The Metz (Schneiders site redevelopment)

[nms]

If I recall correctly, the City of Waterloo originally purchased much of the former industrial property in downtown Waterloo before later selling some of it off to developers. This is why there there the various municipal lots in Waterloo and the fact that the owners of the Waterloo Town Square building only own the building footprint but not the parking lots around them. In Waterloo's case, I think it was due to a combination of the required environmental remediation that was needed, and flood control requirements. It may have also occurred because the industrial vacancies largely happened in two or three large chunks when the larger property owners closed (eg Waterloo Manufacturing, Seagram's etc).