The City of Montreal is exercising its right of pre-emption for a second time for social and community housing purposes in the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough, to acquire 1695 Laurier Avenue East. This 1,189.2 square metre property has the potential to develop approximately 45 housing units in a four-storey building, with construction scheduled to begin in 2023. Until then, a transitional greening project will be developed on the site.
"For the past several years, despite the start of numerous housing construction projects, Montreal has been experiencing a tightening of its rental real estate market. Low and modest income households are the ones most affected by this. The acquisition of 1695 Laurier Avenue East represents a great opportunity for the City to meet the residential needs of this segment of the population, especially since it is located near services such as a park, an elementary school, a grocery store and the Laurier metro station," said Luc Rabouin, Mayor of the Plateau-Mont-Royal Borough.
"This acquisition demonstrates the agility of our administration in responding to the important needs of the population in terms of social and affordable housing. During our mandate, we have equipped ourselves with several tools, such as the right of pre-emption, allowing us to act even in neighbourhoods where the development of new projects is more complex, such as in the Plateau-Mont-Royal. These are concrete gestures that contribute to ensuring that the entire population has a place, no matter where it is in the city," added Robert Beaudry, who is responsible for housing, real estate strategy, large parks and Jean-Drapeau Park on the executive committee.
The purchase of 1695 Laurier Avenue East is being made at a price that is in line with the City's estimated market value and the seller will be required to meet certain obligations prior to the transfer of the property. These include the demolition of the existing building and environmental remediation, all at the vendor's expense. Once the City has taken possession of the site, it will sell it to a community organization to carry out a social and community housing project financed by the Société d'habitation du Québec's AccèsLogis program.
The right of first refusal allows the City to substitute itself for the purchaser under the conditions spelled out in the final offer to purchase that is accepted by the seller. The City has 60 days from receipt of the notice of intent to dispose of the property to notify the seller of its intention to acquire the property, failing which it is deemed to waive its right of pre-emption and the acquisition of the property. In the case of 1695 Laurier Avenue East, the 60-day period ends on June 8, 2021.
