North America’s first French-speaking LGBTQ+ community centre is coming to the heart of Montreal’s Village, and those behind the future sprawling complex say its strive for inclusivity also involves welcoming unhoused and vulnerable neighbours.
Désirée Nore Duchesne, chair of the board of Espace LGBTQ+, said that aside from housing local offices and services, the plan is to have a community space on the first floor of the multi-level building and another area for events on the third level.
Espace+Village will be a place “where people for whatever reasons, their needs, would be allowed to come,” she explained during a news conference Thursday announcing a joint investment of nearly $12 million from the federal, provincial and municipal governments for the initiative.
“I mean, of course we want to make sure that the space is for everyone, including the people who are part of this neighbourhood who don’t have access to a home,” Duchesne told reporters. “As we see in our streets, it’s really not easy for every one of our citizens.”
The future LGBTQ+ community centre is currently undergoing preparatory work for construction of the new site, which will be located on Ste-Catherine St. E., the main artery that runs through the neighbourhood. Completion is slated for 2027-2028.
Work has begun on the Espace LGBTQ+ in the Village in Montreal, seen Thursday, July 9, 2026. Allen McInnis / Montreal Gazette
Gabrielle Rondy, executive director of the Village’s local business development association, said it is a “great project for the Village, specifically this part of the Village.”
“It’s lacking a little vitality,” she told The Gazette. “So to have people come to work every day in this part of the Village, to having people reach out for services is going to be great because there is going to be action, movement.
“And it’s going to make people feel safer in this part of the Village that has less bars, less boutiques open, less stuff.”
Rondy noted the western section of Ste-Catherine St. E. mostly has banks, a grocery store, pharmacies where “people just come inside.”
“So to have this kind of activity out in the street in this part of the Village is going to be very exciting.”
The initiative also comes as the Village, once a draw for tourists and a bustling nightlife in the centre of Montreal’s LGBTQ+ community, has struggled in recent years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Security issues, drug use and filth have been a sore spot for residents and merchants. In 2023, some businesses closed their terrasses temporarily in protest.
Meanwhile, advocates for unhoused people have argued the lack of housing or areas in which to congregate in Montreal’s core forced people experiencing drug addiction and mental health problems into the Village.
Ali Farhat, who works at a dépanneur on Ste-Catherine St. E. near the corner of St-Andre St., said the Village “isn’t completely the same” as it once was, adding there are “too many drugs.” He tries to help vulnerable residents, often bringing extra food from home to donate. Last week, he gave the sandwich he was about to eat to a man who was hungry.
“I try to protect people,” he said.
Montreal police cars are seen in the Village in Montreal on Thursday, July 9, 2026. Allen McInnis / Montreal Gazette
There have been efforts to address some of the complex issues, including heightened police presence and more social workers patrolling the streets, but to mixed reviews. A worker at a shop across from Espace+Village who spoke on condition his name not be published told The Gazette that sometimes people are afraid to walk in the area. But he felt the situation has improved in the last four years, noting increased police patrols may have played a role.
Sylvie, who declined to give her last name, has lived near the neighbourhood for 28 years and said she tells tourists not to come to the Village. She pointed to incidents of open drug use, a lack of cleanliness and a need for better infrastructure, saying “I find it sad.”
“Sometimes I come in, I’m in a good mood, and I leave the Village and I’m just like ‘Why do I go there?,’” she said.
Kamel Bouchelaghem, the owner of Pizza Pizza on Ste-Catherine St. E, said the Village saw improvements leading up to the pandemic, but the situation has since deteriorated.
“Since (COVID), it’s been a nightmare. Every day we argue with three or four people,” he said of security issues, adding police are slow to respond to calls.
But Bouchelaghem loves the neighbourhood, describing the Village as a “magnificent place.”
The business owner also welcomed the creation of the LGBTQ+ community centre, which will be located just steps away from his restaurant. He appeared hopeful, saying “maybe they will help.”
René Bruemmer of The Gazette contributed to this report.
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