The owner of the 600-unit commercial storage property at 5090 Hochelaga St. sees the 74,000-square-foot warehouse as a much-needed asset for the eastside Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district.
The newly renovated building at Hochelaga and Viau supplies a personal storage resource for a neighbourhood on the rise, according to Simon Berman, CEO and co-founder of Montreal Mini Storage.
“This is a rapidly gentrifying area and many of those new condo dwellers will want to maximize the amount of space they have," Berman said. "They will want to move their excess, bulkier items out, whether it be patio furniture or bicycles or sports equipment or tires."
MMS took a circuitous route to developing its 23rd such local facility, as the company initially purchased an older structure in the area for the same purpose but then got an offer for that property they were unable to resist.
After selling their original property, MMS eyed the building at Viau and Hochelaga but ended up losing the game of property musical chairs when another bidder purchased it for a higher price. Berman's MMS then made their own offer to the new owner and finalized the sale in July 2022, according to CoStar data.
Currently about one-third of the 600 eventual units are ready to rent, as the in-house construction crew remains busy preparing the second floor. About 80% of the property is self-storage while another handful of 5,000-square-foot industrial facilities have been set aside for other takers. Spaces range from around $50 per month for the smallest unit to $1,000 for a 500-square-foot space.
Most customers are not people with irrational attachments to useless items, as some might imagine.
“I love hoarders,” said Berman, "but we actually deal with a small percentage of clients who I'd classify as hoarders. We store things that people don't want to part with, whether it be that extra bike or exercise equipment or items belonging to a child who moved away. People use our service as if it's an extra room their home."
The Montreal-based company opened its first outlet in 2004 and now has 20 facilities in Quebec, containing a total of 10,000 storage spaces. MMS contracts with a third-party company to auction off unclaimed goods on clients who fail to keep up with payments.
The Hochelaga-Maisonneuve storage facility sits near the Olympic Stadium, Saputo Stadium, the Montreal port, as well as an ambitious upcoming 928-unit housing development a short distance to the east. The MMS head office is located about 8 kilometres away at 5260 Ferrier St.
When he's not busy with his self-storage empire, Berman helps operate Avenir, a company that oversees about 1 million square feet of office and industrial space in the Montreal area. Avenir rents out space and provides business services, including packing and shipping.
"We take care of all of the physical tasks and allow businesses to run their affairs. We allow them to focus on their most important tasks, building their marketing and branding and dealing with clients," said Berman.