Checking up on Swatow: Chinatown’s Newest Development

Photo: Deya Bautista

We were due to give you an update on the latest (and best looking) chinatown construction. So, here you have it: The all new and completely finished Swatow Plaza. Looking sharp, looking proud. It even looks sexy, if that can be possible for a building. There is only one tenant moved in, and so far it looks like the rest of the building is pretty much empty. Not sure what kind of shops will be occupying the shopping plaza, let’s just hope it isn’t going to be another import-type of business. Looking forward to new restaurants, boutiques and  whatever higher-endish business they can come up with.

This is a sneak peek of the first tenant, an antique furniture store. Not yet 100% settled in, but the owner Mr Cheung seems quite accommodating.

Will be posting on the new shops as they move in. Any additional info you may have on the new shops coming to the Plaza please share them on the comments section!

Swatow: Brings a New Flair to Chinatown

The new development of the commercial building in Chinatown has symbolically adopted the name Swatow,

“Swatow, a city significant in 19th-century Chinese history as one of the treaty ports established for Western trade and contact, was one of the original Special Economic Zones of the People’s Republic of China established in the 1980s, but failed to blossom like other cities such as Shenzhen, Xiamen and Zhuhai.”

I find the name Swatow is appropriate for this new development, it symbolizes the beginning of a new commercial center in this neighbourhood which can stimulate more economic activity.

This construction style may start a new trend, with further projects taking on a modern design with a traditional Chinese flair.

The 20 million dollar project was anticipated to be finished at the end of 2008, although they did not meet their deadline, at the speed they are going now, I would not be surprised to see it finished before the end of this summer.

What this project has to offer: Office space, Store fronts, Restaurants and two underground levels of parking.

Read additional info on this project at MtlUrb Forum

The Super Hospital Begins Construction: Demolition Site on St Antoine.

This building was scheduled for demolition for quite sometime now. According to a condo-owner on Rue Gosford (old Montreal), this building’s land will be the new location for Montreal’s Super Hospital (CHUM?)
Although I haven’t really confirmed if this is true or not, but word is, this site (st Antoine between Gosford and st-Denis) will be completely developed for the Super Hospital Complex. The buildings facing the demolition site, are also included in the plans.

“The Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal is to contain 700 single-patient rooms that could easily be converted to double-bed units, because the basic equipment is already in place, explained Dr. Guy Leclerc, the CHUM’s chief of cardiology.
(…)

Aside from providing specialized care, the CHUM site will also have a university teaching and research mandate, with 6,000 students coming through annually, noted Dr. Denis Roy, executive director of the CHUM. The hospital complex will be bounded by René Lévesque Blvd. to the north, St. Denis St. to the east, St. Antoine St. to the south and Sanguinet to the west.”

I’ve read that its construction was planned to start as early as the spring of 2010, and will be completed by early 2014. Just last week they began the demolition, and at a very rapid pace.
Here is what the place looked like as of last Saturday.

I can foresee the traffic jams at the exit of the 720 to Berri. The noise it will create for the next couple of years, for those who live in the area (including myself) but the great thing: the value that will add having a super hospital near by. The selling value and rentals will definitely increase, since the staff (specially Doctors) will need a place to stay near by, which is fantastic news for those who already own and/or wish to purchase in the area.

Griffintown: A no-go without the city’s financial help

Just two weeks ago we had news about the Griffintown Project scaling down to 30% from its original size.
Yesterday we had news via La Presse, that Devimco is asking the city of Montreal to step in with financial help, otherwise the project won’t be finished until 2013.

The city’s response: “We’ll evaluate the request and see what we could do”.

Be sure to read more on that soon.

Griffintown Project Revised: Reducing Its Size to 30%

Due to the economic situation, and the difficulty of accessing bank financing, Devimco (the Company behind the Griffintown Project) has informed the City of Montreal that it no longer needs to acquire all the land within the original project boundary at this time. Over the past two years, the Company has paid several million dollars in guarantees to the current owners, who have agreed to sign purchase options.
Completed its $210 million financial package for the purchase of all the land on the site and the Company held options to purchase 87% of area targeted by the Griffintown PPU. The deterioration of the economic situation and the financial world has changed its plans.

Devimco announced that, starting in 2010, it will implement an alternate scenario that better responds to the new economic and financial reality and that will conform to planning regulations adopted in 2008. Devimco will focus its first investments in the southern part of the territory.

This revised project, which would be predominately residential and, to a lesser extent, office space and shops, will occupy an area equivalent to 30%of the original site. Full details of this new scenario will be made public towards the end of 2009.

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333 Sherbrooke Phase II: Delivery date?

If there’s a project we’ve been waiting to see finished it’s definitely the 333 Sherbrooke E.

Winter time was a busy one for the construction crew, although the main structure was there from last year, the front was mainly put together in a few months: balconies, façade, windows…
Then, it seems the progress just stopped.

I read on their website that the expected delivery date was for “Beginning of Fall 2008″, but this doesn’t really look close to completion.

Condos Le Montmartre: Get it while is hot.

Right in the corner of Sherbrooke and rue de Bullion, there’s a nearly finished condo project that began construction late 2006. Le condos Montmartre, has only just a few units available for sale.
For those who frequent the area, you’ve probably seen this sign before.

Taking a quick look of the projects completed units, I came across this sign. A finished non occupied condo is already for rent.

Notice the little white sign on the window?

According to their website, the project was built on ” a heritage site, surrounded by splendid edifices built at the turn of the XXth century.”

The sales office itself looks like the heritage building, but obviously not the new construction. Wondering it the will be placing the sales office for sale as well.

As for the remaining units, their asking price ranges from 300,000+ to half a million.

1^st floor 407,700

4^th floor 559,700

5^th floor 337,100

Or visit their website to view the rest of the units.

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