Niagara housing market likely to suffer in wake of U.S. economic downturn

NIAGARA REGION — With the U.S. in a full blown recession, Niagara’s housing market is predicted to feel the heat, according to Robin Eaglesham, Treasury Manager for Meridian Credit Union.

“The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), in their Second Quarter Housing Market Outlook, indicated that they expect the Niagara and Windsor housing markets to cool over the remainder of 2008 and under-perform the provincial average due to our exposures to the U.S. economy,” said Eaglesham.

Despite predictions for a cool off in the housing market, temperatures are still moderate, noted Eaglesham. According CMHC, April housing starts in Niagara were up 46 percent in April 2008 compared to April 2007 and housing starts for the first four months of 2008 are running 44 percent higher than the same period in 2007.

Last month, Niagara lost 500 jobs and the number of new job seekers increased, driving the local unemployment rate to 6.8 percent—a half point above the provincial average of 6.5 percent.

Despite this, employment growth in Niagara still out paced provincial averages.

“Year-over-year employment growth in Niagara of 3.5 percent is still running above the provincial growth rate of 2.2 percent for twelve months ended in April,” said Eaglesham. Statistics Canada reported that employment grew by a further 19,000 jobs nationally in April.

Big Becky’s progress is a real grind

BY CHRIS MILLS The Business Executive

NIAGARA FALLS — The Ontario Power Generation’s Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM), better known as Big Becky, has encountered loose rock in its 10.4 kilometre underground journey around Niagara Falls creating headaches and delays.

Already set back a year from its preliminary completion date in 2009, speculation now ranges from 2010 to 2012.

OPG had hoped for an average drilling rate of 15 metres a day, but the TBM has thus far managed an average of only 2.6 metres a day. Among the issues is loose rock in the tunnel falling behind Big Becky as she passes.

“The schedule will remain uncertain until the tunnel boring machine is past the challenging rock conditions under the buried St. David’s Gorge and establishes consistent tunneling performance,” says Sr. Communications Advisor Bill McKinlay in an email exchange. “When that happens our contractor, Strabag, will be in a better position to update the schedule.”

Currently, Big Becky has dug about 2.1 kilometres, about one-fifth of the distance, that will connect the Sir Adam Beck
generating stations to the upper Niagara River, south of Dufferin Islands in a $630 million expansion of electricity production in Niagara.

A team of three independent experts has been called in to review the drilling to see where mistakes may have occurred and how they can be addressed. They will consult with OPG and Strabag in June so that an announcement of the overrunning costs and schedule will be released in July. TBE