Buying a Cleaning Franchise: Pros and Cons

Being associated with a cleaning franchise allows people to be part of a broader network with great training opportunities; however, there are also drawbacks to buying a cleaning franchise. Jan-Pro, a leading commercial cleaning franchise in Canada, recently listed some of these pros and cons:

Benefits

A key benefit to buying a franchise is taking advantage of the franchise operating system. An operating system is a blueprint of how the business should run, usually developed by the franchise creator. Most small business owners don’t have a playbook to follow when they open, so having one included is a great benefit to owning a franchise.

Another big advantage is access to training. Similar to how having an operating system can put you on the fast track to success, being trained is advantageous because you’ll learn what mistakes to avoid and which best practices to follow from day one.

Finally, a third benefit to franchise buying, is you’ll likely have support staff right off the bat. Again, this is something that many small business owners and entrepreneurs struggle to find on their own, so you’re already ahead of the game.

Drawbacks

Just as there are benefits, there are risks and sides to the business that you might not like. One of the cons of buying a cleaning franchise, or any franchise, is that you’ll typically have to follow a lot of rules. The system that allows franchises to operate so successfully is also the system that you have to learn on a detailed level. Some franchises have page and pages of rules that you have to implement and that can be tricky for some people.

Additionally, owning a franchise means you have to deal with a lot of legal issues. You’ll have to obtain a franchise disclosure document before you’re able to purchase a franchise, and that’s just the beginning. The everyday operation of a franchise includes many legal considerations, and that can be stressful for some people.

A third potential drawback to buying a cleaning franchise is the fact that you’ll have to deal with a shared reputation. In other words, your reputation is only as good as the franchise’s reputation, so if a scandal breaks out, there’s nothing you can do about it. You have to deal with reputation issues that come along with any potential controversies, even if you had nothing to do with starting them. That’s why you want to be sure you do your research before signing up with a franchise company. Make sure the values and morals of the company match your own.

Top exporters block move against white asbestos

Chrysotile, otherwise known as white asbestos, will not be added to Rotterdam Convention’s list of hazardous substances, after six nations blocked the move during the eighth meeting of the Conference of the Parties in Geneva (COP-8).

While 157 countries, including Canada, advocated for the listing, India, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Zimbabwe, Belarus and Syria objected. The decision must be unanimous.

A recent statement from the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization expressed outrage that six countries blocked the listing.

“Asbestos-related diseases cause great human suffering. Death from difficult to treat cancers and suffocation caused by asbestosis are terrible ways to die,” said Arthur L. Frank MD, Ph.D., Professor of Public Health and Pulmonary Medicine, Drexel University. “The callous disregard of some countries for educating workers condemns many to unnecessary and painful deaths.”

Canada had previously opposed tough trade restrictions under the Harper government at a previous meeting. The move was criticized by Canada’s unions, health and safety advocates and the international community, as the World Health Organization declared asbestos a human carcinogen way back in 1987.

However, in the last year, Canada has become more of an advocate on the issue, announcing it will ban asbestos and asbestos-containing products in the country by 2018. In late April, Environment and Climate Change Canada and Health Canada released for consultation a proposed regulatory approach for prohibiting these products. Those regulations are expected to be published in December.

The Chemical Review Committee of Rotterdam first recommended listing of chrysotile asbestos in 2006. Until 2012, Canada was a major exporter of chrysotile — the most common form of asbestos and the only type not included in the list.

In the last year, organizations and unions have worked with the government to help secure a comprehensive ban on the import and export of asbestos in Canada.

“Unions campaigned long and hard for a ban on asbestos to make workplaces and public spaces safer for all Canadians, but also people around the world who were being exposed to asbestos,” said Canadian Labour Congress President Hassan Yussuff.

The next Rotterdam Convention takes place in 2019.

Reliable Elevators Act passes second reading

A private member’s bill proposing time limits for elevator repairs passed second reading at the Ontario legislature last month.

If it becomes law, the Reliable Elevators Act would require maintenance contractors to restore out-of-service elevators within 14 days in most buildings and within seven days in long-term care and retirement homes. To mitigate the impact of the inevitable occurrence of periodic outages, the Act would also require elevator traffic studies as part of building permit applications to ensure developments of seven or more storeys have adequate capacity from occupancy onward.

But the details of the proposed legislation are subject to change as it heads to the standing committee on regulations and private bills.

Constituents, contractors and politicians of all stripes have come out in support of the Act since it was introduced by Han Dong, the Liberal MPP for Trinity-Spadina. However, some opposition MPPs qualified their support, with a few suggesting building owners and landlords should share some of the onus for timely elevator repairs. And contractors are cautioning that, without amendments, the proposed legislation could have some unintended consequences.

Changes to improve the reliability of elevators can’t come soon enough for some residents.

“My dad is in a wheelchair, he’s very ill and he goes for medical appointments quite frequently,” said Gabriela Gonzalez. “He lives in the 21st floor of this rental building in North York, and in many, many occasions, both elevators have been out of service.

“And you can imagine he needs to go to hospital for, literally, life-saving procedures, and he’s not able to go to the hospital.”

Gonzalez, who was joined by her dad, Lazaro, expressed their gratitude to Dong at an April 13 press conference held by the MPP just hours before his proposed legislation went into second reading.

During second reading, Minister of Government and Consumer Services Tracy MacCharles said she agreed that more should be done, pointing to existing obligations under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. Those obligations include posting notices when elevators go out of service and putting in place documented accommodation plans.

John Yakabuski, the Progressive Conservative MPP for Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke, said during second reading that he was concerned that holding contractors alone accountable for keeping elevators up and running could make it harder for older buildings to secure contracts.

“I’d like to see some of that responsibility for non-functioning or non-working elevators placed on the ownership of the buildings, not just the elevator contractors,” he said.

Similarly, Peter Tabuns, the NDP MPP for Toronto-Danforth, suggested during second reading that the bill should also protect residents from landlords who neglect elevator maintenance.

“There may well be operators of buildings, landlords and condo corporations who … may not, in fact, have put in place the maintenance contracts that are required, or put in place the reserve funds to buy parts to make sure that if repairs are necessary, obsolete part can be changed out very quickly,” said Tabuns.

Since then, Minister of Housing Chris Ballard has introduced the Rental Fairness Act, which includes provisions that would stall the approval above-guideline rent increases until landlords cleared any outstanding work orders relating to elevators.

At his press conference before second reading, Dong said that he would be “open to constructive suggestions and even amendments” if his bill proceeded to committee. The governing Liberals have the numbers to decide votes as the bill moves forward, and the MPP said many of his cabinet colleagues had expressed their support, as had the premier.

Doug Guderian, a board member of the Canadian Elevator Contractors Association (CECA), said CECA supports the goal of improving the reliability of elevators. But he added that, as it’s written now, the bill could increase costs and even cause delays in elevator repairs.

“Currently we repair most elevators within a day, but this legislation shifts the elevator contractor’s priority from repairing the elevator to documenting the cause of the shutdown to limit liability since the proposed legislation carries some pretty significant consequences,” said Guderian.

The proposed legislation would establish the time limits for elevator repairs via the Consumer Protection Act. Individuals and corporations convicted of offences under the Act face maximum monetary penalties of $50,000 and $250,000, respectively.

As the bill heads to committee, CECA will be watching for provisions that deal with elevator work that takes longer than 14 days to complete. Guderian cited “acts of God,” such as flooding, and planned modernizations, which can span four to eight weeks, as examples.

At his press conference before second reading, Dong acknowledged concerns about these types of extenuating circumstances, which could be addressed with an exemption clause. The MPP also recognized the role played by independent contractors, who have taken exception to media accounts of an industry overshadowed by four big companies.

“I want to take this opportunity to also send out a message to independent contractors, especially those that are taking their job seriously and doing their best to ensure reliability of the elevators they look after,” said Dong. “I want to thank them, and I want them to understand that this is a great opportunity for them to share best practices, to bring the industry to a unified standard so customers, ultimately, will benefit.”

Michelle Ervin is the editor of CondoBusiness.

Pictured above (left to right): Lazaro Gonzalez, Gabriela Gonzalez, Kevin Vuong and MPP Han Dong.

National housing starts trend higher in April

Housing starts are trending upward at 213,768 units in April 2017, compared to 210,702 units in March, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend measure is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.

“New housing construction increased in Canada, with seasonally adjusted data exceeding 200,000 units for five months in a row,” said Bob Dugan, CMHC’s chief economist, in a press release. “The increase in the trend was mainly due to apartment construction in British Columbia and Quebec, which was partly offset by a decline in Ontario’s multiple starts.”

In Halifax, apartment construction continues to drive the residential market. In April, over 400 additional multiple starts broke ground, bringing year-to-date multiples starts growth to 169 per cent, compared to last year. Demand is partly due to downsizing baby boomers that are choosing to sell their homes and move into rental units.

In the province of Quebec, the rate of housing starts fell in April, but the total for the first four months of 2017 was up by about 30 per cent in the province’s urban centres. This was mainly due to the significant number of apartments being constructed, especially rental units, in the Montreal and Quebec areas. In addition, single-detached home starts have been strong this year, partly due to tightening resale market conditions.

Despite the slight decline in Gatineau housing starts in April, the region showed positive results for the first four months of 2017. Increases in Gatineau were particularly strong in the rental segment, with construction commencing on many seniors’ housing units. Overall, starts were supported by climbing housing demand and a decrease in the number of unsold units, both new and existing.

The trend in Toronto’s housing starts remained stable in April, as small increases in low-rise homes were offset by declines in apartment starts. Overall, new home construction this year has been gaining speed as both new single-detached and townhome starts trended higher to reach a nine-year high in April. Tight conditions in the resale market continue to cause demand to shift to the new home market.

London’s single-detached starts were significantly higher in April 2017 compared to the year before and the ten-year average for the month. The difference between house prices in Toronto and London has widened significantly, making new single-detached homes in London more appealing to retirees who want to sell their Toronto home but not sacrifice on space.

In Winnipeg, a decrease in inventories in the new home market and balanced resale market conditions are allowing builders to increase production. The number of actual housing starts in April climbed year-over-year for the fourth consecutive month, boosting year-to-date starts to their highest levels since 1987.

The trend measure for Kelowna housing starts climbed in April, due to an increase in both single-detached and multi-unit construction. Particularly, several large apartment rental projects are now under construction as builders continue to respond to the low vacancies that have plagued the region’s rental market for the past two years.

Housing starts in Metro Vancouver trended higher for the first time in four months, led by multi-unit residential construction. Builders are responding to the high demand in the market, as approximately 80 per cent of townhomes and 100 per cent of apartments were sold at completion during the last two months.

The standalone monthly SAAR of housing starts for all regions of Canada was 214,098 units in April, compared to 252,305 units in March. The SAAR of urban starts fell by 15.3 per cent in April to 199,485 units. Multiple urban starts decreased by 16.7 per cent to 134,314 units, while single-detached urban starts dropped by 12.1 per cent to 65,171 units.

Rural starts were estimated at a SAAR of 14,613 units.

Green hospital champions awarded for environmental performance

Winners of the 2016 Ontario Green Health Care Awards were announced after results were tallied from the Green Hospital Scorecard (GHS), a comprehensive health care benchmarking tool that measures energy and water conservation, waste management and recycling, corporate commitment and pollution prevention for Ontario hospitals.

The Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care presented the awards at a virtual ceremony on April 25, after 91 hospitals in the province completed the online GHS survey, which reports on data from the 2015 calendar year. Each participating facility receives an individualized Scorecard, which summarizes environmental performance from year to year and relative to their peers.

The wide range of facility sizes and types provided award hosts with new insights into how health care facilities operate, and where opportunities for improvement to environmental stewardship lie.

Here is a list of the top performing hospitals in Energy, Water, and Waste categories, and recognized runners-up in each division. The hospital with the overall highest score was presented with the prestigious Green Hospital of the Year Award.

Highest Overall Score (Hospital)
St Michael’s Hospital – Main Building – WINNER Green Hospital of the Year
Michael Garron (Toronto East General)
Trillium Health Partners – Clinical Admin Building

Highest Energy Score (Hospital)
Niagara Health – Port Colborne site – WINNER
Michael Garron Hospital
The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids)
South Muskoka Memorial Hospital
Hamilton Health Sciences – Hamilton General Hospital

Highest Water Score (Hospital)
Geraldton District Hospital – WINNER
St Michael’s Hospital Main Building
Northumberland Hills Hospital
Religious Hospitallers of St. Joseph of the Hotel Dieu of St. Catharines
Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital

Highest Waste Score (Hospital)
South Muskoka Memorial Hospital – WINNER
Trillium Health Partners – Queensway Health Centre
Northumberland Hills Hospital
Woodstock General Hospital
The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids)

The Coalition is looking forward to taking the GHS national in 2018 and is inviting input from the Canadian health services sector including possible corporate collaborators interested in enhancing their brand within the sector. For more information, visit http://greenhealthcare.ca/ghs.

Utility savings fund Saskatoon hospital upgrades

Royal University Hospital, located on the University of Saskatchewan campus in Saskatoon, is a seven-wing, seven-storey facility that raised the standard of medical treatment in the province when it was built in 1955. Over the years, aging infrastructure and outdated, energy-wasting fixtures needed to be improved, not only for the health and wellbeing of patients and staff, but also to help mitigate the building’s environmental footprint.

After completing significant hospital upgrades last year through an energy performance contract with Johnson Controls, the 1.6 million-square-foot hospital is now seeing a huge payback, almost doubling the expected savings from energy, water and operational improvements.

RUH invested $13.6 million to ultimately save $1.4 million per year. And in the first two reporting quarters, the total savings is already tallied at $899,192, surpassing the target guarantee by 48.2 per cent or $433,304.

Two team members from Johnson Controls, Randy Taylor, account executive of building efficiency, western Canada and Vincent Russell, strategic market accounts manager, Saskatchewan, along with other contractors, engineers and consultants, used energy analysis and on-site survey information to compile a list measures to improve energy consumption at the facility, which is now in a measurement and verification phase.

“A lot of measures are not specifically unique for this facility; however the facility operations teams under Brian Berzolla, the facility director (Saskatoon Health Region), are knowledgeable about how the hospital runs and the dynamics of the building. When engaging with them, they have unique perspectives of what equipment could be turned on and off and what upgrades we could do.”

Besides more standard measures with lighting, water and the building envelope, the team installed a fan wall. All fans in the wards, operating and general rooms were at the end of their life cycle, costing facilities management ongoing money to repair. Two large horsepower fans were removed in place of a wall of 15 efficient fans that provide backup. Having just two fans in the operating room caused shutdowns if one wasn’t working.

“From an operating point of view, the new fan system allows the maintenance team some redundancy to conduct service work on smaller individual fans, but more importantly, it keeps the facility running no matter what maintenance needs to be done,” adds Taylor, who when conducting an audit, found several pumps and fans were running on a constant basis.

Now, a fan only has to run for eight or 12 hours a day, and the facility gets twice as much life out of them, while reducing service costs and time.

“The EPC allowed us to find dollars to do a whole pile of improvements and be paid back by the money we would have spent on utilities,” Berzolla said in a previous interview with Johnson Controls. “We’re saving more money than was anticipated and making payments on the loan, but we have extra funds to go back into hospital operations.”

Other upgrades include replacing steam traps to reduce losses and keep the system working efficiently to meet the required temperature and use less fuel.

“I’ve been in some of the steam tunnels and if we didn’t have the cooperation of the staff we probably wouldn’t have found 50 per cent of what we needed to find,” adds Russell. “Some things that really needed to be done were steam trap replacements that are difficult to find and isolate and changing toilets from 1955 that were wasting water, but logistically very difficult to get to.”

After more than 16,000 lighting fixtures were reviewed, lamps and ballasts of older lights were retrofitted because adjusting existing fixtures offered greater savings with little occupant impact. Also, incandescent or compact fluorescent lamps were replaced with LEDS to reduce energy and also service in hard-to-reach spaces. Common areas are no longer dark and dreary, but light now brightens high-traffic areas where staff and visitors move through on the way to patient care or treatment centres.

mall after lighting retrofit

Johnson Controls also switched antiquated, inefficient toilets for low-flow and efficient faucet, shower and urinal fixtures to decrease water use by 60 per cent. This amounts to an annual savings of about 29 Olympic size swimming pools.

Insulated covers were also installed on 325 portions of the steam distribution system to reduce wasted heat energy, making the system work less to meet the required temperature. Since certain areas of the campus are unoccupied at night and weekends, occupancy sensors were connected. Digital controls provide operators with better information to control the environment, such as adding schedules to the HVAC system.

Overall, the annual energy savings is equivalent to reducing the usage of 933 homes, and offsetting carbon emissions from 12,016 barrels of oil.

Working with maintenance staff and facility challenges

The process to a more efficient facility hasn’t come without challenges, such as shutting down air handling equipment that may be coming from a lab and considering what kind of containment is needed from a safety aspect.

“One of the other big challenges was the location of the hospital on a river bank,” says Taylor. “There are also two wings built in different years and the technology was old. Also, next door, they’re building the Saskatchewan Children’s Hospital, so getting material in and out of the facility without hampering hospital operations was a big challenge.”

“Hospitals are very challenging environments due to the fact they operate 24/7, are big users of energy, and are a little more complicated than an office or school,” adds Russell. “So, it was a key win to take everyone’s ideas, boil them down and put them to action, on time and on budget.”

Once all improvements were made, the team worked to attain more savings by looking at fresh air intake, equipment schedules and sequencing and other measures. Going forward, maintenance staff will now have to service variable frequency speed drives, a device connected to an electric fan or motor that reduces frequency so the motor slows down and efficiency is gained. For example, fewer staff in an area means less air. As staff increases, the speed drive provides more air. The process prolongs the life of equipment and saves run time.

Along the way, on-site maintenance staff were crucial for planning around a busy healthcare environment, helping to organize work after hours or during downtime so it wouldn’t affect day-to-day operations.

“A large part of this project was the scheduling of time for when the contractors could perform their work,” Berzolla said. “The region’s capital planning and project management staff was instrumental in making sure that the right people were in the right place at the right time so that patients and staff were minimally impacted.”

The Business Continuity Plan: Your Post-Disaster Gameplan

After the dust is settled and the disaster has passed, what do you see when you look back? How (and how fast) did your company get back to business? Did systems and processes halt altogether, or were you prepared with back-up options to keep them going?

No doubt, going dark for even a day can have its consequences; and in an age when everyone is looking for assurances, having a combination of an Emergency Management Plan (EMP), a Disaster Recovery (DR) Plan, and – importantly – a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) will bring your clients and employees peace of mind while ensuring your team has the resources and know-how to continue to operate through an emergency and bounce back afterward.

“[Business Continuity Plans] are almost becoming mandatory now,” says John Stephenson, a senior vice president with FirstOnSite Restoration. “Clients want companies to demonstrate that they have those plans in place and that they’re being updated and tested regularly. After all, if their service providers are at risk of failing, so are they.”

That said, there can be some confusion within many organizations. They may not know which plans they have in place or how to maintain them. Having a DR Plan means having a clear strategy for restoring operations after an emergency event, while having an EMP means you have a “guidebook” ready to deal with an event itself. It outlines your plans to manage that actual emergency (for example, your respond to a flood).

A BCP, however, is an internal document that addresses your overarching company-wide ability to operate your business as a whole while the disaster is taking place and through your recovery. The BCP addresses how to continue providing service to your clients, keep production running, keep servers functioning, and ensure employees are receiving their pay. It speaks to your ability to continue operations throughout the entirety of an event. For such a plan to be effective, it must include strategies to protect, restore, and back up everything from a company’s critical infrastructure and data to its ability to pay staff and keep funds and supply chains flowing.

If any of these key process areas fail, and you are unable to provide your key services as a result, the business risk is simple and severe. For example, at a branch-based company like FirstOnSite, the Business Continuity Plan speaks from a head office point of view; if any of these critical systems were to fail at a head office level, it could affect the business as a whole across all three dozen of their branches. Alternatively, if there is a disaster at a single branch, operations at that branch may be affected but that won’t affect the entire company service.

“If any of those elements falls apart, it doesn’t matter what we’re doing for our clients, we’re finished as far as operation goes,” notes Stephenson. “That’s why it’s so important to have that plan ready to go so you can show your stakeholders that you have everything covered.”

BCPs also identify staff roles following a disaster. That includes senior executives who will become incident managers, IT leaders who will bring the company back online, and HR professionals who will be responsible for ensuring payroll, accounts receivable, and cash functions are in operation.

For example, Stephenson adds, “Our own plan includes our vice president of communications because if the media finds out that something has gone wrong in our company, we need to get on top of that message. Along the same line, our plan includes communication templates that allow our VP to quickly get our messages out instead of scrambling to create one from scratch during an actual emergency.”

Drafting a BCP, however, is just the beginning. Whether it is created internally or with outside consultation, it must have a buy-in from the C-suite level and input from all departments to ensure all business functions are being considered and that it is being taken seriously throughout the organization.

Moreover, says Stephenson, “The problem we often see is that companies are putting a lot of effort into creating these plans only to put them on a shelf and forget about them for years. You really need to treat these plans as live documents. You need to recognize that business change and people come and go, so all those details – employees, positions, and contact information – are going to change. That’s why we always recommend that companies take one day out of the year to do a full review of the plan, and then run a tabletop exercise once every two years to make sure it’s still relevant in a live scenario.”

That exercise might entail taking the company’s IT service offline, cutting power, or disconnecting critical infrastructure to see how well the Business Continuity Plan performs under pressure. Only then, says Stephenson, can companies see firsthand where their plans hold up and where they fall short.

“Servers can go down, systems can fail, and critical pieces of equipment can be rendered useless. All those things can come into play during a live exercise, so learning that before an actual event takes place will help you create a more realistic strategy,” says Stephenson.

With final advice for post-disaster planning, he adds, “You need to start your plans off right, make them a priority, and get a buy-in from everyone. That not only makes it easier for us to help you recover from a disaster, it also makes sure your clients aren’t at risk when something goes wrong.”

John Stephenson is a senior vice president with FirstOnSite Restoration, a leading Canadian disaster restoration company, providing remediation, restoration, and reconstruction services nationwide, as well as for the US large loss and commercial market. For more information, visit www.firstonsite.ca.

Online spending impacts commercial real estate

Online spending, sometimes also labelled ‘home shopping,’ is consistently achieving double-digit growth and slowly taking a bigger share of overall retailing. In the first quarter of 2014 online sales in the US represented more than six per cent of all sales and 4.7 per cent in Canada. However, in product niches such as travel, books and media, the share is significantly higher. Fashion and lifestyle brands have entered the online retailing space including Everlane, Dollar Shave Club and Gilt.

There have always been non-bricks and mortar ways for consumers to access goods and services. If we go back far enough in history, producers such as farmers and guilds-people sold directly to consumers. Even just before the advent of the Internet, catalogue sales via telephone, wholesaling, direct-to-consumer clubs, door-to-door sales, TV shopping channels and the like had varying degrees of consumer acceptance.

Today, wholesale clubs (e.g. Costco) are basically considered retailers and all other alternative forms of selling have been eclipsed by the “omni-channel,” an approach to sales that seeks to provide the customer with a seamless shopping experience whether the customer is shopping online from a desktop or mobile device, by telephone or in a bricks and mortar store.

The non-store distribution channel is marked by low entry thresholds. Compared to store retailing that requires retail premises, inventory and cash flow to hire staff, non-store retail start-ups usually have to invest little to reach out to potential buyers of the goods and services they offer. Non-store retailing is therefore also used by established brick and mortar business retailers to increase market share.

In Canada, non-store retail sales amounted to $23.0 billion in 2014. This almost certainly under-represents the scale of online sales in this country, since it only counts sales to registered Canadian businesses which “predominantly” sell through non-store channels. The worrying statistics for mall owners are that non-store’s growth rate has averaged three times that of bricks and mortar retail. If we assume that on average, bricks and mortar retailers in Canada were achieving sales productivity of $300 per square foot, then non-store sales represented 76.7 million square feet of retail floor area in 2014. For reference, 76.7 million square feet of space is equivalent to the shopping centre inventories of Vancouver, Halifax, Ottawa and Victoria combined.

Colliers calculated that in 2012 non-store sales in Canada replaced 61.9 million square feet of retail floor area. Therefore, in only two years, the growth of non-store retail sales in Canada was the equivalent of 14.8 million square feet.

Despite the growth of non-store sales, malls in Canada are strong – especially in major markets. Bricks and mortar locations still provide experiential satisfaction and are increasing the place to find the best deals. Furthermore, retailers like Loblaw’s are offering ‘click and collect’ services which blend the selection and ease of online shopping with the convenience, price and speed of in-store shopping.

Finally, landlords who are seeing smaller and smaller CRU sizes as a result of retailers’ lack of on-site storage needs are, in many markets, diversifying into industrial districts where the retailers are bidding up the value of warehousing and logistical space for well-located fulfillment centres. Online retailing does not replace the retailer’s need for space, it just re-orients it.

James Smerdon is vice president and director of retail consulting at Colliers International in Vancouver.

Proposed Alberta bill promotes buyer protection

New legislation was proposed in Alberta last week that would establish a builder licensing program to help consumers identify which home builders they can trust, and which they should avoid.

If passed, the New Home Buyer Protection Amendment Act would require builders to maintain an active licence to build new homes and secure warranty coverage. They would also need to show they are knowledgeable in home construction and are in good financial standing.

The bill would also create an online registry of licenced builders to help homebuyers select a reputable builder. As set out in the existing home warranty program, owner-builders, or people who build their own homes, would not be required to have a licence.

“CHBA – Alberta is looking forward to working in partnership with the provincial government on including licensing as part of the New Home Buyer Protection Act,” said Ryan Scott, president of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association – Alberta, in a press release. “While there is still plenty of work to be done, the ability to remove builders who demonstrate a proven, negative track record will be a benefit to every Albertan – including those in the industry. Our members have always been on the leading edge of the industry, including requiring warranty coverage for more than 40 years. We want to make sure that licensing protects affordability and choice for Albertans – while also recognizing the many upstanding builders providing homes and jobs throughout the province.”

At present, there are no minimum qualifications to be a builder in Alberta, and there are approximately 4,000 residential builders currently operating in the province. Although Alberta is only home to about 12 per cent of Canada’s population, it has 20 per cent of the country’s housing starts, with 22,632 housing starts in the province in 2016 alone. Annually, almost $8 billion is invested in new residential construction in Alberta.

“CCI North Alberta is very pleased that the Alberta government is proposing legislation that will protect new condominium owners,” added Anand Sharma, president of the Canadian Condominium Institute – North Alberta. “This type of consumer protection legislation has been desperately needed for decades. It will hold developers accountable for poor building practices and allow condominium boards to prevent large special assessments. It will make a tangible difference in protecting consumers.”

The enhanced builder information program was launched in June 2016 to support home reconstruction in Fort McMurray. This program helped create a foundation for builder licensing in Alberta. It requires builders to complete a declaration through the New Home Buyer Registry before applying for a building permit. All declarations are posted online to allow consumers to make an informed decision when selecting a builder. To date, more than 190 declarations have been submitted by builders.

Government consulted with stakeholders on a builder licensing program in February and March through focus groups and an online survey. More than 1,200 respondents in Alberta completed the survey, with 78 per cent supporting builder licensing.

ACMO holds 40th anniversary celebration

The Association of Condominium Managers of Ontario (ACMO) is celebrating 40 years of leading the condominium management profession through education, member services and public awareness.

“My vision was that together we could create our own unique industry standards,” said John Dzenekoj, ACMO’s first RCM designation recipient, in a press release. “This would provide clients with consistency in service and significantly better value. In return, managers and management companies would gain respect, support and industry pride.”

To mark the occasion, ACMO held an Anniversary Celebration on April 21, 2017 at the Toronto Congress Centre. Over 400 people attended, including many founders and early members of the association, including ten of its past presidents. Robert Weinberg, ACMO president, acted as the Master of Ceremonies to recognize 30-, 35- and 40-year members, as well as those who most recently received the Registered Condominium Manager (RCM) designation.

In addition, two Life Member Awards were presented to individuals who have been members of ACMO for 39 and 35 years, respectively, and have demonstrated a commitment to elevating the profession: Richard Pearlstein and Ray Wilson.

2017 CISC Alberta steel design winners revealed

The six winners of the 2017 Alberta Steel Design Awards of Excellence were recently honoured in Edmonton.

The CISC Award celebration is held every other year to promote the structural steel industry within Alberta and across Canada. The awards recognize exceptional skill and ingenuity in steel design and the innovative use of steel in addressing a variety of construction challenges.

The Architecture Award, which honours steel structures in which architectural considerations predominantly influence the design, was given to Studio Bell.

Architecture: Studio Bell
Fabricator: Walters Group Inc
Architect: Kassian Architecture & Allied Works Architecture
Engineer: RJC Engineers

Studio Bell also took home the Steel Edge Award, an open category demonstrating excellence in the application of steel design, fabrication, detailing or finishing.

Steel Edge: Studio Bell
Fabricator: Walters Group Inc
Architect: Kassian Architecture & Allied Works Architecture
Engineer: RJC Engineers

The winner of the 2017 Engineering Award was the Schulich School of Engineering at the University of Calgary.

Engineering: Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary
Fabricator: Supermetal
Architect: Diamond Schmidt Architects & Gibbs Gage Architects
Engineer: RJC Engineers

Rogers Place won the Collaboration Award, which recognizes a project team who demonstrates “value added” to the project through collaborative project-delivery approaches throughout the design and/or construction process.

Collaboration: Rogers Place
Fabricator: Canam Group In
Architect: HOK
Engineer: Thornton Tomasetti & DIALOG

The St. Louis Hotel won the Sustainability Award, recognizing a steel structure in which steel has been used or reused as part of a sustainable development project.

Sustainability: St. Louis Hotel
Architect: Nyhoff Architecture
Engineer: Entuitive

The Emeralds Hills Leisure Centre won the Building Communities Award, which recognizes steel structures created as part of a community development project with a focus on serving community needs.

Building Communities: Emerald Hills Leisure Centre
Fabricator: Sturo Metal
Architect: Marshall Tittemore
Engineer: RJC Engineers

SC Johnson Canada named 2017 Best Workplace

SC Johnson Canada has been recognized as a 2017 Best Workplace by the Great Place to Work Institute, ranking 39 out of 50 large and multinational companies.

“Our Canada operation has an environment of respect,” said Fisk Johnson, chairman and chief executive officer of SC Johnson. “I congratulate the team on this ranking and its culture that contributes to SC Johnson’s global success.”

The Best Workplaces list is the world’s largest annual study of workplace excellence. The ranking is determined by the results of an employee opinion survey and information provided about company culture, programs and policies. Companies are ranked in three areas, large, medium and small.

The achievement marks SC Johnson Canada’s 10th appearance in the rankings since 2006. The Canada team also joins SC Johnson Venezuela, France, Germany, Poland, Greece and Mexico. Perks and programs include year-round access to a resort in the Muskoka’s, and an on-site recreational centre, physiotherapist and registered massage therapist.

SC Johnson Canada is headquartered in Brantford, Ontario and operates a manufacturing facility producing and distributing household cleaning products, products for home storage, air care, pest control and shoe care, and professional products.

Hotel group invests in Falcon Crest Lodge

Falcon Crest Lodge is re-launching on May 15, 2017 after a $3 million refurbishment. Located five minutes from Banff, Falcon Crest Lodge is part of a Rocky Mountain portfolio of luxury hotels operated by Clique Hotels and Resorts.

As part of the re-launch on May 15, all rooms will be upgraded with new appliances, high-end Napoleon BBQ’s, high speed wireless internet, 48” LED Smart TV’s with blue tooth capabilities and Netflix. The Falcon Crest Lodge’s new and fresh look will feature all new carpeting throughout the hotel, completely new bathrooms with soaker tubs, new luxury beds and bedding, and brand new furniture in the living areas.

To add to the lodge’s cozy decor, new “mountain inspired” artwork will be featured in the rooms and throughout the lodge. There will also be upgrades to the on-site cardio room, meeting facilities and the two year-round hot tubs, that offer unbeatable views of the mountains.

The new renovations at Falcon Crest Lodge are being completed as visitation has increased with Parks Canada offering free admission to National Parks in 2017 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Canada’s Confederation. According to the Tourism Economic Impact Study conducted by the Towns of Canmore, Banff and Jasper, aggregate direct tourism expenditures in the three communities were in excess of $1.5 billion in 2015 with Canmore accounting for $344.9 million.

“With the free admissions to the Park and the low dollar now is the perfect time to launch the new renovations,” says Cory Haggar, general manager of Falcon Crest Lodge, “It’s been a long time since Canmore has had anything new in terms of hotels so it is good to provide visitors with something fresh and updated.”

According to the Canmore Business and Tourism’s 2015-2020 Strategic Plan, the 2020 target for the tourism sector is an annual visitor spend of $400 million (up from $278 million in 2012). Canmore has 12,300 permanent residents to date and 6,000 non-permanent residents, making it the largest community in the Alberta Rockies.

“It’s our goal to give tourists the best possible hotel experience in the best locations,” says Jim Muir, president of Clique Hotels and Resorts, “I believe that the updates to Falcon Crest Lodge will make it the number one hotel in Canmore.”

Falcon Crest Lodge was the only Alberta hotel named as a Top Hotel in Canada four years in a row by the TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice awards.

Clique Hotels and Resorts has opened and operated a number of hotels and resorts in Western Canada. The Canmore based company operates Blackstone Mountain Lodge, Copperstone Resort, Stoneridge Mountain Resort and Falcon Crest Lodge. Clique also owns and operates the Hotel Clique and Applause Hotel Calgary Airport.

Understanding how to enforce strata bylaws

It will come as no surprise to strata property managers that life in a strata corporation means living under certain laws of the land. The Strata Property Act, S.B.C. 1998, c. 43 (SPA) is the main law governing strata corporations in British Columbia. The SPA works in conjunction with a strata corporation’s bylaws and rules, as well as several other provincial and municipal laws regulating how persons can use and enjoy their strata properties.

In strata corporation territory, it is the strata council (the community’s “County Sheriff”), who is first tasked with enforcing these laws. Strata property managers are frequently asked to assist councils with its bylaw enforcement duties. However, section 26 of the SPA makes it clear that bylaw enforcement decisions fall squarely on the sherriff’s/council’s shoulders. With these duties in mind, it is important for strata councils to familiarize themselves with the laws of their land.

THIS LAND IS MY LAND
By default, all strata corporations in British Columbia come with the schedule of standard bylaws prescribed by the SPA. However, strata corporations are free to pass their own bylaws and register them with the Land Title Office. Provided that a bylaw does not contravene the SPA or other legislation rendering it unenforceable, the laws of the land can be limitless from pet restrictions to smoking bans, parking protocol to garden gnome prohibitions. Although the SPA is silent on such hard-hitting bylaws as garden gnome prohibitions, it is quite strict when it comes to conducting bylaw enforcement proceedings.

PROCEED WITH CAUTION
Investigating a reported bylaw infraction takes time and demands a certain standard of care.

Section 31 of the SPA requires council members to (a) act honestly and in good faith with a view to the best interests of the strata corporation, and (b) exercise the care, diligence and skill of a reasonably prudent person in comparable circumstances. Any council member with a stake in the game (i.e. those who reported the bylaw infraction, or those who were reported on) must declare their interest and abstain from the council’s bylaw enforcement investigation, deliberation and ultimate decision (section 32, SPA). A conflicted council member’s failure to abstain from the bylaw enforcement process not only compromises the council’s deliberations, but also risks the enforceability of its bylaw enforcement decision.

JUST THE FACTS, MA’AM
When processing a bylaw complaint, the council must collect as much information as possible. The council must also give written notice of the alleged infraction to the owner and/or tenant (as applicable), full written particulars of the complaint and an opportunity to respond in writing and/or at a council hearing. Unfortunately, the SPA offers councils very little guidance on what content to include in these notices. Ideally, the notice should describe the nature of the bylaw infraction, the details of the alleged violation (i.e. the what, the when, and the where) as well as the specific bylaw in question. There is no obligation under the SPA to disclose the origin of a bylaw complaint. Indeed, British Columbia’s privacy laws can shield the complainer’s identity in certain circumstances (e.g. for safety or security reasons). To keep the bylaw enforcement process moving, it is beneficial to impose a response deadline for the owner and/or tenant.

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?
If the owner/tenant requests a council hearing, council should hold the hearing at the next scheduled council meeting or minimally within four weeks of the request. Council should afford the owner and/or tenant sufficient time to make their case and answer any questions council may have. Although council should avail itself of any questions, it should take special care not to convey a decision until all of the evidence has been collected and considered. Since some disputes can be overrun with emotions (garden gnomes aside), the council should consider holding the hearing on neutral ground. The council is also obligated to protect the parties’ privacy such as no observers are permitted to attend the hearing.

DECISIONS, DECISIONS
Once the council has received/heard the evidence, it must issue a written decision “as soon as feasible” and, in any event, within one week of the hearing. Bylaw enforcement decisions are principally governed by sections 129 -138 of the SPA. Section 129 of the SPA authorizes councils to impose a fine up to the maximum amount permitted by the regulations and the bylaws, remedy the contravention, or in certain circumstances, deny access to a recreational facility. The council can also decide to issue a warning or give the purported offender time to comply with the bylaw or rule before proceeding with the enforcement process.

JUST PRESS P.A.U.S.E.
In light of these statutory requirements and procedures, it is no wonder that bylaw enforcement can be a challenge. To simplify matters, council need only remember to P.A.U.S.E:

P: give the owner written particulars of the complaint. If the complaint is made against a tenant, notice must also be given to the owner /landlord.

A: give the owner/tenant a reasonable opportunity to answer the complaint, including a hearing if requested or by written submissions.

U: remain unbiased throughout the investigation. Keep an open mind before deciding whether a bylaw or rule has been contravened.

S: give the owner/tenant council’s written decision as soon as feasible and in any event, within one week of a hearing.

E: enforce the bylaw or rule.

Lisa N. Mackie is a partner at Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP. Need help with bylaw enforcement proceedings? Feel free to contact her at: [email protected]

Tridel named big winner at annual BILD Awards

The 37th annual BILD Awards were held on Friday, April 28th, recognizing the GTA’s top builders, projects and marketing initiatives. Over 1,200 industry professionals attended the event, which honoured achievements in planning, design, sales, marketing and city building in 51 categories.

The most prestigious award for builders, Home Builder of the Year, was presented to Tridel for Mid/High-Rise and Mattamy Homes for Low-Rise. This is the fourth time Tridel has been named as a winner in this category.

Tridel was also honoured in the People’s Choice Award category, which is determined by members of the public, for its Aquabella development on Toronto’s waterfront, which was also named Project of the Year (Mid/High-Rise). Tridel was also named Green Builder of the Year for Mid/High-Rise developments.

The Rockport Group was selected as the winner for Best New Community (Planned/Under Development) for Weston Common, which will integrate a community hub with high-rise residential buildings, while the Remington Group won the Best New Community (Built) award for Downtown Markham, a mixed-use development featuring a movie theatre, green roofs and an innovative storm water management system. The Rockport Group was also awarded Best Mid-Rise Building design for George Condos + Town.

Laurier Homes’ Kingswood, a 705-square-foot corner suite, won Best Innovative Suite Design for its layout, which optimizes the use of internal space.

BILD’s Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Al Libfeld, principal and co-founder of Tribute Communities. This award is the Association’s highest honour, and Libfeld was selected for his contribution to the industry over the past four decades.

“Congratulations to all the winners on their tremendous achievements,” said Bryan Tuckey, BILD President and CEO, in a press release. “I’m proud to see so many quality projects coming to the market despite the increasing challenges builders and developers are facing.”

For a complete list of award recipients, please visit www.bildawards.com.

Energy benchmarking leads to energy-saving tech

According to a survey conducted in 2016 by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), facility managers in New York City that measure the energy performance of their buildings are investing in energy-saving technologies and operational improvements in order to increase their buildings’ energy efficiency.

The survey found that 84 per cent of facility managers who benchmarked their facilities’ energy use made a low- or no-cost operational change to improve their buildings’ performance, while 82 per cent invested in new equipment to improve energy performance. The most common energy-saving investments included lighting and lighting controls, heating and cooling upgrades, and energy management systems.

“This survey adds to the growing evidence that building energy benchmarking and transparency ordinances are prompting facility managers and building owners to make investments in energy-efficient equipment and low- or no-cost operational changes,” said Kyle Pitsor, vice president of government relations at NEMA, in a press release. “Other cities should consider adopting building energy benchmarking and transparency policies similar to New York City’s Local Law 84 to spur energy savings and to support the manufacturing and construction jobs that stem from building upgrades.”

Several U.S. cities are implementing building energy benchmarking and transparency ordinances that require large buildings to measure and disclose their energy use as a way to encourage energy efficiency improvements. These policies allow building owners and occupants to compare the energy performance of their buildings with similar buildings.

Studies have shown that commercial, multi-family and public buildings that benchmark their energy use per city benchmarking ordinances have reduced their energy use intensity and increased their Energy Star Portfolio Manager scores faster than buildings that are not held to similar ordinances. These findings help support the conclusion that implementing benchmarking laws can act as a catalyst to increase building efficiency.

Exterior makeover for CF Canaccord Tower

The 25-storey Canaccord Tower office building in downtown Vancouver is set to undergo a significant exterior makeover with a comprehensive glazing replacement.

The exterior renovations are expected to take place over two years and will consist of removal and replacement of more than 145,000 square feet of existing window panes, the addition of new vertical glass mullions between panes and architectural metal fins to update the appearance of the building’s exterior and introduce solar shading.

Cadillac Fairview, along with its partners the Ontario Pension Board (OPB) and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), is revitalizing the project to maintain its strong position in Vancouver’s increasingly competitive downtown commercial office market.

The office building at 609 Granville Street is part of CF Pacific Centre. The revitalization of the building’s façade is another example of the ongoing investment in the Vancouver portfolio.

“This project is a great opportunity to enhance the functional performance of the Canaccord Tower, as well as its aesthetic appeal,” said Cadillac Fairview’s Tom Knoepfel, senior vice president and portfolio manager, Western Canada. “By giving the tower a lighter, more crystalline and less mirrored appearance, we’ll ensure that 609 Granville maintains its position as a best-in-class building in Vancouver’s downtown.”

In addition to the re-glazing and replacement of the existing façade with contemporary cladding, a new framing system with a thermal insulating barrier will serve to improve and modernize the building’s weather and energy efficiency performance. The new design is also anticipated to reduce the demand for artificial lighting inside the building.

As an A-class, LEED-EB Gold office building, 609 Granville is a key office tower at CF Pacific Centre, and Cadillac Fairview views the revitalization project as necessary for the tower to maintain its strong position in Vancouver’s increasingly competitive downtown commercial office market.

Benefits

Working with maintenance staff and facility challenges

Energy Efficiency Day networking event

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