Montréal, February 1, 2016 – The travelling exhibition of art and architecture photographs titled 10 000 logements, 10 000 foyers de changement! will be on display in the Louis-Laberge building at 545 Crémazie Boulevard East in Ahuntsic-Cartierville from February 1 to 11. Part of the activities celebrating the completion of 10,000 community housing units by Bâtir son quartier, a social economy organization, this exhibit is sponsored by the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ and the Caisse Desjardins des Travailleuses et Travailleurs unis, two long-standing partners of the organization.
The purpose is to draw attention to community housing as discreet yet unique environments. Found throughout Greater Montréal, non-profit cooperative housing projects bring about change in neighbourhoods on a social, economic and environmental level.
Primarily made up of a series of pictures taken by photographers Valérian Mazataud and Denis Tremblay, the exhibition sheds light on little known aspects of community housing that will delight people who care about Montreal and social justice: exceptional projects that have recycled former industrial buildings and convents such as the old Maison-mère des Sœurs de la Providence on Fullum Street; touching portraits of people who have found not only a roof but solidarity and support; buildings that meet the highest green energy standards; warm and inviting environments whose architecture and design may prove surprising to many people.
“These community housing projects are all very different and each one comes with its own story. Regardless of their characteristics, they all have one thing in common: they have helped shape Montréal’s image as a supportive and sustainable system of which we can all be proud. This is why we’re inviting neighbourhood residents to come see this exhibition, which highlights almost 40 years of accomplishments by our citizens and community groups. In the borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville alone, Bâtir son quartier has helped build 850 co-operative housing units,” said Edith Cyr, General Manager of Bâtir son quartier, a leading Montréal real estate developer.
“We’re proud to have this exhibition in the Louis-Laberge building, named after the former FTQ president and founder of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ. We’ve been working with Bâtir son quartier and other equally committed actors for more than 15 years to build affordable community housing. During this time, we’ve invested $59 million in these types of projects, which have not only been profitable for the Fonds’ 600,000 shareholders but have also improved the quality of life of low- and modest-income households,” said Normand Bélanger, CEO of the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ.
“At the Caisse Desjardins des Travailleuses et Travailleurs unis, we do more than just help workers and organizations realize their financial projects, we invest in projects that we find meaningful. We’re proud to be involved in this exhibition and to share the benefits of the investments made in 2011 in the Fonds d’investissement de Montréal (FIM), a fund coordinated by Bâtir son quartier,” said Guy Champagne, General Manager of the Caisse Desjardins des Travailleuses et Travailleurs unis.
Information:
The exhibition opened to the public at Montréal’s City Hall in October and has since been travelling throughout the city.
Date: February 1 to 11
Time: Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Place: Lobby of the Louis-Laberge building, 545 Crémazie Boulevard East, H2M 2V1
Métro: Crémazie, North exit (Orange line)
Free of charge
Valerian Mazataud –Bâtir des quartiers solidaires Grand Nord series.
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Source: Bâtir son quartier
Information: Mira Fisher, Communications Director, 514 933-2755, ext. 316
About Bâtir son quartier
Bâtir son quartier is a social economy organization that coordinates the development of community housing and real estate projects in order to create supportive living environments for low- and modest-income households. Since its first initiative in 1976, Bâtir son quartier has developed close to 400 non-profit or cooperative projects for a total of over 10,000 housing units in Greater Montreal, as well as numerous centres for early childhood, community centres and facilities for social economy organizations.
www.batirsonquartier.com
About Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ
Created in 1991, the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ promotes economic growth and employment in Québec by strategically investing in profitable and socially responsible real estate projects in partnership with other industry leaders. The Fonds immobilier backs residential, office, commercial, institutional and industrial projects of all sizes across Québec. At December 31, 2015, the Fonds immobilier had 37 projects in progress, 41 properties under management, 18 million square feet of land and $59 million invested in affordable, social and community housing.
About Caisse Desjardins des Travailleuses et Travailleurs unis
Caisse Desjardins des Travailleuses et Travailleurs unis is proud to share the benefits of investments made in 2011 in the Fonds d’investissement de Montréal (FIM), a fund coordinated by Bâtir son quartier, a social economy organization that develops non-profit cooperative housing projects for low- and modest-income households in Greater Montréal.
Four years later, for her contribution in forging innovative financial partnerships with the Caisse Desjardins des Travailleuses et Travailleurs unis and the FIM, Bâtir son quartier general manager Édith Cyr received the 2014 Desjardins Entrepreneur award in the Women of Influence category.
For more information on the Caisse, visit caissetravailleur.ca