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http://www.playthecity.nl/ Play the City Play the City uses gaming to engage multiple stakeholders in resolving complex urban challenges. Changing the way we engage stakeholders, Play the City designs physical games as a method for collaborative decision making and conflict resolution. We tailor our games according to the questions of our clients. These can relate to large urban projects, refugee camps, violence prevention and other multi-stakeholder challenges societies face. We use gaming as a problem-solving method bringing top down decision makers together with bottom up stakeholders. In the accessible environment of games, freed from the jargons, various ideas, plans and projects meet, conflict and collaborate towards negotiated outcomes. We believe gaming is the real alternative to standard formats of public consultation in the 21st century. Our method has been acknowledged internationally and has been implemented for large-scale projects in Amsterdam, Istanbul, Brussels and Cape Town. You can gain more insight by clicking our projects page. sent via Tapatalk

Montreal house prices hold steady The Gazette Monday, October 06, 2008 Montreal's real-estate market remained steady during the third quarter, with average house prices experiencing single-digit gains, according to a House Price Survey report released yesterday by Royal LePage Real Estate Services. A decline in unit sales was recorded, however. While activity levels have rescinded since last year, average listing periods have actually shortened by a few days, compared to the same period 12 months prior. Of the 10 Montreal markets examined, the average price of a detached bungalow increased by 4.8 percent to $236,045, a standard two-storey home appreciated by 0.5 per cent to $336,381 and a standard condominium rose by 4.4 per cent to $204,336, year-over-year. "House prices in Montreal are inching upwards, despite an increase in listing inventory and the fact that there are slightly fewer unit sales," said Gino Romanese, senior vice-president of Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd. "When looking at Montreal's current housing market, we need to realize that 2007 shattered records," he added. "It's unrealistic to believe that that pace can be kept up for very long." © The Gazette 2008 http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/business/story.html?id=952e9c04-7da1-4b47-8865-fd882d7d860b

(Courtesy of The New York Times) Holy crap! The new AT&T going to have 129.23 million customers. It would be like Bell buying out Telus.

Hi everyone, My husband and I are going to pick the finishes for our condo soon and I was wondering whether most people stuck with the standard finished or chose upgrades? We are purchasing to live in the condo for at least 5 years. In terms of backsplash/tiles, have any of you noticed a difference between standard vs upgrade? Also, I wanted to extend the kitchen cabinets to cover more of the space, possibly extend the island and change the faucet/sink. Will this cost me an arm and a leg? Any advice would be very appreciated! Thanks

Laval séduit Standard & Poor's La firme d'évaluation de crédit Standard & Poor's a revu à la hausse la cote des titres d'emprunt à long terme de la Ville de Laval. Celle-ci passe de A+, avec perspective positive, à AA-, avec perspective stable. S&P justifie sa décision par «les progrès continus dans la réduction significative de la dette, conjugués à une forte croissance économique et à une performance budgétaire améliorée». L'agence ajoute notamment que depuis 1999, l'endettement de Laval suit une courbe descendante, le ratio de la dette sur les revenus totaux, une mesure propre à Standard & Poor's, ayant décliné de plus de 30% durant cette période. «Nous prévoyons que cette tendance se poursuivra au cours des prochaines années», précise Standard & Poor's.

La Russie, fragilisée ces dernières semaines par la dégringolade des cours du pétrole et la fuite des capitaux a vu ses perspectives s'assombrir lorsque l'agence Standard & Poor's a abaissé sa note. Pour en lire plus...

Located in one of Montreal's most prestigious and central sectors, Le Luxor condominium offers a living standard of high quality and luxury.

(Courtesy of CanWest News)

Le PDG de l'assureur a expliqué qu'une présence mondiale aidait les entreprises, même les plus petites, à être plus compétitives dans leur pays d'origine. Pour en lire plus...

La Ville de Montréal, qui s'apprête à emprunter des milliards de dollars dans les prochaines années pour réparer ses infrastructures, économisera des sommes importantes en intérêts, puisque sa cote de crédit vient d'être rehaussée par une firme de notation, notamment en raison d'un «environnement politique plus stable». La cote de crédit de la métropole accordée par Standard & Poor passe ainsi de à A+ à AA-, une première hausse en plus de 30 ans pour la Ville de Montréal. La firme de notation vante les «liquidités exceptionnelles» de la Ville, son faible endettement et le redressement de la «performance budgétaire» par rapport à l'administration Tremblay. «Nous croyons que l'environnement politique s'est stabilisé dans les dernières années», peut-on lire aussi lire dans le document. Le maire Denis Coderre se réjouit de cette annonce, qui tombe la même semaine que le dévoilement du programme triennal d'immobilisations 2016-2018 de la Ville de Montréal, lequel prévoit 5,2 milliards de travaux. « C'est la preuve que les décisions que nous avons prises commencent à porter fruit. Les experts de S&P ont examiné chacune de nos actions sur le plan du contrôle des dépenses, de la gestion de notre dette, de la planification de nos investissements. Ce rehaussement de notre cote de crédit traduit un niveau élevé de confiance en la solidité financière de Montréal à long terme », a déclaré M. Coderre, dans un communiqué. http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/montreal/201510/22/01-4912878-standard-poors-rehausse-la-cote-de-montreal.php

Insurance giant wants to build Canadian operations with Standard's Quebec assets CBC News Posted: Sep 03, 2014 5:13 PM ET Last Updated: Sep 03, 2014 6:45 PM ET Manulife Financial Corp. says its life insurance division is buying the Canadian-based assets of Standard Life Plc for $4 billion in cash. The deal combines Manulife, one of the largest life insurance companies in the world with 84,000 employees, and Standard Life Canada, this country's fifth-largest insurer with 2,000 employees. "Several months ago, Standard Life decided to explore the sale of its Canadian operations through a competitive process," Manulife CEO Donald A. Guloien said. "We are delighted to be named the successful bidder." Standard Life provides long term savings, investment and insurance products to about 1.4 million Canadians, with $52 billion of assets under management. Manulife said it was particularly keen to acquire Standard Life’s Quebec assets. "One of the key reasons we were interested in this company is its people in Quebec. We want to increase our presence in the province and use the very talented employee base to grow and expand our business in Quebec, throughout Canada and indeed the world,” Guloien said in a statement announcing the deal late Wednesday. Caisse contributes to deal Manulife plans to pay for the deal with a combination of a public offering, a private placement, internal resources and possible future debt, it said. Later in the day, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, the Quebec provincial pension fund investment arm, announced a $500‑million equity investment in Manulife Financial to contribute to the financing of the acquisition. Manulife and Standard Life have previously collaborated in distributing investment products around the world, through a relationship between Standard Life Investments and John Hancock. Manulife said it would take 18 to 24 months to consolidate the new operations and it did not foresee any job losses in the near future. The company expects the deal to add three cents to its earnings per share every year over each of the next three years and to build earnings capacity beyond the 2016 core earnings target of $4 billion. The deal closes in the first quarter of next year, pending regulatory approval. http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/manulife-buys-standard-life-s-canadian-assets-for-4b-1.2754776

La firme de notation de crédit Standard and Poor's prend cette décision en raison de ses rendements «nettement» inférieurs à ceux des autres grandes caisses de retraite canadiennes en 2008, ainsi qu'à une plus grande instabilité au sein de sa haute direction. Pour en lire plus...

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- The credit crunch may only be in its early stages and a bigger contraction in lending in coming months could have "serious implications" for the U.S. economy, Standard & Poor's Rating Services said Friday. While politicians and others have complained that banks aren't lending, the data on credit outstanding credit in the U.S. only tenuously supports this idea, the rating agency said. See related story. "What's behind the apparent difference between perception and reality?" Standard & Poor's credit analyst Tanya Azarchs said. "It may be that, while growth in overall credit was positive through at least third-quarter 2008, it has risen at a slower pace than at any time since 1945 -- far below the 8%-10% rate in most years." Banks are replacing loans as they mature, but there's little net new loan growth, she noted. "That could mean that the slowdown in lending is just an opening act, and a true credit crunch may yet take the stage," Azarchs warned. Banks are making fewer and fewer commitments to lend, and new issues of bonds and securitized assets have slowed to a trickle, the analyst said. "This portends a contraction in total credit available in the coming months," she wrote. "Since this lack of lending may have serious implications for the economy, the U.S. government has been devising policies that would encourage banks to lend." Given such pressure, S&P is focusing more on whether banks are free to make loans they think are prudent and on the health of the overall economy, Azarchs said. http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Credit-crunch-may-only-have/story.aspx?guid={4F0DA616-A789-49A7-9EFE-A65C5A0986F9}

(Courtesy of The Star-Telegram)

Published On Wed May 26 2010 Noor Javed The artistic pieces have graced the homes of Mughal emperors, adorned the gardens of Persian palaces and educated the masses of the Muslim world. Soon, over 1,000 years of Islamic art and culture will find a permanent home in Toronto. The groundbreaking for the Aga Khan Museum, the first in North America solely devoted to Islamic art, will take place on Friday near Don Mills Rd. and Eglinton Ave. E. The museum will be built alongside an Ismaili centre and park on a 7-hectare site at 49 Wynford Dr. More than 1,000 Islamic artifacts from China to the Iberian Peninsula will be showcased — with 200 on permanent display — when the museum opens in 2013. The pieces, which come from the collection of the Aga Khan family, already have more air miles than most Canadians. They have been featured in museums around the world from London to Madrid. Before they settle in Toronto, they will be exhibited in Istanbul and five other cities in the Muslim world. The Aga Khan, spiritual leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, will arrive Friday to put a shovel in the ground and give his blessings to the $300 million project “While some North American museums have significant collections of Muslim art, there is no institution devoted to Islamic art,” he said. “In building the museum in Toronto, we intend to introduce a new actor to the North American art scene. Its fundamental aim will be an educational one, to actively promote knowledge of Islamic arts and culture.” The 10,000-square-foot building will be designed by Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki, who is also working on the expansion of the United Nations building and Tower 4 at the former World Trade Center site. “This project will help to bridge the clash of ignorance,” said Amyn Sayani, a volunteer with the Ismaili Council for Canada. “This is very much an opportunity for people to dialogue and to bridge different cultures and faiths.” A sampling of the art coming to town: Manuscript of the Canon of Medicine by Ibn Sina, Iran or Mesopotamia, c. 1052: This manuscript is considered to be one of the most important collections of medieval medical knowledge in the Islamic world. It was used in the 12th and 13th centuries by medical schools in Europe, almost until the beginning of modern times. The document to be displayed is the fifth book, focusing on drugs and pharmacy. • Emerald green bottle, Iran, Safavid dynasty, 17th century: The Islamic world, mainly due to proximity, has always had close ties to the Chinese world. This bottle was made to imitate Chinese ceramics, in both colour and appearance. • Portrait of Sultan Selim, Turkey, c. 1570: A large album portrait done in watercolour, ink and gold of Sultan Selim II. It was his father, Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent, who solidified the geographical borders of the Ottoman Empire. Selim was better known for enjoying finer pleasures such as literature, art and wine. Here, he shown by the painter as larger than life, in a luxurious fur-lined and gold garment. • Standard (alam), Iran, 16th century: Made of steel, standards usually decorated bowls used as drinking vessels or food containers for wandering ascetics. This pear-shaped standard contains an inscription which can be read from different angles. The text from top to bottom says: “Ya Allah, ya Muhammad, ya ‘Ali” (“O God, O Muhammad, O Ali).

La Commission européenne a annoncé lundi l'ouverture d'une procédure formelle d'enquête sur l'agence de notation, soupçonnée d'abuser de sa position dominante sur les numéros ISIN. Pour en lire plus...