PERFECT SPACE FOR A GROWING FAMILY
For 10 years, Amélie Dion lived in Old Montreal, in a “really nice 900-square-foot condo” that was a stone’s throw from the Old Port. It was a fun neighbourhood and Dion, an actuary, was within walking distance of her work. In due course, she met Adam Reichert (now her spouse), who is a trader with a major Canadian bank. He also loved the location because he, too, was able to walk to work.
As time went on and the couple discussed having a family, they realized that neither Old Montreal, nor the condo, would be suitable for raising children. There were no parks nearby and they felt they needed somewhere with a backyard, where kids could play.
In 2015, they started looking around but nothing quite clicked. As luck would have it, when they were checking out a house in Westmount that didn’t fit their criteria, the real estate agent handling the deal said she might have just what they were looking for — a modern, semi-detached brick home on Nuns’ Island, close to the Champlain Bridge.
The 3,000 square foot, twostorey, semi has three bedrooms, two bathrooms (plus two powder rooms), a combined basement and inside garage, a wine cellar, a split-level living/dining room and an open ( but separate) kitchen. There is an unrestricted view of a private backyard and the St. Lawrence River.
Q Wow! That’s quite the view.
Amélie Dion: The view is the main reason we bought the house — that and the backyard. Adam grew up on the West Island and I grew up in Cowansville in the Eastern Townships, so we were used to having lots of space to play. We wanted our two children to have the same. (Dion and Reichert now have a toddler and a baby.)
Q Do you have access to the water?
A Adam keeps a boat at the water’s edge for fishing, but it wouldn’t be very safe for James and Eva. We’re having a swimming pool built right now and it will be surrounded by a safety barrier.
Q You were telling me that, since you moved here in 2015, you’ve made some alterations to the house?
A That’s right. We’ve done something every year. The biggest renovation was the kitchen. The previous owners put a lot of money into the house and had used very good quality materials. We loved most of what they’d done, but the kitchen wasn’t at all practical.
Q What do you mean?
A The space was badly designed. The centre island was super small, and the appliances weren’t very good. They were an older couple who spent a lot of time in Florida, and I don’t think they cooked very much.
Q So what did you do?
A We employed a kitchen specialist who custom built the white cabinets and put in a new backsplash. We installed a much bigger island and added a double sink. We kept the flooring though. It’s cherry wood.
(The sink is under a cut-out in the wall through which you can see the dining/ living room and beyond it, the St. Lawrence River.)
Q Did you add the wall passthrough as well?
A No. it was there already, but we made it much bigger. I wanted to be able to keep an eye on the kids and to chat to people when I’m preparing a meal.
Q You said you also moved the door of one of the powder rooms into the hallway?
A Before, the door was in the kitchen. I thought that was an odd idea and it certainly didn’t allow people any privacy.
Q You mentioned that your condo in Old Montreal was quite small. Did you have to buy new furniture for here?
A We kept a few things, like our old couch, which we put into the basement for the kids. We bought new furniture from Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams and from a few other places. The abstract painting in the dining room came from Celadon and the pendulum lighting above the dining table was from Wayfair. I’d seen it first of all in Beige Style on Notre-Dame St., but it was cheaper on Wayfair.
(Dion leads me downstairs to the basement and wine cellar. The door, which is curved at the top, has the traditional design of the type you would find in a vineyard or a monastery. The hinges and the handle are made of wrought iron. Dion opens it to reveal racks stacked with wine bottles.)
Q Goodness. That’s quite the collection!
A It’s nothing compared to the previous owner’s. He had over 1,000 bottles. When we put in the final offer on the house, we jokingly asked if the price could include a bottle of his best wine. He thought that was very funny. We ended up with an excellent red — a 1983 Château Talbot StJulien Bordeaux.