Quebec pays $2.2 million to help decontaminate Îlot Dorchester site
Peter Black, Local Journalism Initiative reporter
peterblack@qctonline.com
The Quebec government is contributing more than $2.2 million to decontaminate Îlot Dorchester in Saint-Roch, in preparation for the presumed construction next year of a major residential and commercial development.
Jonatan Julien, the minis- ter for infrastructure and for the capital region, made the announcement Oct. 28, on be- half of Environment Minister Benoit Charette.
The contribution comes from the ClimatSol program fund, dedicated to decontaminating urban sites, particularly ones suitable for redevelopment.
Frédéric Fournier, a spokesperson for Charette, explained in an email to the QCT that the Quebec government’s contribution amounts to 25 per cent of the estimated cost of the decontamination of the site, owned by developers Groupe Trudel.
“Groupe Trudel pays all costs and ClimatSol reimburses a portion of them according to the terms of the program. The reimbursement by the program for rehabilitation is 25 per cent of the total costs, so Groupe Trudel assumes 75 per cent of the costs,” Fournier explained. Based on that calculation, the total cost of decontaminating the site, bordered by Boul. Dorchester, Rue Saint-Vallier, Rue Caron and Rue Sainte-Hélène, would run approximately $10 million.
The overall budget for Trudel’s Îlot Dorchester project is estimated at $300 million. Plans call for a 20-storey hotel and four other buildings with some 400 housing units and commercial space, including a large grocery store.
In a news release, Charette said, “Supporting contaminated land rehabilitation projects is an important lever for sustainable and economic development for our cities and municipalities. In addition to reducing risks to human health and the environment, soil treatment helps revitalize sectors.”
Mayor Bruno Marchand said, “The Dorchester block has extraordinary development potential. Located in the heart of Lower Town, this site, which currently houses an open-air parking lot, will allow us to increase the supply of residential housing, commercial proximity and services in the Saint-Roch district, in addition to participating in greening and tree planting efforts.”
Îlot Dorchester – Dorchester Block, in English – has had many uses over the years, from farms to shipbuilding manufacturers to shoe factories. The zone has been known for its leather tanning industry.
In the 1970s, according to a city history of the neighbour- hood, buildings were demolished to make way for a central bus station. Eventually, all the buildings on the site were removed and it has been a parking lot for many years, with periodic plans by owners to redevelop the 100,000-square- foot property.
Groupe Trudel had managed the parking lot for the consortium that owned the land until it purchased the site in 2022.
The company has been conducting an architectural dig of the site for the past several weeks. The project is a voluntary effort by the owners and not required by the city. Trudel spokesperson David Chabot told Radio-Canada that artifacts unearthed by the dig might be displayed in the future buildings on the site.
Chabot told the QCT in a previous interview decontamination work would begin in the new year and construction would start in the spring when the ground thaws.