Canderel announces preliminary completion of Bell Complex with pomp

Invitees included numerous executives from participating companies, construction workers, and representatives from the political arena like Mayor Claude Trudel and Minister André Béchard. Everyone gathered at 1 Alexander-Graham-Bell Centre in L'Île-des-Sœurs. Guests were welcomed by hostesses who escorted them to the exhibition hall or to areas where other hostesses were waiting to give a tour of one of the building’s floors.

The printed invitations were marked “VIP cocktail-dinner party” but this description was truly an understatement. In fact, there was abundant food and drink, served by courteous and friendly staff who made the effort to make guests forget about the bad weather raging outside the walls of the complex. Visitors had the feeling that they were in the lobby of a luxurious 5-start hotel, instead of in an office building. Mock-ups, photos and video clips provided guests with an accurate description of the nature and scope of the work undertaken in the last few months as well as the preparatory work for the other developmental phases planned for the northern tip of the island.

Several guests were treated to a guided tour of the buildings that form part of the initial phase of the complex. They were able to see for themselves that no detail was spared to create a comfortable working place for employees. Vast open air spaces serve as access points to private offices. Each floor has a small dining room equipped with all the required amenities. The large windows surrounding the building offered views of downtown Montreal, the St. Lawrence River or the southern area of L’île des Sœurs. A meticulous respect for the environment was observed such that spaces around the buildings were planned, allowing workers to reach the bike and pedestrian paths near the river.

The evening’s hosts were Canderel president Jonathan Wener and Proment president Samuel Gewurz. They made it clear at the start of their speeches that they would be brief but wanted nevertheless to pay tribute to those people near and far who contributed to the success of this complex. Mr. Wener told invited guests that this Bell project was Montreal’s second largest real estate development. “It required a team that could deliver the goods,” he said. He presented a video film unfolding on a giant screen to illustrate the different phases of the work (totalling a million hours), as he mentioned the contribution of numerous parties. He placed a lot of emphasis on the valuable cooperation of Mayor Claude Trudel and of Verdun Borough’s directors. He made his presentation with uplifting music playing in the background, courtesy of Russian violinist Dr Draw who sparked the enthusiasm of the crowd by his original and dynamic style.

Proment president Samuel Gewurz spoke along the same lines. When he started to speak, he asked if the storm raging outside was symbolic. In welcoming the many visitors, he said that it certainly required vision to accomplish big and great things and that the quality of each of the partners for this huge project was paramount. He admitted however that it would have taken an exceptional degree of vision to have the capability to predict, back then in 1955 when the island was acquired, that it would one day witness the erection of a building that was equally prestigious as its construction. He also said that Canderel president Jonathan Wener paid compliments to his team but omitted to say that a project of this nature also needed a leader just like in any company (he was actually referring to Mr. Wener’s quality as a leader which made this all possible).

He told guests that this huge success does not belong to Bell and Canderel alone but also to the City of Montreal and Verdun Borough. He confirmed that the vision he spoke of at the beginning of his speech was the decision to allocate $27 million to develop a road network in the northern section of the island. “Without this investment, nothing of this could have been achieved”, he added. Mr. Gewurz also revealed a few details about the residential development soon to be initiated by Proment on the island’s northern tip near the Bell offices (please refer to the other article).

Canderel vice president Daniel D. Peritz who was also the moderator for the evening paid tribute to Martine Turcotte, executive vice president and legal counsel of Bell Canada. To demonstrate his appreciation for her involvement in the project, he presented Ms. Turcotte with a symbolic gift – an Inukshuk - a Canadian piece of sculpture that typically represents the challenges and daily life of the Inuits and other inhabitants of the Arctic region.

Ms. Turcotte thanked her hosts and took the microphone to tell the audience that she received only two orders from the project executives: “do it” and “do it quickly!” She added of course that what had to be done had to be done well and properly, and this was understood.