Digging In

Here's what host Russell Hixson covers in this week's episode: The strategic alliance of Canada's largest GCs analyzing data from 600+ projects to cut emissions, the five key steps involved, and what that means for your projects and future costs. What the Lafarge case reveals about industry ethics and compliance risks in a geopolitically tense world. The contentious debate around BC's community benefits policies is back. The recent escalation in Toronto's waste management wars, with charges against a rival business founder and a glimpse into fierce industry rivalries. The $9.4 billion real estate transaction and its impact on Toronto's iconic neighborhoods. And we want to thank this week's sponsor Procore, who we are teaming up with to investigate technology usage in the industry. Enter to win a $2000 golf and spa getaway by taking our Great Canadian AI Build survey here today (terms and conditions apply).

The Digging in podcast was in-studio for this week for a special chat with Stéphan Lacombe, Vice-President Buildings West, for Pomerleau. Lacombe spoke about the company's distinct corporate culture, his advice for those new to the industry, and the strategy behind Pomerleau's push for work in Western Canada.

Here are all the headlines we broke down this week for Digging In: Ontario's plan to expropriate Toronto's stake in Billy Bishop Airport for runway expansion. Alberta and the federal government's cooperation agreement to streamline infrastructure project approvals. Federal initiative to improve construction labor market data with a $94.5 million investment. Calgary's water restrictions due to urgent infrastructure repairs. BC casino's legal battle over a $10 land expropriation related to the Surrey Langley Skytrain Extension.

This week's episode covers major political and infrastructure developments in the U.S. and Canada. Here's what we will get you all caught up on: A major U.S. Supreme Court decision that could reshape tariff policy — and President Donald Trump's response. B.C. Premier David Eby's move to "re-pace" major infrastructure projects as the province's deficit grows. Canada's sweeping plans to realign its defence strategy to prioritize Canadian companies. Groundbreaking on the next stage of the Ontario Line, marking another milestone for the major Toronto transit project.

This week we highlight the successful refurbishment of the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station, which finished ahead of schedule and under budget. We then chat about the newly approved $3-billion Steensby Project on Baffin Island. Listeners will also get an essential briefing on the sector's surprising GDP growth in late 2026 and a deep dive into Calgary's Bearspaw water main failure with Water Canada's Warren Frey.

This episode highlights: • Eglinton Cross Town LRT Reaches Substantial Completion: After more than a decade of work beginning in 2011, and following years of detours and delays, Ontario's Eglinton Cross Town LRT has finally reached substantial completion. Control of the line is now transferring from Metrolinx to the TTC, which will handle operations, staff training, and setting an opening date, currently estimated for early 2026. The project, which was originally promised to open in 2020, ran approximately $8 billion over budget and is considered by some to be a cautionary example of how P3 projects can go wrong. • Microsoft's $7.5 Billion Digital Sovereignty Investment: Microsoft has announced a significant digital sovereignty play in Canada, pledging $7.5 billion over the next two years to expand its Azure data centers in Toronto and Quebec City. This investment is part of a broader $19 billion commitment spanning from 2023 to 2027. Microsoft has also promised to keep Canadian government cloud services running even if foreign governments exert pressure to shut things off, addressing a major vulnerability identified by the Canadian government. • Cross-Border Betrayal Over Potash Export Terminal: Federal officials, including Transport Minister Steven McKinnon, are urgently meeting with the Saskatchewan-based fertilizer company Nutrien to persuade them to build a proposed $1 billion potash export terminal in Canada. Nutrien has instead chosen the US port of Longview in Washington state, just across the border from BC. BC Premier David Eby expressed serious frustration, stating that losing the deal "pissed me off" because he believes it was "entirely avoidable". This high-profile effort by Canadian officials may be a form of public pressure intended to keep the investment within Canada. • Ottawa Looks to Modify Tax Code to Lure Real Estate Investment: The federal government is reportedly examining tax tweaks to attract more foreign capital into Canadian real estate projects, focusing particularly on new rental construction due to the essentially frozen current development pipeline. Potential changes include adjustments to withholding tax rules for non-US investors and offering targeted tax incentives for purpose-built rentals. This comes after large international lenders walked away from deals because the existing withholding tax rules made the projects uneconomic. Developers have pushed back against policies like foreign buyer bans, arguing that foreign investment is crucial for financing condo and multi-family projects. • Bonus Story: Historical Fragments Uncovered in Halifax: Dredging work near Pier 6 in Halifax, conducted as part of the expansion of Irving Ship Building's yard, uncovered more than 100 fragments of the Mont Blanc. The Mont Blanc was the munitions-laden ship whose explosion in 1917 killed nearly 2,000 people, injured about 9,000 more, and leveled most of the north end of Halifax. At the time, this blast was the largest humanmade explosion in the pre-atomic age. The recovered car-sized chunk of history is set to go on display at the Naval Museum of Halifax.

This episode highlights: • BC has launched "Dash," a first-in-Canada digital platform designed to streamline design, zoning, review, and prefabricated construction. This tool allows developers to input land parcel details and building specifications to generate compliant 3D building plans within minutes. Dash is optimized for local zoning regulations and available BC manufactured materials. Developed collaboratively by BC Housing, Metro Vancouver, over a dozen BC-based architects and engineers, and 13 prefab home manufacturers. The platform is open source and free of user access fees. It forms part of BC's strategy to scale construction innovation and has potential for national adoption, though it is currently tailored to the BC regulatory environment. •The Ontario government has secured a $3.2 billion investment from Vianode, a Norway-based synthetic graphite manufacturer, to build a new production facility in St. Thomas, marking the company's entry into the North American market. •The Post, a landmark major heritage redevelopment in downtown Vancouver (originally a Canada Post office built in 1958), has been sold for approximately $1.1 billion to Pontag Gadilla. This transaction is considered one of the largest office transactions in the region's history. The building was transformed into a 1.1 million square foot office facility anchored by Amazon. While the price and buyer have not been officially confirmed by Quadreel, insiders note the sale. Quad Real plans to remain on as the property manager. The sale is speculated to be a strategy by the large developer to shuffle assets, create cash flow, pay off debt, or fund new rental projects amidst the real estate sector taking a hit. • Toronto Tower Sets New Record: Sky Tower at Pinnacle One Yonge in Toronto has reached its 100th floor, marking a major milestone as the first building in the nation to do so. The tower is heading toward a final height of 106 stories, which will make it the country's tallest building. Designed by Heri Pont Ptorini architects, the super-tall tower anchors a major mixed-use development on Toronto's eastern waterfront. It features about a thousand residential units, a major hotel, retail, extensive amenities, and future transit integration. Construction began in 2020, accelerated recently, with completion and resident move-in expected in about 2026. • Bonus Story: A high-stakes rescue in Calgary. The fire department successfully rescued a crane operator who experienced a medical emergency and could not descend from about 50 meters (approximately 16 stories) up at a downtown construction site. The 45-minute operation involved a technical rescue safety team using a rope system anchored at the top of the crane to lower the alert and conscious operator to the ground for treatment. This incident highlights the fire department's specialized skills in high-angle rescues using rope and vertical rescue techniques.

Nominate someone incredible in the construction industry today at: ⁠⁠siteserviceawards.com This episode highlights: • Land Rights on Shaky Ground in BC: A landmark ruling in BC concluded that the Kawichin have Aboriginal title to about 800 acres in Richmond, establishing this as a prior and senior right over fee simple title for private landownerWhile the BC Premier David Eby has appealed the decision and stated landowners should be concerned about the ruling potentially having national implications, legal representatives for the Kawichin Nation and the judge herself disagree, saying private property owners are unaffected. However, specialized attorneys argue that Aboriginal title and fee simple title are both absolute and cannot coexist or overlap. • Wood Fiber LNG Doubles Down on Flotels: The Wood Fiber LNG project in Squamish, BC, has secured approval to deploy a second floating accommodation vessel, the MV Saga X. This flotel will provide approximately 642 more rooms for skilled trades workers and create up to 900 additional jobs, serving to accelerate project construction and relieve pressure on local housing and services in the community, a concern raised during 2019 consultation. • Manitoba's Rental Housing Incentive Program: Manitoba launched a $176.5 million rental housing construction incentive program designed to encourage private and nonprofit developers to build new rental housing. The program offers refundable tax credits of $8,500 per unit, with an additional $5,000 available for affordable units. Projects must include at least four units and remain rental housing for a minimum of 10 years to qualify. • Ottawa's $2 Billion Critical Minerals Strategy: The federal government introduced a $2 billion critical minerals fund aimed at reducing reliance on China and supporting Western supply chains by stockpiling domestically produced graphite and scandium. This strategy benefits projects like Neuvo Mond graphite, which secured a federal offtake agreement including a price floor to enable the construction of its $550 million mine. The fund is also investing $25 million and agreeing to stockpile scandium from Rio Tinto's Scandium plant in Quebec—the only facility of its kind in North America. • Edmonton Manhunt for Construction Arsonist: Law enforcement in Edmonton is actively searching for a serial construction arsonist believed to be responsible for eight property fires targeting infill construction projects since September. As a result, developers are considering additional protective measures, such as cameras and patrols, and may face higher insurance and safety costs.

Nominate someone incredible today at: ⁠siteserviceawards.com⁠ This episode highlights: • Prompt Payment Legislation is advancing in BC with the introduction of Bill 20, the Construction Prompt Payment Act. If passed, the legislation will set clear payment timelines, requiring owners to pay general contractors within 28 days and contractors to pay subcontractors within 7 days, while also including an adjudication system for disputes.• Industry groups, including the BC Construction Association, the Vancouver Regional Construction Association, and the Electrical Contractors Association of BC, are celebrating the proposed law but are urging officials to avoid following Alberta's prior path of excluding some public sector projects. • Montreal-based Deep Sky has announced plans for a large-scale carbon removals facility in southwestern Manitoba. The initial phase of the project is valued at $200 million and is scheduled to begin construction in 2026. • The Deep Sky facility aims to capture 500,000 tons of CO2 annually when at full capacity, utilizing Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology powered by Manitoba's renewable hydroelectric grid. Performance data from the company's 3,000-ton per year Deep Sky Alpha facility in Alberta will inform the technology selection for the Manitoba site. • Metrolinx has initiated a 30-day final test, known as the revenue service demonstration, on Toronto's 19-kilometer Eglinton Cross Town LRT, which features 25 stops. The project, which began construction in 2011 and was originally slated to open in 2020, has faced repeated delays, technical issues, and cost overruns. • The project delays have drawn substantial public criticism, including calls for the Ontario government to launch a full public inquiry into the matter. • A consortium of Pomelo and Aecon has launched the next phase of the Port of Montreal expansion in Contrecoeur, a $69 million project which is positioned as Eastern Canada's largest container port development. The work includes constructing two berths totalling 675 meters to accommodate larger container ships, with operations expected to start around 2029. • PCL Construction is donating $1.5 million to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) to curate programming and education tools designed to help construction workers and their families address addiction and mental health challenges. This initiative responds to staggering statistics, including the fact that 64% of construction workers wish employers would do more to support mental health initiatives, and the industry represents nearly 8% of opioid toxicity deaths. • Plus, a bonus story reveals the secrets of the "subway deer," or Toronto Seros. This scientifically significant fossil fragment of a skull with antler stubs was uncovered in 1976 during excavation for a subway extension in Toronto's West End, and recent DNA analysis has resolved decades of debate regarding its relation to modern deer species.

This episode highlights: A new study on skilled trades: interest is strong, but white-collar preference and perceptions of physical demand are leading deterrents, emphasizing the crucial need to educate people about high-tech like drone piloting A major robotic partnership between Promise Robotics and Madame Homes Alberta integrates AI and a "factory as a service platform" into large-scale residential construction in Calgary, pushing the industry toward industrialization The federal government provides a $500 million loan to Al Steel—Canada's only independent steel maker and sole domestic military steel producer—to help it combat US tariffs and accelerate the adoption of electric arc furnaces The historic $660 million Canada Infrastructure Bank loan supports Irving Pulp and Paper's $1.5 billion Project NextGen modernization, representing the largest forestry investment in Canada since 1993. Plus, a bonus story spotlights a hard-hat-wearing hero who used a water tank truck to save the day during a fire in Three Fathom Harbor, Nova Scotia.