A two-year-old Vancouver company opened the “world’s greenest parking facility” in Denver last week and plans to open similar lots across Canada and the United States.
Greenscape Capital Group Inc.’s flagship project at the Denver International Airport will test whether the company’s green approach to building parking lots attracts drivers and whether it’s profitable in the long term after factoring in the higher upfront costs required to install more efficient infrastructure.
November 30-December 6
Weather that frustrated Okanagan winemakers in the summer has turned out to be a boon for B.C. dessert wine producers this fall.
That’s not only because the fall included the November 22 deep freeze, which resulted in the Okanagan’s second-earliest-ever ice wine grape harvest (in 2003, winemakers harvested grapes on November 5).
The fall also included damp weather that fluctuated in temperature enough for the desirable botrytis fungus to flourish in parts of the usually dry region.
Okanagan Falls-based Wild Goose Vineyards principal Roland Kruger said his winery is making its first totally affected botrytis wine in six years.
November 30-December 6
Business in Vancouver takes a closer look at Vancouver-based Taseko Mines’ proposed Prosperity project, the fate of which will have a huge impact on B.C.’s mining industry.
The company says the $800 million mine would stimulate billions of dollars in economic activity in a part of the province badly in need of it, but Ottawa rejected the project citing environmental concerns. In the first instalment of its four-part Chasing Prosperity series, BIV takes a trip to the Fish Lake site of the mine to get a first-hand look at that environment.
November 30-December 6
The forest sector’s downturn and costly union contracts have B.C.’s tugboat and barge industry on course to sink or swim.
Four years ago, log hauling accounted for 85% to 90% of West Coast Tug and Barge’s business.
Last year, it hit a rock-bottom 5%.
Lukas Olsen, general manager of the Campbell River-based operation, said staying afloat means taking any work the company can get.
But another problem has emerged.
Many “mom and pop” tugboat operators have slashed their prices so low that established companies have trouble landing contracts worth their time.
December 7-13
Real estate industry insiders say the City of Vancouver is making a huge mistake by marketing former Olympic Village condo units the same way as troubled developer Millennium Development Corp. did.
The city assumed ownership of the development after Millennium defaulted on multiple loan payments and the project went into receivership on November 17.
Staying the course on the marketing strategy, they say, will hurt taxpayers because it will keep the city from realizing maximum financial return from the development.
Few advocate renting the market condos to generate short-term revenue and populate the neighbourhood.
December 7-13
The plan by struggling Langley plant and vegetable grower Bevo Agro to build five new acres of greenhouse space has raised eyebrows among fellow growers who fear for the future of the $600 million B.C. greenhouse sector.
Greenhouse growers have been rattled in recent years by B.C.’s high agricultural land prices, a strong Canadian dollar and the cost of upgrading facilities to battle a growing number of U.S. competitors.
“You can see that [Bevo Agro’s] financials are never showing a lot of profit,” said Darvonda Nurseries Ltd. principal Byron Jansen. “It definitely does seem a little odd to me.”
December 14-20
Growing up in Burnaby, Cliff Ronning was told he was too small to play pro.
After hanging up his skates in 2004, Ronning sought ways to pass his knowledge of the game on to a new generation of players. He launched Base Hockey Labs in Burnaby’s Lake City Business Centre earlier this year.
December 14-20
Ballard Power Systems Inc. CCO Michael Goldstein admits that the Burnaby-based company’s fuel cell-power bus fleet in Whistler would have been impossible without the right team of public- and private-sector partners.
Pitching in on the technological aspects of creating the world’s largest fuel cell bus fleet were companies like Winnipeg-based bus maker New Flyer Industries Inc. and San Diego-based electric drive maker ISE Ltd.
BC Transit was the forward-thinking customer that led the project; the provincial and federal governments helped finance it.
December 14-20