Monthly Archives: October 2014

City Planners, Developers and Community Activists— The Growing Imbalance, Democratic Abuse, and Re-Engineering Approvals Introduction Once upon a time, town government or city-state government was based on the Athenian model of participatory democracy. Citizens and land owners met with town elders to plan the development of their communities—who lives where, what type of activities would […]

Urban planning is an oxymoron. This email from a local City of Ottawa planner proves it. In response to a plea for help and direction from a developer for a vacant site for which she is unsure what its highest and best use is, the planner wrote– “Good morning, Sally*. Our role at the City […]

For each real estate project you undertake, you should have the discipline to take these steps: 1. Highest and best use analysis 2. Functional program 3. Concept plan 4. Differentiation 5. Business model 6. Budget 7. Financial analysis (IRR) 8. Finance plan 9. Marketing plan 10. Cost control plan 11. CPM, critical path schedule 12. Launch […]

Bruce M Firestone, in his upcoming speech entitled Tired of Poor Returns? for Canadian Real Estate Wealth Magazine’s InvestorForum (held March 28 and 29th, 2015 at The International Centre in Toronto), shares his secrets on how to develop successful real estate investment alternatives. Bruce is a Canadian legend who founded the modern era Ottawa Senators […]