Institutional sector leads way in construction projects.

The Thunder Bay Regional Hospital remains at the top of the list for major construction projects in the City of Thunder Bay for 2001.

The hospital, with a price tag in excess of $160 million, is slated to open in the fall of 2002. Located on property donated by Lakehead University, it will contain 375 beds and will replace the city's two existing hospitals.

Progress is ongoing at the hospital site, says Don Edwards, hospital communications director.

"We have the patient pods all closed in and the emergency department and all of the other side of the hospital site (is almost done)," Edwards says. "We expect to have all of the steel up by mid-summer, and that means the whole frame of the building will be up. They're working on the north part of the hospital now. Almost all of the south side is together.

He says the contract for the largest part of the project, valued! at $57 million, was recently awarded. A number of contracts still remain unawarded, hie adds.

The design of the hospital continues to change as construction progresses, as does the project's bottom line, says Edwards.

He estimates the project is over one-third complete. Jim Buie, manager of the City of Thunder Bay's planning and building department, says the hospital project remains one of the biggest in the city right now and has put the institutional sector in the lead for construction activity. Central Park Lodge, a long-term care facility, is another big institutional project now underway on the city's north side.

"That's roughly a $12-million job," Buie says.

Lakehead University's Advanced Technology and Academic Centre (ATAC) and a new $5.5-million Magnus Theatre are also major projects for 2001. ATAC will open in early 2003, while the 250-seat Magnus Theatre will be ready for the start of the 2001-2002 season this fall.

Bowater Inc. will finish work on its $36 million recovery boiler project this year as well.

In terms of building permits, Buie says the first quarter "isn't much of an indicator" of things to come for the year. Year-to-date totals to April 30 show the same number of building permits were issued this year as last year. Increases, however, are noted for permits for apartment blocks, duplexes, single dwellings and residential additions and alterations. Those projects are estimated at $8.43 million.

But housing starts for the city have so far fallen short of the year's forecast from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC). Market analyst Warren Philp says even though the city is reporting increases in building permits for residential starts, CMHC data reveals the residential construction season has been slow to awaken with just two single-detached housing starts for the month of April.

"The two single-detached starts in April were well below the 10-year average of 11.7 units for the month," Philp says. "Resale market indicators suggest activity should pick up soon."

CMHC is expecting 300 starts in 2001 led by 190 single-detached starts, but Philp says the slow start may have an effect on that fore cast.

Philp says he is also encouraged by resale numbers issued by the local real estate board, which show the resale market - after three relatively slow months -- has begun to pick up.

In terms of industrial activity in the city, Buie says industrial permits have increased from $135,000 for 2000 year-to-date totals to $3.97 million for 2001, while commercial permits saw only a modest increase in the first quarter of the year, up to $53,000 from $49,500 last year.

But despite the small increase, Buie says the commercial sector is heading toward a busy year.

"There are a couple of Canadian Tire stores set to go," Buie says. "There's one across from Intercity on Fort William Road and another proposed one on Arthur Street, essentially across from the existing one. There could certainly be more happening on the Fort William Road site because that's been proposed as a large development there, similar to a Wal-Mart-type of thing where you're going to see other larger stores go in there."

Terry Johnston, development manager with Calgary-based Opus Building Corp., says Canadian Tire is so far the only confirmed tenant for the intercity property now under development, but "we'd like to see about 20 businesses" go up there.

Opus is managing construction of the big box complex which will be owned and developed by Camrose Developments (Ontario) Ltd.

The 8,100-square-metre Canadian Tire store will be built this summer on the former CP Rail intermodal terminal site.

Johnston says about 19.2 hectares of land is available for the development.

Taxes generated by the complex will give the city a boost, and the stores built will create new jobs for their employees and the subcontractors building them, Buie says.