Concordia buys Faubourg floors
In a move designed to free up room for a major expansion of the Webster Library’s available study spaces for students, Concordia recently purchased the fifth and sixth floors of the Faubourg Building.
“The university requires more space for its academic activities, including study space for students,” explains Concordia’s Vice-President, Services Roger Côté. “This purchase will help us meet the university’s long-term needs for research, teaching and learning space, commensurate with the standards expected of a top Canadian comprehensive university.”
The university will not occupy the newly acquired space in the Faubourg immediately, since it is currently leased to tenants. However, plans call for the use of the space for academic needs as it becomes available. Côté says his office will keep the university community informed as the relocation plan unfolds.
Because the university is currently below government space norms, it will be eligible for government funding through an annual building operating grant from the Ministère de l'Enseignement supérieur, de la Recherche, de la Science et de la Technologie, Côté says.
Concordia already rents classroom space in the Faubourg Building, and in 1997, the university purchased the adjacent Faubourg Tower, home to the School of Extended Learning, the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema, and the university’s Department of Human Resources.
“The Faubourg location in the heart of the Concordia campus makes the purchase of this new space an excellent acquisition,” Côté says, adding that he hopes the move to expand the university’s academic activities in the Faubourg will be seen as a positive step toward the revitalization of Ste-Catherine Street.
Related Link:
• Office of the Vice-President, Services