Côte-St-Luc is preparing for population growth like it hasn’t seen in decades with its recently adopted master plan.
The city of 35,000 residents anticipates construction of 4,000 new housing units and a 35 per cent increase in its population over the next two decades, Mayor David Tordjman said in an interview.
“The master plan is going to revitalize Côte-St-Luc,” he said, adding revenue from an increased tax base would be invested in services and infrastructure.
“It’s already a great city, but it’s going to make Côte-St-Luc an even better city and more affordable to families.”
There won’t be a population “explosion” in the next couple of years, Tordjman added. “The reality is this is a long-term plan.”
The master plan, which Côte-St-Luc adopted in May, also lays out a shift to active transit, more parks and green spaces, more recreation services and connecting neighbourhoods that are hemmed in by railway tracks.
A neighbourhood that is disconnected from central Côte-St-Luc, for example, could receive satellite services, including library and recreation services, Tordjman said.
The spate of construction is to be driven largely by the three major shopping malls in Côte-St-Luc — Décarie Square, Quartier Cavendish, which was formerly known as Cavendish Mall, and Côte-St-Luc shopping centre. The owners of the malls are at various stages of planning to gradually demolish their structures and replace them with tree-lined streets combining housing and commercial space.
“Our malls, unfortunately, are not the centres of the community that they once were,” Tordjman said.
The idea is to revitalize “those areas with future-looking types of development — commercial on the ground floor with residential above — restaurants and coffee shops. All of those nice things people go out of Côte-St-Luc to access will now be accessible in Côte-St-Luc — walking distance.”
Côte-St-Luc foresees a mix of apartments, condos and townhomes, as well as some single family homes, he added. Townhouses offer a more affordable option than single-family houses, Tordjman said. As well, larger apartment units may attract young families that can’t otherwise afford to buy into the real estate market, he said.
“We need to ensure our seniors have a place to go in Côte-St-Luc as they age out of their homes,” Tordjman said.
“So we want to retain seniors and attract them, and we also want to attract families.”
The city is also streamlining its permits process to enable current building owners to renovate their homes with fewer bureaucratic hurdles, he said.
There has been virtually no new housing development in Côte-St-Luc since 2020, according to figures from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp (CMHC). In fact, the federal agency reports 1,175 housing starts in the city over the past 20 years.
That makes 4,000 new units a major shift for Côte-St-Luc.
“There will be additional homes, but it’s an evolution of a city that’s required,” Tordjman said.
“The sustainability of a city is difficult with a limited tax base. We have to expand the tax base to increase revenue. But we also have to revitalize certain areas.”
While the previous administration of Côte-St-Luc launched the process to overhaul the master plan in 2022, Tordjman said adopting it was a priority for him after his election last November.
The city held public information meetings with residents about the content this spring, he said.
“Obviously, change brings concern,” Tordjman said.
“But the concerns were largely alleviated by sharing with the public what the benefits of these changes will bring.”