AB Economic Fundamentals 2008-09

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0908EDTN
Carpenters build for construction boom

EDMONTON - A $21-million new training centre and talk of long-term partnerships with "clients" -- welcome to the carpenters union of the new millennium as it positions itself as a major stakeholder in the booming construction industry.

"Times have changed, and we`re not the union of old," says Martyn Piper, executive secretary-treasurer of the

Alberta Regional Council of Carpenters and Allied Workers, which has 11,500 members.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...7a-43f6d404672b

 

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0908EDTN
Local houses suffer biggest drop in prices

EDMONTON - Prices for new homes in Edmonton fell 5.3 per cent in July compared to the same month last year -- the biggest year-over-year drop in 23 years, Statistics Canada said Thursday.

Edmonton`s cooling market showed the biggest year-over-year drop of any Canadian city.

Compared to June, Edmonton new-home prices nudged downward 0.2 per cent.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...50-ad1c48d1fc85

 

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0908EDTN
Sick in suburbia

Living in the suburbs can be hazardous to your health.

In its annual health report card released yesterday, Capital Health says more people are living further from where they work and shop, and as a result rely more on their vehicles to get around.

That leads to decreased levels of physical activity, poorer air quality and more motor vehicle collisions.

http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Edmonton/2...12/6742966.html

 

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0908EDTN
E-town could host world fair in 2017

Bringing the world`s fair to the Alberta capital in 2017 is "doable," say officials laying the groundwork for Edmonton`s bid.

"From our research a recognized expo is certainly doable for Edmonton, but we`re still waiting on our costing information," said Candice Stasynec, an executive director in the city manager`s office. "Depending on what that comes in at, it may sway us one way or another."

http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Edmonton/2...742471-sun.html

 

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0908CALG
High gas prices pump up Calgary transit numbers

As gas prices climbed this summer and Calgarians looked for ways to cut costs, more people began jumping on transit, new numbers reveal.

With more than 700 buses on city roads each day, soaring fuel costs have hit Calgary Transit in the wallet.

But over the past four months, ridership on the city`s buses and LRT has spiked, putting millions more into Calgary Transit coffers.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/s...75-2165fd332dcc

 

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0908ALTA
West must lead debate on energy road map

What will it take for Canada to become an energy superpower? Or, for that matter, a clean energy superpower?

I expect those -- and a host of other difficult questions about energy issues -- will jump up and bite Conservative Leader Stephen Harper on the nose before the current election campaign is over.

You may recall that while the prime minister suggested it might be in our best interests to work toward becoming a clean energy superpower well over a year ago, there has been precious little debate about how that might happen.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...ae-452739d98c91

 

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0908CALG
New house prices post worst record in 12 years

New house prices in the Calgary census metropolitan area decreased in July from the previous year, one of only three markets in the country to see a decline, according to Statistics Canada.

The federal agency, in releasing its New Housing Price Index on Thursday, said the Calgary area saw new house prices drop by 0.3 per cent in July 2008 from July 2007, the worst performance in 12 years.

In Edmonton, the year-over-year change was the worst in 23-years at a negative 5.3 per cent.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...76-0be5c38797c9

 

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0908CALG
Douglasdale becoming hub for business

It`s been a long time since I turned off Deerfoot Trail to take a drive through Douglasdale Business Park, but new construction is a magnet to me and there is certainly lots of activity between 24th Street and Barlow Trail S.E.

The 40-hectare park is a development of The Telsec Group. At a quick meeting with Sean Flathers, who is responsible for marketing and leasing, and Ric Fuller, who joined the company after 19 years in commercial banking and looks after its financial business, I was brought up to date on the company and its Douglasdale property.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...c2-7cf17df91b5c

 

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0908CALG
4 St. S.W. is being transformed by a new breed of youthful entrepreneurs


Take a stroll down 4 St. S.W. these days and you might be surprised to see it`s no longer reserved for stodgy dress shops like it was in the `80s, and doesn`t quite resemble the restaurant row you seem to remember from the `90s. Nope, 4th has been infused with more than a few breaths of fresh air in the last couple years, notably from some bright young faces barely past the age of 25. Be it trendy one-off clothing shops such as Coco and Violet, an eco-chic boutique called Green Bee, a high-end tanning studio named Bronzebaxx or a one-of-a-kind boutique spa at Frilly Lilly, the shops on 4th quite easily extend past the token art galleries and eateries nowadays, beckoning window shoppers and regulars from all quadrants of the city.

http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/2008/0...744416-sun.html

 

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0908REDR
Capri Centre sold for $40 million

The Capri Centre is being sold for $40 million.

Temple Real Estate Investment Trust announced it has agreed to acquire hotel and will undertake an $8-million capital expenditure program over approximately 12 months, consisting primarily of refurbishment of the rooms.

TREIT expects to license the hotel with the Sheraton brand name in 2009.

In addition, there is the potential for about 2.24 acres of land that is now used for parking to be redeveloped with commercial retail units.

http://www.albertalocalnews.com/reddeeradv...40_million.html

 

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0908REDR
Arlington Inn deal still not completed

With only four days to go, there is no deal yet on the Arlington Inn.

Out-of-town owners must decide by Monday whether to accept the City of Red Deer`s conditional offer to buy the property.

"We`re still working on it," Mayor Morris Flewwelling said on Thursday.

http://www.albertalocalnews.com/reddeeradv..._completed.html

 

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0908EDTN
City`s psyche, like its homes, somewhat undervalued

Earlier this week, a national study determined that Edmonton house prices are eight per cent too low. This is an uncannily perfect statistic for anyone who seeks to understand the mysterious heart and mind of the Edmontonian.

It`s an unscientific analysis, of course, and may just be a coincidence, but I have long thought that people who live here undervalue themselves and their city by about eight per cent. It seems rather perfect that, according to the same University of British Columbia study, house prices in Calgary are between seven and 11 per cent too high.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...62-cff658a0a6b8

 

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0908ALTA
With oil declining, investors interested in natural gas

EDMONTON - While oil and gold prices are meticulously followed by investors, few people understand the fortunes of their weak sisters, natural gas and silver.

In the case of silver, not much exciting has happened since 1979, when the Hunt brothers, Nelson Bunker and William Herbert, led a group of wealthy Arabs in amassing half the world`s deliverable supply, as the price rose from $1.95 US an ounce to $54 US. Then market trading rules were changed and the U.S. Federal Reserve intervened, and the price fell from $21.62 to $10.80 in one day.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...19-511fef16142f

 

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0908ALTA
Albertans willing to pay price to go green

Albertans are known across the country for their entrepreneurial attitude, but in a new greener world, more people now say they value the environment over economic growth.

As Canada`s economy endures jitters and there are signs of a slowdown in Alberta, there`s a growing debate over how far the province should go to protect air, water and land.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/s...80-95b482387c23

 

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0908CALG
Site picked to rebuild school

The city, public school board and the province are expected to announce a deal Monday that will see a new school built on Calgary`s west side to replace Ernest Manning High School, which will eventually be torn down for LRT expansion.

Officials aren`t commenting on the long-anticipated announcement before it is officially made, but a media advisory distributed Friday all but confirmed the news.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/s...3c-adcafd6f872e

 

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0908CALG
LRT talks won`t be cheap

Spending nearly $1 million on public consultations for the west leg of the LRT is a waste, because city staff won`t listen to what people have to say, an alderman and a critic of the LRT plan said Friday.

But others, including the head of an Alberta taxpayers` watchdog, said the big price tag is worth it.

On the heels of what were, at times, tense public meetings over the alignment of the $700-million west leg, the city is laying the groundwork for another round of public talks.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...b1-5c885d3d525e

 

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0908CALG
Calgary office market continent`s tightest

Calgary has the lowest vacancy rate and fifth-highest gross rental rate for Class A office space in a survey of central business districts for major metropolitan markets in North America in the second quarter of this year.

"The outlook for the Calgary market remains tremendously positive," says the National Mid-Year Office Report by Avison Young Commercial Real Estate. "Oil and gas continues to drive the local economy and is bringing all the affiliated service and professional industries along for the ride.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...7d-5a4da1865d78

 

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0908ALTA
Alberta, Ontario lead investment in technology

Alberta and Ontario lead the other provinces in investment in information and communications technology per worker, which is increasingly seen as a key to boosting Canada`s lagging productivity performance.

In contrast, New Brunswick and British Columbia have invested the least in productivity-enhancing computers and telecommunications equipment and software.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...1c-79a32e525d61

 

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0908ALTA
Expert has advice for condo landlords

A third-generation landlord. A realtor with seven years of experience. An entrepreneur with his own rental property management company.

Perhaps it isn`t surprising, then, that Michael Drouillard`s first book, released this summer, covers the topic of landlording.

The timing is appropriate, too, with condo markets in Calgary and throughout the country flattening, causing more owners to look at renting their units as a way of waiting out the storm.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/n...ca-6560e607cf0b

 

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0908CALG
Living the high life on the golf course

In my annual debate as to the pros and cons of living on a golf course I`ve made mention of the Highwood Golf & Country Club, but until last week had never played the course. The opportunity came thanks to an invitation from a retired Calgary businessman who decided High River would be a nice place to move to away from the hustle and bustle of the big city.

I must admit that I wasn`t looking forward to the drive all the way from my home in the northwest quadrant of the city. But the Deerfoot was well behaved and I was surprised just how easy it was to continue on to the No. 2 Highway and slip over to the No. 2A by Aldersyde that takes you right up to the clubhouse.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/l...d6-08c59bc21e27