The Global Association for Contact Center Best Practices & Networking

Aug 30, 2010 -- Citi Plaza is moving to plug the big hole caused by the shutdown of the TeleTech call centre.

Lucas Blois of Arcturus Realty, managers of Citi Plaza, said a deal is in the works to bring in a new commercial tenant to fill the entire space being vacated by TeleTech, whose lease expires at the end of November.

"I’m hoping to announce the tenant by the end of September. It looks very promising," Blois said.

He said the prospective tenant is not a call centre and will be compatible with other major tenants, including Stevenson & Hunt Insurance and Honeywell International.

TeleTech is scheduled to close next week after the final 226 workers received layoff notices in March.

The Teletech office has been in operation for 10 years, occupying 42,000 square feet, and employing as many as 1,000 workers at its peak in 2005.

TeleTech also leased an additional 10,000 sq. ft. as a training centre. Blois said he hopes to turn that space back into retail space.

Last week, two major fashion retailers, Fairweather and Stockhomme, announced they’ll set up stores in Citi Plaza in the long-vacant space formerly occupied by Rockwater’s pub.

Blois said he’s working on two other national retail tenants, one in the food sector and the other in the service sector.

The opening of TeleTech in 2000 was a major coup for Galleria London, now known as Citi Plaza. It was one of the first major tenants to move into renovated space that once housed the Eaton’s department store.

Workers at the centre make between $11 and $14 an hour and handle incoming customer support calls for major American telecommunication companies.

A TeleTech spokesperson said the closing is related to "financial performance" and denied it’s linked to an ongoing union drive by the United Steelworkers.

TeleTech, based in Colorado, has operations in 17 countries, but has shut down or laid off workers in several of its Canadian operation in recent years.

The plaza also faces a possible reduction in the size of Citi Cards Canada — its anchor tenant — but Blois said that should have no short-term impact. Citigroup announced in June it has sold its Canadian MasterCard business, which could affect about half the 650 workers employed in the Citi Plaza call centre. It occupies 114,000-sq. ft.

The call centre will continue to handle the MasterCard business until October 2011. After that the fate of the employees is up in the air.

"We have a long-term lease with (Citi Cards)," Blois said. "As far as we are concerned, our business relationship has to continue in accordance with the agreement."

Posted by Veronica Silva Cusi, news correspondent
Source: http://www.lfpress.com/news

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