The site of the former Shriners Hospital has been on the market for nearly two years. Now, the hospital confirms that talks are underway with a potential buyer.
“They’re in the due diligence process,” said Shriners spokesperson Emmanuelle Rondeau.
However, it might not be anything to get excited about. According to Rondeau, it isn’t the first time a party showed interest in the site.
“We’ve had this process before where they’ve asked for a six-month extension for due diligence, and then it didn’t proceed,” Rondeau told Global News.
That may be due to a slew of limits which buyers will have to deal with.
“Our site does have multiple restrictions to it, one of them being that the buyer cannot build anything bigger than the surface that already exists,” Rondeau said. “The other part is that, for example, our driveway up to the hospital is actually city property.”
For now, the old Shriners stands empty, as it has since the hospital moved to the new MUHC Glen Site in 2015.
According to the listing, the 80,000-square-foot lot is zoned “institutional.” Rezoning would require special permission from the City of Montreal.
“The building is located within the Mount Royal Heritage Site,” said Jules Chamberland-Lajoie, spokesperson for the City of Montreal. “A zoning change for a residential development at this location would require an amendment to the urban plan.”
If the deal does go through, it’s still too early to say what might become of 1529 Cedar Avenue.
“We do hope that it will continue to have a very positive vocation,” said Rondeau.
Many are wondering what the price tag is for such prime real estate, but for now, that remains a mystery.
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