Small Quebec town rejects proposed 54-storey tower

A proposed 54-storey luxury tower north of Montebello has been rejected by the local municipality. (MU Architecture)

OTTAWA -

A west Quebec municipality has rejected a proposal for a 54-storey luxury tower in the middle of the woods.

The firm MU Architecture proposed the $300-million project in Namur, a small town about 35 kilometres north of Montebello, Que.

The tower, dubbed PÉKULIARI, would have featured high-end condos and hotel rooms.

Residents would have enjoyed the vast surrounding land—about 300 acres—as their own private nature reserve.

But the municipality has rejected the proposal because it does not comply with the local urban boundary.

The proposed location was about 2.5 kilometres from the centre of the town of Namur, located in the Papineau Region.

It was billed as a green development that would have its own system to gather and reuse snow and rainwater, use solar panels for power and have a self-sufficient drinking water system. It also promised full-time jobs for 250 people.

The developer behind the project suggested on Monday he could be seeking another location for the tower.

“We accept the decision of the Namur city council with great humility and wisdom,” Karim Zaghbani Cloutier said in a statement.