After a decade of preparation, construction is set to begin any week on the Samara District, the largest housing development ever undertaken in Bromont and promising hundreds of millions of dollars in investments.
“If it’s not in December, it’s definitely in January,” says Gérald Désourdy, one of the sons of the large Désourdy family, who is credited in the region with founding the small town of Cantons – from the east.
With three of his four children (Charlotte, Antoine and Benoît), the businessman and former president of Désourdy Constructions is embarking on perhaps his last major project at the age of 77. “It is certain that there are fewer at the front than at the back. And I don’t know any immortals,” he replies, amused.
Charlotte Désourdy, President, Gérald Désourdy, Initiator and Special Advisor, Antoine Désourdy, General Manager, and Benoît Désourdy, Customer Service and Technology Director, all from the Quartier Samara company. MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI Photo MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI
Of course, nothing to do with the construction sites of Expo 67, the Olympic Stadium or the James Bay hydroelectric power station, which were the heyday of Désourdy Contructions. Nevertheless, in his eyes it was one of the most striking of all.
“I told my children that I don’t want this project to go to waste. And to waste it would be to sell it to Pierre, Jean or Jacques and tell them to do what they want and how they want. Trust me, that won’t happen.”
100 hectares to develop
On a 100-acre site bounded by Shefford Street (Route 241) and Lotbinière Road, the future neighborhood will ultimately have no fewer than 587 residential units (single-family homes, semi-detached homes, multi-family homes), accommodate approximately 1,700 residents and thereby increasing the current population of Bromont by 20%.
Nevertheless, Gérald Désourdy tries to calm down. Despite its size, this new district will in no way distort the deep nature of this community, characterized by its mountains and the Yamaska River, where he has lived all his life.
An illustration of what the first phase of construction with 92 units will look like when completed. Construction will begin in the coming weeks. Free photo, M1nuit minus one – Samara district
On the contrary: instead of this plot of land, acquired in the early 1970s at the age of 27, Mr. Désourdy imagines the creation of a model town, built in harmony with its surroundings, which could bring together as many families as possible, young and elders from different socio-economic backgrounds .
“We weren’t interested in a neighborhood where only rich families or old people without children lived. We wanted diversity. We had the choice between a sleeping area, as many have built, and a living area. In the end we chose life!” he summarizes.
Live life
Life in the Samara district, as he envisions it, will include a secondary school, streets designed to promote active mobility, local shops to reduce car use, and numerous meeting spaces where people can meet and build relationships.
The promoter also plans that 40% of the used area will be reserved for nature reserves, equipped with water basins and kilometers of forest paths, created over time by generations of young and old who came here to have fun.
Preliminary plans for the future district from the air. Free photo, M1nuit minus one – Samara district
For the first phase of construction, which includes 92 residential units, the Désourdy family chose to work with two nearby companies: Construction Eric Laflamme and Gesteco.
The first will take over the construction of semi-detached houses, while Gesteco will take care of the construction of the first apartment buildings. We are currently only talking about co-ownership units, but we do not rule out the possibility that units specifically reserved for the rental market will also be included in later phases.
If everything goes as planned, Gérald Désourdy expects the work to take a dozen years. “Some will say it’s fast. But apparently nothing, in the end this project will have kept us busy for 25 years,” he reflects.
Protected by a microclimate
Isn’t the current economic situation with rapidly rising interest rates for mortgage loans a bad time to start such a housing project? Even if he understands the question, Gérald Désourdy doesn’t believe it.
Photo MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI
“We won’t build if the market isn’t there. That’s clear, he replies. But in our opinion the market is there. To support the confidence, he adds that almost 900 potential buyers have already signed up on an interest list.
“Then, to adopt a formula from the wine industry,” he continues, “we believe that Bromont, with all its attractions (jobs, airport, leisure, nature, etc.) and its geographical location, benefits from a real microclimate that is here prevails.” a class of its own. Maybe not for a vineyard, but for housing, we are convinced of that.”
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