Nearly four years after it was approved by the city council, the site of a planned 40-storey tower opposite Museum London remains as it was in June 2021: a cluster of empty buildings.

Owned by Farhi Holdings Corp., the properties located at 435-451 Ridout Street North were the subject of a development application to construct a mixed-use tower and add 280 much-needed residential units in the heart of the southwestern Ontario city.

At the time, the app raised eyebrows. Farhi is best known for owning properties in downtown Londonmany of which are unoccupied.

After debates in council chambers over flooding issues, the height of the tower and concerns over the preservation of heritage properties, the building was approved by a 12-2 vote.

Stephen Turner, one of two councilors at the time who voted against Farhi’s plan, was skeptical that the site would ever be built.

“I don’t have much confidence that this building will ever be built,” said Turner, who did not seek re-election in the 2022 municipal elections. “I say to the candidate, ‘Prove to me that I ‘wrong’, but I’m not entirely convinced.”

In March, CBC News contacted Farhi Holdings Corp. to get feedback on the progress of the project.

The company declined an interview, but said in a statement that it has been “meticulously advancing the 451 Ridout project for over 15 years.”

CBC also requested an update this week, but its staff declined an interview.

Farhi cites “a number of obstacles to launching the project”

The March statement to CBC said a number of factors had delayed the start date, including the city’s construction of the Downtown Loop bus rapid transit line, the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and an appeal filed by heritage defenders, which has since been abandoned.

“Currently, we are focused on finalizing our site plan application, an essential step before beginning construction. Unfortunately, there are a number of obstacles to getting the project off the ground beyond the required site plan approvals. »

Among the obstacles listed in Farhi’s statement:

• High interest rates.
• High turnover of residences in the city center.
• A “lack of incentives” offered to real estate developers in London, which Farhi’s statement said are available in other jurisdictions, including Windsor and Oshawa.

The city’s planning office confirmed to CBC that no site plan application has been submitted for the property, a step that comes before building permits are issued and construction can begin. Additionally, the city has not received a heritage alteration permit for this property, which is necessary because the yellow brick buildings on the property are designated as heritage. A heritage alteration permit would be required before a building permit can be issued.

Farhi’s fondness for London properties was reported on in the Globe and Mail last week.

Other tricks come to the heart

Meanwhile, a lot has happened in downtown London since 2021.

A number of high-density residential towers have been approved, including a plan by York Developments to build two towers of 53 and 43 floors, nearby, at 50 King Street. This is a project that will bring 800 units to the heart of London.

A few steps away, Old Oak Properties is leasing and putting the finishing touches on the first tower of the Centro development on the block bordered by Dufferin, Talbot and Fullarton streets. Once completed, it will bring more than 650 housing units to the city center, 110 of them below market value.

London City Council has also decided to accelerate the construction of residential units as the city faces rapid growth and a falling vacancy rate, adding to an ongoing problem. housing crisis.

In 2023, the city committed to building 47,000 homes by 2031, with the council regularly updated on progress towards this target.

A staff report to council in September said development applications amounting to just under 20,000 residential units had been approved by council since the engagement, but remained at various stages of approval. The same report states that 51 percent of these applications are considered “inactive” because they have not progressed through the development stages for a two-year period.

Mayor Josh Morgan told CBC News he had no update on Farhi’s plans for the Ridout property, but said he was willing to work with all developers to expedite approved projects until ‘to the construction phase.

“There are a large number of buildings, not just from this developer, but from developers across the city, that have council approval and have not yet moved forward,” he said. “My approach is to work with any developer in the city on the council-approved items to find out what the obstacles are and how we can make them happen.”

Tower projects are complex, developer representative says

London Development Institute (LDI) executive director Mike Wallace said the city was making progress in getting approved projects underway. He also said that building towers in the city center is a complex process affected by multiple variables.

“The labor force needed to build skyscrapers requires very specialized trades, and those trades are very busy these days,” Wallace said.

He said it requires careful planning to ensure building permits are approved and ready when crews are available. With their workforce in high demand, teams cannot sit idle if the approval process is delayed.

His group represents a handful of London’s biggest property developers. Farhi Holdings is not represented by LDI and Wallace does not know why the Ridout project has not started.

Wallace also said economic conditions, such as high interest rates, can throw a tower project’s finances out of balance.

“You can sit back and not build right away until demand comes back, and that’s what’s happening now.”

As of last August, London had added 4,400 new units, or about 9% of the 47,000 unit target, since it made its housing commitment. According to an IMF staff report, the pace is accelerating, but remains below the pace needed to achieve the goal.

“While we are ahead of 2023 performance, additional efforts will be needed to close the gap and meet future goals,” the report said.