QG Vieux-Québec grocery store complex nearing approval
Peter Black, Local Journalism Initiative reporter
A major project that would see a grocery store located within the walls of Old Quebec is a step closer to approval more than seven years after it was first proposed.
The QG Vieux-Québec plan would be built along Côte du Palais, at a site called Îlot Charlevoix, for Rue Charlevoix, which would be the project’s northern border.
The lot, situated behind the former Bank of Montreal build- ing on Rue Saint-Jean, which will be incorporated in the complex, is now vacant. The city had purchased it in 2017 and called for proposals for a mixed development, with the intention of having a grocery store in the Old City.
The city accepted the proposal from Capwood, a local developer which built a complex on Route de l’Église in Ste-Foy called District Gourmet that opened in 2021.
QG Vieux-Québec, as the project is called, would be a five-storey building with 36 condos of different size, with access to a gym, rooftop terrasse and reception room. Underground parking would be included.
The ground floor would have a grocery store and a food court offering, according to the Capwood website, “fresh products from the bakery, pastry shop, butcher shop and cheese shop.”
There would also be “a stables museum, testifying to the region’s rich equine history.”
Capwood director general Denis Epoh laid out the vision of the project at a Sept. 8 public consultation session organized by the city, which was represented by Cap-aux-Diamants Coun. Mélissa Coulombe-Leduc and other city officials.
At the session, according to media reports, several local restaurateurs questioned the amount of space allocated in the first floor retail area for dining customers compared to the actual grocery section.
Arnaud Marchand, co-owner of Chez Boulay, a high-end restaurant around the corner from the proposed project, told Le Soleil, “The plans show a much more defined restaurant area than the grocery store. The grocery store’s footprint even includes elevators and hallways. The counters integrate the food service area. We’ll end up with 75 per cent of the area devoted to the food service wing.”
In the details of the city’s presentation of the project, it says “on the ground floor, the floor area occupied by the grocery store (main use) must be greater than that occupied by the restaurant (associated use).”
Capwood’s Epoh said, “I understand the neighbourhood’s expectations. I’ve had a lot of hassle, I could have given up. I’ve already invested $15 million and I’m building an attraction.” The overall project cost is estimated at some $80 million.
The neighbourhood council for the Old City, members of which attended the public consultation, stated in a resolution it supported the project because “the current offering of grocery services or food counters in Old Quebec is almost non-existent and that the quality of life of residents and the tourist experience of visitors are affected.”
However, it tacked on a condition of its support, saying the food counter component of the grocery area should not offer table service or have a liquor licence. The recommendation could be problematic in that restaurant licences normally include table service and permission to sell alcohol.
Coulombe-Leduc said the La Cité-Limoilou borough council would debate the issue but no decision would be made before the municipal elections on Nov. 2.
In the meantime, the city is expected to approve by early October a series of zoning regulation changes to make way for the project. Once that’s done, construction would take three years for occupation in 2028.