1100 René-Lévesque West has been purchased by Groupe Petra and Groupe MACH. (Courtesy Groupe Petra)

Groupe Petra and Groupe MACH have partnered to purchase one of the best-known office buildings in Montreal, a property long known as the Laurentian Building at 1100 René-Lévesque West.

“This acquisition consolidates Groupe Petra’s position as a leader in the Montreal commercial real estate market,” said Patrice Bourbonnais, president and chief operating officer of Groupe Petra, in a release.

“The addition of this remarkable asset to our portfolio strengthens the strategic partnership that already links us with (president) Vincent Chiara of MACH. We are very proud to acquire a property of such prestige and quality.”

The class-A, 27-storey tower holds LEED Platinum and BOMA Platinum certifications. It was previously owned by Oxford Properties Ltd. The purchase price is reported to be $225 million.

About 1100 René-Lévesque

Constructed in 1986 for a consortium which included the Laurentian Bank, the building comprises more than 560,000 square feet of office space.

It now hosts several large private and institutional tenants, including BCF Business Lawyers, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, ADP Canada and TC Transcontinental.

“The tower enjoys excellent visibility, high ceilings, full-height windows and a strategic location at the intersection of Rene-Levesque West Boulevard and Peel Street,” says the Groupe Petra release. 

An underground parking facility includes more than 330 spaces.

The location allows quick access to several main highways and to Montreal Central Station, a transit hub where the Métro, buses and trains converge. It will also be the site of a future main REM station.

Indoor parking spaces for bikes, a bistro and a convenience store are among the building’s amenities.

1100 René-Lévesque is also next door to the Bell Centre, the downtown arena and entertainment facility which is home to the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens.

Also in the district is the 47-storey 1250 René-Lévesque tower just to the south. It was sold in 2019 for a reported $450 million by Oxford and PSP Investment Board to BentallGreenOak (at the time Bentall Kennedy) on behalf of the Prime Canadian Property Fund and Sun Life.

The property is the former location of the city’s Laurentian Hotel, a 1,000-room monolith which was demolished in 1978 after a 30-year run at the site.

Groupe Petra will assume the management and leasing of the building.

About Groupe Petra

Groupe Petra owns and operates one of the largest portfolios of office and mixed-use buildings on the Island of Montreal.

Its portfolio includes more than 9.5 million square feet of leasable area in 55 properties in the Greater Montreal Area, in Quebec City and in the Greater Toronto Area.

Among its properties are well-known buildings such as Place Victoria, the CIBC tower and the Sun Life building, which are owned in partnership with MACH.

About MACH

Grouper MACH is one of the largest private property owners and developers in Canada.

The company owns more than 150 buildings and manages more than 30 million square feet of commercial, industrial and residential properties in Quebec.

In 2018, MACH received two INOVA awards for the quality of its construction projects.