Windsor downtown eyed by London developer Shmuel Farhi

By Doug Schmidt, The Windsor Star April 29, 2010

London developer Shmuel Farhi has taken over a city centre parking garage and is promising more downtown Windsor property acquisitions in the near future.

“You’re going to hear some more news shortly,” Farhi told The Star Wednesday.

The multi-storey parking garage located on Pitt Street east of the new bus terminal was built by Windsor businessman Bill Docherty in the 1980s but fell into receivership five years ago. Farhi Holdings Corp., which owns more than 150 commercial properties across Southwestern Ontario, will invest more than a million dollars on upgrading the structure, which can accommodate 730 vehicles over seven floors of parking, Farhi said.

As part of the sale that closed at 5 p.m. Tuesday, the municipality received a cheque for $385,136.20 as settlement of a long-standing dispute over the parking garage’s encroachment over city-owned property on Chatham Street, according to city solicitor George Wilkki.

“I think it’s a great news story … it shows interest in investing in the downtown core,” said Windsor Family Credit Union president and CEO Marty Komsa.

The WFCU was the mortgage holder when the property went into receivership in October 2005. At the time, the property was owned by a numbered company, 658686 Ontario Ltd., and the garage was operated by a second company, Centre Parking Ltd. Partnership, with both corporate entities controlled by Docherty.

The deal, and Farhi’s promise of more to come in Windsor’s downtown, comes in the same week as local developers Joe and Lou Mikhail announced they are looking at selling off their sizeable local commercial holdings.

“You’re in a good city. I like Windsor … I have faith in this city,” said Farhi.

With his sizeable portfolio centred on holdings in London, Farhi made his first Windsor move in 2005 with the $8-million purchase of a 100-acre industrial property on Lauzon Road, site of the former Lear plant. The car parts manufacturer folded a short time later, but Farhi then traded 40 acres of the land in 2006 to the city for its new arena, in exchange for a prime 1.1-acre site west of the Art Gallery of Windsor plus $1.5 million in cash.

Farhi said in a recent interview he had “very, very exciting news” for Windsor’s downtown, and on Wednesday he said he’ll be announcing his fourth and fifth Windsor acquisitions within the next 30 days.

“I can’t divulge anything,” he said when asked what his plans are. Pressed on the subject, he would only add: “We’re working on something very interesting.”

He said he’s excited about St. Clair College coming to the downtown. He said a downtown canal proposed by the mayor a year ago, but which has since fallen off the political radar screen, “would be a tremendous asset” in helping transform the city core from its current “derelict” state.

Describing Farhi as “quite visionary,” Downtown Windsor BIA chairman Ron Balla said this week’s news, along with the announcement a week ago of Investors Group moving into the Chrysler Canada building and the upcoming opening of St. Clair’s new mediaplex, are all part of a “momentum” swing underway in the core.

“I think it’s fantastic news, all these people looking to reinvest in our core … I think the tide is turning,” said Balla.

The payment to the city as part of this week’s Farhi sale does not deal with an outstanding breach-of-contract claim the city is pursuing legally against Docherty over parking space rental payments allegedly owed the municipality from the Pitt Street garage, which totalled $770,000 as of Tuesday, said Wilkki.

There have been rumours for months that Farhi Holdings Corp. has been actively acquiring, or negotiating for, more downtown Windsor properties to add to its portfolio.

But Farhi, who has been seen flitting about Windsor in recent weeks, including in the company of Mayor Eddie Francis and top city officials, isn’t telling.

“I’m not a patient guy, but I’m a patient investor,” he said.

Farhi indicated he has bigger plans than the size of his property west of the art gallery — for which a city tax holiday expires this spring — suggests. “I don’t want to build a little shop there,” he said.