Everybody wins
Golpro Holdings Inc. is an Ottawa-based commercial real estate company known for revitalizing heritage buildings and focusing on tenant experience. Since acquiring their first property in 2014, they have grown consistently and greatly expanded both their portfolio and their capabilities. Today, they are capable of managing all aspects of real estate acquisitions, lease administration, construction development, asset and multi-residential building management. In addition to developing and managing their own properties, they now also offer construction development services to third party developers and property management services to other property owners. Golpro was initially founded by principal Goldy Singh, who comes from a background in the financial sector. His vision was to acquire and hold real estate long-term, and then find ways to create efficiencies within each building that would save on operating costs while also enhancing the tenant experience. To execute that vision, he brought on Bill Sioulas as director of real estate. Bill has five decades of hands-on experience in commercial leasing, market analysis, marketing and construction project management. He previously worked at another company that owned and managed a vast portfolio of commercial, industrial and retail spots in Ottawa, and he and Goldy met when Goldy purchased one of those properties, on the corner of Clyde and Baseline. After closing, Bill recalls that Goldy met with all the tenants of the property, and the tenants all said some variation of “I hope you run it as well as Bill does.” That inspired Goldy to arrange a sitdown and then officially recruit Bill in June 2015. In the years since, Golpro Holdings has moved GOLPRO HOLDINGS
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GOLPRO HOLDINGS quickly, growing in size and gaining prestige. After that first building – a one-storey retail plaza with a total of 20,000 square feet on Clyde Avenue – they acquired Mercury Court, a beautiful 75,000-square-foot heritage building on the corner of Dalhousie and Rideau. They ended up investing heavily in that building, adding modern technology and improving the energy-efficiency while still retaining the building’s historic charm. For their efforts, they received an award in 2022 at The Outstanding Building of the Year (TOBY) Awards, held by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) of Ottawa. In 2019, Golpro Holdings also acquired 207 Queen Street, the Trafalgar building located on the corner of Queen and Bank. This 115-year-old five-storey property has gone through similar upgrades as Mercury Court. Over the following years, the company continued to acquire and rehabilitate commercial and office buildings throughout Ottawa. Eventually, they also entered the multi-residential sector, picking up their first multi-unit (55 units) apartment building at 305 Metcalfe in the city’s Golden Triangle neighbourhood. They then entered the industrial market with 830 Campbell Avenue, a one-acre property in the commercial portion of Carling Area. Then COVID hit. “We slowed down after 2021 and focused on our existing buildings,” Bill says. “We focused on helping our tenants out through the pandemic. And I’m proud to say, we didn’t lose any of our tenants. They all stayed with us.”
THE CONSTRUCTION SOURCE CANADA Recently, Golpro’s has grown mostly in terms of their service offering. As previously mentioned, they have diversified into the field of construction project management, extending their services to third party construction development of restaurants, fast food and other retail leasehold improvement projects. Similarly, the company has also expanded to provide third party real estate management services to owners of commercial, industrial, retail and multi-residential properties throughout Ottawa and surrounding regions. Their tenant and property services include: income enrichment; cost control; preventative maintenance; security and life safety; risk and environmental management; full-service accounting; reporting and banking; and the management and coordination of capital costs. As a property manager, Golpro’s track record is exemplary – according to Bill, all of the tenants he started working with when he joined the company 10 years ago he’s still working with today. He credits that loyalty to the company’s emphasis on communication and their proactivity. Not only do they resolve issues when tenants bring them up, but they often interview tenants and ask for feedback. If they learn that there are amenities the tenants believe could help them attract the best talent for their business, they will often produce those amenities. Additionally, if Bill notices a problem, he will do his best to fix it, even if the tenant doesn’t specifically request it. For example, he recently noticed some
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seniors in one of his buildings struggling with the bathroom door. In response, he installed a system that allowed residents to open the door with a tap of their phone. The response from the tenants, especially the seniors, was extremely positive. “I saw a few seniors were having difficulties, so I took it upon myself to make their life easier,” Bill says. “I saw there was an issue, and without even the tenant complaining about it, I went and fixed it. I think that kind of thing leads to retention.” As Bill mentioned, Golpro even retained all their tenants throughout the challenges of the pandemic. To achieve that, they had to get creative when it came to helping them out. For instance, during COVID when their restaurant tenants lacked patrons, they decided to donate money to shelters that the shelters used to buy food. “For example, we would go to the Shepherds of Good Hope and donate $10,000. Then every Friday, we would have some of our restaurant tenants supply food for the homeless, and they would invoice the shelter, at a discounted rate, and the shelter would draw from the $10,000 we donated. So we were helping our tenants and helping the homeless – everybody wins.” “We could have sat back and said ‘Tough, pay me the rent or you lose,’ like many landlords did,” Bill adds. “Instead, we asked ourselves ‘How can we get creative to help our tenants?’” Bill believes kind of creativity and care is a big THE CONSTRUCTION SOURCE CANADA
part of what sets Golpro apart as a property manager. As a construction manager, meanwhile, he believes Golpro stands out due to the strong relationships they have formed over the years with their tradespeople and suppliers. As a result of those relationships, he says they are able mobilize fast and get work done quickly and efficiently. They earn that speediness from trades and suppliers by staying loyal to them, and by paying them promptly every time. “When I call them and I say ‘Look, I need this done right away,’ they’re usually there within the hour,” Bill says. “I think a big reason for that is because I have a policy that I pay all my trades within 10 days. They really appreciate that, and they show up for me in return. Again, it’s a winwin relationship.” One example of a key supplier would be Cash & Carry Carpet Centre, a locally owned and operated company with more than two decades of experience. They are a company known in the Ottawa area as a leading source of high quality flooring materials, with an extensive offering that includes selections of vinyl, laminate, tile, and hardwood flooring. Much like Golpro Holdings does with their tenants, Cash & Carry strives to go above and beyond to ensure that all their customers’ needs are met. When Golpro finds partners who demonstrate that kind of commitment, they do their best to stick with them. GOLPRO HOLDINGS
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Finitiative To date, Golpro Holdings has grown their own portfolio mainly through acquisitions and rehabilitations of existing buildings. Moving forward, that’s going to change, as they are currently in the process of developing their very first development from scratch. That project will comprise two apartment towers built the original Clyde property that Goldy first acquired in 2014. Those towers will include a combined 525 residential units, as well as some retail space on the ground floor and some additional office space. That will introduce more density to the street, which will soon be home to a new stop as a result of the city’s O-Train Extension. The property had to be rezoned to accommodate that density, but that turned out not to be an impediment – the plans reflect exactly the city wants to see in that area, and the rezoning application was passed unanimously by city council earlier this year. GOLPRO HOLDINGS
1356-1366 Clyde Avenue Ottawa www.golproholdings.com THE CONSTRUCTION SOURCE CANADA
Construction on that project is not set to commence immediately, however, as there are currently a lot of market uncertainties due to factors like tariffs and the fluctuating costs of materials. Bill wants to be sure that “if we’re going to start, we’re going to finish it.” “One word I always use in conversations with my trades my staff is ‘finitiative,’” Bill explains. “Whatever we initiate, we have to finish. That word seems to be spreading around Ottawa, and I like it a lot. Because you can have all the initiative you want, but if you don’t finish, it’s useless. Finishing is what’s important.” As that project nears commencement, Golpro Holdings intends to stay busy. Over the next three to five years, their goal is to continue acquiring properties that fit their criteria, continue to improve the numbers of their existing portfolio, and to continue growing the construction management side of the company, which is thriving. The company’s vision also includes expanding the expertise and capabilities of their staff – right now, Bill says they are paying for some junior staff members to take courses with the Real Estate Institute of Canada and the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) in Chicago, so they will one day be capable of expanding their authority and career in real estate. “We’re really proud of the work we do and the reputation we’ve built for providing really great tenant experiences,” Bill says. “We hope to keep providing those experiences for many years to come.” GOLPRO HOLDINGS halpenny.com (613) 722-7626 | info@halpenny.com Insurance - Benefits - Consulting Trusted insurance specialists providing customized risk management and insurance solutions since 1912.
THE CONSTRUCTION SOURCE CANADA For more on Golpro Holdings, their capabilities, their properties, and their community engagement – and to get in touch with their expert team – visit https://golproholdings.com/
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