Downtown Kitchener continues to evolve its vibrant core and dynamic skyline with the announcement of Momentum Development’s new condominium, Q Condos, which will soar 34 floors above 20 Queen Street North. The design of Q is uniquely slender with larger balconies that will allow residents spending more time at home to enjoy more outdoor living space. It will rise atop the original 1917 building that was originally designed and built for The Economical Insurance Company. A short time after, and for decades to follow, the building became home to the Royal Conservatory of Music, the Ontario Conservatory of Music, the Elsie Ewald School of Dance and the Queen Street Conservatory Dance Studio. The corner of 20 Queen and Goudies Lane has become a prominent place in Kitchener’s musical history. To honour this, Q Condos will include a community performance space for the residents and the community to enjoy.

There’s an evolving Arts District growing at the corner of 20 Queen and Goudies Lane, where artists enjoy showcasing their work and where musicians come to play. Q Condos will build on this creative atmosphere, and tie into the creative placemaking that is already in progress on Queen Street.

We call it “Life on Q”. You’ll call it creative living, where the vibe promises to be eclectic–mixing art, music, food, architecture and history.

We had a lot to celebrate today!  We were very fortunate to have a bunch of our friends, colleagues and business partners along side us as we broke ground at the Glove Box.  The Glove Box is a new office complex in the heart of the Innovation District and within the Garment Street Condominium Development located at Victoria and Bramm St.

The Glove Box is a 150,000 square foot building of brick and beams and modern glass with an expected occupancy of fall 2021.  It’s historical footprint as the Huck Glove Building is something we plan to celebrate and show homage to throughout this project.

We were excited to announce the glove box’s first tenants, KPMG Canada!! And they were along side us and spoke at our ground breaking ceremony.

Other business partners we shared the day with was our Momentum Partnership with the Zehr group.  As a well respected developer, construction company and project management group in the Waterloo Region, we are exited to continue our ongoing partnership though the Glove Box project.

We could not have done this project without the investment support of partner KingSett Capital.  As Canada’s leading private equity real estate investment we were thrilled to have their team along side us for this ceremony.

As well, Whitney Commercial Real Estate Services was a big part of this day and we were happy to have them speak at the breaking ground ceremony.  Their unwavering dedication to finding the perfect fit shows and we couldn’t be happier about the Glove Box’s new tenants KPMG Canada.

Thanks to Berry Vrbanovic and the City of Kitchener for coming out to support this exciting development for the city!

With a quiet hum, sleek light-rail trains carve their way along an urban spine from the north end of Waterloo to the south end of next-door Kitchener, traversing a 22-stop route that includes two shopping malls, two universities, two city halls, one hospital and a future multimodal transit hub.

Funded by Waterloo Region, the province and the federal government, the $818-million light rail train (LRT) system – known as the Ion – has proven highly popular since it opened in June. But the Ion isn’t just moving people. It’s been designed to limit sprawl, intensify downtown development and make it more convenient for the area’s youthful demographic to live and work close to the amenities they need in this fast-growing urban centre.

“The Ion represents quite a structural shift in the development pattern,” says Rod Regier, commissioner of planning, development and legislative services for the region of Waterloo. “There is a fundamental shift in the nature of the built form that is emerging.”

(more…)

quarterly.exchange | Q3-2019 Core Redevelopment  by Paul Knowles

The downtown cores of Kitchener and Waterloo are being transformed. It’s easy to say this is because of the now-operational Ion Light Rail Transit service, but perhaps the truth is, it’s more because of the vision and commitment of people like Brian Prudham and Don Zehr.

Sure, the Region (and other governmental partners) have put a lot of money and faith into the Ion – but that is taxpayer money; the decision-makers don’t actually have “skin in the game”. But Zehr, Prudham, and a significant number of other local developers and builders do have money and reputation on the line – and they are taking the chance in order to do some special things in the heart of the city.

Zehr is really excited about the office building, in which a brand new building will rise beside and above the Huck Glove building… “It is like no other in this area,” he says. “It’s going to be so different.”

Prudham is part of Momentum Developments; Zehr heads the company that bears his name, the Zehr Group. They have joined forces as the Momentum Partnership to build an innovative district in the heart of Kitchener, a development that will include three residential towers, and a breathtaking office complex that incorporates the heritage building that once housed Huck Gloves.

(more…)

31-storey Charlie West condo tower breaks ground in downtown Kitchener

‘Amenity rich’ project already 95 per cent sold out — “Soil has been turned for the new Charlie West condos at the corner of Charles and Gaukel streets in downtown Kitchener.

When finished, the building will be 31-storeys high and include about 300 residential units, as well as about 6,000 square feet of retail at the base of the Charles Street side.

It’s one of the many highrise condominiums currently under development in Kitchener by the Zehr Group and Momentum Developments, collectively known as the Momentum Partnership.

(more…)

KITCHENER — With a $2-million investment from a Toronto-based fund that helps women entrepreneurs, the startup Bridgit plans to further develop a new product for its mobile platform for construction managers.

Stand Up Ventures and MaRS IAF led this round of investment in the company launched by co-founders Lauren Lake and Mallorie Brodie in 2014.

“We are obviously very happy to be one of their first investments,” said Brodie.

Bridgit employs 34 at its office at 100 Ahrens St. W. in Kitchener and is hiring.

It will use the new investment to further develop a new product that evaluates data from clients, and alerts them to trends on construction sites that will cause more delays and cost overruns.

That new product, called Project Insights, was launched earlier this year, but there is potential to expand it, providing details in real time to help construction managers.

(more…)

Momentum Developments is excited to announce that Seth Jutzi has joined the company as its newest partner. This past June marked the 10^th anniversary of Momentum Developments, and Seth’s skillset is perfectly suited to help Momentum look towards our next 10 years of growth.

Seth comes to us from Sorbara, Schumacher, McCann LLP, where he developed an extensive body of work in both real estate and commercial law. His collaborative approach in deconstructing legal and business issues, along with his diligence and creativity have earned him a sterling reputation among coworkers and clients alike.

Seth also contributes his time, professional expertise, and leadership to a number of local charities. For the past eight years, Seth has served on the Board of Directors for Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region, including two years as Board Chair. Currently, Seth serves on the Board of Governors for the Grand River Hospital Foundation and is the Chair of the Governance Committee. This dedication to community improvement is one of the many reasons Seth is a natural fit for Momentum.

(more…)

Kitchener – The rapid pace of growth in downtown Kitchener continues, with the latest development happening directly across the street from Charlie West. The historic building at 27 Gaukel St. that’s been the longtime home to Shreiter’s Home Furnishing for years has been leased to Thalmic labs, the Kitchener-based technology company that currently occupies the adjacent building.

The top two floors of the 26,000-square-foot building are going to be used as office space, with the main floor containing an employee cafeteria and meeting space. Schreiter’s is the process of moving to their new Belmont Avenue location.

The Gaukel Street building was acquired last year by Vanguard Developments Corp., which plans to heavily invest in renovations.

“We are renovating the whole space into classic brick-and-beam office space,” said Vanguard co-owner Tom Rakic.

Thalmic Labs is anticipated to move into the new space this Fall.