Post by Rick (Admin) on Apr 22, 2013 8:54:47 GMT -5
New Giant Tiger store on Lakeshore Drive in North Bay
Commercial sector going strong
Hundreds of people waited in snowy weather for the opening of the new Giant Tiger store on Lakeshore Drive Saturday morning.
According to store manger Sean Wilson, the first person to line up arrived shortly after 3 a.m., almost five hours before the doors opened. And by the time 8 a.m. rolled around, Wilson said a crowd of some 300 people had gathered outside the entrance.
“The response that North Bay has given us is phenomenal,” he said, noting the first 100 customers received a free gift card.
The opening featured a ribbon-cutting, speeches by local dignitaries, including Mayor Al McDonald and Nipissing-Timiskaming MP Jay Aspin, as well as a rock climbing wall and a charity barbeque to benefit the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of North Bay. The retailer, which prides itself on supporting such community groups, also presented the Gathering Place soup kitchen with a $1,000 donation.
Giant Tiger brands itself as a Canadian-owned family discount store, offering clothing, groceries and everyday needs. It has more than 200 locations across Canada, each of which are locally owned or operated.
The 1,710 square-metre North Bay location employs 50 people and is the first of several major commercial developments slated to open in the coming months.
The former Zellers store on Algonquin Avenue is currently being transformed into a new Target outlet, which is scheduled to open this summer and is expected to employ between 150 and 200 people. Also underway is work to expand Wal-Mart at the Northgate Shopping Centre by some 28,000-square-feet.
Mayor Al McDonald said the two projects are neck and neck and will likely be completed around the same time.
The Giant Tiger and Target stores, along with the Wal-Mart expansion are part of last year's total of about $70 million worth of development in the city – a figure that the city is predicting will be met again this year.
“Our commercial side is very strong,” said McDonald, noting building permits for that sector so far this year stand at about $7.6 million, up $1.2 million over the same time last year.
He said a number of commercial alteration or renovation projects are moving ahead this year including $100,000 worth of work at a doctor’s office, more than $400,000 at the Ontario Power Generation site on Eloy Road, $50,000 at the Union Gas offices in North Bay. In addition, McDonald said $200,000 is being spent to convert the former Habaneros Southwest Grill at Seymour and the bypass into a Wacky Wings; and that another $200,000 in being invested in the downtown to open a My Thai Palace restaurant.
He said other highlights include George Stockfish Ford Sales Ltd. on Highway 17, which is spending $1.5 million to build a new dealership on the site, as well as Canadore College's $730,000 investment at its Commerce Court campus to create its new Innovation Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Production (ICAMP).
“Our city is doing very well,” said McDonald, noting several other projects could also potentially move ahead this year, including another major commercial development on the site adjacent to Canadian Tire on Mckeown Avenue.
www.nugget.ca/2013/04/21/commercial-sector-going-strong