OPG sells Kipling lands for $200 million
Ontario Power Generation Inc. (OPG) sold a property in Etobicoke to Kinectrics and the City of Toronto.
Sold through a competitive process, the 800 Kipling Avenue site measures approximately 76 acres and includes approximately 750,000 square feet of buildings. As part of the sale, the site has been severed to accommodate uses for both purchasers.
The sale closed on October 31.
“The Kipling Avenue site has served our employees and company well. We are pleased it will be home to businesses focused on transportation electrification and nuclear technology, as both will be critical to growing a clean economy,” said OPG President and CEO, Ken Hartwick.
The Kipling complex currently houses offices, records storage and training spaces.
The total selling price is $200 million.
Kinectrics, a growing electricity life-cycle management solutions company, will continue to operate and grow its business at the site. Doing so will eliminate any need for the company to rebuild facilities for the foreseeable future.
The City of Toronto, meanwhile, will utilize the southern parcel for the Toronto Transit Commission’s (TTC’s) future electric bus facility. The city will also take ownership of lands to the north of the Kinectrics parcel for future city services.
"The acquisition of the 800 Kipling Avenue site will serve as the City's ongoing commitment to its wider climate action goals," said Mayor John Tory. "The future TTC electric bus facility aligns with the City's TransformTO Net Zero Strategy and is an investment in the future of our city."
The TTC's 2021-2035 Capital Investment Plan and Real Estate Investment Plan identified a tenth garage and maintenance facility as being required within the next 10 to 15 years. That facility will be home to TTC’s expanding battery electric bus fleet. In the shorter term, the property will allow the TTC to accommodate its industrial warehousing space needs and reduced operating costs as existing leases expire.
“As our bus fleet continues to grow, the facility at 800 Kipling will be essential for the TTC's maintenance and storage needs,” said TTC Chair Jaye Robinson. “It will also support our expanded electric bus fleet as we work towards our ambitious goal to become 100% zero emissions by 2040."
OPG is consolidating all non-station-based staff at a corporate headquarters in Durham Region in an effort to save costs and promote collaboration and innovation.
The organization will lease back a portion of the space to accommodate employees until the new consolidated campus is ready for occupancy. Other existing leases at Kipling will transfer to the new owners of the properties.