3417-25 Sainte-Famille

Built in 1912, 3417-25 rue Sainte-Famille is a four-storey brick and stone building with 17 apartments, many of them unusually large. Layouts run from 3½ to 8½, with three to seven bedrooms and, in several units, two full bathrooms. The building keeps its original character, with high ceilings and wood trim, while many kitchens, bathrooms and floors have been updated. Hot-water radiators heat the apartments, and there is a shared laundry room in the basement. In 1998 it was a laureate of the City of Montréal's Opération patrimoine architectural, run with Héritage Montréal. Its Victorian-era rooms have also been a film set: several movies were shot inside, including Beastly, starring Vanessa Hudgens. Helisis has owned and cared for it since 2014.

The street sits in Milton-Parc, the historic neighbourhood between McGill University and Mount Royal that its residents saved from demolition in the 1970s. Place-des-Arts metro is about four minutes away on foot and the McGill gates about ten. The large floor plans suit students sharing an apartment, families, and anyone who wants real space downtown on a quiet residential street.

The street itself has history: the nuns of the Hôtel-Dieu opened it around 1862 on land called Mont Sainte-Famille, and the City rates the area a sector of exceptional heritage value. The building also stands in the protected area around the Maison William-Notman. Since 2014 we have replaced the windows, the boiler, the main drains, the roof and much of the masonry, and renovated more than half of the apartments.