Dream to sell 3.27 acres of dev. land near new Ottawa arena site
Dream is marketing 3.27 acres of land at its 34-acre Zibi development, with potential to construct approximately one million square feet of space across five buildings just a short walk from the planned new Ottawa Senators arena site.
The plot that is newly open for sale is known as the Capital View Lands, located in Gatineau, Que., directly across the Ottawa River from the City of Ottawa. A view of Parliament Hill is a noted feature, as well as its close distance to Place du Portage, a major office complex of Canadian government employees.
Marketed by Dream Unlimited Corp. and Dream Impact Trust, both Toronto-based real estate companies under the Dream banner, the intent is to find a developer that will work closely with Dream as build-out continues at the master-planned, multi-phased project.
Zibi is a mixed-use community in development by Dream, slated for housing and commercial space. Unique to Zibi is how it is spread between Ottawa and Gatineau, making it a community in two cities.
“With the recent Senators arena announcement, we are excited to see even more development momentum near Zibi,” Michael Cooper, chief responsible officer of Dream, said in a release.
“We feel Zibi has generally progressed well and provided opportunities for very innovative partnerships. By bringing in development partners for the Capital View Lands, Zibi’s development pace can be accelerated to provide a mature community sooner in such a vital location to the National Capital Region.”
About Zibi
Located on the waterfront of the Ottawa River, Zibi is expected to house over 5,000 people and host over 6,000 jobs, according to its website. Seven per cent of the housing is designed to be affordable, with 1.7 million square feet of commercial space and 430,000 square feet of retail space.
Another key feature is the carbon neutrality of Zibi. A district energy system in place at the site will heat its buildings using post-industrial waste from Kruger Products’ nearby Gatineau manufacturing facility, and tap into the Ottawa River for cooling.
Since Dream’s initial investment in 2015, approximately one million square feet of residential and commercial space has been completed, the company said.
Those projects include the Aalto I and Aalto II towers, the 252-unit rental tower Common Zibi and an 185,000-square-foot office building leased by the Canadian government.
Last year, Dream started building a 608-unit rental building on the LeBreton Flats Library Parcel, just a few blocks away from the proposed Ottawa Senators arena at the downtown LeBreton Flats site.
Dream said its current plan is to build 2,500 housing units at Zibi, with 600 completed and leased or finishing lease-up. An additional 440 rental units will start construction in the next 12 months, according to the company.
“With approximately one-third of the site built to date, selling 10 per cent of the land will provide an opportunity for other developers to bring diversity of product type to the community and reduce the build-out period,” Dream notes in the release.
By potentially selling the 3.27 acres and commencing two new buildings, the infrastructure debt for Zibi “would be substantially paid down,” Dream said. The company would then be able to continue to build apartments as absorption permits, completing its development within 10 years.
About Dream Unlimited, Dream Impact Trust
Dream Unlimited Corp. is a developer of office and residential assets, based in Toronto.
It owns stabilized, income-generating assets in Canada and the U.S., and has an established asset management business, inclusive of $25 billion of assets under management across four Toronto Stock Exchange listed trusts, a private asset management business and numerous partnerships.
It also develops land, residential and income-generating assets in Western Canada.
Dream Impact Trust is an open-ended trust dedicated to impact investing. Dream Impact’s underlying portfolio is comprised of real estate assets reported under two operating segments: development and recurring income, that would not be otherwise available in a public and transparent vehicle.
Dream Impact is comprised of three verticals: environmental sustainability and resilience, attainable and affordable housing, and inclusive communities.