Reaching for the stars

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/03/2016 (3682 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

One of the city’s most unusual condominium projects — the so-called “spaceship” condos at the foot of the Disraeli Bridge — should be ready for occupancy this summer despite some recent “hiccups,” the developer says.

Green Seed Development’s Mark Penner said in an interview he’s aware some recent social-media reports say Green Seed’s 62 M project — that’s the official name — is behind schedule, is underfunded and won’t be completed.

But the reports are “100 per cent false,” he said, adding he still expects the project to be completed by early summer.

“And we’re fully financed… so there is zero danger of the project not getting finished.” 

The 62 M project, which was named after its address 62 McDonald Ave., got its nickname from its unusual design. Because it’s round and built on 20 concrete stilts, the two-storey structure resembles a large flying saucer hovering 12 metres above the ground. It was built on stilts so it would be higher than the Disraeli Bridge and its occupants would have an unobstructed view of the neighbourhood and downtown skyline.

The “hiccups” are some recent cost overruns and a dispute between the general contractor — Lansgreen Construction — and some of the tradespeople working on the project, Penner said.

Lansgreen co-owner Jascha Boge explained in an interview there have been some changes in the scope of the work being done, and some of the tradespeople felt they should be paid more money. That led to a slowdown in construction activity over the last couple of weeks.

But they’re in the process of ironing out their differences, Boge added. He said work is ramping up again and should be back in full swing within the next two weeks.

Penner said the cost overruns are due to the plunge in the value of the Canadian dollar, which has driven up the cost of some U.S.-made building materials by as much as 35 per cent in the last 18 months. He said that has helped drive up the overall cost of the project by half a million dollars to $6.5 million.

However, Green Seed has already obtained additional financing to cover the overruns, he added.

The cost increases have also driven up the price of the approximately 20 condos that haven’t yet been sold. The wedge-shaped units, which are all 608 square feet in size and feature floor-to-ceiling walls of windows at the front, were originally priced between $195,000 and $215,000, depending on the view. They now cost between $209,900 and $249,900.

Penner said the units aren’t selling as quickly as he had hoped, but he thinks that will change when the display suite in the building opens later this month and prospective buyers can see what the units will look like.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca