The social housing residence on Saint-Hubert Street in Châteauguay, which was destroyed by fire in April 2019, will finally be rebuilt. The completion of the rental building, originally scheduled for July 2023, has been delayed due to an elevator, as revealed by Marie-Belle Gendron, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) member of parliament for Châteauguay, to the Journal.
« The Châteauguay social housing office wanted to add an elevator to the new construction plans, which I completely understand since the building has three or four floors, » she pointed out.
Before the fire, the apartment building did not have an elevator, which caused a disagreement between the provincial and federal governments on this matter, explained Philippe Renaud, the director of the Châteauguay deputy’s office.
« The Société d’habitation du Québec (SHQ) was fully in favor of this addition, while the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) did not see the need for it, » he revealed.
Abandonment of the Project
« The construction plans with an elevator were eventually abandoned and confirmed by the Ministry of Housing and the SHQ, » stated Renaud to the Journal.
This decision resulted in a reduction in the number of apartments in the building. The SHQ is now awaiting new plans and specifications, explained the director of the office. Meanwhile, the social housing office must proceed with requests for proposals to produce new plans and a revised construction cost estimate.
« Now that the elevator issue has been resolved, there shouldn’t be any further delays. There is no timeline yet; the ball is in the social housing office’s court, » he concluded.
On the other hand, Marco Monzon, the general manager of the Comité logement Rive-Sud (CLRS), expressed his satisfaction with the situation and stated, « It’s great news that administrative problems have been set aside; let’s hope it moves forward quickly. »
It is worth mentioning that on June 22, the CLRS, along with several activists, staged a protest in front of the vacant lot where the social housing project was located to draw attention to the issue as the housing crisis continues.