City announces short-list of five teams vying for Pier 8 Development

HAMILTON, ON - October 6, 2017 - After a comprehensive evaluation process, the City of Hamilton is pleased to formally announce the five development teams proceeding to the next stage of the competitive process to win the right to develop the highly coveted Pier 8 lands.

Development teams

The teams are described as:

Daniels

Core Team Members: The Daniels Corporation
Lead Architect(s): CORE Architects

GulfDream

Core Team Members: Great Gulf Enterprises, Dream Asset Management Corp.
Lead Architect(s): Hariri Pontarini Architects

Tridel

Core Team Members: Tridel Builders Inc.
Lead Architect(s): architectsAlliance

Urban Capital/Core Urban

Core Team Members: Urban Capital Property Group, Core Urban Inc., Milborne Real Estate Group
Lead Architect(s): Saucier + Perotte, RAW Design

Waterfront Shores

Core Team Members: Cityzen Development Corp., Fernbrook Homes Group, GFL Environmental Inc., Greybrook Realty Partners Inc.
Lead Architect(s): KPMB Architects

“Each of the five teams that have emerged from this very competitive process has a proven track record of executing major, urban revitalization projects. We look forward to seeing their interpretations of the City’s vision to transform Pier 8 into a 21st Century model of excellence in city-building. It has been remarkable to experience first-hand the enthusiasm for the City’s vision for Pier 8 and the depth of talent from all that participated in the RFQ process. On behalf of the City of Hamilton, we sincerely thank all proponents that participated in the RFQ.” - Chris Phillips, Senior Advisor, West Harbour Re-Development Project, City of Hamilton

About the Request for Qualifications (RFQ)

Formally launched on April 18, 2017, the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) was the first of a two-stage solicitation process that offers proponents the opportunity to purchase and build on 5.24 hectares of fully serviced, mixed-use lands on Pier 8 in the City’s West Harbour waterfront.

The RFQ process stipulated that only the top five ranked teams would be invited to proceed. Formally closing on July 10, 2017, the City received thirteen (13) formal RFQ submissions from private-sector consortia and individual companies, encompassing thirty-one (31) firms in total, all of which are based in Ontario.

The teams were evaluated based on predetermined criteria including: their alignment with the City’s vision for Pier 8; proof of financial capacity and stability to finance and execute a large-scale, multi-phase development; and a previous track record of developing projects with characteristics similar to the Pier 8 development. 

The next phase of the land solicitation process is the Request for Proposals (RFP) stage where the five proponent teams will be required to submit development concept proposals that must satisfy various “City-Building” objectives, in addition to corresponding financial bids for the purchase of the lands.

The successful proponent of the RFP stage will be granted the exclusive opportunity to negotiate with the City for the purchase of, and ultimately the right to build on, the Pier 8 lands.

The development site has the potential to support approximately 1,500 residential units and 13,000 square metres of commercial and institutional space on nine development blocks. The entire solicitation process is expected to conclude in 2018.

These lands are integrated with a public recreational waterfront for which the City has a multi-year, $140 million revitalization plan already underway that also includes the forthcoming, new, public Pier 8 Promenade Park for which a winning design was announced on September 22.  At full build-out, Pier 8 is expected to be one of Hamilton’s most desirable destinations for residents and visitors alike.

Additional resources:

• Interested parties may obtain related background documents at www.hamilton.ca/westharbour