Posted at 12:00 p.m.
Founded in Ploërmel, Brittany (France), in 1819, the community of the Brothers of Christian Instruction settled in Quebec in 1886. This large international organization benefited from a lot of funds, and could therefore afford to buy land in desirable locations to build schools and buildings to house teachers.
The lack of new religious teachers gradually forced the Brothers’ community to sell its buildings, including the one located at 5325, rue de Brébeuf, on the Plateau Mont-Royal.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
Dorem President Michael Courrier (left foreground) surrounded by his team
There were only 8 or 10 brothers left who were retired and had to leave to move to a place better suited to their needs when the building was put up for sale. In the past, there were 45 of them. I deeply love this neighborhood where I live, so I was very interested and it was important for them to transform the place into a beautiful project.
Michael Courrier, President of Dorem
Before buying, Mr. Courrier first acted as a general contractor and he helped the Brothers obtain a grant from the City of Montreal to decontaminate the land: $178,000 was granted to them. “I had to go on site several days a week for months to manage the site and the building had to be supported to carry out the decontamination without demolishing it. So I rubbed shoulders with the resident Brothers almost every day, which really created bonds between us. We made jokes, they explained their incredible life to me, and for me, it became much more than a transaction. I can now say that they are friends despite the age difference, since they are on average 80 years old, and that allowed me to discover an environment that I did not know at all, ”he says. For him, this transaction is very special because there is a human and respectful side that remains. Several have lived there for 30 years, he helped them move and emphasizes that the transition went well.
Priority to heritage
Undertaking a renovation can be more complicated, longer and more expensive than demolishing to rebuild. Furthermore, redesigning an old building to bring it up to current standards requires a great deal of planning and thought. “The change of use, since the principle was to create residential from an institutional building also made this project more complex. It takes patience to renovate to get the permits, then to work on the site. You often have to break the inside by hand when you keep the shell; it is therefore slower than with machinery, but when the exterior has cachet or historical interest, it hurts the heart to destroy and thereby remove the history behind it . I believe that the ecological concept is also essential, because demolishing generates a lot of waste,” notes the president of Dorem, who also points out that urban planning regulations for heritage conservation are very strict in large cities like Montreal. , where demolitions are not often welcomed.
Originally composed of around forty rooms, a kitchen and shared bathrooms, the place will include 17 units of one or two bedrooms, spread over 4 levels and a 10-unit annex will be added. “I thought it was important to increase the supply of rental apartments on the Plateau Mont-Royal rather than putting the condos up for sale,” says Michael Courrier. It bets on the top of the range by using quality materials, particularly for furniture and kitchen islands, and offers small, European-style household appliances to maximize space. Everything is thought out in the accommodation, but also in the building in order to be able to respond to the contemporary way of life. For example, there will be a place dedicated to the deposit of parcels.
Shelters for bicycles are provided at the back of the building, because the borough wants to drive cars out of the neighborhood a bit for environmental reasons.
It’s a greener social choice, we’re also going to plant trees. There are many very accessible local shops, and the Plateau relies on getting around on foot or by bike.
Michael Courrier, President of Dorem
Baptized Le Ploërmel in homage to the Brothers who lived there, this project should be completed in the spring and some apartments have already found takers. Michael Courrier and Brother Gélinas, manager of the community of the Brothers of Christian Instruction in America who very much appreciated this relationship, are planning to work together on other projects.