TORONTO — The CIBC announced it has agreed to become the anchor tenant of Bay Park Centre, a new “urban campus” at 81 and 141 Bay St. in Toronto that will be developed and jointly managed by Ivanhoe Cambridge and Hines, with construction starting this spring.
The 2.9-million-square-foot complex will serve as CIBC’s headquarters and will house approximately 15,000 of the bank’s Toronto-area employees, indicated the CIBC media statement released April 12.
The bank will lease up to 1.75-million square feet of office space in two connected buildings in the Bay Park Centre, which will be located across from Union Station and the Air Canada Centre.
The first of the towers is scheduled to be completed in 2020 and the second in 2023. The CIBC says it will continue to have a presence in other offices across the city following completion of those moves.
Under the lease agreement, CIBC will have exclusive naming rights and Ivanhoe Cambridge and Hines will officially rebrand Bay Park Centre under a new CIBC name in the coming months.
More than 4,000 construction-related jobs are expected to be created over the course of Bay Park Centre’s development, according to Ivanhoe Cambridge and Hines.
The project will be engineered to LEED Platinum and Delos WELL specifications and will target a Wired Pre-Certified Platinum designation, the highest international standard in office Internet connectivity, including a distributed antenna system for cellular coverage. Design is by architects WilkinsonEyre and Adamson Associates.
The Bay Park Centre is designed to connect to major public transit systems and walkways will also link to Toronto’s PATH network. The site will also feature a one-acre elevated park linking the buildings to each other. CIBC’s advisors on the transaction were Blackwood Partners. Cushman & Wakefield advised Ivanhoe Cambridge and Hines.
"This move will optimize CIBC’s real estate footprint to meet the future needs of our workforce and our clients. We see it as a differentiator that will improve productivity, attract and retain the best talent, and enhance client experience," said Sandy Sharman, executive vice-president and chief human resources officer at CIBC, in a statement.
C. Kevin Shannahan, Hines Canada CEO, added, "The design addresses the extensive needs of tower occupants, while benefiting the community with a one-acre park elevated above the rail lines."
Recent Comments
comments for this post are closed