Sun Youth reopens food bank in new Montreal home

Sun Youth has reopened its food bank in a new, larger building in Montreal, a move the organization says will help it better meet the needs of vulnerable individuals and families.

The non-profit has begun operating out of a new 40,000-square-foot facility on Saint-Laurent Blvd., across from Jarry Park on Saint-Laurent Boulevard, and just a few blocks from its former location on Parc Avenue.

“It’s a lot bigger, like, a lot more bigger. So even when I was driving to park I was looking inside like ‘wow, like this is like a step up for like 2026!’ so it’s really cool,” said Kayla Cantley, one of the early shoppers at the new location.

“It’s awesome, honestly the other one was like a little bit smaller so now this is more like a shopping style,” Cantley adds.

Sun Youth says the expanded facilities will improve its ability to respond to demand, though the full move is still underway.

“A lot more space for the volunteers and our clients who really interact and employees and really just make it feel like it’s more of a grocery store rather than a food bank,” said Jorgen Ulloa-Aguilar, Sun Youth’s director of emergency services

“It’s a new location for us, we’re really excited, it’s a bigger space, we could accommodate more people and we’re close to the metro,” said Marina Boulos-Winton, executive director, Sun Youth.

The food bank reopened here earlier this week, a food bank that has been operated by Sun Youth since 1981 which was the first food bank to open in Montreal, and the second one in Canada. 

“We still have our old clients that came from our old building so they’re making the trip here we’re not too far from that area so they are coming here and now we’re expecting to see a lot more people that are coming from the more Saint-Michel, Villeray area,” Ulloa-Aguilar said.

Returning shoppers like Cantley say the food bank provides an important service.

“I have two teenagers and a six-year-old, so they could eat a lot and it helps fill in the spaces that we’re missing, so until that next two-week pay comes in, so it’s very important,” Cantley said.

The total cost of the building was $36 million — with $10.7 million coming from federal support and another $15.9 million raised through a fundraising campaign.

“People might remember that Sun Youth used to be for many many years at the old Baron-Byng High School on St. Urbain, it then had to leave the premises,” Boulos-Winton said.

“We located to five different locations for all of our programs and now soon certainly by spring, summer all of our services will be under one roof,” she added.

Later this year, the second floor will welcome some of Sun Youth’s sports programs into a gymnasium and fitness centre. The third floor will include a community kitchen, garden and cafeteria.  

“Eventually, when the the kitchen and the the gym are open we’re really going to turn this more of a more of a community centre almost,” Ulloa-Aguilar explained. “Our kids will be able to come and play sports out of our gym, our kitchen will be available so that we have a potential of doing kitchen collectives. We have a lot of programs that we could start growing.”

An official inauguration of the building is planned for May.