Downtown Windsor – Part V

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• Yuck, that pink building makes me shudder every time I see it. Wasn't it formerly one of Windsor's infamous rub and tug hangouts? They should have a property standards by-law that storefront owners can't use certain colours.

  Why did the new owners give up on doing something with the Joker's building? Were they declined on the demolition permit? Geez, what a mess they left.

  The CIBC building is another carpet bagger special. I think I remembered seeing it listed for $2.4 million or some other exorborant amount. Haven't seen it listed online lately. I guess the agent gave up on advertising it.

• WOW I had no idea there were so MANY vacancies downtown. It truly disgusts me, and I mean this is right in the CORE…downtown. It’s not as if these empty buildings are on the outskirts of our city, where no attention is usually drawn, they are in FULL view, and everyday people with a variety of statuses in life see the despair, and seemly ignore it? It’s very disheartening to know our elected officials consume their time with road blocking the bridge project, and similar meaningless causes, while our core falls further into its demise. I know full well our elected officials probably pass any one of these atrocities daily, and yet nothing is being done to rectify the situation. I mean at the least, you’d think citations would be issued to those who cannot even keep their properties clean, and safe. In my opinion, by not doing anything about the situation, council is condoning it, and they cannot prove otherwise. If they weren’t, then people would be held responsible for their properties, and actions. Really, this series that you’ve taken the time to show us, should very well put ALL OF COUNSIL to shame, and shine a spot light on that wonderful King Eddie of ours. I will most definitely not be voting to have him re elected. How can he even show his face in this city, and have a smile, when the very core of his city or so he proclaims….is turning into a deserted ghetto by day, and tweeny haven by night. As John always says, it’s a matter of civic pride, and there clearly is none shown for our downtown, at least by council. Get new leadership for this city, that is the obvious start, as the current tribe of folks for lack of nicer terms, is outdated, and not focused on what people REALLY want. They all have their own agenda’s, and that’s a sad truth.

• My goal next winter is to call 311 on a regular basis on any property that doesn't clean their sidwealk in the core. I hope everyone else does too. Apathy is what causes building owners to think they can get aways with minimal maintenace.

• I understand the frustration toward council, but does something as simple as keeping your property clean and shoveling snow in our pedestrian dependent city centre have to be enforced by The Man? I guess so! But this hand-holding can't go on forever. Something has to "click" downtown about the overspending and over-thinking of its problems and how little it's actually accomplished versus the results some teamwork among the property owners and shop keepers would do. The BIA has this "clean team" but you can't expect a handful of cleaners to keep up with the desecration that occurs on the weekends downtown. Too many square feet of sidewalks and roads for that. On our walk past a particular bar there were hundreds of cigarette butts and garbage on the ground from the reveling of the night before. Does Eddie Francis have to come down personally with a broom and dustpan? Would it have killed the business owner to send someone out to pick up and throwaway that shooter tube and cigarette package before locking the bar at the end of the night? Even the window covering issue, it's great the BIA is 'looking into uniform window coverings' for vacancies but that doesn't mean the owners can't take a few minutes out of their day to do their part while they are waiting for these coverings to become reality. What message does this apathy send the citizens who are expected to be the savior of downtown?

• now here's a novel idea. not that I figure it would be adopted here but some people do care.

  http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080314/METRO/803140357/1409/METRO

• I like the jokers picture... Site Available ... but feel feel to raze the classic retro building!!!

• The CIBC building is another carpet bagger special. I think I remembered seeing it listed for $2.4 million or some other exorborant amount

  $2.4 million seems like a good deal. I guarnantee you couldn't build it for that...

  As far as I know the demolition permit for Jokers/Mothers was approved. The building looks like it has been stripped and abated. I believe that demolition permits once issued are valid for one year. It was last September when they were removing all the copper and everything from the building. So there is still a while to go before the demolition permit runs out.

  I'm not sure what the plan is for the site, but I know it was pruchased with the intention of redeveloping the site.

• Pink Building>

  There used to be (in the early-to-mid-1990s) a nice little diner in the front. Called "Antonettes"? That might be wrong. We held a benefit there in 1993, and it was nice. It linked to a big back room that fronts onto Pelissier that was the home of the Maltese Club of Windsor in the mid to late 1970s. Until the early 90s, there was still a Maltese cross on that side of the building.

• If commercial appraisals for mortgage financing were based on historical or replacement cost, then maybe. But, they're not. Appraisals are based on comparable sales and net incomes either of which do not justify that princely sum. It's the old stock market gambler's syndrome, where someone bought Nortel at $100/share and it fell and they kept holding onto it because it never went back to $100 and it kept falling until it reached a buck a share and they still hold onto for years thinking it'll go back to $100 and it never gets higher than $10 a share . If they want to play the stock market, play it. But, a graveyard of empty buildings affects everyone else in downtown and isn't helping our downtown core. In comparison to downtown real estate, the Canada Building is an 11 storey office building that been on the market for years for $2.2 million, far superior architecturallly, and the Falom Building, a 9 storey tower for $2 million. Both buildings are much larger than the CIBC building and partially rented and probably have been on the market for the same amount of years. Based on that, the CIBC building is way overpriced. If they place it way above market value and it's been vacant for years, it's just carpet bagging. Plain and simple.

• Thanks Shawn - that might be the one I was thinking of. Ikea runs a shuttle bus to and from the subway stop right?

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  David, the CIBC has a couple of advantages. The location is prime real estate, on the waterfront. Plus there are two long term tennents. The Windsor Club occupies the top floor, and the Passport office is in there as well.

  As for the Canada Building, the report was passed at the last Heritage Comittee Meeting to designate the building. I'm not certain that it is for sale anymore.