condominiums were ever built in Montreal, a newly-invented form of ownership that was far more attractive to homebuyers. It was the largest development in Montreal at the time since the Olympic Village. The project was originally estimated to cost $125 million, but increased to $140 million. The project was financed by the Mercantile Bank of Canada, which was acquired by National Bank of Canada during the development in 1986. As was noted by the CMHC in 1989, Lépine's soaring sales were an exception to the lagging real estate market in Quebec during the same period. By 1989, sales at the project had exceeded $250 million. Le Sanctuaire was Lépine's most financially successful and widely considered the magnum opus of his career. It was widely reported that Lépine was intending to retire after developing this project, but did not. By 1985, Lépine's company Groupe Lépine had over $300 million of real estate assets. Lépine had considered venturing into developing office buildings in partnership with a major Canadian insurance company. In 1985, Lépine acquired a property at 3440 Peel Street in downtown Montreal from McGill University that included three historic Victorian greystone houses and a low-rise apartment building directly adjacent to two of his other properties. He announced his intention to develop a 67-unit apartment building on the property, originally named Le Cartier II, later changed to Sir Robert Peel, at a cost of $15 million. Lépine was initially refused a demolition permit, but was granted one after winning an appeal in court in May 1987, reversing the initial decision. The move by the appeals court to grant a demolition permit on three historic buildings to Lépine was highly controversial and angered Heritage Montreal and Phyllis Lambert. The project was completed in 1990. In 1989, Lépine was the lead contender in a $100 million deal to purchase Blue Bonnets, a 146 acre property, from Campeau Corporation. Lépine planned to build a $2 billion mixed use project consisting of apartments, office and retail space on the site, which received partial pre-approval by the city of Montreal. Ultimately, Lépine bid $75 million, but did not buy the property due to weakness in the real estate market at the time. In 1991, Lépine announced the development of Alexander Pushkin Tower, a $70 million mixed use office and apartment project in Pushkin Square, Moscow, Russia with his business partner Hervé Pomerleau. He was also planning a