roles & perspectives, innovative initiatives and measuring effectiveness. TDC is a 4.5 million square foot office complex spread across six towers, with a population of more than 21,000 and home to many of Canada’s major corporations.
Moderator:
Barbara Ciesla, Associate Principal, Perkins + Will Canada
Panel:
Doug Hitchcox, Senior Vice President, National Brokerage Solutions and Managing Director of Sustainability, Canada, Jones Lang LaSalle
David Hoffman, General Manager, Toronto-Dominion Centre, The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited
Michael Parker, Senior Manager – Energy & Environment, Enterprise Real Estate, TD Bank Group
Most tenants worry about the cost and performance certainty of the buildings and the space that they occupy. This session will examine cost certainty and additional rent issues including: the increasing frequency of lease audits, the occurrence of uncontrollable capital expenditures, e.g. curtain walls, leaky building envelopes, deteriorating exterior marble facing? Do landlords and tenants ever really have a handle on the true cost of occupancy? Can a landlord accurately disclose a ten year plan for CAPEX and operating costs? If the building supports the tenant brand, then how do you ensure building performance over the long term is consistent with the brand? What leverage does a tenant have when the building stops making the grade?
Moderator:
Catherine Bray, National Leader, Real Estate Leasing Group, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
Panel:
Trish Clarry, Managing Director, Corporate Solutions, Jones Lang LaSalle
Keith Major, Senior Vice President, Property Management, Bentall Kennedy (Canada) LP
Alison Tortorice, Senior Director, Legal Services, The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited
Paul Wilson, Principal, 360 Lease Strategies Inc.
Industrial real estate across the GTA appears to be a very polarized market that is finally experiencing some upward pressure on rents. It also can be categorized as a tale of two markets comprised of new modern warehousing buildings vs. older vintage properties with marginal applications for many users. This session will open with a brief overview of the demand side. What are the major trends in the current industrial leasing market? In the large bay market (300,000 sq.ft. and up), vacancy is only 1% even with stiff landlord competition. But do rent levels support new development? How is the cost of oil impacting the movement of goods and potential modal transportation? How are industrial tenant requirements changing, and what recent landlord initiatives are addressing this demand? What is the future for third party logistics? What has happened to the demand and the values of B and C buildings over the past year? Is IFRS and cheap debt encouraging some tenants to pursue sale leasebacks and design/builds? Is the provincial FIT program resulting in a growing number of solar PV installations on industrial buildings?
Moderator:
Gord Cook, Senior Vice President, Industrial, Colliers International
Panel:
Rob Lauer, Vice President, Industrial Leasing, Bentall Kennedy (Canada) LP
Allan Perez, Managing Director, CanFirst Capital Management
Alistair Pickering, Director, National Industrial, Oxford Properties Group Inc.
Nick Stryland, Director of Leasing, Orlando Corporation
This session will examine a wide range of corporate real estate issues from the tenant’s and occupant’s point of view. One of the principal themes of this discussion will be to provide some insights into how significant the alignment is between corporate strategy and real estate. The following are some of the questions that the panel will address:
Moderator:
Clark McLeod, Associate Vice President, CBRE Limited Global Corporate Services
Panel:
Kristie Brown-Galer, Director, Corporate Real Estate, Deloitte & Touche LLP
Ronald Goldenberg, Partner, Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP
Michael Rende, Director, Leasing, Corporate Real Estate, Royal Bank of Canada
Rights and remedies are an established common element of comercial real estate leases. They are at times contentious issues for landlords as well as to tenants. This panel will examine a range of issues that do not get sufficient respect including: rights of expansion, rights of contraction, early termination, restoration obligations, damage and destruction, rights of first refusal, rights of first offer, co-tenancy clauses, exclusives, renewal options and other real estate leasing tools. In default situations, what does the landlord do with computers and chattels left behind by the tenant? Both landlords and tenants are trying to build flexibility, and control, into their leases. How can competing interests co-exist? What is practical? How are litigators contending with these clauses where defaults occur? Where does the law waiver fit in? Learn how these issues are addressed from the perspective of a landlord, a tenant, and a litigator in today’s market conditions.
Moderator:
Joseph Grignano, Partner, Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP
Panel:
Sharon Addison, Partner, McLean & Kerr LLP
Dawn Michaeloff, Partner, Owens, Wright LLP
Laurie Sanderson, Partner, Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP
Ellen Williamson, Vice President, Legal and Assistant General Counsel, The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited
Owners, brokers, and lawyers are seeing a growing number of Request for Proposals (RFPs) being issued by tenants in today’s market. What trends are encouraging this approach? What are the major differences in completing leasing transactions with federal, provincial, and municipal governments as compared with private sector practices?
In the light of the strength of their covenants. What are public sector tenants demanding in this market and how can landlords respond? What are some of the most significant negotiating issues that landlords should anticipate public sector tenants to raise? What is the best way for owners to market space to this sector? What do landlords need to understand about these types of RFPs and how to respond to them? How does deal flow work in these types of transactions? What private sector tenants are starting to issue RFPs? What are they looking for? How do their approach compare with that of public sector agencies?
Moderator:
Sheldon Disenhouse, Partner, Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP
Panel:
Judith Amoils, Managing Director, Consulting Services, CBRE Limited Global Corporate Services
Hamish McKenzie, M Squared Communications Inc., PITCH CONSULTING
William Rowlands, Partner, McMillan LLP
Take advantage of this opportunity to participate in informal discussions on the dynamics of key legal issues, market trends, and transaction activity. Tap into the minds of experts, gain insight into proven strategies, and share experiences with your peers. You will have an opportunity to be part of one of the following small discussion groups that will be held as an extension of the luncheon. Discussion topics will include:
This session will examine how the Toronto office market is performing across the 416 and 905 regions and the outlook for 2013 and beyond. To what extent is the market exceeding most expectations? What are the key trends in each portion of the commutershed? What are the prevailing rents at this time and where are they anticipated to be heading over the next twelve months? How do you navigate through this cycle? How much new development is anticipated south of the CBD and what is the timing of the potential projects? What is creating demand for this space? How are older buildings competing with new ones? How are Class B and C buildings faring in comparison to higher quality buildings? Is there much of a disconnect between landlords and the largest tenants: what do the latter want? Are there too many rating and certification systems? Are they confusing to everyone? To what extent are any of them important? Legacy buildings vs. new developments: which ones are better? How much of a migration of tenants is there from east to west? Downtown is becoming a very high cost place to rent space. In the past, tenants would migrate out of the downtown to lower cost nodes. Will this likely happen again? What is behind suburban growth, eg. HOOPP’s development by the airport?
Moderator:
Sandy McNair, President, Altus InSite
Panel:
Samantha Farrell , Vice President, Leasing, Dundee Realty Management Corporation
Jeff Flemington, Senior Vice President & Principal, Avison Young
John Peets, Vice President, Office Leasing, Oxford Properties Group Inc.
Glenn Way, Vice President, Asset Management, Greater Toronto Area, GWL Realty Advisors Inc.
Social media is the tsunami that is revolutionizing human interaction. This rapidly growing field is transforming how people think, make decisions, gather information and work. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube’s vast reach will impact the size, location and design of the workplaces we deliver. These tools are also affecting the practices of landlords, tenants, brokers and lawyers who play the key principal roles in commercial lease negotiation and transaction. But are these tools useful to real estate executives or are they an over-hyped trend? Are there any transferable lessons to be learned along with new best practices? How can you use technology to be more effective and productive in commercial leasing?
Introduction:
Sarah Clare, Co-Chair of Young Leaders, Canadian CoreNET Leadership Council
A fast-paced session that will cover an assortment of “odds and sods” that people often experience in the leasing process and do not always fully understand. Each issue will be addressed by a legal expert in approximately eight minutes or less. Among the questions that will be covered are the following:
Moderator:
Natalie Vukovich, Partner, Daoust Vukovich LLP
Panel:
Mervyn Allen, Senior Legal Counsel, McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada Limited
Jane Helmstadter, Partner, Bennett Jones LLP
Luzita Kennedy, Real Estate Accounting Advisory Practice Leader, KPMG LLP
“The most efficient and productive cities and regions are ones in which people are thinking and working – not sitting in traffic. The shift toward the urban core is increasing in major cities across Canada. The coming decade will see greater concentrations of people, increasing densities, and further clustering of industry, work and innovation in cities. Alongside that will come ever more concentrated economic opportunity.” Richard Florida
Every strong community has a vibrant mixed-use core where people gather: where commerce, culture, recreation, entertainment, education and inspiration meet. This session will examine how economic, demographic and social forces are reshaping the cities in the GTA, and what the implications of these key trends are for real estate investment and development activity going forward. What type of innovative and successful projects are emerging to take advantage of population migration into inner city areas? What are the factors responsible for the trend towards more mixed-use development? How is the concept of “work, live, play and learn” applying to the GTA market? What are some of the challenges associated with mixed-use projects and the different interests of the joint venture partners (residential vs. retail vs. office vs. hotel)? How are these different users creating challenges to operational harmony? Can placing large tenants into multi-use projects create issues?
Moderator:
Joe Almeida, Principal & Senior Vice President, Avison Young
Panel:
Tom Burns, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Allied Properties REIT
Barry Lyon, President & Senior Partner, N. Barry Lyon Consultants
Jodi Shpigel , Vice President of Development, First Capital Realty Inc.
Rob Spanier, Senior Vice President, LiveWorkLearnPlay
What are the issues and sticking points when negotiating in today’s market conditions and what are the arguments used to reach the middle ground? With relatively low vacancy rates, has commercial space in the GTA now become a “landlord’s market”? How do you determine NERs in this leasing environment? What are some of the major issues that being raised in negotiations today? What can be done to resolve these differences? Are there any particular creative ways to complete a successful transaction? How long should it take to finalize a deal? Under what circumstances would an owner offer an inducement or allowance in this market? What should you do when you have competing offers on the same space? How is the increased entry of U.S. and other global firms into the Canadian market affecting negotiating strategies? How is risk being managed by the landlords and the tenants within the leasing process, eg. tenant worthiness, covenants, security, landlord worthiness? What are the challenges for landlords in differentiating themselves in today’s market? Why do deals seem to be taking longer? Is it important that someone “quarterbacks” the transaction to expedite the process? What else can be done to get a deal turned around more quickly by the broker, the landlord, the lawyer, and the tenant? What do landlords wish that lawyers, brokers and tenants understood better?
Moderator:
Stephen Messinger, Senior Partner, Minden Gross LLP
Panel:
Lisa Borsook, Managing Partner, WeirFoulds LLP
Chris Holtved, Vice President, Commercial Properties – Canada, Pauls Properties Corporation
Mike Pelyk, Senior Vice President, National Leasing, Triovest Realty Advisors Inc.
Thomas Santram, Vice President, Legal & Chief Privacy Officer, Cineplex Entertainment
Considerable evidence now supports the fact that it actually cost much more to design and construct or retrofit a greener building than a conventional new one. This session will examine some of the most common facts and fallacies related to the concept that a greener building is the ultimate goal for tenants and landlords. Are landlords succeeding in giving tenants what they want with respect to sustainability? How much importance do larger corporations place on being located in a green building? What are the tenant’s expectations for this type of work space? Is certification and building labeling necessary? Do tenants need to and are they prepared to pay more to be located in a greener building or in LEED-CI space? Why are green leases not being used very much? Over the past seven years, what have we learned about new or existing buildings that are labelled as green? Are greener buildings outperforming the conventional real estate market? How competitive is a greener building in a market dominated by older conventional properties? What are the primary reasons that lead to the decision to construct or retrofit a green office building? Can the developer/owner expect an appropriate ROI on any additional cost associated with greening the building? What are the respective responsibilities and implications on tenants vs. landlords to keep a building green? How do you measure the savings associated with a greener building on an ongoing basis? What are the remedies if benchmarks are not being met?
Moderator:
Michael Brooks, Partner, Aird & Berlis LLP
Speakers:
Roger Johnson, Senior Vice President, Enterprise Real Estate, TD Financial Group
Andrew McAllan, Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Real Estate Management, Oxford Properties Group Inc.
Steven Sorensen, Vice President, Operations, Toronto Office Portfolio, The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited
This panel will discuss the wide range of changes that can arise during the term of the lease including subleasing, change of control, relocation et al in the office, industrial and retail markets. It is important for both tenants and landlords to understand many of these key issues, the implications of these changes, and their respective rights in the event if any of these situations were to occur. The session will examine various scenarios whereby changing circumstances can arise during the term of the lease, how to deal with any of these related issues, and how to settle the matters in the best interest of both parties. Changes discussed will include:
Moderator:
Stephen Posen, Senior Partner, Minden Gross LLP
Panel:
Michael Citak, Partner, McLean & Kerr LLP
Dennis Daoust, Partner, Daoust Vukovich LLP
Marta Lewycky, Vice President, Legal Affairs, First Capital Realty Inc.
David Thompson, Partner, Weirfoulds LLP
Tenants are strongly focused on having workplaces that are conducive for optimum productivity and that help attract and retain valuable employees. This session will explore some of the latest trends on how space planners, interior designers, architects and manufacturers are able to extract maximum value from today’s workplace. What are other issues and priorities for corporations as they strive for work environments that offer higher productivity? What is the business case for tenants and landlords related to such projects, and what role other strategic thinking has in these decisions? In the instances where tenants have now occupied space in greener buildings, how do they measure the outcomes to determine any savings associated with this decision? Are tenants prepared to pay more for this type of space or accommodation? Are buildings suitable to meet the changing workplaces? Employee retention is a key for any tenant which is one the reasons that they make the link between work environments, employee engagement and organizational value. The session will conclude with an examination of some of the most innovative workplaces being designed around the world.
Moderator:
Don Crichton, President, Strategic Workplace Activator, Blueco Solutions Inc.
Panel:
Calvin Lee, National Director of Architectural Interiors, Haworth
Johnathan Sandler, Principal, Strategy Director, New York, Gensler
Andrea Wolf-Strike, Senior Manager, Client Relationship, Enterprise Real Estate, TD Bank Group