OCLT’s second property acquisition, The Brant located at 366 Brant Street in the Vanier neighbourhood. Made possible by the success of the Housing Forever Bonds Campaign.
We did it! The community has shown what is possible when we rally together. Fuelled by the success of the Housing Forever Bonds campaign, the Ottawa Community Land Trust (OCLT) has acquired its second residential property!
Known as The Brant, this handsome, well-maintained building is located at the corner of Brant and McArthur in Ottawa’s Vanier neighbourhood and is comprised of 10 one-bedroom units.
OCLT was handed the keys on October 3rd, 2024, and we are happy to report that 10 more Ottawa tenants are assured their rent will be affordable in perpetuity.
From the care of one community builder to another
Gilbert Greenberg, one of the four founding owners of the Minto Group. Gilbert and his three brothers purchased The Brant in 1956. It remained in the care of the Greenberg family until recently when it was sold to the Ottawa Community Land Trust.
Built in 1950, The Brant is special for one notable reason. It has the honour of being the very first residential property purchased by the well-known Minto Group, owned by the Greenberg family.
Purchased in 1956 by the four Greenberg brothers and Minto Group founders, Louis, Gilbert, Irving, and Lorry, 366 Brant Street represented the start of a long and prosperous career in real estate development. In addition to playing a vital role in the creation of Ottawa’s residential and commercial landscape, Minto Group also has a long history of philanthropic community building that comes from the experience of knowing what it means to struggle.
It all began with rags
An ad for new homes being built by Mercury Homes (later to be known as Minto Group). Published the same year that the Greenberg brothers purchased 366 Brant Street—1956.
The Greenberg story has a humble, hardworking beginning with Roger and Rose Greenberg escaping antisemitic violence in the Russian empire and ultimately settling in Ottawa’s Lowertown neighbourhood. Roger initially supported the family as a peddler and then convenience store owner, but was forced to devise a new plan with the arrival of the ultra-competitive Loblaws in the 1930s.
Interestingly enough, the Greenberg family’s eventual rise from poverty would literally come in the form of rags during WWII. A young and clever Gilbert Greenberg began collecting used rags and would then transform them into multi-use cleaning cloths to be sold for profit. This simple concept would soon lead to the creation of the family business, Sterilized Wiper, Towel Supply and Industrial Bag Co.
With the surprisingly lucrative income from the rag business, the family decided to pursue a second revenue stream by way of real estate. Briefly named Mercury Homes, the business would soon become known as the Minto Group, and Rose and Roger’s four sons would embark on a community-building legacy that lives on today.
“The Brant is Minto #1”, says Alan Greenberg, son of Gilbert. “And now the Greenberg grandchildren have sold it to OCLT. We’re thrilled that Minto #1 will continue to provide clean, safe, and affordably-priced accommodation for the Ottawa community. Our grandparents would be very happy.”
An acquisition made possible because of community investment
The OCLT could not have completed the acquisition of 366 Brant without the support of community. By purchasing community bonds (Housing Forever Bonds), individuals and organizations have helped the OCLT to raise over $1.7m in investment. Similar to our first acquisition – 887 Kirkwood – the OCLT drew upon a loan from Vancity Community Investment Bank, supplemented by community bond capital, in order to finalize the acquisition on October 3.
Over the coming months, we will repay the loan via a conventional mortgage, while continuing to draw on the capital raised through community bond sales – an important source of patient capital. Finally, we welcome the support of Councillor Stephanie Plante, who has committed to a $150,000 contribution, sourced from the ward’s Community Benefits budget as a non-repayable grant to this project.