Montreal unveils plans to turn old bus terminal into housing complex with affordable units

Montreal has announced plans for a 1,030-unit housing project at the former Berri bus terminal, Îlot Voyageur Sud, with over half of the units designated as affordable.

The city announced in a news release Monday that it has retained the joint proposal submitted by UTILE and Mondev for the site, located at the corner of De Maisonneuve Boulevard and Berri Street in the borough of Ville-Marie.

Developers envision a building between 14 and 20 storeys, the city says. UTILE is a social economy enterprise with a focus on student housing. Mondev is one of the city's largest real estate developers.

Among the affordable housing units, approximately 430 will be designated for students. Non-profit Maison des gens de lettres will also provide 100 social housing units. 

Founded in 2014, Maison des gens de lettres is a non-profit organization that works to counter the isolation and precariousness of writers, authors and other workers in the literary field.

The plans also include commercial and community spaces on the ground floor, expanding the range of activities accessible to the community and meeting the area's needs, the city says.

In the news release, Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante said this redevelopment project will accelerate the construction of housing, particularly off-market housing, and address the housing crisis, "which is especially acute in the downtown area."

She described it as an "ambitious project" just steps from downtown and connected to public transportation.

Located near the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Îlot Voyageur is adjacent to the library, Grande Bibliothèque, as well as the Berri-UQAM Metro station.

"It's been 15 years that we've been saying student housing is needed in Quartier Latin," said Laurent Levesque, CEO of UTILE.

The City of Montreal purchased the southern portion of Îlot Voyageur from the Quebec government in 2018 for $18 million.

Last spring, Plante's administration put this portion of Îlot Voyageur up for sale and launched a call for tenders to develop social and affordable housing on the site. The tender process was suspended in October. 

Laurent told Radio-Canada this project is now proceeding as a mutual agreement, which allows for a more agile process, unlike the initial call for tenders that only allowed for one developer.

Speaking during a news conference Monday, Robert Beaudry, the city's executive committee member responsible for fighting homelessness, said the call for tenders doesn't allow for flexibility if a project doesn't fall within the guidelines. Now the city has more negotiating room as the project moves forward, he said.

The next step is to begin more defined planning, investing in a design and working to get funding for the non-profit side of the project, he said.

No timeline has been set yet for the new building, but Levesque said the building could be completed within four to five years. The financial framework for the project is still to be determined.

UTILE and Mondev intend to present a concrete proposal to the City of Montreal in the coming months as part of an official submission.