![\"Interior](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/0910-city-infrastructure-6621_304200351.jpg\")
Work has begun on the Espace LGBTQ+ in the Village in Montreal, seen Thursday, July 9, 2026. Allen McInnis \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\nNorth America\u2019s first French-speaking LGBTQ+ community centre is coming to the heart of Montreal\u2019s Village, and those behind the future sprawling complex say its strive for inclusivity also involves welcoming unhoused and vulnerable neighbours.<\/p>\n
D\u00e9sir\u00e9e 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.<\/p>\n
Espace+Village will be a place \u201cwhere people for whatever reasons, their needs, would be allowed to come,\u201d 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cI 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\u2019t have access to a home,\u201d Duchesne told reporters. \u201cAs we see in our streets, it\u2019s really not easy for every one of our citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Work has begun on the Espace LGBTQ+ in the Village in Montreal, seen Thursday, July 9, 2026. Allen McInnis \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n
Gabrielle Rondy, executive director of the Village\u2019s local business development association, said it is a \u201cgreat project for the Village, specifically this part of the Village.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s lacking a little vitality,\u201d she told The Gazette. \u201cSo 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd it\u2019s going to make people feel safer in this part of the Village that has less bars, less boutiques open, less stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rondy noted the western section of Ste-Catherine St. E. mostly has banks, a grocery store, pharmacies where \u201cpeople just come inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo to have this kind of activity out in the street in this part of the Village is going to be very exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n
The initiative also comes as the Village, once a draw for tourists and a bustling nightlife in the centre of Montreal\u2019s LGBTQ+ community, has struggled in recent years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
Security issues, drug use and filth have been a sore spot for residents and merchants. In 2023<\/a>, some businesses closed their terrasses temporarily in protest.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, advocates for unhoused people have argued the lack of housing or areas in which to congregate in Montreal\u2019s core forced people experiencing drug addiction and mental health problems into the Village.<\/p>\n Ali Farhat, who works at a d\u00e9panneur on Ste-Catherine St. E. near the corner of St-Andre St., said the Village \u201cisn\u2019t completely the same\u201d as it once was, adding there are \u201ctoo many drugs.\u201d 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.<\/p>\n \u201cI try to protect people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n![\"Montreal](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9999-montreal-police-2315_304200203.jpg\")
Montreal police cars are seen in the Village in Montreal on Thursday, July 9, 2026. Allen McInnis \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n