Report calls for higher density in convent project
Last week, Montreal’s public consultation body released its report on the proposed transformation of the Soeurs de Ste-Anne convent in Lachine into residential housing and one of the report’s 12 recommendations took those steering the project by surprise.
To make the project financially viable, the Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM) recommends densifying the project by adding another multi-storey building.
“(The OCPM chair) told me she’s never seen this before,” Lachine Mayor Maja Vodanovic said. “They want to make sure the project is viable. But higher density? That was a shocker.”
It was a shocker because the common complaint from citizens and urban-planning watchdogs is that densification is ruining neighbourhoods. The report proposed building the additional residence on what is now a public parking lot.
“It’s just a recommendation and we will be studying it, along with all the other recommendations moving forward,” Vodanovic said.
“We were pleased that the commission responded favourably to the project,” Bâtir son quartier executive director Edith Cyr said. That said, Cyr was also taken aback by the recommendation to densify.
The project is being overseen by non-profits Bâtir son Quartier and La Traversée, in collaboration with the borough of Lachine and Montreal. Aedifica is the architectural firm.
“(Densifying the project) is not in the current plan,” Cyr said. “Our job is to respect the spirit of the project and work to retain the heritage value of the property. But it is a recommendation we will study like we will all the other recommendations.”
The 63,000 sq. ft property on Provost St. is dominated by the majestic grey stone convent. The project proposes transforming the facility into mixed-residential, including rented, owned and subsidized units. Some accommodations will specifically target people with reduced mobility and/or independence.
The current plan sees all existing wings of the main building reconfigured and brought up to code with an additional eight-storey wing added. The first phase of the project will see a seven-storey residence, with health facilities, built for the nuns behind the mother house. The project’s budget is an estimated $108.5 million.
The project will require municipal zoning changes. Vodanovic has already met with city centre to discuss the report, which recommends rigorous and precise regulatory language be built into any zoning changes moving forward.
The Soeurs de Ste-Anne stipulated that they wanted the project to benefit the neighbourhood. They also stipulated that the beautiful, on-site chapel be maintained. It will eventually be turned into a public space offering site-suitable programming.