Crown corporation looks to turn Montreal's Wellington Basin into thriving neigbourhood

A federal Crown corporation hopes to give Montreal's Wellington Basin the ultimate facelift, building 2,800 housing units, a public beach and an artisan district.

"What's really exciting is creating a mixed-use space that can give real soul to this area that has been largely abandoned," said Christopher Sweetnam Holmes, senior director of real estate in Quebec for the Canada Lands Company.

He said the aim is to get the 10-year project underway by next year, with people moving in as early as 2027.

The Wellington Basin, roughly 13.6 hectares in size, is next to the Peel Basin, where Bridge and Mill streets meet in the Sud-Ouest borough. The basin, which has largely been filled in, was once part of the Lachine Canal. It began welcoming ships in 1883.

The Canada Lands Company acquired the land from Transport Canada in 2010. It has been holding public consultations over the last couple of years and that resulted in the master plan that was released Tuesday.

The plan includes a new beach where the Wellington Basin, deep enough for ocean ships, used to be. To build a swimmable, public beach, thousands of cubic metres of dirt needs to be removed.

Decontamination will cost about $77 million, but Holmes said, it's all doable and it will "allow opportunities for people to connect with the water in the centre of the city."

Holmes said the company has been working closely with Montreal to develop a plan that incorporates much of the surrounding history in a development.

It has a diverse array of building designs and sizes to avoid cookie-cutter uniformity. There will be, he noted, a 40-storey building included in the development as well as 1,000 affordable and social housing units.

Holmes said the hope is to connect the neighbourhood to the city's light-rail network with a Réseau express métropolitain (REM) station.

"We think that a REM station is a really great way to ensure sustainable mobility for this sector," said Holmes, but that's ultimately up to CDPQ Infra and the government of Quebec.

If the REM station doesn't happen, there are alternatives, he said.

Canada Lands Company is a self-financing federal Crown corporation, with a commercial mandate specializing in real estate, development and attractions management.

"Canada Lands Company is committed to making the Wellington Basin a resilient and inclusive living environment anchored in the Bridge-Bonaventure area," the company says on its website.

The planning process aims to engage representatives of community groups as well as people who live, work or frequent the Bridge-Bonaventure area. Experts with relative expertise on issues in the area are also invited to collaborate, the website says.

There's no estimate of total costs at this point, but Canada Lands Company will first be developing partnerships with firms that build affordable housing and then there will be a public process to select private developers, Holmes said.

There will likely be multiple developers involved, but the selection process will be transparent and public, he said.

"Here's the chance to create something special in the core of the city," said Holmes.

However, the project can't move forward without a green light from the city and the borough. Steps have to be taken when it comes to urban planning, but Holmes said, the city has been supportive so far.

Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante told reporters Tuesday that the city is positive about the master plan.

"We will look more into it, but we need to keep in mind that this is public land managed by the government of Canada," she said. "So, of course we have high expectations."