Montreal’s executive committee is expected to vote Wednesday on the agreement to buy the land from the technology firm for $30.6 million.
The Valérie Plante administration and the technology firm Hypertec have reached a $30.6-million deal that will result in the conservation of an 11-hectare section of ecologically valuable lands in the Technoparc area, The Gazette has learned.
Multiple sources close to the deal have told The Gazette the city has managed to cobble together $30.6 million to buy the land from Hypertec, with contributions from the provincial government, the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal and the Nature Conservancy of Canada, a national charitable organization dedicated to protecting natural areas.
The city’s executive committee is expected to vote on the deal on Wednesday, and the administration is expected to hold a news conference Wednesday to release details.
The Gazette has also learned that Hypertec has now found a site for its headquarters in the LaSalle borough. The land was previously developed and will need to be decontaminated before the company can build.
The deal means that about 700 Hypertec jobs will remain on the island of Montreal.
The ADM lands are known to be an important migratory stop for monarch butterflies, which the federal government listed as endangered under the Species at Risk Act in December 2023. This means the government must implement an effective conservation plan, and that it is illegal to kill monarch butterflies and to destroy essential habitat.
The wetlands are made up of forests, marshes and grasslands, and are considered a vital stopover habitat for migratory birds. Birders spot close to 200 species there each year, several of which are rare or endangered.
The Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal and the federal government have made international commitments to protect 30 per cent of their territory by 2030. Only 23.6 per cent of Greater Montreal remains in a natural state.