"Downtown Montréal is in Urgent Need of Shock Treatment to Ensure its Recovery." - Serge Goulet, President of Devimco Immobilier Français
MONTRÉAL, Dec. 9, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - The City of Montréal, the two senior levels of government and the private sector must create a new partnership—the equivalent of a New Deal—to ensure the economic recovery of the city's downtown and surrounding area, which have been badly shaken by the effects of the pandemic.
This is what Serge Goulet, President of Devimco Immobilier, proposed today during a panel discussion organized as part of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montréal's Strategic Forum on the Downtown Area.
"Montréal urgently needs shock treatment," Mr. Goulet said. "Faced with the pandemic and the urgent need for action to revive its economy, the City of Montréal should allow the private sector to contribute financially to the construction of public equipment and infrastructure." He continued: "Governments are increasing deficits to get us out of the crisis, while we have enormous capital that is lying dormant and waiting for decisions that are not forthcoming. We want to do our part, but our offers are not being answered."
Mr. Goulet suggests designing a grid for evaluating the economic and social impacts of major projects in order to assess and quantify what each one can offer beyond the minimums required by bylaws (e.g., exceeding the 10% contribution rule for park development).
Performance criteria:
This grid would include performance criteria based on what developers will offer in terms of added value in the following areas:
- Tourism and heritage (examples: restoration of historical sites, tourism facilities...);
- Housing (example: more social housing);
- Public infrastructure (examples: roads, water networks…);
- Sustainable development (examples: more parks, more urban agriculture, circular economy, clean technologies…);
- Mobility (bicycles, footpaths, streets, new REM station in the Peel Basin…);
- Job creation.
"In return for this contribution, the City of Montréal should allow developers to add value to their major projects by agreeing to make certain bylaws more flexible or by permitting greater densification of projects," Mr. Goulet said.
On December 1, Mr. Goulet and 13 other business leaders in the real estate sector published an open letter to the Mayor of Montréal in which they proposed the creation of a roundtable to involve all stakeholders as quickly as possible in the implementation of major growth-generating projects in Montréal. The mayor has not yet responded to this offer.
Mr. Goulet said the Canadian and Québec governments must be part of the proposed roundtable. "Governments can contribute with special stimulus programs in which we want to participate," he said. "In addition, several ministries or government-owned corporations could be involved, including Heritage Canada, Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges Incorporated, the Ministère de l'Économie et de l'Innovation du Québec, and the Bureau d'audiences publiques sur l'environnement (office for public hearings on the environment, or BAPE). The idea is to create a 'one-stop shop' for each level of government."
He concluded: "We do not want to disregard the rules and processes that govern our public administrations, but to achieve balance and show that everyone can work together to achieve a common goal. The situation demands it and everyone must do their part."
About Devimco Immobilier
Devimco Immobilier is a Québec real estate development leader that stands out for the execution of large real estate projects, in particular lifestyle and TOD (transit-oriented development) complexes that combine commercial, business, leisure, and housing components. Combining innovation and creativity, Devimco Immobilier participates in enhancing the environments it creates and the communities it integrates for the benefit of its occupants and visitors. Devimco recently became the first member of the Next-Generation Cities Institute of Concordia University.
Since 2005, Devimco Immobilier has been developing District Griffin® a vibrant area where a genuine community is taking root. Another of its projects is SOLAR UniquartierTM, Québec's largest TOD project. Devimco Immobilier is also building Square Children'sTM, a new flagship project that is revitalizing the former site of the Montréal Children's Hospital and the entire neighbourhood. The developer will also begin construction this year on the MAA Condominiums & PenthousesTM on Peel Street in downtown Montréal, a project as rich as the history of the MAA Sports Club, whose revitalization will be part of it. Maestria CondominiumsTM, the largest mixed-use residential project ever built in Montréal in the heart of the Quartier des Spectacles, was also launched in late 2019. It was followed, in 2020, by the launch of Auguste & Louis CondominiumsTM, a unique project that is serving as the first phase of the Quartier des lumières, located on the site of the former Maison Radio-Canada building.
SOURCE Devimco Immobilier
Caroline Des Rosiers, 514 880-2881, [email protected]
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