Commercial development project in Huntingdon faces major delays

Sarah Rennie – LJI reporter

A development buzz continues to resonate across the town of Huntingdon, where housing starts and construction sites seem to be cropping up on nearly every vacant lot. There is one piece of land, however, where the signs of development have remained conspicuously absent.

The field earmarked as the future site of a new Maxi supermarket has remained untouched since the project’s promoters installed a sign and ceremoniously broke ground on the commercial development project in April 2023. Work was expected to begin right away on the proposed 28,000-square-foot grocery store located off François-Cleyn Street, near the corner with Ridge Road.

“The Maxi is still going ahead,” insists Huntingdon mayor André Brunette, while noting that some of the plans for the property have changed. The municipality has also decided to allow for the addition of housing on the lot.

Brunette says that difficulties acquiring permits from the Ministère de Transport to access Route 202 (François-Cleyn Street) are among the issues stalling the project.

Samuel D’Avignon, who is the director of operations for Sphere société immobilière, the real estate developers behind the project, notes the MTQ received the request for permanent access to Route 202 almost two years ago. “The request complies with their regulations, and we have provided them with all the additional documentation requested to answer their questions,” he explains.

The holdup caused by the MTQ is not the only complication resulting in unexpected delays. D’Avignon says that just before the projected start of construction in mid-2023, they discovered the water pressure available at the site did not correspond with simulations and failed to meet building code fire safety requirements for the sprinkler system. “Despite several checks and efforts by the municipality to increase the pressure, it was not enough,” he says.

For the project to go through, the developers commissioned engineers to design an underground 80,000-gallon water basin and system complete with a 1,200 gallon-per-minute pump. D’Avignon confirms that the process, which involved studying and modifying their plans, extended over a year.

D’Avignon says they are currently reworking the budget for the project to ensure all is in line to begin construction. As of now, no start date has been set.

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