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A residential cherry on top?

Eyed for new downtown gem

By: Murray McNeill

Posted: 09/15/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 | Last Modified: 09/15/2012 9:14 AM | Updates

JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Demolition proceeds around the front facade of the former Mitchell-Copp building for the Centrepoint project.

'Funnelators' delayed

ANXIOUSLY waiting for your "funnelator" fix? Be prepared to wait a while longer.

A CentreVenture Development Corp. official says it will be early next year before Winnipeggers get to see the first of dozens of "funnelators" the corporation plans to install in the Sports, Hospitality and Entertainment (SHED) district of downtown Winnipeg.

Last year, when he first revealed plans to include the decorative devices as part of the streetscaping for the SHED, CentreVenture CEO Ross McGowan described them as funnel-shaped "street features" that will vary in size and colour and serve as everything from media or information centres to outdoor heating stations -- or just somewhere pedestrians can go to get out of the rain or listen to a street performer.

He said they might be made out of metal, polyethylene, or fibreglass. Some might be one storey tall and others might be two storeys.

CentreVentrue hoped to install the first funnelators this year as part of the improvements to the one-block stretch of Donald Street between Portage and Graham avenues.

However, development manager Tom Janzen said while some sidewalk improvements could get underway this fall, it will likely be early next year before the first funnelator debuts in front of the Millennium Library.

Janzen said they're still working on the design and lighting systems for the funnelators.

-- McNeill

The developers of one of the city's highest-profile downtown construction projects -- 311 Portage Avenue at Centrepoint -- are in late-stage negotiations with a Toronto developer about including a residential tower in the project.

The tower would be built atop the south end of the development's 450-stall parkade, which will stretch for about two-thirds of the length of the block of Hargrave Street between Portage and Ellice avenues.

It's believed the tower would house condominiums rather than rental apartments.

The six-storey parkade will include 16,000 square feet of main-floor retail space stretching along both Hargrave and Ellice.

Centrepoint is a joint venture by two Winnipeg companies -- Longboat Development Corp. and Artis Real Estate Investment Trust. The $75-million project, which will take up much of the block between Portage and Ellice and Donald and Hargrave, also includes a 20-storey tower consisting of one floor of retail space, four floors of offices and a 15-storey, 154-room boutique hotel. That tower is being built on the southeast corner of the block.

Winnipeg restaurateur Bobby Mottola confirmed Friday he has a tentative deal to lease one of the office/hotel tower's two main-floor restaurant spaces -- a 3,413-square-foot spot facing Donald Street.

Mottola, owner of Pizzeria Gusto on Academy Road, said the new outlet won't be a another Pizzeria Gusto.

"It will be a new concept to Winnipeg."

He said he'll release further details once the leasing deal is completed early next week.

Longboat hasn't revealed who is leasing the 8,640-square-foot space facing Portage Avenue, other than it's a national restaurant chain. Company president Scott Stephanson said the name won't be released until the leasing deal is signed.

Earlier this week, Longboat and the Winnipeg office of Cushman & Wakefield, which is handling the leasing of the commercial space in the development, briefed about a dozen local real estate brokers and agents on the progress of the project and the type of space that is still available.

An official with CentreVenture Development Corp. also reviewed the downtown development agency's previously announced plans for developing the Sports, Hospitality and Entertainment District (SHED) in the 11-block area that includes the Centrepoint development.

Stephanson and Wayne Sato, vice-president of office leasing for Cushman & Wakefield, said demolition of buildings on the site is well underway. Once that's done, crews will drill 120 holes for the development's geothermal heating system and then start pouring foundations in late November.

Stephanson said the rehabilitated facade of the former Mitchell Copp building on Portage will serve as the entrance to the office building, and the front door/lobby area of the hotel will face Donald Street.

As previously reported, local engineering firm Stantec has leased about half of the third floor and all of the fourth and fifth floors. The other half of the third floor (8,503 square feet) and all of the second floor (17,566 square feet) are still available.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 15, 2012 B5

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Updated on Saturday, September 15, 2012 at 9:14 AM CDT: adds fact box

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