Hilton Québec City passes into the hands of four Indigenous communities

View from the Mari Guyart building, Quebec city's tallest building. Camera pointing north east. From the left, Radisson hotel, convention centre and Hilton hotel. Picture taken March 16, 2001. (Jacques Boissinot / The Canadian Press)

Four Indigenous nations have joined forces in a new entity to acquire a majority stake in the Hilton Québec City hotel.

The four groups involved in the project are the Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach, the Mi’gmaq of Gespe’gewa’gi, the Huron-Wendat Nation and the Cree Nation.

In a joint press release issued on Thursday, the nations point out that this agreement “marks a significant step in strengthening the economic participation of First Nations in several sectors in Quebec, including the hotel industry.”

They point out that acquiring all or most of the shares in a hotel makes it possible to “share and promote the rich culture and traditions of the First Nations with visitors.”

The Hilton Québec, which opened in 1974, has 569 rooms. It underwent a major facelift in 2020, during renovations worth $70 million.

The four First Nations have created a new entity, called Atenro, to carry out this transaction with InnVest Hotels. The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

InnVest “will continue to be actively involved in the hotel as the asset manager for the partnership,” said the Toronto-based company.

As part of the transaction, all current jobs will be maintained, while the new buyers plan to put in place initiatives to “provide employment and training opportunities for members of all First Nations.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Jan. 16, 2025.