LODGING PROJECT DESIGNED TO PROTECT WILDERNESS
Lanaudière development offers modern getaway that respects the environment
If you rent or buy a chalet at Beside Habitat Lanaudière, you have an opportunity to save the Earth, one plot of land at a time.
Beside is an innovative countryside domain of rustic-but-modern chalets with two main goals: to provide an idyllic vacation destination away from orange cones, motor noise and city lights, and to preserve the surrounding land and lakes.
How it works: Beside's first lodging venture is deep in a forest near Rawdon, about 75 minutes northeast of Montreal. The development encompasses more than 500 hectares (nearly 1,000 football fields) and the plan is to build commercial real estate on approximately 20 per cent of the land while preserving about 80 per cent.
Private owners buy the chalets — each on its own lot — and when they are not using them, put them into a rental pool managed by Beside. Chalet owners have a revenue stream and Beside Habitat uses some of the profits from real estate deals to protect the remaining land from further development.
“Beside is a sales and rental project complete with elaborate construction, as well as workers and residents taming the wilderness, but it goes beyond building chalets,” said Jean-daniel Petit, president and co-founder of Beside.
“We are committed to preserving land, and the lodgings that we erect are carefully planned to be environmentally conscious.”
This protected park of Laurentian mountain forests and the crystal clear Mcguire Lake will be private for Beside's owners and renters. There are hiking trails, free canoes and paddleboards and fishing opportunities, but no motorized vehicles.
Beside's lodgings are built a distance from the lake, to avoid construction along the shore and human interference in wildlife habitats.
It's early days. The project opened with six chalets this month. It expects to have more than 10 by the end of 2021 and a total of 75 within two or three years.
Eventually, a communal pavilion will be a gathering place for yoga and cooking classes, a co-working space, performances, conferences and a café. A music studio will operate in an adjacent building.
Lodging: Beside has collaborated with like-minded suppliers. The two- to four-bedroom chalets were designed by Appareil Architecture of Montreal, which specializes in simple and sustainable homes, with open spaces, clean lines and durable structures.
Beside's chalets have steel roofing, which could last three to five times longer than a shingled roof, as well as strong cedar siding and energy-efficient double-glazed windows. The built-in furniture is cleverly designed and sturdy, the cathedral ceilings are almost six metres high and the look of the interiors is minimalist.
Each chalet is equipped with a heated concrete floor, air conditioning, an indoor sauna, Wi-fi and Bluetooth speakers, but no TVS. Each chalet has an outdoor fire pit with cooking accessories.
The open-plan kitchens were designed by À Hauteur d'homme with refrigerators, washer-dryers, dishwashers and something different for cooking. There are stovetop elements, but no traditional ovens. Baking and roasting are done on an Esse Bakeheart wood-fired stove in the living room, which also produces radiant heat for the building.
The bigger picture: Beside started in 2016 with a magazine. Both in print and online, it is bilingual and published twice a year, featuring photography and articles on local food, sustainable architecture and philosophy.
The team also produced Festival Beside at Parc national des Îles-de-boucherville in June 2019. POST-COVID, it will take place as a series of smaller events.
Petit encourages people who own 250 to 400 hectares of land less than two hours from a city to consider creating a project.
The neighbourhood: Several attractions around Rawdon match Beside's love of nature. On the laid-back side, Spa La Source is a beautiful indoor-outdoor Nordic experience of hot and cold baths. For an easygoing country walk, Parc des Chutes-dorwin has a stunning waterfall and nature interpretation trails with signage.
For more action, Arbraska Rawdon is an adventure circuit of tree and rock climbing. There are playgrounds tucked into the forest and a network of colourful huts suspended in the trees connected by ramps, tunnels and slides.