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GORDON GROUP PLANS $347M QUÉBEC PROJECT

BY SUSAN THORNE

A major retail-entertainment project could soon be drawing American as well as Canadian visitors to enjoy shopping, an aquarium, outdoor sports and a spa in a mixed-use, 320-acre development north of Montréal.

Greenwich, Conn.-based Gordon Group Holdings is joining up with Rubin Stahl, an independent shopping center consultant and the former president of West Edmonton Mall, to build Lac Mirabel, a C$425 million ($347 million) complex with 1.8 million square feet of enclosed retail and entertainment facilities. Gordon Group created The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace, in Las Vegas, and The Pier at Caesars, currently under construction in Atlantic City, N.J.

“This is probably the largest project in North America, and it is the epitome of the lifestyle center, with everything included in one site,” Stahl said. Lac Mirabel will use the Canadian climate to its advantage, he says, with a combination of indoor attractions and outdoor activities for all seasons. Winter pastimes will include ice-skating, ice fishing, snowmobile rides and cross-country skiing, while summer visitors will test-drive popular model cars on a special track or go fishing or boating.

A variety of leisure and educational facilities are planned for indoors as well, such as a 140,000-square-foot aquarium, a butterfly and hummingbird sanctuary and two high-tech amusement rides.

The one-level retail-entertainment structure will house mid-to-high-end shops and restaurants, including five junior department stores. “We are striving for the unique stores, for retailers that are not mundane,” Stahl said. Aldo, Build-A-Bear, The Children’s Place, La Senza and Tommy Hilfiger are among the retailers that have signed letters of intent to lease space at Lac Mirabel.

On overcast days, special ceiling-light systems inside the mall will simulate daylight — a feature that improves shoppers’ moods and boosts sales, Stahl says. A 3,000-person convention center and a 6,000-seat stadium and performance venue will further extend the scope of activities, he adds.

A hotel and some residential units, plus 8,000 outdoor parking spaces are also in the plans. And a narrow-gauge railway sponsored by Via Rail will transport visitors to and from the parking lots and around the parklike project grounds.

The choice of Québec for this project by an American developer marks a milestone for the province. Stahl says serious political unrest there is a thing of the past (Québec has long harbored a separatist movement), and new development is long overdue.

“There hasn’t been a major project here in 25 years,” he said, as he pointed out the location’s benefits. Lac Mirabel is located a half hour’s drive from Montréal, a city of 4.5 million, and is on the main route to the Laurentian cottage and ski region. But Stahl envisions drawing visitors from all over the Eastern seaboard, noting that families often drive two or three hours to a single attraction such as an aquarium.

Lac Mirabel’s ground-breaking is scheduled for this spring, and the developers anticipate its opening sometime in 2007.