VANCOUVER, May 21, 2019 /CNW/ - CIBT Education Group Inc.
(TSX: MBA, OTCQX International: MBAIF) ("CIBT" or the "Company") is
pleased to provide the following updates relating to its Education
Mega Center® project in Surrey, B.C.
By November 6th, 2017,
GEC Education Mega Center® ("EMC") had received Advisory
Design Panel and first, second and third reading approvals by
Surrey City council. The meeting
minutes of Surrey City council are
available at
www.surrey.ca/bylawsandcouncillibrary/MIN_RCPH_2017_11_06.pdf.
Since the granting of these approvals, the Company has been working
with the developer to complete the review and negotiation on a
series of legal documents, usage agreements, as well as an
increasing development cost and construction budget.
After nearly two years of working with project engineers,
architects, construction professionals and a series of
value-engineering efforts, the Company and the developer have
executed a third amendment (the "Third Amendment") to the original
Purchase and Development Agreement that was signed on May 2nd, 2017. The Third Amendment
modified certain business terms and provided for a modified design
of EMC. The modified design allowed the height and square
footage of the building to be modestly reduced, with the goal of
constructing a within-budget and higher efficiency
building.
EMC was originally designed as a high-rise with 55 floors,
550,000 square foot concrete mixed-use tower with schools, offices,
hotels and market rental apartments. The modified design will
result in a slightly shorter building and proportionately reduced
square footage. By reducing the building height and square footage,
complemented by value engineering, it is expected that there will
be a reduction in the overall construction cost of the EMC project
from that originally forecasted, and the Company anticipates
meeting the original budget of approximately $275 million.
The Third Amendment also provides that GEC Education Mega Center
Limited Partnership will acquire title to the land on or before
August 15th, 2019 for
$22.6 million or $41 per buildable square foot. As a
comparison, a property adjacent to the EMC project was sold for
$106 per buildable square foot in
December 2018.
In the coming months, the Company will work closely with the
developer to complete the value-engineering process as soon as
feasible, re-apply to the City of
Surrey with an amended application and seek updated
approvals expeditiously.
About the Education Mega Center®:
GEC Education Mega Center® is being re-designed to
accommodate over 900 residential tenants, commercial spaces for 5 –
10 schools and plenty of amenities. In addition to serving the
education community located within GEC Education Mega
Center®, the building will also serve students attending
neighbouring academic institutions such as Simon Fraser University (Surrey) campus and Kwantlen Polytechnic
University at the Surrey Civic Plaza. These facilities are
conveniently located across the street from the GEC Education Mega
Center® site. Also, Douglas College Surrey
Training Centre and Sprott Shaw
College (Surrey) are
located within 1.5KM from the GEC Education Mega Center®
site.
About CIBT Education Group:
CIBT Education Group Inc. is one of the largest education, and
student housing investment companies in Canada focused on the global education market
since 1994. Listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and U.S
OTCQX International, CIBT owns business and language colleges,
student housing properties, recruitment centres and corporate
offices at 43 locations in Canada
and abroad. Total annual enrollment for the group exceeds
12,000 students. Its education providers include Sprott Shaw College (established in 1903),
Sprott Shaw Language College, Vancouver International College and CIBT School of
Business. Through these schools, CIBT offers business and
management programs in healthcare, hotel management, language
training, and over 150 career, language and vocational
programs. CIBT owns Global Education City Holdings Inc., an
investment holding and development company focused on developing
education-related real estate such as student hotels, serviced
apartments and education super centres. Total portfolio and
development budget of projects under the GEC® brand is
more than C$1 billion. CIBT
also owns Global Education Alliance ("GEA") and Irix Design Group
("Irix Design"). GEA recruits international students on behalf of
many elite kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, colleges
and universities in North America. Irix Design is a leading
design and advertising company based in Vancouver, Canada. Visit us online and
watch our corporate video at www.cibt.net.
Toby Chu
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
CIBT Education Group Inc.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
Some statements in this
news release contain forward-looking information (the
"forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are
statements that are not historical facts and in this news release
include, without limitation, statements about plans for the
proposed Education Mega Center® project in which a
subsidiary of CIBT has invested. The forward-looking statements are
subject to various risks, uncertainties and other factors
(collectively, "Risks") that could cause CIBT's actual results or
achievements to differ materially from those expressed in or
implied by forward-looking statements. The Risks include,
without limitation, the ability of GEC Education Mega Center
Limited Partnership to raise equity investment and secure other
required funding to acquire the project, usual construction risks,
the ability to obtain all required municipal approvals, and the
ability of the relevant limited partnerships in which CIBT is
invested to enter into and complete exit transactions.
Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, opinions and
expectations of CIBT's management at the time they are made, and
CIBT does not assume any obligation to update its forward-looking
statements if those beliefs, opinions or expectations, or other
circumstances should change, except as may be required by law.
SOURCE CIBT Education Group Inc.
