Newsletter

Setting New Efficiency Standards
and Driving Costs Down
Leasing Opportunities Immediately
 

There is no denying that energy costs and overall building efficiency can account for a significant portion of a business enterprise’s operating expenses. By simply leveraging the assets within a community and through advanced building design, developers and businesses alike can drive cost certainties and savings directly to the bottom line, translating into more money for the business enterprise. 
 
In Summerside, we understand that model. We understand the drive towards efficiency and carbon footprint reduction. Summerside understands the intrinsic value of combining all these factors under one roof – one park – to achieve the new realities of an environmentally sustainable corporate direction: “We must reduce our overall industrial processes footprint.” Summerside Building One in Summerside’s Business Commons Eco-Park is setting a new standard in collaborative industrial space and is leading through design and efficiency on every level, from energy usage to shared spaces inside and out.
 
Case in point, most of the public sector construction tenders on Prince Edward Island target an energy usage intensity (EUI) target of 110 kWh/m2/year. In Summerside, our model energy usage intensity is set to achieve 54 kWh/m2/year. So why should this matter from a pure electrical consumption standpoint? This 16,600-square-foot facility is set to run an operational cost of 49 cents per square foot for electrical expenses and will see no consumption of fossil fuels used in the heating and cooling of this facility. 
 
Summerside understands that by putting forethought in park layout and building design, manufacturers can reduce upfront costs and unnecessary carrying costs for underutilized assets and space. At the same time, it ensures that needed amenities are incorporated into the design to improve their bottom line and add directly to operational success. Summerside has already taken care of upfront infrastructure costs, including parking, 100% naturalized storm weather management, and roads. Also, inside the building, it focuses on spaces that matter and the sharing of spaces where it is practical to reduce expenses and provide move-in ready space.    
 
In our conversations, we know that leading companies are implementing initiatives to decarbonize their operations, find efficiency in their overall footprint, and find like-minded partners who believe in ensuring this convergence of environmental and economic objectives align. Summerside Building One is set to open in the spring of 2024 and promises to set a new standard when it comes to efficiency and costs while ensuring that we meet the challenges imposed by climate change. 
 
Summerside is looking to fill its remaining 8,000 square feet of flexible manufacturing space with collaborative businesses that want to drive cost certainties in an environmentally sustainable way inside a community that takes the transition to green seriously. For leasing inquiries, contact Mike Thususka at mike@summerside.ca.

   
Summerside's momentum in 2023 reflects a city on the rise. The Business Commons Eco-Park, Collaborative Health Centre, The Regent, and the soon-to-be-energized Sunbank solar farm showcase the city's commitment to progress. With a population of 16,000 people, Summerside has become a Canadian leader in infrastructure, surprising peers with its rapid development for a city its size, and we still have much more to achieve.

The city's construction boom is evident in the record-breaking $90M in building permits so far, surpassing the 2021 record of $73M. Industrial development, although historically modest, received a boost with Summerside’s Eco-Park Building One. This marks a paradigm shift in industrial space on PEI.

Summerside's Industrial investment of $8.5M in 2023, with $7.4M from the Eco-Park, far exceeds the previous highest total in 2011 at $2.9M. The city, a Cleantech leader for two decades, plans to expand opportunities for like-minded companies in the Eco-Park starting in Spring 2024.

Residential growth is another highlight, driven by population influx and a consistently low vacancy rate. Residential investment, especially in apartments, has surged. In 2023, 325 apartments across ten buildings contributed to a total of 367 residential units. This is a significant increase from previous years. Adding 325 units represents a 20% boost in rental housing, addressing the challenge of a 1% or lower vacancy rate.
 
These new heights have been achieved through a combination of statistical analysis, consultation, and a specific tasks force shining a light on the opportunities in Summerside.  As cited in Summerside’s 2021 housing demand report:

1. There is a strong anticipated need for additional housing and rental housing in the City of Summerside over the next 15 years, with a further 1,025 to 1,250 dwelling units needed in the next fifteen years should forecast population growth occur.
    
2. There is potential for additional housing growth in the City of Summerside above base forecast levels through the active attraction of seniors, rural residents moving into the community, international immigration, and attraction of individuals throughout the region and beyond.
    
3. Potential additional housing growth in the City of Summerside at a healthy pace over the next 15 years would require about 655 to 800 lots for about 625 to 760 single-family dwellings and about 410 to 500 multi-unit dwellings.
    
4. The City of Summerside must actively engage developers and builders to encourage, facilitate, assist, and advance the development of housing to address the projected housing needs of Summerside.
    
5. Even with the strong growth pace over the past decade with the addition of over 815 units, there is still an unmet demand in the Summerside Market for both rental housing and ownership.

In addition, the Mayor’s task force on Attainable Housing, a public/private sector collaboration, recently released a report in which the task force was specifically tasked to come up with service delivery enhancements to Fastrack the supply side of the housing in Summerside, which will only continue to fuel this growth.  From the report, the group was mandated to:

The Attainable Housing Task Force (the Task Force) was appointed In early 2023 by Mayor Kutcher with the task of providing recommendations for implementation to the Mayor and Council that would inform a new Housing Supply Strategy for Summerside that will be incorporated into the Official Plan and set out the metrics for measuring the success/failure of an implementation plan of the Strategy.
 
The Task Force was asked to be forward-thinking, creative, and focused on tangible solutions for options to address pressing housing needs facing the City, which are not unique and are anticipated to intensify over time. While the proposed solutions are not exclusive to Summerside, they have been specifically tailored to meet the unique requirements of its residents and community, both now and in the future.
  In terms of residential investment, it’s no secret that Summerside’s population is growing like never before, and the residential vacancy rate has been 1% or lower for several years now. That growth is expected to accelerate over the next decade. These things together create an impetus for more housing, and the response has been impressive. From the graph below, we see that residential investment alone from 2023 is almost higher than the entirety of 2021.




It’s clear that from 2019 onward, we have entered a new territory where subdivisions and apartment buildings are consistently being created. Summerside's commitment to sustainable growth and innovation positions it as a city with a promising future. While catching up to the rapid growth will take time, Summerside is well on its way to becoming a model for thriving, forward-thinking cities.

If you are a collaborative and innovative developer looking for an investment-ready environment and municipality dedicated to facilitating investment, look no further than Summerside. We would love to chat and find ways to achieve mutual investment goals.  
 

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