A major shopping center owner wants Montreal’s permission to build condo towers of up to 35 stories along the Decarie Expressway, a scenario that would change the face of the sector.
Posted at 8:00 a.m.
The project concerns a commercial complex adjacent to the former Blue Bonnets racecourse, which has long been promised real estate redevelopment.
SmartCentres REIT wants to “increase the permitted density to 35 storeys for the construction of condominium, rental condominium and mixed-use buildings,” says a statement made to the Registry of Lobbyists on behalf of the company. “The current density of the site varies between one and two floors. »
The shopping center currently operated by SmartCentres REIT includes some twenty brands, including a large Walmart store. The land is located on either side of rue Jean-Talon Ouest, south of the Décarie highway. It is served by the Namur metro station.
Above all, it is the immediate neighbor of the former Blue Bonnets racetrack, a vacant lot where the City hopes to build 12,500 affordable housing units in the coming years.
“Very preliminary”
In interview with The Press, a spokesperson for SmartCentres REIT said that despite the mandate on the Lobbyist Registry, the company was still in the consideration phase. “We are in discussion with the City on the vision, said Herbert Nunes. It is very, very, very preliminary in terms of what we are looking at with the City. »
Mr Nunes argued that the 35-storey figure was far from set in stone. “Nobody knows how many floors it’s going to end up in,” he said.
There is no formal request or application that has been made on our part. We are in a process of working in accordance with the requests and needs of the City.
Herbert Nunes, spokesperson for SmartCentres REIT
In the office of Mayor Valérie Plante, we welcome these steps, without commenting on the merits of the case.
“We are already seeing the benefit of [promoteurs] for the Namur-Hippodrome eco-neighborhood project and its surroundings, while the administration is determined to create a carbon-neutral living environment based on sustainable mobility, social diversity, the presence of green spaces and shops”, indicated by writes Marikym Gaudreault, communications manager for Valérie Plante.
She added: “Any duly registered lobbyist is entitled to make representations according to his mandate, but remember that any project submitted will follow the usual regulatory process and will be analyzed according to the framework in place. »
Reinvent centers commercial
It is Stantec, a major Canadian engineering firm, which acts as a lobbyist for Smart Centers REIT with the municipal authorities. Several Stantec employees registered with the Registry with the same mandate, in order to be able to communicate legally with the City on the project.
The redevelopment project of the shopping center site at the intersection of Autoroute Décarie and rue Jean-Talon Ouest is part of a broader perspective for SmartCentres: that of adapting to the boom in e-commerce. since the start of the pandemic. The shortage of housing creates favorable opportunities for conversion projects into housing.
“We look at all of our sites from the same perspective: how to reinvent them? said Mr. Nunes.