Despite a steep drop in province-wide energy consumption due to COVID-19 triggered business shutdowns, many building owners/managers expect a more modest flow-through dip in operating costs.

Landlords and tenants are continuing to move lease transactions forward in anticipation of a return to business as usual in the near future.

The move was announced in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, but additionally opens a window to adjust the mechanics of the assessment process itself.

A package of proposed changes to Canada's National Building Code aims to improve navigability and safety in large buildings for people with mobility, vision and/or hearing constraints.

A wider selection of high-performance windows and doors is expected to hit the market as Canada's National Energy Code continues to push the envelope toward net-zero-energy-ready development.

Market pressure and industry competitiveness could propel accessible commercial real estate in the coming decade, much the way those complementary forces have already bolstered energy efficiency and low-carbon footprints.

Along with measures to discourage spurious lawsuits, the legislation has implications for commercial real estate operators and any organization with potential scofflaws among its employees or membership.

Owners of smaller commercial and multi-residential buildings in Ontario will still be welcome to voluntarily share energy and water consumption data, but a looming deadline for mandatory disclosure has been withdrawn.

It's still unclear how the process of securing environmental approvals for combined heat and power systems will be streamlined, but the Ontario government's recent pledge has been greeted enthusiastically in the buildings sector.

Guidance related to natural ventilation, particulate filtration and compartmentalization of multi-residential HVAC systems are prominent in the list of identified "significant changes" compared to the incumbent 2016 version of the standards.

The move concludes the process begun five months ago when the newly elected United Conservative Party government repealed the carbon tax and eliminated the funding source for the incentives.

The study assesses and scores 110 prominent international cities on 22 indicators deemed to support and/or influence the age cohort born between 1997 and 2012.

Some of the signals of potential malfeasance in real estate transactions are not obvious or only appear ominous when they are part of a pattern of questionable conduct.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing says the underlying principle of improving accessibility will be maintained, and connects the revisions to the government's commitment to cut red tape that is slowing down the production of new housing.

Newly adopted amendments to Alberta's Municipal Government Act extend provisions that were initially devised to support the rejuvenation of derelict brownfields to all non-residential properties.

Ontario draws on the legacy of more than a dozen years of programming, while Energy Efficiency Alberta has had little time to capture public or capital planners' attention.

With the largest share of relatively inexpensive lighting upgrades completed, finding additional energy savings gets more complicated and costly. However, significant paybacks are projected from the increase in upfront program costs.