✊ Talent Thursdays: Land grab

Good morning! ⚽ Does this mean fewer red cards? FIFA World Cup 2026 is set to get its own bylaw in Vancouver. It includes relaxing rules to allow for the erection of temporary buildings and structures, the prompt removal of graffiti, management of noise and installation of temporary signs.

📈 BY THE NUMBERS

Canada’s construction firms are forgoing innovation due to the onslaught of day-to-day operational demands. New Intuit QuickBooks data shows that one in four construction leaders point to overwhelming operational work as their biggest barrier, with financing uncertainty and limited leadership bandwidth close behind. More than 80% of firms say they abandoned at least one idea this year — and nearly half walked away from three to five potential innovations.

👷‍♀️ PEOPLE MOVES

Chris Kalesnikoff has been promoted to President and Chief Executive Officer of Kalesnikoff Lumber Company and Kalesnikoff Mass Timber Inc., effective January 1, 2026, marking the fourth generation of family leadership. Krystle Seed has been promoted to Chief Financial and Strategic Services Officer.

Stephanie Hun has been promoted to Vice President of Business Development at FlatironDragados.

Jeff McKinnon has joined Prodigy Group as Senior Director, Corporate Strategy, where he will focus on client strategy, stakeholder management, and overall organizational growth.

Matt Dalkie is now Senior Director - Industrial Decarbonization and Sustainability at the Cement Association of Canada.

Jack Keokanock has been appointed Executive Vice President at Yellowridge Construction Ltd.

Matt Rubuliak has joined Caliber as their Marketing & Communications Manager after five years at SitePartners.

Justin Ferreira has been appointed Vice President, Modular Solutions at ATCO Structures, where he will lead the company's team of industry experts.

Sydney V. has joined Timescapes as Director of Global Marketing. She will lead marketing efforts for the construction tech company's reality capture solution that helps teams track and communicate project progress.

AWARDS

Site Service Awards close tomorrow

This is the final call to get your nominations in for the Site Service Awards. Friday is the last day. Seize this opportunity to highlight an exceptional industry professional before an audience of hundreds of thousands across the entire SiteMedia network. Nominate them below, now.

🗞 HEADLINES

Nuclear option: ⚛️ Ontario has approved a $26.8-billion refurbishment of Pickering’s four CANDU reactors, extending their life by up to 38 years, generating 30,500 construction jobs, and sustaining 6,700 operational jobs. The project will keep over 90% of spending in Canada and add an estimated $41.6-billion to GDP

$8B by 2050: 👷🏻‍♀️Labour shortages in residential construction are driving up housing costs and insurance claims, according to a report by The Conference Board of Canada. Skilled trades vacancies have grown at an average rate of 11% annually and could create a shortage of 32,000 workers by mid-century. The shortfall would increase residential construction prices by 2.3% and add $7.9 billion annually to repair and renovation costs.

Streamlined: 🤝 The federal government has reached draft co-operation agreements with Ontario and Manitoba to streamline the review process for major resource and infrastructure projects. Operating under the "one project, one review" mantle, these agreements significantly devolve authority by allowing provinces to take the lead role in environmental assessments and Indigenous consultation, thereby reducing regulatory overlap and speeding up Canada's notoriously slow approvals system. 

Land grab: 🚄To speed up work on Alto, a Quebec City-to-Toronto high-speed rail project, the Liberal government is changing expropriation laws, removing a landowner's right to a hearing on objections. Critics argue this undermines property rights and increases the likelihood of costly planning mistakes. Alto would see trains travel 1,000 km between the cities at 300 km/h on an electrified rail network.

🧠 INSIGHTS AND LEADERSHIP

Resources for professional development

• How ‘open loops’ drain your energy

• Christmas gift ideas for trades workers

• CPA: Mastering construction cash flow

• Why your pitch decks suck

• Are workers actually excited about AI?

💬 QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Through the economies of scale brought on by standardization, CDPQ Infra is delivering rapid transit for a cost that is a degree of magnitude lower than what other North American systems are paying. The REM is already transforming life for Montrealers. It’s time for a serious conversation about what it could do for Canadians in other cities.” - Taras Grescoe, author of Straphanger: Saving Our Cities and Ourselves from the Automobile

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Here’s to a great rest of the week!

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