Behind The Deal: Diamond, Tricon And RioCan Join Forces On Summerhill Redevelopment

Diamond Corp, Tricon Capital Group and RioCan REIT are partnering on redevelopment of a one-acre site at Yonge and Price streets, just south of the landmark Summerhill LCBO. Stephen Diamond tells us more.

We snapped Stephen at Diamond's St. Clair East HQ last Friday, a day after closing the $85M deal. He explains it comprises two separate transactions. Diamond and Tricon paid $43M to acquire the under-utilized site just south of the LCBO from Woodcliffe Landmark Properties, and are planning a mixed-use project with residential (potentially a luxury apartment building) and retail. In a related deal, RioCan and Tricon paid $42M to buy The Shops of Summerhill, a 31k SF Yonge-facing stretch. They intend to maintain the buildings—revitalized by heritage specialists Woodcliffe—just the way they are.

“Opportunities like this don’t come along every day,” Stephen tells us, stressing that while the prime Summerhill property boasts enormous redevelopment potential, “we don’t have a particular vision for the lands at this point.” A former municipal planning lawyer whose firm is involved in development of The Well and the Celestica site at Don Mills and Eglinton, Stephen makes it clear that community and councillors will be consulted before putting pen to paper on Summerhill plans. “Nothing’s been pre-determined,” including building heights and densities. “We want to do something that’s complementary to the neighbourhood.”

The Shops of Summerhill, above, will remain, but 8-10 Price St—the latter housing The Beer Store—are to be replaced. Stephen says he’s partial to the idea of creating a “Carnaby Street-like” retail experience, with shops and eateries at the base of buildings lining a pedestrian-friendly promenade. “The site provides great flexibility in terms of how it’s massed.” He notes his firm—also behind Five St. Joseph and Garrison Point, near Liberty Village—isn’t in the business of long-term holds on retail, hence why he enticed RioCan (which is in the midst of amassing a portfolio of premium downtown assets) to buy The Shops of Summerhill.

Having Canada’s largest REIT on board to manage the retail asset made it attractive for Diamond to move forward on the redevelopment land with Tricon, notes Stephen, adding Diamond previously sold Tricon The Selby on Bloor condo site—now a purpose-built rental project—and 57 Spadina. An “ultra luxury” rental building is a possibility for the Summerhill property (the iconic LCBO is seen above). “We think (a high-end rental building) could make a lot of sense for the area," he says, quickly reiterating it’s early days yet. “We still have a long way to go.”