Former president’s condominium sold

UPDATE: Since this article was posted, the difference between the cost of the loan and the sale price of the condominium has been completely offset by donations to the university. Effectively, the amount  of the loan extended to Dr. Lowy has been repaid in full.

When former Concordia president Dr. Frederick H. Lowy was approached about taking on the position of president on an interim basis in January 2011, he was already retired and about to relocate out of Quebec to be closer to his family. He had already made a legal commitment to purchase a new condo and was in the process of selling his current condo. He required the proceeds from the sale of his Montreal residence to purchase the new one.

Therefore, the university made an accommodation to Dr. Lowy by lending him funds that would allow him to honour his commitment and remain in his home while serving as interim president. The loan was for $1.4 million.

Since then, real-estate conditions in Montreal have changed. In this context, a decision was recently made to accept an offer of $1,050,000, and the condo was sold.

The arrangements made with Dr. Lowy provided for the possibility that the property might sell for an amount lower than that of the loan. The arrangements also provided for the reverse scenario. Had the property sold for more than the amount of the loan, the Lowys would have donated the additional amount to the university.

Fundraising is well under way to cover the difference between the amount of the loan and the sale through gifts from a group of donors, including Dr. Frederick H. Lowy and Dr. Mary Kay O’Neil-Lowy. These donors are committed to the university and want to bridge the gap between the two transactions. To date, 90  per cent of the sum has already been committed by these donors.