MONTRÉAL, September 23, 2006 Seniors who want to keep living independently and low-income families now have more options thanks to the construction of the Résidence des Sages, Inter-Loge Centre-Sud Faubourg, the Coopérative d'habitation La Porte du Bourg and the Coopérative d'habitation Val Perché, which comprise a total of 221 housing units, in the Borough of Ville-Marie, in Montréal. This announcement was made today, at the opening of these four housing projects, by the Honourable Michael Fortier, Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister responsible for the City of Montréal, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, by Line Beauchamp, Minister of Culture and Communications and Minister responsible for the Montréal region, on behalf of Nathalie Normandeau, Minister of Municipal Affairs and the Regions, and by Cosmo Maciocia, City of Montréal Executive Committee member responsible for housing. In addition to Minister Fortier, Minister Beauchamp and Cosmo Maciocia, Benoit Labonté, Mayor of the Borough of Ville-Marie, attended the ceremony, as did the Chairs of the Boards of Directors of the four housing projects, residents and community partners. "Canada's new Government is pleased to be making this investment," said Minister Fortier. "The construction of these new affordable housing units in the Borough of Ville-Marie is about people with a passion and determination to help build a better community for our modest-income families and our seniors who want to stay active and close to their loved ones." "The Government of Quebec is very proud to have contributed to the development of these 221 new housing units for families and seniors. These new housing projects will breathe new life into the neighbourhood, while providing modest-income households with comfortable, safe and, above all, affordable homes," commented Minister Beauchamp. "Our Administration is proud to have been among those who finally made it possible to realize the dreams and aspirations of those who completed these projects on the Faubourg Québec site. The development of these housing projects represents the favourable outcome of a sustained relationship between the successive administrations of the City and the community housing organizations in the sector," said Cosmo Maciocia. "For Ville-Marie and downtown, this is the largest community housing initiative that has been undertaken in a very long time," said Benoît Labonté, who is also the City of Montréal Executive Committee member responsible for culture and downtown. "This housing also meets the need to maintain a certain population mix in our social environment." The development of the four housing projects required investments of over $30.8 million on the part of public partners. The financial contributions for the completion of the four projects are being granted under the AccèsLogis Québec program. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) provided $1,763,687 in financial assistance to the Inter-Loge Centre-Sud Faubourg project. The Société d'habitation du Québec (SHQ), for its part, is granting the four organizations a subsidy that will total $10,689,013, while the City of Montréal is contributing a sum of $4,265,488 to all the projects. As well, an amount of $577,500 in financial assistance was provided in equal shares by the SHQ and the City of Montréal to the Résidence des Sages and the Coopérative d'habitation Val Perché, under the Renovation Québec program. The Coopérative d'habitation Val Perché is also receiving a subsidy of $99,450 granted by Hydro-Québec, in order to meet the Novoclimat standard of Quebec's Agence de l'efficacité énergétique. Finally, under an agreement on support initiatives in targeted neighbourhoods, the ministère des Affaires municipales et des Régions and the City of Montréal are contributing, in proportions of 70 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively, a total of $1.2 million in financial assistance to the Résidence des Sages and Inter-Loge Centre-Sud Faubourg. The balance of the investment required to complete the four housing projects is being assumed by each of the organizations involved through a mortgage loan secured by the SHQ. Among the residents of the buildings, 112 households can benefit from the Rent Supplement program, which provides financial assistance to low-income individuals who would otherwise have to spend more than 25 per cent of their income on housing. The development of these projects is part of the Government of Quebec's initiative to produce 20,000 social, community and private housing units for low- and moderate-income households, by 2009. The Governments of Canada and Quebec signed two agreements to increase the supply of affordable housing in the province. These agreements provide for a total contribution of $473 million, with $236.5 million from the federal government and an equivalent sum on the part of the Quebec government and the municipalities participating in the Affordable Housing Québec and AccèsLogis Québec programs. The Résidence des Sages, Inter-Loge Centre-Sud Faubourg, the Coopérative d'habitation La Porte du Bourg and the Coopérative d'habitation Val Perché are projects that follow the Solidarité 5000 logements operation, aimed at developing affordable housing for low-income households. Sources: Hélène BéginCommunications AdvisorCommunicationsSociété d'habitation du Québec418-643-5033 Jean-Jacques BédardCommunications OfficerService de la mise en valeur du territoire et du patrimoineCity of Montréal514-872-3393 Sophie CrêteCommunications and MarketingCanada Mortgage and Housing Corporation514-496-4025 Information: Colleen CameronPress AssistantOffice of the Federal Minister of Human Resources and Social Development613-796-4349 Véronik AubryPress AssistantOffice of the Minister of Culture and Communications418-380-2310 Jonathan TrudeauPress AssistantOffice of the Minister of Municipal Affairs and the Regions418-691-2050514-873-2622 Bernard LarinPress AssistantOffice of the Mayor and the Executive CommitteeCity of Montréal514-872-9998 See Related Speech
