OTTAWA—It was fifteen years ago that Denzil Doyle, regarded as the father of high technology in Canada, provided consulting services to Brian Karam, a principal partner in a development project.
Mr. Karam wanted the high tech guru to outline a future vision of the Ottawa west-end suburb of Kanata, which at that time had become known as “Silicon Valley North” for its concentration of high tech companies.
”In that report I talked about the fact that people would be working more out of their home, and it was rather a new concept. That’s where the term ‘soho’ came from: ‘small office / home office,’” said Mr. Doyle.
That concept inspired Sohowest, an innovative housing development currently being built in south Kanata.
“The concept for which he planted the seed is now being brought to life,” says William Karam, Brian Karam’s son, one of the project’s lead developers.
Sohowest is Ottawa’s first planned future-proof community of its kind where every home is wired with a high-speed fibre optic connection and a complete home network as standard features. Rogers is providing the fibre to deliver high-speed Internet, high-definition TV, and home phone services, all free for the first year.
Every “smart home” in this “Smart Community” model also comes with a turnkey setup that simplifies the technology and makes everything ready to go as soon as the new owner moves in.
And while the high-speed connection will provide people with the same fast Internet service they have in their office, the neighbourhood’s attraction goes far beyond the ability to work from home.
Here, smart wiring-enabled advanced home entertainment and control—mainly seen in much more expensive custom houses—have been made affordable options in neatly designed executive townhomes, semi-detached homes, and what’s called “connected singles” built by some of the region’s top builders, Monarch, Tartan, and Valecraft.
The three features people are most interested in are smart lighting, energy control and management, and multi-room music, says the younger Mr. Karam, who helps put together technology upgrade packages from Best Buy, Geek Squad, and Control4 “to help buyers create their ideal home.”
The package cost of those three popular options ranges from about $9,000 to $12,000.
Mr. Karam wanted the high tech guru to outline a future vision of the Ottawa west-end suburb of Kanata, which at that time had become known as “Silicon Valley North” for its concentration of high tech companies.
”In that report I talked about the fact that people would be working more out of their home, and it was rather a new concept. That’s where the term ‘soho’ came from: ‘small office / home office,’” said Mr. Doyle.
That concept inspired Sohowest, an innovative housing development currently being built in south Kanata.
“The concept for which he planted the seed is now being brought to life,” says William Karam, Brian Karam’s son, one of the project’s lead developers.
Sohowest is Ottawa’s first planned future-proof community of its kind where every home is wired with a high-speed fibre optic connection and a complete home network as standard features. Rogers is providing the fibre to deliver high-speed Internet, high-definition TV, and home phone services, all free for the first year.
Every “smart home” in this “Smart Community” model also comes with a turnkey setup that simplifies the technology and makes everything ready to go as soon as the new owner moves in.
And while the high-speed connection will provide people with the same fast Internet service they have in their office, the neighbourhood’s attraction goes far beyond the ability to work from home.
Here, smart wiring-enabled advanced home entertainment and control—mainly seen in much more expensive custom houses—have been made affordable options in neatly designed executive townhomes, semi-detached homes, and what’s called “connected singles” built by some of the region’s top builders, Monarch, Tartan, and Valecraft.
The three features people are most interested in are smart lighting, energy control and management, and multi-room music, says the younger Mr. Karam, who helps put together technology upgrade packages from Best Buy, Geek Squad, and Control4 “to help buyers create their ideal home.”
The package cost of those three popular options ranges from about $9,000 to $12,000.
