A boutique selling erotic lingerie and adult items has scored a surprising victory in an ongoing battle between property owners and Quebec province governments over an effort to expropriate land for green space.
The city of Laval sought to take advantage of a provincial law that allows municipalities and other government-related bodies to buy real estate property from owners to convert to public use. But when it tried to expropriate a boutique called Romance, the owners cried foul, arguing they were not compensated enough because of the difficulty they faced finding an alternative location.
A pair of Quebec judges agreed, ordering the city to pay the boutique's owners $888,074 on top of the cost the Laval government initially paid to purchase the property.
The ruling is the latest dustup between property owners and governments over the compulsory purchases. The moves, also known as eminent domain, have led to approximately 1,000 properties seized annually for green space projects, according to Quebec government figures, and those transactions frequently meet resistance and end up in involved and costly legal battles.
Romance's win largely stemmed from its difficulty finding an alternative to the stand-alone building it leased at 14-22 Pont-Viau St. since 1975. Its quest was made difficult by a Laval zoning bylaw that greatly limits such establishments to a 1.5-kilometre strip along Highway 440, 5 kilometres north, as noted in the court's 93-page ruling.
Such legal fights are likely to intensify in the coming months as property owners and others push back against recent provincial legislation known as Bill 39, adopted in December 2023.
Multiple concerns
The legislation has come under fire from multiple sides, ranging from the Urban Development Institute of Quebec to a group of 21 appraisers who have cosigned a letter denouncing the newer, less-generous compensation rules.
Legal authorities have closely watched the new law, and the Bar of Quebec recently scheduled a conference in Montreal to discuss its implications.
“The problem lies in the determination of the indemnity. The law came into effect at the start of this year and cases have not been heard yet, but we are getting to a stage when they will soon be heard,” Roman Droitcourt, a senior associate at the Montreal office of the law firm Dentons, said in an interview with CoStar News.
The ruling Coalition Avenir Quebec party has stated Bill 39 was necessary because the previous law sparked so many legal disputes. Authorities in the Montreal Metropolitan Community, a planning and financing organization, are facing a total of $700 million in lawsuits from owners pushing back against expropriations, the provincial government has stated.
The saga behind the Laval adult boutique began in July 2020, well before the new expropriation law was passed, as Laval launched a $14.85 million project to create a park at the foot of the Viau Bridge, an area highly visible to traffic entering and exiting the island.
The city said the expropriations were required in order to create a park, but it later expanded the justification to encompass necessary construction work to cope with drainage systems and infrastructure for future buildings in the area.
The project cost Laval taxpayers more than municipal officials anticipated. In one case the city offered $368,000 to purchase a nearby duplex at 18 des Laurentides but was eventually forced to pay $719,000 for the property. In another example, the city offered $27,000 to get a commercial tenant to move from its premises but was forced to pay $100,000. The municipality also paid a landowner $2.7 million for a strip of land. Additionally, Laval expropriated properties at 5-15 des Laurentides, 12-18 St. Hubert, 20-22 St. Hubert, 40-52 St. Hubert and 1 de Nevers.
Difficulty in moving
The job of relocating an adult boutique within Laval proved more costly — largely because the city limits new establishments to a 1.5-kilometre stretch of road on the northern side of Highway 440 between Industrial Boulevard and Highway 15.
The Romance erotic boutique near the Viau Bridge was owned by Landco, a chain that operates seven boutiques in the Montreal area under the names Seduction and Romance. Landco owns the property of four of its boutiques, while it leases the other three. Landco's lease for the Romance boutique contained a right of first refusal that allowed it to purchase the property if it went up for sale.
The Landco chain told a judge overseeing the dispute that it took 18 months to find a new commercial space and that its new lease required the company to spend $100,000 in renovations before moving into the property at 1521-1529 Highway 440. The new lease was also costlier, as the monthly rent rose to $9,359 from $8,132.
A pair of Quebec court judges weighed the inconvenience and expenses before ordering Laval to pay the company $691,343, plus 16 months interest on that sum, as well as $121,000 for legal fees.
Landco representative Julien Arsenault declined to comment on the issue when reached by telephone, instead referring questions to manager Édith Arsenault, who was unavailable.
The expropriation has faced criticism from local opposition parties.
“Yes, it will look better. But at what cost?” Frédéric Mayer, who represents the opposition in Laval City Hall, said in an email. “The city’s budget is saturated, and there is no more freedom for actual services to the citizens. Taxes are rising quickly, and services are not meeting the citizens’ expectations.”
Representatives of the city directed CoStar News to online materials but would not comment on the project.