MULTIPLE WINS FOR MULTI-FAMILY BUILDER
Cantiro celebrates repeat CHBA victories
Cantiro's multi-family division is on a winning streak.
For two years in a row, it has been named the Multi-family Builder of the Year, most recently this month at the Canadian Home Builders' Association-edmonton Region's 2022 Awards of Excellence in Housing. Equally impressive, its 100 West Block project has won the Best Apartment Building Award for three years straight, from 2020 through 2022.
“I thought because we won last year, we wouldn't get it again this year,” said Paul Fereday, Cantiro's vice-president multi-family, about taking the multi-family Builder of the Year Award once more earlier in April. “Because we won last year, I thought it would be pretty low odds on getting it two years in a row, but I'll take the surprise any day.”
Similarly, Fereday thought the odds might be against West Block doing a three-peat at the April 2 awards gala. But he said 100 West Block is part of a unique transit-oriented, mixed-use development in Glenora, which Cantiro is quite proud of. “A lot of effort has gone into it. We're really happy with the way it's playing out.”
And as far as awards go, the multi-family division added one more to the overall total of seven Cantiro won at the event with Robin Sundal named as the Sales Person/team of the Year winner for multi-family.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
It was the Glenora location that intrigued George Cantalini, now Cantiro's CEO, and helped to lead to the creation of the company's multi-family division. Cantalini, said Fereday, had seen the 3.5 acres of prime Glenora land — at Stony Plain Road and 142nd Street — and moved to acquire the property that was in foreclosure at the time. Then, when Cantiro was known as the Beaverbrook Group of Companies — it rebranded under the Cantiro banner in late 2020 — it took over the site in 2015.
“That kicked us off,” said Fereday. “We went into design, and master planning the site. We had done communities for 20 years, so rather than it being on a quarter-section of land, this is now on a 3.5-acre site, so now it's more of a vertical community ... and doing it in a more compact space.”
Today, West Block Glenora is in its earlier stages. When completed, it will be an urban village with a community plaza designed to integrate seamlessly with the surrounding community and future LRT.
The award-wining 100 West Block residential luxury condo tower is about 85 per cent sold, while the neighbouring 300 West Block, a three-storey office building with an exposed timber structure, is mostly leased.
Next up for West Block: A potential 25-storey tower, townhomes and an additional mixed-use tower with either seniors' residences or residential space.
Multi-family, said Fereday, is basically about taking an existing empty space or an infill space, repurposing underutilized buildings or ones that have outlived their lifespan, and transforming them into something that will provide homes and opportunities for people to live in a desirable area.
“That's been what's driving our decisions, looking for those right locations, the right opportunities,” said Fereday.
LOCAL PROJECTS
While West Block Glenora heralded the start of Cantiro's multi-family division, it's far from their only project.
Last summer, Cantiro completed CX, a 222-unit rental building, along with eight attached street-entry townhomes that Cantiro sold in late 2021. Located on 110th Street, near Jasper Avenue, the tower includes two floors of four-bedroom flats — four bedrooms, four bathrooms with shared kitchen and living areas — targeted to students or people new to the city who want to meet people. These co-living spaces, said Fereday, are new to Edmonton but can be found in larger urban centres such as Montreal and Toronto.
The multi-family division is also behind townhomes in Emerald Hills (Sherwood Park) and One at Keswick.
Then there's Cantiro's newest multi-family development, the Ascension Block, a small enclave nestled between 124th Street and Glenora, which will see 11 townhomes built with contemporary architecture inside and out. Construction is to begin this summer.
SPREADING ITS WINGS
After finding success in Edmonton, Cantiro's multi-family unit is expanding into other parts of Canada.
Cantiro, said Fereday, is excited to be expanding into Ontario with transit-oriented, purpose-built rental and for sale residential and mixed-use developments. A bit closer to home, it has plans for British Columbia.
“We do have two projects in Kitchener-waterloo (Ontario) and we also have another site in the Okanagan (B.C.).”
But there will also be continued growth here in greater Edmonton, Cantiro's headquarters.
“Edmonton is still the home base for us,” said Fereday. “We still want to develop and grow here.”
It's about offering something that's unique and innovative in Edmonton, added Fereday.
“The key with all of it is finding a great location that's got great area amenities already built in.”