Partners
Habitat Fullum
(The portion of the project involving apartments reserved for senior gay men had been carried out in collaboration with the ARC.)
Les Habitations la Traversée, a non-profit organization, has given a new purpose to the former convent of the Sisters of Providence. This immense seven-storey T-shaped building is located at 1431 Fullum Street. It sits between Sainte-Catherine Street and Maisonneuve Boulevard. It is a multi-million-dollar project funded from various sources: grants from the Government of Quebec, the City of Montreal, and a mortgage loan. Les Habitations la Traversée has already converted another building into 72 apartments for seniors at 1460 Crémazie East Boulevard.
About thirty apartments for gay seniors aged 65 and over, in partnership with La Traversée and the ARC (Seniors and Retirees of the Community).
There are also about thirty additional apartments for seniors associated with La Traversée. These residents must be independent or have only a slight loss of autonomy, and they live on several floors of the main building at 1431 Fullum. Funding comes from the AccèsLogis program. These seniors have access to about twenty studio units, thirty-five one-bedroom apartments (3½), and seven two-bedroom apartments (4½). Furniture and appliances are not provided. These residents are entitled to the following services:
– Five meals per week in the dining room, plus two breakfasts
– Elevators and an emergency pull-cord system in each apartment
– Storage spaces
– Access to laundry rooms on each floor (machines cost $1.50)
– Access to community rooms, balconies, and the inner courtyard
– 24/7 supervision
– Social and recreational activities organized by residents and open to anyone who wishes to participate
A. What is the purpose of this building with Les Habitations la Traversée?
There are several components in this project connected to different partners, and the building is occupied by various groups.
1. Office spaces for multiple community organizations are located on the ground floor and the second floor of the main building. The large chapel, which occupies part of the second and third floors, has been transformed into a beautiful dining hall for residents and office staff. This space also serves as a multi-purpose room on many occasions.
2. Maison Émilie, an intermediate care facility, has 62 rooms for people experiencing loss of autonomy, located on parts of the fourth and fifth floors of the main building at 1431 Fullum Street. Residents have their own dining hall and receive three meals per day as well as certain care services. This part of the building is affiliated with a CSSS (Centre for Social and Health Services).
3. Studios for single individuals who need support, with access to community spaces, are located at 2350 Maisonneuve East, near 1431 Fullum. This group is connected with Chambreclerc, a non-profit organization that provides housing for people who are independent enough to meet their own daily needs.
B. Monthly costs for 2023–2024. These prices include hot water, heating, electricity, and services.
C. What are the approximate costs for the subsidized apartments?
In a subsidized apartment (income below $38,000 per year), a person or a couple pays only 25% of their income plus services. For example, if someone has an income of $20,000 per year, the monthly rent would be about $416, plus services of around $308 per month per person, and an additional $35 flat fee for heating and electricity. For two people in the same apartment, such as friends, if their combined income exceeds $38,000, they must pay the non-subsidized apartment rate.
It should be noted that if you sell your condo or have investments exceeding $75,000, you are not eligible for a subsidized apartment. The Municipal Housing Office determines eligibility based on all investments and reported income from the previous year. People aged 70 and over may receive a tax credit of $90 or more per month.
D. Other details
For those who don’t know, 1431 Fullum is a ten-minute walk from the Village and the Papineau metro station. If you have a car, parking in one of the courtyards is very difficult. However, with a permit, it is relatively easy to find parking nearby.
E. Are you interested in the project?
If you are interested in living in one of the 31 apartments at 1431 Fullum Street and have not yet submitted your name, you simply need to call Renaud Paré at 514‑274‑5736 or the reception at 514‑524‑2310, extension 100.
Renaud Paré for the ARCG.
Text revised in September 2023.
Understanding the links between Espace Fullum and the ARCG.
The large building at 1431 Fullum Street, the former home of the Sisters of Providence, now hosts a mix of housing and community organizations.
1. LES HABITATIONS LA TRAVERSÉE (manager of Espace Fullum):
a) Maison Émilie: An intermediate care resource with 62 rooms for people experiencing loss of autonomy, affiliated with an Integrated Health and Social Services Center (CISSS), located on the 4th and 5th floors.
b) Habitat Fullum: 62 apartments on parts of the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th floors for seniors who are independent or have slight loss of autonomy, half of which (31) are reserved for senior gay men.
2. CHAMBRECLERC
c) A building to the east of the project provides long-term supportive housing for single, independent people who are experiencing homelessness and living with mental health challenges.
OFFICES FOR COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS
The ground floor and 1st floor are occupied by partners in social housing, community associations, and actors in the solidarity economy:
– Chantier de l’économie sociale-
– Maison de l’économie sociale
– Fédération des OSBL d’habitation de Montréal (FOHM)
– Réseau québécois des OSBL d’habitation
– Front d’action populaire en réaménagement urbain (FRAPRU)
– Réseau d’aide aux personnes seules et itinérantes de Montréal (RAPSIM)
In the same spirit and with a focus on inclusion, the ARCG recognizes the needs and specificities of all 2SLGBTQIA+ seniors and aims to support each of these communities. Members are at the heart of ARCG’s life; they are the DNA of the organization, and their volunteer actions make ARCG a collective endeavor.
For 24 years, the organization has been able to emerge and grow by and for its members. They contribute countless hours of volunteer work, having built ARCG through dedicated, daily volunteering, without any paid staff during the first twenty years. The intensity of this committed volunteer work in building ARCG highlights the great necessity of its members.
History of the connections between ARCG, Habitations les II Volets, Bâtir son Quartier, and Habitat Fullum.
Project implementation period
From the creation of the ARC in 2001, members expressed interest in a residence where they would not be the only gay men surrounded by a predominantly heterosexual population. In 2005, the ARC Board of Directors began taking steps to develop a housing project tailored to the needs of senior gay men.
A residence committee was created with the approval of the ARC general assembly. Renaud Paré, then president of the ARC, was part of this committee. To gauge interest among senior gay men, an article was published in Fugues magazine in 2006, which received a positive response. The director of Habitations les II Volets (two senior residences on Christophe-Colomb Street) contacted Renaud Paré to assess the ARC’s interest in joining them for a third residence near the Rosemont metro station.
The ARC could have been a co-owner with Habitations les II Volets if it wished. Meetings were held with Jean-Pascal Beaudoin from Bâtir son Quartier, a non-profit organization involved in building construction and renovation. In 2005, Bâtir son Quartier was active near Rosemont metro with housing cooperatives. The ARC agreed to join Habitations les II Volets but, lacking the necessary management expertise to become a co-owner, declined co-ownership. It was decided that half the tenants would be senior gay men, and the ARC would participate in recruiting both gay and non-gay tenants.
For two to three years, everything ran smoothly with public assemblies taking place. Meanwhile, Renaud Paré became a board member of Habitations les II Volets. In 2009, for unknown reasons, the project fell through. The director of Habitations les II Volets, still wishing to develop a third residence, asked Renaud Paré to attend the monthly meetings of the Petite Patrie Housing Table to find another site.
At the first meeting, Jean-Pascal Beaudoin of Bâtir son Quartier was present. He told Renaud he was glad to see him because he had a housing project for the ARC in mind, with Les Habitations La Traversée on Fullum Street. Bâtir son Quartier had previously converted a convent on Crémazie Street into a senior residence for Les Habitations La Traversée and wanted to repeat the experience with the Sisters of Providence convent on Fullum Street.
The ARC Board then met in September 2010 with the Executive Director of Les Habitations La Traversée and her assistant. Jean-Pascal Beaudoin from Bâtir son Quartier, who had proposed the ARC to Les Habitations La Traversée, was present. Over the next two years, Renaud maintained correspondence with the director, Ms. Pratte, for details about the project.
Project implementation and service agreement between La Traversée and the ARC
Two years later, members of the ARC began recruiting future gay and non-gay tenants for Habitat Fullum. In June 2014, an official two-year partnership agreement was signed between the ARC, represented by Renaud Paré (who was not president at the time), and Habitations La Traversée, represented by the new director. Present at the signing were:
– Michel St-Cy: Executive Director, Centre La Traversée
– Céline Lacasse: Tenant Support Manager, La Traversée
– Jean-Pascal Beaudoin: Project Coordinator, Bâtir son Quartier
– Charleine Coulombe: Training Coordinator, Bâtir son Quartier
– Gilbert Ouellet: President of the ARC
– Gilles Desruisseaux: ARC Residence Committee
– Renaud Paré: Representing the ARC Residence Committee
It was agreed that half of the apartments (31 units) would be rented to senior gay men. The first tenants finally moved into Habitat Fullum at the end of October 2014.
Subsequently, the agreement between Habitations La Traversée and the ARC was to be renewed annually. Initially drafted for the project implementation phase, the agreement was to be revised for annual renewal. It was not until 2018 that the ARC submitted a revised proposal to La Traversée for review and approval by their board of directors. La Traversée, consistently occupied with other social housing projects, postponed the review while confirming their intent to maintain the 31 units for senior gay men. The agreement, which includes a termination clause allowing either party to end it with one month’s notice, primarily serves as a demonstration of goodwill by both organizations to maintain these reserved units and harmony among all tenants.
The ARC continues to promote Habitat Fullum and refer members to it. Habitat Fullum and the ARC continue their partnership.
Renaud Paré, president of the ARC from 2001 to 2007, has since stepped down, but as a resident of Habitat Fullum, he continues to support the project through participation in the selection committee, and helps maintain harmonious relations among tenants and between tenants, Habitat Fullum management, and the ARC. Many Habitat Fullum residents are also ARC members.
Note: In 2022, the ARC became ARCG – Aînés et retraités de la communauté gaie.