A vast retail development project that was to be constructed on 10-acres of land near Victoria International Airport in Sidney has been cancelled.
Omicron Development Inc. said on Monday that they will not be moving forward with the $35 million project due to rising construction costs and significant off-site infrastructure requirements like a pedestrian overpass, which are required as part of the re-zoning of the project lands.
The proposed 100,000 square ft. development called ‘Sidney Crossing’ would have encompassed 10 retail stores and was to be located at the intersection of Pat Bay Highway and Beacon Avenue.
“Timelines are critical success factors in the development business”, said Bill Tucker, CEO, Omicron Development Inc.
“The approvals necessary for this project regrettably took longer than any of us anticipated, resulting in a significant escalation of development costs. Standing down on this project is very disappointing and an extremely difficult decision for our firm.”
Tucker stated that this outcome is something that nobody foresaw, after the Town of Sidney and Victoria Airport Authority spent a significant amount of time ensuring that Sidney Crossing would be beneficial to the community.
Omicron’s announcement came just days after the 2018 civic elections in which incumbent mayor Steve Price was defeated by his opponent Cliff McNeil-Smith by a whopping 79.7% of the votes.
