MONTONI, Claridge and the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ are partnering on Quebec’s Espace Montmorency project that will create a ‘new city within a city” and ultimately consist of 10 buildings with offices, shops, a hotel, entertainment venues and other public spaces.

The $420 million project will be the largest commercial real estate development in Laval, and will be located on 277,000 square feet of land east of Autoroute des Laurentides, between Du Souvenir and Boulevard De la Concorde West. Buildings are expected to reach 20 storeys each with one million square feet of leasable space.

“We are taking advantage of an exceptional site to develop a major project that will create more than 3,500 jobs over five years,” said Normand Bélanger, president and chief executive officer of the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ. “We worked with the City of Laval to come up with an avant-garde urban development concept that will meet the needs of a varied clientele. The retail and office space will be well diversified, which will stimulate employment, and will be surrounded by green space.”

The Urbania 2 project will anchor the residential area, located north of the quadrangle. Upon completion, six buildings totalling 1,150 condos will make up that space. The surrounding neighbourhood, with direct access to the Montmorency metro station is already home to a Université de Montréal campus, educational institutions, shops and performance halls. The new Place Bell to the south, with its skating rink and amphitheatre, is expected to add more even more energy.

“Whenever we partner in a project, we always look for innovation, an exceptional location and a mixed-use plan in order to get the most out of the urban development,” added Pierre Boivin, O.C., president and chief executive officer of Claridge. “Espace Montmorency fits right in with our vision of a modern project that creates a genuine living environment and that has the potential for tremendous spinoffs.”