Montréal and Québec Government Pool Their Efforts to Speed Up Development of the Namur-Hippodrome District

Montréal, May 29, 2023

Determined to speed up the development of the Namur-Hippodrome district, the City of Montréal and the Government of Québec today announced the creation of a working group called Groupe d'Accélération pour l'Optimisation du Projet de l'Hippodrome (GALOPH). Made up of partners from the business, community, residential real estate and private and institutional financing sectors, the group chaired by Pierre Boivin, President and CEO of Claridge Inc., and Janie Béïque, President and CEO of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, will help accelerate the creation of the city's next neighbourhood of the future. 

The city and the government are targeting 2025 as the start date to begin building a resilient, sustainable neighbourhood in the heart of Montréal that will meet a crying need for social, affordable, and private housing. This long-term project will see the construction of at least 6,000 housing units on the site of the former horse racetrack. A sustainable mobility corridor with a public transit solution will be developed to provide residents with a link to the Namur metro station. 

A business plan for tomorrow's sustainable neighbourhood

GALOPH's mandate is to identify, for all stages of the project, the elements required for the successful redevelopment of the Namur-Hippodrome district and to secure stakeholder support. 

These stages include infrastructure planning and the design of a sustainable, viable and innovative development concept that will incorporate public transit. The group has eight months to submit a business plan. Made up of experts from diverse and complementary backgrounds, the group's 15 members will develop a balanced approach making it possible to achieve social objectives while remaining relevant for investors. These individuals have volunteered to work with the City, the Québec government and the Government of Canada to create the winning conditions for developing this important site, focused on sustainable development and innovation. GALOPH's members are:

  • Claude Pinard, President and CEO of Centraide of Greater Montréal;
  • Jean-Yves Bourgeois, Executive Vice-President, Business Services Group, at Desjardins;
  • Édith Cyr, General Manager of the technical resource group Bâtir son quartier, Co-President of the City of Montréal's Chantier Montréal abordable, and member of the City of Montréal's Cellule facilitatrice;
  • Clément Demers, architect, urban planner and consultant in the development and management of major urban projects;
  • Claude Foster, President and CEO of the Société d'habitation du Québec (SHQ);
  • Isabelle Melançon, President and CEO of the Institut de développement urbain du Québec (IDU) and member of the Cellule facilitatrice;
  • Philippe Krivicky, Deputy General Manager of the City of Montréal's Économie et Rayonnement de la métropole department;
  • Catherine Pappas, Director of the Corporation de développement communautaire de Côte-des-Neiges;
  • Roger Plamondon, President of Groupe Broccolini, Chair of the IDU, Co-president of Chantier Montréal abordable, and member of the City of Montréal's Cellule facilitatrice;
  • Stéphane Plante, Director of the Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough;
  • Élise Proulx, Head of Québec Economic Development at Ivanhoé-Cambridge;
  • Debbie Stewart, Vice-President of Innovations and Partnerships at the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC);
  • Laurence Vincent, President of Prével and Chair of the Metropolitan and Urban Affairs Committee of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal;
  • Nathalie Voland, President and CEO of Gestion immobilière Quo Vadis and member of the City of Montréal's Cellule facilitatrice.

 

A real estate project in the strategic Namur-Hippodrome district

The real estate project is part of the development of the strategic Namur-Hippodrome district and will run on both sides of the Décarie expressway, along the centre line of Rue Jean-Talon. In addition to the potential for at least 12,500 housing units, active mobility will be a priority in the redevelopment of this area, which will feature abundant green space. The site will be equipped with green, resilient infrastructure for water management. The neighbourhood will aim for a mix of uses to make it a complete, diversified and inclusive living environment, offering a lifestyle conducive to families of all backgrounds. It will also boast numerous local services, including community facilities and schools, as well as employment opportunities. 

This new action is in line with other initiatives developed to accelerate real estate development and the construction of complete, inclusive neighbourhoods, such as the Chantier Montréal abordable and the Cellule facilitatrice. Two weeks ago, the City announced its first
affordable residential project consisting of 200 to 250 rental units to be developed on the former racetrack by the non-profit organization Espace La Traversée and integrated into the neighbourhood. 

Quotes

"What we're putting in place today is a new way of revitalizing the strategic Blue Bonnets area. It's the kind of approach that could be replicated elsewhere, for example, in the east end of Montréal. I'm very happy to hear that the private sector is on board; developers want and need to be part of the solution." 

Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister Responsible for Regional Economic Development and Minister responsible for the Metropolis and the Montreal Region 

"I'm impressed with the composition of this working group, made up of highly competent people with a wide range of experience in the housing and construction sectors who will come up with innovative ways to blend social, affordable and private housing. We are in the throes of a housing crisis, and the land is there, available. This is therefore an incredible opportunity to quickly build a sustainable neighbourhood that will meet the needs of Montréal households." 

France-Élaine Duranceau, Minister Responsible for Housing 

"The racetrack site has the potential to become a sustainable neighbourhood that will inspire future generations and other major cities around the world. As an administration, we have the advantage of both owning and developing this land. An opportunity like this comes along only once in a generation. And to achieve our goal, we need a solid business plan. That's why we created GALOPH, a group of experts from different backgrounds whose work will be critical to the way forward. Within the next eight months, we'll have a business plan that will enable us to innovate in terms of the financial model and partnerships to be put in place. This is a pivotal moment in the site's development, and we're taking full advantage of it." 

Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montréal 

"With the challenges we face, it's essential to develop our territory in the best possible manner. In concrete terms, this means doing so in an environmentally friendly, sustainable, and affordable way and making sure that it is well served by public transit. It is this shared ambition that has brought us here today to announce the creation of the GALOPH acceleration group, chaired by Pierre Boivin and Janie Béïque. Their mission is to come up with a solid, realistic business plan to kick-start the development of the Namur-Hippodrome district by 2025." 

Benoit Dorais, Executive Committee member responsible for Housing and Real Estate Strategy

  

"The creation of the GALOPH acceleration group, combined with the recent announcement of a first residential project, shows that we are in the active phase of the racetrack's development. As mayor of CDN-NDG, I'm delighted that our borough's local expertise is well represented on this committee. I'm also delighted with these positive steps, which will help speed up the development of the Namur-Hippodrome sustainable neighbourhood and meet the borough's tremendous housing needs. I'm proud to say that our administration is responsible for getting this project rolling." 

Gracia Kasoki Katahwa, Borough Mayor of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce

 

"Creating affordable housing is a major challenge and I applaud the City of Montréal and the Québec government for their efforts to bring together local players to take concrete action in this regard. The Fonds is committed to investing in sustainable real estate projects, including social and community housing, while aiming for a reasonable return through its diversified portfolio. I'm optimistic that the work of the next few months will lay a solid foundation for the development of the Namur-Hippodrome district. As co-chair of the GALOPH acceleration group, I will make it my duty to encourage the creation and success of this project, which will transform the community." 

Janie Béïque, President and CEO of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, and GALOPH Co-chair 

 

"I would like to thank Claude Pinard for making me aware of the importance and scope of the social and affordable housing issue. I would like to thank all the members of the working group for volunteering their time to help us create the conditions needed to transform this area into an innovative, socially diverse, sustainable neighbourhood with active mobility and quality local services for thousands of families over the coming years. I would like to thank Gracia Kasoki Katahwa, mayor of the Côtes-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough, our mayor Valérie Plante, France-Élaine Duranceau, Minister Responsible for Housing, Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister Responsible for the Metropolis, and the CMHC representative on behalf of the federal government, for their commitment to jointly finding solutions that will make this project a reality. Finally, I'd like to thank Janie Béïque for agreeing to co-chair this working group so that together, we can deliver a plan to bring this inspirational, mobilizing project to life." 

Pierre Boivin, President and CEO of Claridge and GALOPH Co-chair

-30-