job

12 minutes ago, Decel said:

https://www.lapresse.ca/xtra/2022-08-13/ivanhoe-cambridge/projet-haleco-reinventer-la-vie-en-ville.php

À noter que l'article est commandité ...

C'est quand même quelque chose de voir tous les clichés et 'buzz words' réunis dans un seul projet lol ...

4 minutes ago, Djentmaster001 said:

Well the CCM can't do much and the people in charge of the city are leftists, so lowering taxes is a no go... Also they can't do much about rents, that's up to landlords based on S/D. If we had special powers tho, we could decrease taxes and offer tax credits/tax holidays ourselves but another pipe dream (the city does not dream or think big). 

Honestly, from my experience, the landlords are limited in their influence ... the 'running costs' for downtown commercial spaces can easily reach 45 to 90$ a square foot. A big part of this is, of course, taxes. 

1 hour ago, swansongtoo said:

Meh. 

https://www.lapresse.ca/affaires/2022-08-08/2-4-millions-pour-revitaliser-le-centre-ville-de-montreal.php

2,4 millions pour revitaliser le centre-ville de Montréal 

PHOTO PHILIPPE BOIVIN, ARCHIVES LA PRESSE

Centre-ville de Montréal

La Chambre de commerce du Montréal métropolitain a annoncé lundi une contribution de 2,4 millions de dollars pour soutenir de nouveaux projets créatifs dans le centre-ville de Montréal. 

Publié à 15h46

DELPHINE BELZILELA PRESSE

Dans le cadre de son initiative « J’aime travailler au centre-ville », la Chambre a dévoilé lundi les six projets artistiques retenus qui bénéficieront de son aide financière. Ils seront aménagés d’ici les prochains mois dans plusieurs lieux fréquentés par les travailleurs du centre-ville. 

« Ces six nouvelles installations artistiques permettront de rehausser le caractère vibrant de notre centre-ville et l’expérience offerte aux travailleurs », a affirmé Michel Leblanc, président de la Chambre de commerce du Montréal métropolitain, cité dans un communiqué. 

Des créations des organismes MU, Aire Commune, LNDMRK et Moment Factory font notamment partis de la sélection. Plus de détails sur les nouveaux projets viendront au cours des prochaines semaines, peut-on lire dans le communiqué. 

C’est avec le soutien du ministère de l’Économie et de l’innovation que la Chambre avait lancé en 2021 l’initiative « J’aime travailler au centre-ville » pour rehausser l’achalandage du centre-ville de la métropole, durement touché par la pandémie.

Maybe more crappy wood benches all over Saint Catherine ? Another nice sand pit like the one near Saint James Church?

They need to invest in bringing businesses and restaurants back by lower rents ...

3 hours ago, KOOL said:

Les « organisateurs » ont remisé leur fierté au placard. 

The worst part is that the Board of Directors of Fierté do not intend on stepping down.... 

How can you even consider sticking around after such an incredible embarrassment. 

1 hour ago, KOOL said:

Ah bon, je savais que la Ville avait demandé une amélioration de la qualité du revêtement mais j'ignorais pour une seule et unique tour. Elle devait faire uniquement 147m comme les jumelles actuelles où ça devait être plus haut pour compenser (après tout le terrain était zoné 120+) ? 

Je ne me souviens pas l'hateur mais de mémoire c'était du 65 étage qui était voulu ... 

11 hours ago, KOOL said:

Au début des Nineties une proposition de 75 étages pour la tour IBM-Marathon a été refusée par la Ville. 

Et au passage merci à Denis (pas le gars du TOM, l'autre) pour les TDC 2 et 3 qui font 168m et non 120m. 

Merci aussi à Valérie pour toutes les mises en chantier précipitées afin de devancer le règlement 20/20/20.

 

Il y a aussi le Rocabella, qui initialement voulait construire une seule tour ... 

10 hours ago, Decel said:

 

This is the fun part of the debate. We will see (soonish!), but I am betting against that position. Also surprised how many people bash Carbonleo as a company not able to read the luxury markets when they built the 4 Seasons on De La Montagne. I would have thought they'd get a bit of luxury-street-cred from the forum out of that project.

 

Glad someone brought up 4 seasons on De La Montagne ... there is one retail space in that complex and it took years to lease to Moose Knuckles ?!?

There have also been rumours for years of turmoil with the Four Seasons brand and that the hotel has changed hands... Perhaps someone can confirm.

Lastly, the residences ... many are still for sale by promoter and there were only a dozen or so to begin with.

I am glad the project was built and exists but I would hesitate to consider it a home run :s 

8 hours ago, Né entre les rapides said:

I find that  the recent discussions are predicated on the assumption that Royalmount will be (or strive to be) a luxury mall catering to a very  rich clientele.  My expectations are slightly different:  there will be some high end retail stores, but the bulk of the mall would carry more affordable and "mid-high-end " * brands (but ideally avoiding low end).  The (comparatively small) high-end component would add some prestige to the place.  It is no different downtown.     

I certainly agree that the original plan combining commercial and residential functions  would have made it a superior proposition.  However I do not despair that it may come to be in the future, as the current plan does not appear to cover the whole site: some land would remain available for a substantial residentiel component.  Arguably, TMR may continue to object, but keep in mind that the provincial government  has the undisputable power to amend or modify municipal limits at will; it only needs to be convinced by a group of influential peoples, preferably coming from a broad spectrum, that the change would be beneficial overall.  As for the existing TMR residents, they might even be  pleased that the dreadful (for them) prospect of welcoming new (different?) residents into TMR would have been removed (while keeping the taxes from the commercial sector remaining in TMR). 

The Royalmount is by no means a perfect site, mostly due to poor access.  But this can be alleviated, to some extent.  What were/are the alternatives?  -- Hopefully not a wasteland in the middle of the Island.  

* as per @Decel 

Definitely agree ... if it is to be another offering similar to Dix30, it will probably do fine. 

My initial point was and remains that it is a highly diluted version of the original plan and thus, little more than an ordinary mega mall. Will this be worth the investment? TBD but my guess is probably not.

12 hours ago, mtlurb said:

Some people forget or might not know that the most expensive retail items are already sold in that “industrial”, off the highway, gritty location.

Yes, I am talking about Aston Martins, Bentleys, Rolls Royce, Ferraris and more … all in that same location. There has to be a reason for that. Why aren’t they downtown or scattered elsewhere. Nope. They are all there. 
 

The people behind that project are not idiots, they know their demographics more than you and me. 

Just going to point out that none of these dealerships are recent ... they are all remnants of a time when they were 'cheap, large plots of land' relatively close to Westmount / TMR / Outremont. Furthermore, it is hard to categorize car dealerships as luxury shopping ... you buy your Bentley or Aston Martin once every few years at best. After that, they come pick up your car for servicing. I think Royalmount is hoping for more than a visit every few years.

No one is saying the people behind the project are 'idiots'. They KNEW their demographics and the economic climate when they chose to jump in. They could not have predicted covid, municipal issues, inflation, supply chain issues, etc.

Again, the initial project was definitely interesting. Its current, diluted iteration, not so much.

In my opinion.

6 minutes ago, maxi2515 said:

Tell that to everyone who goes to Yorkdale Mall, just off the highway to buy $5000 handbags!

Yep ... it works in Toronto which has a completely different demographic, population and economy. Good point.

It would also work great in Dubai but Montreal isn't that either. 

8 minutes ago, Né entre les rapides said:

Which old generation(s)?  -- Certainly not in the eras of Royal France, Imperial Russia, the American Barons of industry, not even post-revolutionary France or the Second French Empire Empire.  Of course the really poors and those nés pour un p'tit pain did not display their wealth, because they hade none.

I agree that the "'new" generation is different.  Those who have real money spend it differently.  Less on ostentatious luxury clothing, more on fitness and expensive sporting goods and exotic travel. 

Ironically, the younger generation accuses the boomers of holding too much wealth.    

Amen. 

It is all about creating experiences in line with the values of the new generations. A megamall at a highway intersection with unaffordable housing and no green in sight is the exact opposite of those values. 

If we are going after the luxury shoppers ... they won't want to go down to a huge, crowded mall in the middle of nowhere to buy their 5000$ purses. If we are going after the new, experience-driven generation, a megamall surrounded by highways probably isn't it either.

Hence, my initial criticism of the project ... 

19 minutes ago, Né entre les rapides said:

Do you imply that L Catterton jumped in later when they could get a good deal?

 

Maybe the name LVMH, which owns 40% of L Catterton, would serve primarly to convey some prestige to the Royalmount -- a kind of lifestyle centre with a (slight) difference.   

Geländewagen: Mercedes G-class.  At 2 km/h in the circle: just for a brief moment.  Over one hundred  thousands of other drivers pass through it daily despite the frequent delays, because it remains the best (least worst) option.  You do not go there if you already live downtown, or if your destination is located in another direction, but it still leaves a considerable number.  Not beating downtown, but  good enough.  

I was implying that L Catterton jumped in at the beginning when the project looked far more interesting than it looks now. I don't think they would have participated in the current project as it has evolved ... just my opinion.

As for LVMH; definitely will help. The planned LV store will help raise interest for the locals in proximity but the price per square foot will certainly be accordingly high.

In my opinion, Montreal, has always had a very particular relationship with luxury retail. For example, there was a Holt Renfrew and Birks at Rockland ... those closed. There were standalone Versace and Cartier stores downtown and they closed. It is tricky territory to navigate.

I wish the project luck and hope it works, but I certainly would not bet my own money on it.

11 hours ago, mtlurb said:

And to get to the that downstairs parking downtown? You forget that its really something getting in town more and more... 

But Midtown is 'in town' ... for many areas, it is harder to get to than downtown. For example, from the South Shore or for the entire East of the island. 

Similar arguments were brought up back in the day when Holt Renfrew opened a second location at Dix30 (the H2) and that was catastrophic.

Just to be clear, I was a fan of the Royalmount project in its original iteration where it created a new, urban environment and ecosystem. In that context, it made sense. Now, it is a truncated version that really leaves us with an out-of-context mega-mall that may work but probably not as a luxury destination.

In regards to accessibility, I agree that downtown has been a challenge but the infrastructure work is nearing its end ... the 720 is nearly finished, the REM stations almost ready, the Champlain finished, the Turcot done and the Saint Catherine and Peel works coming to an end. The situation is the exact opposite at Royalmount where the elevated Metropolitan will have to be redone (that will take 74 years!) and the public access reconfigured. 

A good idea that has gone askew in my opinion but there was so much money already invested that they could not back down. I doubt L.Catterton would have backed the current project from the beginning.

5 minutes ago, mtlurb said:

We're just chatting, but do you honestly think its easier to park downtown Montreal to get the Louis Vuitton bag? Corner Montagne and Ste-Catherine? That's the only other Vuitton outlet in town.

Definitely; parking is downstairs at Holt's ... The Jean Talon exit on Decarie (without the mall) is a 20 minute ordeal. 

1 hour ago, Né entre les rapides said:

Tu es la meilleure personne pour répondre à cette question.  Je ne connais pas ton état d'esprit.  Ce que je sais, c'est que la localisation de l'un et l'autre projet est radicalement différente.  RDP est périphérique, Royalmount est central.

 

My state of mind is one where retail spaces are empty everywhere and building a mega-mall with a mediocre access plan and the hope that people will want to take the metro or wait in traffic to go buy Louis Vuitton --- in Montreal --- is wishful thinking.

Everything about it is off ... a waterpark? 

Anyone else remember that huge mall project that was abandoned 3/4 built in Riviere-des-Prairies in the 90's ... why do I feel like we are looking at history repeating itself? 

37 minutes ago, SameGuy said:

Montagne 

 

Great argument ... 

23 hours ago, Julpyz said:

I don't remember who made this on this forum, so sorry for the lack of credit, but I think a 300m in Montreal wouldn't look that out of place...

Does anyone else notice the obvious ... that from many (if not most) angles the Mount is already hidden? 

With all due respect to it being a nice feature and a cute public park ( although much less usable than a flat park such as Central Park), it isn't Mount Fiji or Mount Everest ... a nice feature but not quite as impactful as most seem to wish it was :s 

Vrmt cool ... mais à Vaudreuil ? Existe-t'il tant d'intérêt autour du Chateau ? 

Selon-moi ... le Chateau mediocre et plutôt 'tacky' est assez ... 

7 hours ago, Normand Hamel said:

Selon ce que rapporte La Presse les voitures seront bientôt bannies de Central Park:

Les voitures seront complètement interdites d'accès à Central Park à partir de fin juin, a annoncé vendredi le maire de New York Bill de Blasio, qui dit vouloir donner la «priorité à la sécurité et la santé» de ses visiteurs, piétons ou cyclistes.

Si la circulation était déjà interdite au nord du célébrissime parc de Manhattan, qui fêtera l'an prochain ses 160 ans, des véhicules pouvaient encore rouler sur les trois voies bétonnées du sud, West Drive, Terrace Drive et Center Drive.

La décision ne concerne pas, en revanche, les quatre voies dédiées qui traversent le parc dans sa largeur, plusieurs mètres en-dessous du niveau où circulent les piétons, séparées du reste du lieu par des murs.

«Nos parcs sont pour les gens, pas pour les voitures», a commenté Bill de Blasio, cité dans un communiqué vendredi.

 

«Durant plus d'un siècle, les voitures ont transformé en autoroute certaines parties du parc le plus célèbre au monde», a-t-il ajouté. «Aujourd'hui, nous en reprenons possession. Nous donnons la priorité à la sécurité et la santé de millions de parents, d'enfants et de visiteurs qui se rendent à Centrak Park.»

L'interdiction deviendra effective le 27 juin, au lendemain de la fin de l'année scolaire des écoles publiques de New York.

En janvier, le maire avait pris la même décision pour Prospect Park, parc emblématique du nord-ouest de Brooklyn, dessiné comme Central Park par Frederick Law Olmsted et Calvert Vaux.

http://www.lapresse.ca/affaires/economie/etats-unis/201804/20/01-5161886-les-voitures-bientot-bannies-de-central-park.php

La grande difference avec Central Park c'est que c'est plat donc beaucoup plus accessible à tout le monde. Au contraire, le fait que le Mont Royal soit une montagne le rend moins accessible à une grand portion de la population si on y enleve les moyens de se rendre à des points stratégiques sans voiture ... 

13 minutes ago, KOOL said:

Au rythme où vont les annonces de projets, le Centre-Ville va rapidement manquer d'espaces prestigieux pouvant accueillir du 200m. 

Les promoteurs n'auront plus le choix de démolir pour construire. Ça pourrait commencer avec le 505 R-L Ouest.

Évidemment y' a ça aussi (la cochonnerie à droite du 1425) :

Et surtout ça (je ne suis cependant pas certain que ce soit du 200M à cet endroit). 

 

j'ajouterais le Hertz Location de voitures sur Maisonneuve, entre la Baie et Desjardins ... 

yuck!