To accommodate one of the largest film studio complexes in North America, Ville de Laval ignored the recommendations of its urban planning department. He believes that the “Cité du Cinéma”, which should be made up of seven large studios, does not respect the planned spatial planning, according to a report consulted by The duty.
“In its current form, this project does not ensure sound land use planning,” reads a document from Ville de Laval’s Urban Planning Department, produced last June. “As a result, there would be [de recommander] the Executive Committee to refuse” the zoning modification request from real estate developer Michel Trudel.
A well-known figure in the film industry, Michel Trudel has, for more than 30 years, been responsible for attracting American blockbusters to Montreal on behalf of MELS studios. In June 2020, he left the company on bad terms with Groupe TVA, which became its owner in 2015.
Since then, the man some nicknamed “Monsieur Cinéma” has wanted to build a huge cinema complex in Laval to accommodate major productions, including those from Hollywood. As described in the report, this “City of Cinema” would consist of seven studios, exterior filming areas, warehouses, spaces for making sets, offices and a film school.
Zoning and environment
However, Laval’s urban planning department considers that the project not only contravenes the zoning of the land that the City intends to sell for $32 million to the developer, but also that it departs from Laval’s ambition to reduce the impact of real estate development on the environment: “The construction project does not contribute to the fight against climate change [ex : îlots de chaleurs, accès en automobiles, transports actifs]. »
The document highlights the upheavals caused by the project in the Saint-François district. For example, the recreation and engineering departments “are concerned” about the loss of a street which was to be built on the site and which is presented as necessary for the construction of a new school which was to accommodate the pupils from 2024.
In interview at To have to, the new mayor, Stéphane Boyer, defends his support for the project: “In this case, the town planning department was not in favor. But on the other hand, [les services] of economic development and the general management of the city were favorable. We heard the arguments on both sides and we decided. »
The project should create 150 full-time jobs, 300 temporary jobs. On average, 500 people per day will occupy the “Cité du Cinéma”, according to the description of the project.
Mayor Boyer recalls that the first discussions between Michel Trudel and the City took place “last winter”: “He was unable to find land large enough to accommodate the project. It was the City itself that proposed two lots located in a residential (60%) and industrial (40%) zone, in a sector east of Jesus Island.
“Not in the right place”
In July, the City agreed to sell on the condition that the rezoning be accepted. Since then, this change has been adopted by elected officials, but citizens are contesting it before the Commission municipale du Québec, which will have to decide by the end of November. Jimmy St-Germain is part of this group: “The project is certainly a good project, but we are not installing it in the right place. »
“The building as it was presented in July at the Hôtel de Ville in Laval shows a building 700 meters long and seven stories high. It’s not nothing in a residential area, especially at the entrance to what can be presented as a small village, “he said, believing that” everything happened very quickly in this file “.
And it’s not just the impact that the complex could have on the residential fabric, he adds: “In our resistance, there is – and we don’t hide it – an ecological component linked with these lands. Not only are we creating heat islands, but we are also destroying arable land. »
Because if the land is not part of a protected agricultural area, it is nonetheless cultivated. Wednesday, the site Home Earth reported that two market gardeners had been renting these lots in Laval for years. One of the farmers, Mathieu Forget, maintained in the article that he had already tried to acquire some of these lots: “We tried to buy it [la terre de quatre hectares qu’on cultivait], but the City never wanted to sell it to us. We can understand, because it is a very strategic sector of Laval, with great commercial value. »