Movement in headquarters

Three head offices of Montreal companies will soon see their size considerably reduced.

Andre Dubuc
The Press

These are Canadian National, SNC-Lavalin and Laurentian Bank. On the other hand, Saputo is moving part of its management, currently housed in the borough of Saint-Léonard, at 1000 De La Gauchetière, in downtown Montreal.

At 455 René-Lévesque Boulevard West (Place Félix-Martin), SNC-Lavalin is putting 18,000 m^⁠2 (193,200 ft^⁠2), an area sufficient to accommodate more than 650 workers. According to the advertising leaflet of the JLL agency, the company frees up at least eight floors: five floors are free today and three more will be free in 2023. The premises put on the market come with office furniture included.

“With the new reality of hybrid work and the flexible working conditions offered to employees (2 or 3 days a week at home depending on the type of job), we are moving into agile mode – unassigned space, explains in an email Harold Fortin, Senior Director, Global External Communications, SNC-Lavalin. The firm is renovating its offices and building collaborative spaces, including the Lava Lab Montreal. Numerous conference rooms equipped with technological tools, a new cafeteria and a self-service market. Our goal is to create a modern and friendly environment for employees. »

SNC sold its headquarters to property company GWL in June 2017.

Another heavyweight in the business world, the Canadian National rail carrier has subleased 13,185 m^⁠2or 142,000 ft^⁠2, spread over six floors, at 935, rue De La Gauchetière Ouest. The building belongs to Cominar, which was privatized in March 2022.

“We had spaces available and we chose to rent them. We are proud to have our head office and decision-making center in Montreal. We do not intend to change this aspect of our business, ”said Jonathan Abecassis, spokesperson, in writing.

Finally, Laurentian Bank chose to reduce its real estate footprint by 50%. “We have adopted a way of working that is first at home. We no longer require the presence in the office on a daily basis, “says Merick Seguin, head of media relations for the financial institution. The latter offered for sublease seven floors of its head office, located at 1360, boulevard René-Lévesque Ouest. The area at stake amounts to 10,800 m^⁠2or 116,000 ft^⁠2.

It has also reduced the size of its Toronto offices by an equivalent amount. In the Queen City, however, the Laurentian Bank quickly found takers for its offices.

“It’s not necessarily good news,” admits Jean Laurin, president and CEO of Avison Young in Montreal.

According to him, the office market continued on its negative tangent in the second quarter of 2022. And the bad news could continue for another 6 to 12 months.

“There are a lot of companies that are reviewing their occupancy strategy,” he says.

The overall office availability rate reached 17.2% in the Montreal area, which is historically high. For comparison, it is the equivalent of 18 towers the size of the 1000 De La Gauchetière that is currently available on the market.

Saputo is moving downtown

In this batch of bad news for the downtown core, there is a bright spot: cheese maker Saputo, one of the world’s major dairy processors, is going to move part of its head office to 1000 De La Gauchetière. The manufacturer has signed a lease for 4,000 m offices^⁠2or 43,000 ft^⁠2.

The Saputo family, along with its partners Mach and Petra-Borsa, acquired the skyscraper in 2021. The listed company did not immediately respond to our appeal.