Midtown Lofts | ?m | 6 fl | Complete

[mpd618]

You're right that I shouldn't have used "primarily." But this building is displacing a pizza shop and other (I can admit more marginal) commercial uses which have survived here. With the school and the neighbourhoods nearby, and the residents of over a hundred units right above, I think a small coffee shop or restaurant could find the business they need.

I'm guessing what's lacking is demand for high-end, brand new retail units. There certainly was demand for units that were at the other end of the spectrum - but that's not what a new building will generally produce.

[GtwoK]

Just found out that a friend of mine was actually working on the website and advertising for these. Not sure if it was known before, but they go on sale tomorrow.

[Spokes]

I'm interested to see how these sell.

[MidTowner]

I'm interested to see how these sell.

I'm really curious, too. I've got my fingers crossed that this is a great success- there are lots of sites near hear ripe for redevelopment, and the sooner we see some density on King here the better.

[zanate]

The commercial space in The Red didn't quite take off... this shows that demand at the edge of a commercial area is weak. Increase density first, create the spaces later, otherwise we end up with boarded up commercial space, like so much of downtown kitchener.

I agree in this case. As much as I want ground floor retail along King St. livening up the streetscape, I think we still have a question of demand for that space.

Otherwise, this is a nicely scaled building (5-6 stories would make a good streetwall for King St. midtown) and hopefully not the last. While this one doesn't provide for ground floor retail, it'll start to build the demand for that in future construction.

[insider]

The commercial space in The Red didn't quite take off... this shows that demand at the edge of a commercial area is weak. Increase density first, create the spaces later, otherwise we end up with boarded up commercial space, like so much of downtown kitchener.

I agree in this case. As much as I want ground floor retail along King St. livening up the streetscape, I think we still have a question of demand for that space.

Otherwise, this is a nicely scaled building (5-6 stories would make a good streetwall for King St. midtown) and hopefully not the last. While this one doesn't provide for ground floor retail, it'll start to build the demand for that in future construction.

I tend to disagree. King Street throughout Midtown is actually primarily commercial right now, and it IS the middle of the Region's central transit corridor. Definitely the important detail is the types of businesses that are there now, small convenience stores, tattoo and massage parlours, and money loan businesses... plus tons of medical and dental offices. At least one small commercial unit would've been perfect in this development, with the possibility to convert some ground floor units into more.

[tomh009]

It would have been perfect, sure. But this looks like it should be a nice building that brings yet more people to the core, so the lack of retail is not the end of the world in my book.

[MidTowner]

No, certainly not the end of the world. I agree with zanate that the scale is pretty well ideal. I personally feel like retail would have been called for, but hopefully it sells quickly and gets built quickly and has success that prompts more developments, next time mixed-use.

[MidTowner]

Just found out that a friend of mine was actually working on the website and advertising for these. Not sure if it was known before, but they go on sale tomorrow.

Has anyone gone into the sales centre (it's uptown, right?) or looked into these? I'd be curious about any hearsay or fourth-hand information about sales.

[curious_look]

Just found out that a friend of mine was actually working on the website and advertising for these. Not sure if it was known before, but they go on sale tomorrow.

Has anyone gone into the sales centre (it's uptown, right?) or looked into these? I'd be curious about any hearsay or fourth-hand information about sales.

I happened to walk by at the tail end of their first evening open. There were surprisingly still quite a few people sitting down with an agent and paperwork, though I have no idea how many of those turned into actual sales.

[insider]

I've also walked by the sales centre a few times and they have floorplans on the wall with sold/available, and actually most of the units have red dots on them - sold I assume?

[MidTowner]

I've also walked by the sales centre a few times and they have floorplans on the wall with sold/available, and actually most of the units have red dots on them - sold I assume?

Presumably. That's great news, if so. The sooner this gets going, the better. The pricing seemed neither particularly good value nor expensive to me, so I'm really curious how fast the units will sell.

[insider]

I've also walked by the sales centre a few times and they have floorplans on the wall with sold/available, and actually most of the units have red dots on them - sold I assume?

Presumably. That's great news, if so. The sooner this gets going, the better. The pricing seemed neither particularly good value nor expensive to me, so I'm really curious how fast the units will sell.

Here's a pic of the availability wall (sorry for the angle, the sales centre was already closed):

[panamaniac]

What are the sq ft prices like for this project?

[MidTowner]

Thanks a lot! I count 32 dots- that would be about a quarter sold. That doesn't sound too bad for a week of sales.