City of Montreal announces affordable housing in Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension

Montreal’s executive committee has moved forward with a resolution recommending the purchase of a building located at 670-700 Jarry Street West, in the borough of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension.

This landmark deal comes with a price tag of $4.75 million dollars, of which the borough is contributing $200,000 for a project to build approximately 30 units of affordable housing.

This project will be carried out by a non-profit organization to increase available housing in a borough that has suffered from a booming real estate market.

“We are very pleased to confirm the intention to acquire this building, which can contribute to concretely meeting the needs of the community.” said Benoit Dorais, vice-president of the executive committee responsible for housing, real estate strategy and legal affairs, in a press release.

The City hopes to include members of the community to help define the makeup of this project and to help address the needs going forward.

“The housing needs are glaring, particularly in Parc-Extension. Every week the phone rings at the office and on the other end of the line is a distraught person about to be evicted. And it is not because we are inactive in the City or in the borough, on the contrary. We are using all the levers at our disposal, in particular the acquisition of land, but now, the higher governments must play their role so that projects see the light of day on these lands. We must act to provide decent rent for the most vulnerable” explained Laurence Lavigne Lalonde the mayor of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension.

In partnership with Chantier Montréal Abordable, the City of Montreal is pooling various experts to find innovative solutions for affordable housing projects going forward. The plan is to reduce obstacles that stop construction, accelerate construction and stimulate new development.

Since 2019, the City explains it’s taken concrete steps for the construction of 120 social and affordable housing units in the Parc-Extension district.