DTZ has announced that Urbacon Data Center Solutions Group in partnership with FTQ have begun construction on Montreal’s only standalone data center

Located in the heart of Montreal’s Financial District, an existing building  at 544 Rue De Linspecteur will be converted into 19,000 sq ft of leasable office space, while an adjacent 10-story building, built to green standards and to the highest security standards for server and data hosting, will add another 234,000 sq ft. With the lack of a major carrier hotel, it’s anticipated that the new Urbacon facility will be the jewel of the Montreal market for both hosting and interconnection. The project will also be the city’s largest, most secure mission critical facility.

Slated to have eight floors of white space with floorplates ranging from 20,000 to 28,000 sq ft with a total of 16MVA and two floors dedicated to generators, the building also features on-site, underground fuel storage and offers users flexible data center floor design options.

“Many companies have their data hosted in buildings outside the city that have been converted into data centers, offering a less than optimal or modern environment,” said Peter Russell, vice president of Urbacon. “By building from the ground up, the 544 project will provide a world-class facility meeting all relevant criteria in terms of structural aspects, security, mechanical equipment and electrical systems. The project represents the evolution of the data center in Montreal.”

“This is a major project valued at some $70 million and that will create almost 600 jobs,” continued Normand Bélanger, president and CEO of the Fonds Immobilier de Solidarité FTQ.” We’re convinced that companies in search of hosting services will find what they need in this new strategically located, quality building whose construction is being overseen by Urbacon, a company with 25 years of experience in this field.”

DTZ’s Global Data Center Solutions Group has been retained as the exclusive broker to represent Urbacon in the leasing process. 

“This is an important development,” said James Cali, a senior vice president in DTZ’s Data Center Solutions Group. “All providers have found that strong demand presents itself upon the deployment of new supply.”

Cali is providing technical advisory and assisting the Canadian brokerage team in the lease-up of the space. Vice President Peter A. Schmidt, B.A.A., SIOR, in DTZ’s Richmond Hill, Ontario, office will oversee the leasing phase with George Manousis, Directeur de Succursale of the Montreal office of DTZ.