MaRS Discovery District Phase II (661 University Ave / 101 College St) | Complete | 23 st | 113 m | Discovery District

27817 Views 202 Replies 58 Participants Last post by Elkhanan1, Aug 24, 2010

pancsi

Discussion Starter · Jun 20, 2007

According to todays Globe (page A11) "next week directors of the non-profit MaRS discovery district are scheduled to announce a private-sector investment of more than $300 million to complete the second phase..."

"The new building will more than double the laboratory and office space available in the complex, making it bigger than any single office tower in the financial district...." It will grow to 1.6 million square feet by 2010. And the best part, "the potential market for research-oriented office in that district, five minutes from the hospitals in one direction, five minutes from the university in the other, is as much as 10 million square feet according to city economic-development officer Kyle Benham.

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161 - 180 of 203 Posts

taal

· #161 · Dec 3, 2008

To be honest I wonder how legal this even is ... I'm sure it's legal but it sure will send a bad image.
There was so much hype about this project, the Mayor was out to the opening event - there was a lot of talk all around. Now to suddenly pick up and move the entire project.
It really makes no sense if you stop and think about it.
If there's a company in Missi that's want office space they can build their own tower. This should be a seperate project all together to complement MARS I.

So what is this now ... officially we have the new BA stump of the 21st century. See there's no getting rid of it, we looked to be in the clear but nope. I guess it's not much of a stump.
At the very least one could hope they attempt to build this office building as is when the time is right ... I mean millions must have been spent on the planning / permits / DIGGING THE FOUNDATION! which was just about complete.

Ridiculous! You'd think the city would get involved ... I guess there's not much they can do though.

You know what if someone wanted to they could go straight to the source:
[email protected]
from Alexandria Real Estate and confirm with them.

But I'm not sure if the information is still meant to be confidential so I won't.

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Marcanadian

· #162 · Dec 3, 2008

I don't mind the idea of having it built in Mississauga, but like others have said, why now? Construction was well underway.

So now we have a stump in front of the Ontario Legislative Building at one of the most important intersections in Canada...

mckarisma

· #163 · Dec 3, 2008

Don't count your chickens before you hatch....lets see how far mississauga actually gets with this. THe Toronto project still has a basement, and as of now this is just a proposal, and to me it doesn't even seem to be the same thing exactly, and I don't think it will be the same as what we have in MaRS already in built form in Toronto. Mississauga can do what they like, but when they talk of Universities within commuting distance, they are all in Toronto essentially, aside from Mac, which is still a good 40 mins away.

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mckarisma

· #164 · Dec 3, 2008

Anyway, this is just a study they are having, does it even say anything about MaRS, and also, what nine school are within an hour of Mississauga? Are they counting London, Brock, Petebourough? Those are more than 1 hour and aren't going to help if MaRS was built in Mississauga. Sorry but Im still skeptical.

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in'sauga

· #165 · Dec 3, 2008

Hurray for Mississauga!! we'll take it thank you.

bizorky

· #166 · Dec 3, 2008

FutureMayor said:
I can assure all of you that this project is very much a reality and all the details will be released very soon.

I was making a deputation to Mississauga City Council regarding the 2015 Pan American Games Bid last Wednesday, November 26, 2008. The meeting was broadcast live on Rogers Cable 10.

Council Agenda:
http://www.mississauga.ca/file/COM/2008CouncilAgenda_november26_.pdf

The Economic Development Office made a presentation prior to mine. (see press release below "Mississauga: A Leading Life Sciences Cluster").

While commenting on the presentation, Mayor McCallion mentioned specifically how the MaRS project in Toronto was cancelled and that the project would now proceed with construction in Mississauga, which would further grow the Life Sciences sector in this city.

The Mayor revealed that a large Mississauga-based pharmaceutical company was suppose to lease several floors of the stalled MaRS Toronto project, and as a result will now anchor the MaRS Mississauga project.

She indicated that this hasn't been announced to the public yet, however a press conference was forthcoming very soon where all the details on including partners and exact location.

Louroz

Mississauga's Life Sciences Sector Flourishes under the Microscope in New Study http://www.mississauga.ca/file/COM/EDO_Final_Life_Sciences_Study_Bookmarked.pdf

http://www.mississauga.ca/file/COM/EDO_30_2008.wmv

Dec 02, 2008

The City's Economic Development Office (EDO) has launched a new study focusing on Mississauga's expanding life sciences sector. Mississauga: A Leading Life Sciences Cluster Study and Directory, and the Life Sciences Focus brochure update findings of previous studies and provide a more detailed directory of the many companies that actively support the growth of this sector in Mississauga.

A key finding of the study is a continual increase in the level of employment of this sector, adding more than 5,000 knowledge workers from 2003 to 2007. According to the study, Mississauga is home to the third largest life sciences cluster in Canada, with more than 375 companies employing approximately 24,800 people.

"Exceptional talent, innovative companies and the convergence of many related industries in Mississauga are propelling this leading economic cluster forward," said Larry Petovello, director of the Economic Development Office. "Mississauga is well-positioned to provide employment opportunities for its citizens as we build a city for the 21st century."

The study specifies that the life sciences industry requires talent that focuses on two main areas of expertise: the industry must have highly-skilled scientific and technical personnel, and it also requires experienced management to lead production and drive the marketing of products and services.

"It's apparent that life sciences firms are attracting highly-skilled candidates in Mississauga," adds Petovello. "The City is surrounded by some of Ontario's finest post-secondary institutions offering a wide variety of educational opportunities. Within an hour commute of Mississauga, there are nine major universities and six technical colleges with programs pertinent to life science-related occupations."

For more information regarding this comprehensive study, contact EDO at 905-896-5016, or download Mississauga: A Leading Life Sciences Cluster Study and Directory at www.mississauga.ca/business.

Mississauga is Canada's sixth largest city with a population of more than 700,000. With well-established infrastructure and state-of-the-art facilities, the City is considered to be an employer of choice, delivering quality municipal programs and services to its citizens. Mississauga is a dynamic, diverse and progressive municipality, known for its economic strength and for being Canada's safest city.

-30-

Louroz

MaRS is not moving to Mississauga, rather there is an initiative to set up a Life science cluster in that city - just as there are life-science cluster initiatives in Ottawa, Kingston and other cities. MaRS already exists, the spaces are occupied in phase one, and there is a waiting list to get in.

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thryve

· #167 · Dec 4, 2008

The cranes on the MaRS site were moving stuff around today... maybe closing stuff up. It made me sad because I realized that I won't be seeing activity on that site (ie. building up) for perhaps a long time. Time will tell.

camel_trainer

· #168 · Dec 5, 2008

This cancellation flew under my radar. Very unfortunate. This was one of the most exciting office projects the city had.

plumbum

· #169 · Dec 5, 2008

I'm very skeptical about this illicit cancellation. First, I wasn't aware that MaRS would be home to a major life sciences company. It was supposed to be the centre for research and to provide a means to finance research projects into new start-up companies.

The contstruction is fairly well under-way. Why would they cancel it now to move to Mississauga? Seems ridiculous. The purpose of MaRS is the proximity to all the research hospitals along University avenue as well as U of T and Ryerson within walking distance. Mississauga has nothing like that. Yes the city is a big employer but they don't have such a dense area for cross-collaboration.

I hope that this cancellation is bogus and MaRS phase two continues forward to completion.

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Ziggy

· #170 · Dec 5, 2008

So basically a Mississauga-based company that was planning on leasing space in MaRS will now find space in Mississauga instead. Not a huge deal, the whole project is not moving to Mississauga.

DrT

· #171 · Dec 5, 2008

plumbum said:
I'm very skeptical about this illicit cancellation. First, I wasn't aware that MaRS would be home to a major life sciences company. It was supposed to be the centre for research and to provide a means to finance research projects into new start-up companies.

The contstruction is fairly well under-way. Why would they cancel it now to move to Mississauga? Seems ridiculous. The purpose of MaRS is the proximity to all the research hospitals along University avenue as well as U of T and Ryerson within walking distance. Mississauga has nothing like that. Yes the city is a big employer but they don't have such a dense area for cross-collaboration.

I hope that this cancellation is bogus and MaRS phase two continues forward to completion.

The likely culprit in the cancellation is the American development company that the MaRS project was in bed with:

The decision was made by MaRS' development partner, Pasadena, California-based Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc. Alexandria itself has been a victim of the slumping stock market, with the value of the company dropping by about US$2-billion in just under two months.

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Steeltown

· #172 · Dec 6, 2008

Most Life Sciences companies have warehouses in Mississauga such as BD Biosciences and VWR. Invitrogen recently relocated from Missy to Burlington. Thermo Fisher has a warehouse in Whitby. Those are the big four.

I work in a lab and deal with these pesky reps all the time.

OreoPope

· #173 · Dec 7, 2008

MaRS already exists and it's not going anywhere. Phase 2 will get built, just maybe not in our lifetime.

mckarisma

· #174 · Dec 7, 2008

Steeltown said:
Most Life Sciences companies have warehouses in Mississauga such as BD Biosciences and VWR. Invitrogen recently relocated from Missy to Burlington. Thermo Fisher has a warehouse in Whitby. Those are the big four.

I work in a lab and deal with these pesky reps all the time.

What about Baxter? Aren't they pretty big? I remember BD when I used to be on dialysis back in the day, but Baxter seemed big, so did fresinius?

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urbandreamer

· #175 · Dec 7, 2008

Saturday, 6 December 2008 photo update

I shoot the dud driving by on a snowy December afternoon:

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Steeltown

· #176 · Dec 8, 2008

mckarisma said:
What about Baxter? Aren't they pretty big? I remember BD when I used to be on dialysis back in the day, but Baxter seemed big, so did fresinius?

I don't think Baxter is a Life Sciences company. Think they deal more with patients.

leaf345

· #177 · Dec 19, 2008

I'm still betting that FutureMayor and/or Hazel McCallion simply misheard and/or misspoke. Relocating MaRs from its current prime location to the fields of Mississauga seems to go against the whole reason for building this thing in the first place.

And I understand that there are (strangely) some pretty big Mississauga homers on this forum (Mississauga pride!!..or whatever), but as a resident of neither Toronto nor Mississauga, I'd have to say I'd be very disappointed if this project does get canned in favour of a Missy location. Why would any architecture or skyscraper fan (aside from the weird Mississauga homers) want to see this:

Turn into this?

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3

taal

· #178 · Dec 19, 2008

haha!!

It's IBM!

There lab to be specific.

Jasonzed

· #179 · Dec 20, 2008 (Edited)

leaf345 said:
I'm still betting that FutureMayor and/or Hazel McCallion simply misheard and/or misspoke. Relocating MaRs from its current prime location to the fields of Mississauga seems to go against the whole reason for building this thing in the first place.

And I understand that there are (strangely) some pretty big Mississauga homers on this forum (Mississauga pride!!..or whatever), but as a resident of neither Toronto nor Mississauga, I'd have to say I'd be very disappointed if this project does get canned in favour of a Missy location. Why would any architecture or skyscraper fan (aside from the weird Mississauga homers) want to see this:

Turn into this?

I would be most happy if the first render would show up in MCC and not too happy if the second would show up anywhere else in Mississauga.

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3

elliot

· #180 · Dec 20, 2008

I shoot the dud driving by on a snowy December afternoon:

And this is typical of the joy you try to spread with your pictures and comments.

So, ho ho ho and seasons greetings to all lovers of this place.

This place we call home.

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