ICSC awards honour industry’s best in Canada

Thursday, October 2, 2014

The ICSC Canadian Shopping Centre Awards were handed out at the Toronto Metro Convention Centre on September 23, honouring the industry’s best.

Besides the numerous accolades awarded for innovative solutions and creative responses to market trends in categories ranging from new media to marketing, excellence in new developments, renovations, expansions and retail store design was also recognized.

Design & Development

• For outstanding work in renovations or expansions, Broadmead Village in Victoria, B.C., managed by Grosvenor Americas, earned a silver award for centres of 150,000 square feet or less. The $82-million sustainable renovation features upgraded storefronts, an array of specialty shops and a new interactive public area with an outdoor fireplace and free Wi-Fi.

• For centres between 750,001 and 1,000,000 square feet, St. Vital Centre in Winnipeg, Man., also won a silver award in the same category. Managed by 20 Vic Management, the renovation includes various upgrades such as energy-efficient lighting and the addition of two new skylights to immerse shoppers in natural light.

• Highstreet Shopping Centre won a gold award for new developments for a centre between 400,001 and 750,000 square feet. Located in the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford B.C. and managed by Shape Property Management, the three-level, open-air shopping centre features an 11-screen Cineplex VIP cinema.

• 120 Lynn Williams Shopping Centre in Toronto, Ont. won a silver award for new developments. Owned and managed by First Capital Realty, the mixed-use building seeks LEED accreditation with a design oriented to increase solar exposure to the south and minimize window openings to the north.

Retail Store Design

Kiosks and Carts

• BlueGrass Landscaping Ltd. won a silver. The outdoor living area is complete with a sunken patio featuring various paving stones, a cedar pergola and outdoor wood-burning fireplace and a curved eating bar overlooking a multi-level water feature with goldfish.

• Loto-Quebec, based in Montreal, Que., also won a silver for its upgraded mall units, designed to integrate well into different centres.

• Edmonton-based Metalsmiths Sterling, already located in four Canadian airports, helped to create a new floating retail boutique in Toronto Pearson Airport that adapts to limited space.

• A Starbucks at the Toronto Eaton Centre earned a silver for its artful design using natural materials and creating a kiosk with beautifully lit vitrine cases reminiscent of finely detailed jewelry cases.

Restaurants

• Restaurants, Spring Rolls in Hamilton, Ont. and Vinifera in Toronto, Ont., both won silver awards.

Stores less than 1,000 square feet

• Bulk goods store Popino in Gatineau, Que., with its new circus and carousel-inspired design won a gold.

Stores between 1,001 and 2,500 square feet

• LCBO boutique Our Wine Country Ontario, in St. Catharines, Ont. won a silver. ICSC commended the outpost for providing an opportunity for smaller wineries to elevate the profile of their products and for customers to gain more knowledge about Ontario’s wine regions.

• Lifestyle accessories store Spareparts, in Winnipeg’s St. Vital Centre, and Flagship BCLC Lotto! Signature Store in Burnaby, B.C., which was lauded for its seating areas, electronic access to responsible gambling information and prize payout area also won silver awards.