February 2014 B.C. Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

BC construction employment expected to reach unprecedented high





VICTORIA, Feb. 20, 2014 /CNW/ - B.C.'s construction industry will need to ramp up recruitment efforts to keep pace with planned projects and the retirement of more than 34,000 workers over the next decade, according to BuildForce Canada.





The 2014-2023 Construction and Maintenance Looking Forward forecast released today by BuildForce Canada shows major resource and infrastructure projects in the North help drive construction employment to an all-time high in 2017.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Surrey seeks spotlight with shiny new city hall





Mayor Dianne Watts unveiled the latest addition to her big bet on a future downtown in Surrey this week, one that has pushed the city into new debt as it races against a half-dozen other suburban municipalities trying to become the region`s second metropolitan core.





Ms. Watt`s trump card in this round was the striking new glass-fronted, ultra-modern $97-million City Hall. It`s aimed at definitively establishing the area around the Surrey Central SkyTrain station ` now dominated by large malls, enormous parking lots and small fast-food operations ` as the city`s new urban heart.





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[Ally]

Six-Storey Wood-Frame Saanich rental buildings win raves





A rental housing development featuring a pair of six-storey buildings that broke new ground in the local construction industry is winning accolades from residents, neighbours and the municipality of Saanich. Herons Landing and the Ardea at the corner of Burnside and Tillicum roads are the first rental-only structures on the South Island to take advantage of 2009 changes in the building code that allow wood-frame multi-family buildings up to six storeys, an increase of two floors, said builder Ernie Yakimovich.





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[Ally]

New BC strata rules mean simple majority can approve repairs





Owners of condos and apartments will more easily be able to vote for major repairs to their buildings under changes to strata legislation introduced by the B.C. government Feb. 26.





The new strata rules will allow condo associations to vote to spend contingency funds for fixes recommended in depreciation reports using a simple majority, and not three-quarters of membership, said Rich Coleman, the minister responsible for housing.





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[Ally]

Cariboo-Chilcotin hopes and dreams shattered by Taseko mine decision, MP says





OTTAWA ` The Harper government has devastated the spirits of thousands in the Cariboo-Chilcotin region by blocking a proposed $1-billion gold-copper mine, federal and B.C. politicians representing the area said Thursday.








And B.C. Mines Minister Bill Bennett said there's a "disconnect" between the federal environmental review process and the way mines are actually built, run and regulated in B.C.





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[Ally]

City unveils $1 billion plan for Vancouver's downtown East side





Vancouver`s troubled Downtown Eastside is about to get a facelift.





The City of Vancouver unveiled an ambitious, $1-billion, 30-year plan for the neighbourhood Thursday.





The complex, 183-page proposal would see 4,400 new or replacement social housing units built in the area. There would also be a dramatic increase in condos near Clark and Hastings, where buildings could be 12 to 15 storeys high.






Read the full article here.