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Good morning! 🦸 Forget a cape. Some heroes wear high-vis vests. In Three Fathom Harbour, N.S., construction worker Gordie Spares became a local hero after spotting a neighbor’s shed fire threatening multiple homes. Without hesitation, he used a water tank to douse flames until firefighters arrived.

⏰ Today’s read: 5 minutes

MARKETS

Economy: Deloitte Canada’s fall economic outlook projects modest GDP growth of 1.1% in 2025 and 1.6% in 2026, driven by lower interest rates, federal spending, and business investment, but warns the recovery hinges on maintaining tariff exemptions under the USMCA amid tense trade negotiations with Washington.

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Innovation Summit: Can you find Kyle?

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NEED TO KNOW

The week's headlines

⛏️ American interest: Lithium Americas shares nearly doubled after the Trump administration proposed taking an equity stake in the Vancouver-based miner as part of renegotiating a $2.2 billion Department of Energy loan for its Thacker Pass lithium project in Nevada. The first phase of Thacker Pass, a joint venture with General Motors, is expected to begin operations in late 2027 and would become one of North America’s largest lithium sources, critical for EV batteries. 

🎨 New artistic direction: The Vancouver Art Gallery has selected Formline Architecture + Urbanism and KPMB Architects to design its long-awaited new facility. The takeover comes nearly a year after the gallery abandoned its previous $600-million plan by Herzog & de Meuron. Interim co-CEOs emphasized community consultation and cultural inclusivity, with a new conceptual design expected in 2026, marking the city’s largest cultural infrastructure project in over 30 years.

⌛ Getting ahead: Construction on Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway between Dufferin Street and Strachan Avenue is running six months ahead of schedule, with completion now expected before the city hosts FIFA World Cup matches in June 2026. Originally slated for 2027, the $73-million provincially accelerated project began in early 2024 and has benefited from 24/7 work, favorable weather, and smooth problem-solving. 

🏠 Like it’s 1990: Toronto’s condominium market is slowing, with falling sales, rising inventories, and some project cancellations, but Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) expects the downturn to be milder than the early-1990s crash. Strong pre-sale requirements, low mortgage arrears, and a structural housing shortage are cushioning the market, while higher interest rates mainly affect pandemic-era projects.

THE BIG STORY

Shielding Canada’s industrial core

Canada is moving to keep steel, forest products, and other heavy industries competitive as U.S. tariffs raise costs and uncertainty. The play is simple: de-risk major retrofits, lock in cleaner/cheaper power, and speed approvals so upgrades happen here—not across the border.

Battle hardened: Algoma Steel has secured $500 million in federal and provincial loans to help the company weather a U.S. steel tariff dispute that has slashed its exports. Ottawa is providing $400 million through the Large Enterprise Tariff Loan program, with Ontario contributing an additional $100 million, supporting Canada’s only independent steelmaker and its roughly 2,800 employees in Sault-Ste-Marie.

Strong roots: In another major industrial play this week, Canada Infrastructure Bank announced it will provide a $660 million loan to support Irving Pulp & Paper’s $1.5 billion modernization of its Saint John mill, the largest forestry investment in Canada since 1993

Why it matters: Canada doesn’t want to lose local industrial giants like Algoma, the nation’s last remaining independent steelmaker. But with 60% of its business going to the U.S. (now decimated by tariffs), the funds will go towards major plant upgrades that allow it to scale production up and down far easier.

Broader effort: These efforts are just the tip of the iceberg. Broader measures include financing through EDC and BDC, a Large Enterprise Tariff Loan Facility for liquidity, and the Strategic Innovation Fund earmarks up to $1B for steel sector modernization, complemented by workforce training supports and procurement policies favouring Canadian steel. Forestry has received up to $1.2B in aid. More broadly, a $5B Strategic Response Fund has been launched to help trade-exposed firms adapt. Together, these moves aim to strengthen industrial resilience.

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

Digging deep

Metro Vancouver has substantially completed the Second Narrows Water Supply Tunnel, a 6.5-metre-diameter, one-kilometre-long route beneath the Burrard Inlet that houses three new steel water mains designed to withstand a one-in-10,000-year earthquake. Crews used a slurry tunnel boring machine, and tie-ins to the existing system are ongoing, with full service expected by 2028.

PROJECT UPDATES

Gordie Howe bridge to wrap work in next 90 days

Bird selected for ‘major hospital project’ in Ontario

New GO train station to open in east Hamilton

Chignecto Isthmus project completion date unclear

Saskatoon spa set to begin construction in 2026

Charlottetown approves funding to expand park

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

🚧 PHOTOS: Bangkok sinkhole captures global attention

🚛 READ: Trump tariff’s foreign made heavy trucks

🏗️ VIDEO: Touring Toronto’s biggest mass timber condo project

🎙️ PODCAST: Digging In recaps the week’s biggest headlines

🏆 AWARDS: Canadian wood design winners announced

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Here’s to a great rest of the week!

Disclaimer: SiteNews is an independently-operated news website. Views expressed are that of the editorial team and are based on publicly available information unless otherwise noted through sponsored content.