News

The SHDM, owner of 16 Autonomie+ rental complexes, leases 1,118 apartments for autonomous people aged 55 and over. Among our tenants, Mrs. Lacoste, who celebrated her 100th birthday last June, never ceases to amaze us with her lucidity, her humour, her charm … and her perfect autonomy!

On the fourth floor of an SHDM building, Mme Lacoste welcomed us in her 4 ½ room apartment, nicely decorated and well cared for. She has been the tenant of this property for more than 30 years, Mrs. Lacoste had originally moved in with her sister. Though her sister passed away a few years ago, Mrs. Lacoste still feels good about her home. “I’m used to living here,” she says. Born in 1916 less than two kilometres from her current place of living, Mrs. Lacoste knows this neighbourhood well.

The Autonomie+ properties were intended for autonomous people, and we asked her how she goes about maintaining such autonomy. First of all, Mrs. Lacoste is lucky to have a relative on whom she can rely. Her nephew and godson is the person who cares most about her; “He lives in Sainte-Thérèse. He comes to fetch me for appointments or to take me shopping. He sometimes takes me to the restaurant,” she explains. Mrs. Lacoste also receives biweekly in-home support services to clean the apartment. There are finally her neighbours with whom she shares activities and on whom she can count for ad hoc purchases. “Every Monday afternoon, we play games of bean bags toss in the community hall of the building. Then, several times a week, we meet at a neighbour’s place to play cards. It passes the time,” she says. “A neighbour also regularly offers me to add my requests to her shopping list when she entrusts her purchases to someone in her entourage.”

This cohesion between neighbours helps to counter isolation and promote the vitality of living environments for the elderly. These are the objectives of the SHDM Autonomie+ complexes and it is gratifying to note that they take their full meaning in testimonies such as that of Mrs. Lacoste.

Mrs. Lacoste still cooks and likes to prepare a good filet mignon. “I also, from time to time, buy ready-made meals,” she says. Aware that her autonomy and her health remain fragile, she anticipates with serenity and simplicity the wish of her godson to find a residence with care when it will become necessary. There are many family pictures in her tastefully furnished living room. The frame hanging behind her chair is a montage of photographs taken during the celebration of her 80th birthday at which several of her nine siblings were present. Today, being the only survivor of her generation, the moments she cherishes most are when her nephews or nieces invite her in their families.

Her advice to young people or perhaps the secret of her longevity would be “one day at a time.” Thank you, Mrs. Lacoste for agreeing to meet with us and for delivering this inspiring testimony.

A proud heritage and so many achievements to celebrate. May this period of festivities begin with joy and pride for the entire SHDM community.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

Discover La rue des Femmes, an organization that is near and dear to our hearts, www.laruedesfemmes.org

 

Our offices will be closed from Friday, December 23, 2016, to Tuesday, January 3, 2017, inclusively. A team will ensure an emergency service and will take the messages left on our voice mail at 514 380-SHDM (7436).

The Accès Condos accredited project, called BORO Condos and stacked townhouses was launched on November 19th and attracted a great deal of interest from buyers and the media.

In addition to the presence of more than 200 potential buyers during the opening weekend of the sales office, several journalists mentioned the project and the Accès Condos home ownership program that was developed 10 years ago by the SHDM.

Read this press review and discover the new Facebook page of Accès Condos to follow the news on the program and future projects!

• Journal Métro – Des maisonnettes Accès Condos pour les familles
• La Presse+ – Accès Condos : Boro à Roxboro
• Montreal Gazette – BORO condos accessible to buyers

About Accès Condos program – Launched in Montréal in 2005 by the SHDM, the Accès Condos program has proven its worth! More than 3,600 quality-built and affordable units were accredited in ten boroughs through agreements with developers. These are all Montréal households that have benefited from our financial tool and have built an equity. This innovative formula promotes home ownership with a purchase credit of 10% offered to buyers. It also allows families to grow since 30% of accredited units have three bedrooms or more.

It was with great pleasure that we read the testimony of one of our new tenants in the local paper Le Canal which is published online by P.O.P.I.R., a tenant rights advocacy committee in Saint-Henri.

This message summarizes the essence of our mission with respect to housing: to provide affordable dwellings that enable families to stay in Montréal. Neither social housing, nor luxurious apartments our 4,700 rental units meet the needs of over 8,000 Montrealers and contribute to the diversity and vitality of our neighbourhoods.

Like the residential fabric of Montréal, our housing stock is diverse: Autonomie+ rental complexes for persons who are 55 years and older, multiplexes primarily offering housing for families and blocks of apartments managed in partnership with housing NPOs and community groups to house clienteles that are vulnerable or have special needs.

In return, Mrs. Valencia, we thank you for taking the time to share your story that is a reminder of why the SHDM is involved on a daily basis in housing issues and how the diversity of its offer meets real needs, such as those of your large family.

The testimony can be read on page 5 of Le Canal paper (fall 2016 edition)

Today, the members of the Ville de Montréal executive committee approved certification of two new Accès Condos projects by the Société d’habitation et de développement de Montréal (SHDM). This step paves the way for the development of affordable new quality condominiums in the Pierrefonds-Roxboro and Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve boroughs, with a model that has proven its success in promoting home ownership and neighbourhood revitalization.

Russell Copeman, Ville de Montréal executive committee member in charge of housing , urban planning, buildings, real estate transactions and strategies, and the Office de consultation publique de Montréal, said, ”Fostering a sense of attachment to the city and supporting Montrealers looking to make their home here are Ville de Montréal priorities, and SHDM’s Accès Condos program has already proven its effectiveness by helping more than 3,600 households become homeowners in Montréal over the past decade. We’re delighted to see these new projects included in the program, which operates as a complement to the City’s Home Ownership Program. Indeed, homebuyers can take advantage of both, since they are not mutually exclusive.”

“The SHDM has been helping Montrealers become homeowners for ten years through the Accès Condos program, which helps households purchase homes without relying on any public funds or subsidies. What’s more, projects are often certified in areas undergoing revitalization, triggering a socioeconomic ripple effect, but without throwing the housing market off balance, » added SHDM general manager Nancy Shoiry. “We are launching these two residential projects and pursuing development plans for other projects that are on the table for 2017 and 2018, while staying the course with innovative measures designed to meet community needs.”

A 26-unit project for families in Pierrefonds-Roxboro
Accès Condos’s first-ever project in the Pierrefonds-Roxboro borough is located at 10438 boulevard Gouin Ouest and 3e Avenue. The project comprises 26 units, 19 of which will have three bedrooms. This family-oriented project will help meet the needs of an area where 19% of the population is 14 years old or under, compared to an average of 15% for the city as a whole. The sales office is scheduled to open in November 2016, with construction slated for completion in fall 2017.

148 units to come as part of the final Accès Condos phases at Faubourg Contrecœur in the Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough
Phases 5 and 6, the final phases of the Accès Condos development at Faubourg Contrecœur, are due to come on stream between 2016 and 2018. Located respectively on the north and south sides of rue Myra-Cree, the two buildings, one with 6 stories and the other with 7, will house a total of 148* units, at least 25% of which will have three bedrooms. The project reflects the neighbourhood’s family-oriented demographic profile, which has grown more pronounced since the opening of Parc Carlos d’Alcantara and the announcement of a new commercial hub at Sherbrooke and de Contrecœur. The sales office for phase 5 should open in early 2017, with work slated for completion by spring 2018.

* Once the preliminary plans are completed, the number of units could be increased.

The Accès Condos program: ten years of success
The Accés-Condo program introduced in 2005 by SHDM has proved its effectiveness! More than 3,600 affordable quality units have been certified in some 10 boroughs through agreements with developers. That corresponds to more than 3,600 Montréal households that have taken advantage of our financial tool to acquire their own homes. This innovative formula encourages homeownership through a 10% purchase credit for home buyers. It also gives families space to grow, since 30% of certified units have three bedrooms or more.

To mark its 10th anniversary, the www.accescondos.org website received a complete makeover. Site visitors can discover the 30-odd certified Accès Condos projects built over the past decade and learn more about this unique home ownership program. Anyone who wants to be notified when a new sales office opens should sign up for the Accès Info newsletter on the website.

The SHDM team is already active in preparing for the moving in of tenants in the Îlot Balmoral and we have a few spaces still available that will accommodate companies or institutions as early as 2018.

Would you like to take advantage of the synergy with the NFB, of the vibrant Quartier des spectacles and of the proximity to the Montréal business centre, and all this in a building with a bold architecture, and that is LEED-NC Gold certified?

All organizations can present us their project and their needs and we will evaluate the availability of spaces and the possibilities for custom layouts.

Organizations or interested brokers can download our presentation document and find the contact information of our team HERE.
Note: The privileges of brokers acting as intermediaries are protected.

Construction is well underway
Would you like to follow the advancement of the construction of this new landmark building on Place des Festivals? The foundations are poured, the structural work is progressing and the first few floors will become visible to passersby in the coming months. The project is managed by the SHDM and is on schedule. Thanks to our on-site camera, you can follow its development by clicking HERE.