Condos planned for former Montreal Children's Hospital get green light from city

A mixed-use redevelopment plan that could radically alter the urban landscape at the former site of the Montreal Children's Hospital is one step closer to becoming a reality.

The city's executive committee gave the go-ahead for the contentious $400-million project, which includes six towers of residential and social housing, at the corner of René-Lévesque Boulevard and Atwater Avenue. It also includes a park, a municipal library, offices, stores and a hotel.

• Condos planned for former Children's site won't make downtown family friendly, critics say

The developer Devimco's project was approved upon several conditions. The move comes following a public consultation process where many voiced their concerns about the height of towers, and whether or not it would attract families to the downtown core.

However, the changes fail to address a concern by the city's public consultation body, the Office de consultation publique de Montréal, which recommended the development scale back to five towers in total.

The executive committee said in a news release that eliminating a tower would have meant getting rid of 230 units and would have put some of the services offered by the project at risk.

The conditions of the redevelopment plan now include:

• Three times more social housing than initially planned.
• An additional 30 per cent more green space, created by adding 1,000 square metres to Hector-Toe Blake Park, bordered by Hope Avenue, Sussex Road and René-Lévesque Boulevard.

While the city's executive committee gave the project the green light, the city must give its formal approval at the next meeting on Monday.

If the project is approved, work could begin as early as this summer.