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The Breithaupt Block Phase III | 11 fl | U/C
(02-10-2020, 03:32 PM)taylortbb Wrote:
(02-10-2020, 10:58 AM)Spokes Wrote: Can Waterloo Region produce enough internal candidates to fill the jobs or is it inevitable that people will be relocating here?

I always assumed relocation since I remember hearing that at any given time there is often a hard time finding strong talent.

From what I've seen, Google staffs KW heavily with people that can't get US visas. I work for a SF-based company, and we've lost some people who have expiring visas to Google. They end up getting offered KW (or sometimes Montreal).

Google definitely recruits locally, but I'd bet 30-50% will be filled by people new to Canada.

That's really interesting.  Are work visas that much harder to get in the US?
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(02-11-2020, 12:59 PM)Spokes Wrote:
(02-10-2020, 03:32 PM)taylortbb Wrote: From what I've seen, Google staffs KW heavily with people that can't get US visas. I work for a SF-based company, and we've lost some people who have expiring visas to Google. They end up getting offered KW (or sometimes Montreal).

Google definitely recruits locally, but I'd bet 30-50% will be filled by people new to Canada.

That's really interesting.  Are work visas that much harder to get in the US?

Yes. Most non-resident Americans who work in tech come in on H1-B visas which have been difficult to get since the late 90s. The current political landscape makes it even more difficult for workers to enter the States, and it makes it harder for tech companies to recruit folks who dislike the current government.

It's a big selling point for Vancouver especially, since they're a short flight from Silicon Valley and in the same time zone.
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(02-11-2020, 01:15 PM)robdrimmie Wrote:
(02-11-2020, 12:59 PM)Spokes Wrote: That's really interesting.  Are work visas that much harder to get in the US?

Yes. Most non-resident Americans who work in tech come in on H1-B visas which have been difficult to get since the late 90s. The current political landscape makes it even more difficult for workers to enter the States, and it makes it harder for tech companies to recruit folks who dislike the current government.

Not only the the scarcity of the H-1B visas, but also the long-term issue. The path to a green card is quite onerous so basically it's difficult to settle for the long term, and at some point you will not get H-1B renewals any more. In Canada, the Express Entry program for permanent residency works at (comparatively) lightning speed to give qualified applicants the peace of mind of permanent residency.
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No company or person could have reasonably predicted the magnitude of the pandemic and no one knows for certain what the future of workplaces will look like. If current dialogue holds true though, tech (and office type) companies are going to *need* far less real estate (adopting more flexible and WFH solutions).

How do you think Google now feels about this project? Who's the developer and actual building owner...Google? Or just the entity leasing? Will Google now look to share if their Kitchener office-based workforce is not going to be as big?
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(06-01-2020, 03:39 PM)Momo26 Wrote: No company or person could have reasonably predicted the magnitude of the pandemic and no one knows for certain what the future of workplaces will look like. If current dialogue holds true though, tech (and office type) companies are going to *need* far less real estate (adopting more flexible and WFH solutions).

How do you think Google now feels about this project? Who's the developer and actual building owner...Google? Or just the entity leasing? Will Google now look to share if their Kitchener office-based workforce is not going to be as big?
I doubt you will see much adjustment to under construction office projects. Future projects might be reorganized, changed, downsized etc. but companies for the most part had shifted to really cramming in as many people as they could into their office space. 

In the wake of covid I think it will be likely that there will be a return to private offices and cubicles, something that was on the decline, as well as more spacious floor plans and arrangements, meaning companies will actually need people to work from home anyway to accommodate the now lower capacity of their existing space. Hence I dont think we'll see much change here. 

Additionally I think I saw something the other day that said, only about 20% of people actually want to continue to work from home. Getting out of the house, keeping your work and personal life separate, seeing other people and so on, are all big draws of office space, and many people want or need that socialization and distance in their lives. 

So in short, I dont think office space will be affected nearly as much as people expect.
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(06-01-2020, 03:39 PM)Momo26 Wrote: How do you think Google now feels about this project? Who's the developer and actual building owner...Google? Or just the entity leasing? Will Google now look to share if their Kitchener office-based workforce is not going to be as big?

Perimeter Development. They own a bunch of buildings in Downtown. If Google were to need less space, Perimeter would simply reconfigure the floorplans to make it a multi-tenant building. However I bet construction of Phase 3 started on the condition of Google's lease of the whole building for a number of years.
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(06-01-2020, 03:39 PM)Momo26 Wrote: No company or person could have reasonably predicted the magnitude of the pandemic and no one knows for certain what the future of workplaces will look like. If current dialogue holds true though, tech (and office type) companies are going to *need* far less real estate (adopting more flexible and WFH solutions).

How do you think Google now feels about this project? Who's the developer and actual building owner...Google? Or just the entity leasing? Will Google now look to share if their Kitchener office-based workforce is not going to be as big?

Thing is, I don't think the current dialogue will hold true for long. At some point, businesses are going to see that people need to be at the workplace, and that working from home is simply an option when needed. It is needed now. But a year from now, I do expect, if we have a decent recovery, that might will be back in the workplace.
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Almost ready for a crane?

   

   
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Need to pour some concrete footings first! Smile But the progress looks good.
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Footings? Pff details!
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Two excavators and three dozers in the hole leveling for slab preparation
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I guess time will how much more or less actual office square footage will be needed or desired by companies and operations such as this one. As I both walked and drove around the DTK streets this weekend, I felt a sense of sadness at the destitute and lonely vibes I was getting - it felt like it took a step back 10 to 15 years with very few people there and those that were there, were by in large the marginalized individuals who have nowhere to really go.

I was glad projects like this are a go ahead - I feel like if monies had not been committed (in this case construction already well started), that business would be in a hold-and-wait position, potentially cancelling expansion plans. For me the real evidence will be if companies that would have otherwise moved to K-W from existing location, actually do (We may never really know) - But let's say if downsizing real estate office space and right sizing costs, Kitchener could fill a new niche of hybrid workplaces, cheaper than GTA
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They've poured a concrete pad in the bottom of the pit.
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Tower Crane pad?
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(06-14-2020, 11:39 PM)Spokes Wrote: Tower Crane pad?
Yes, the crane base is installed.
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