With ground broken on the second phase of the Tour Des Canadiens condo project on Wednesday, another crane will soon be appearing in the Montreal skyline, a piece of machinery that has become a common sight.

In 2012, the first tower bearing the name of the storied hockey franchise sold out in three months. Now, 590 more units will be up for sale, ranging in price from $250,000 to $1,000,000.

Canderel Vice-President Daniel Peritz described a lavish compound that will feature a sky bridge between the Bell Centre and the Deloitte Tower, a swimming pool and a sky lounge “that the city has never seen before.”

“People that really want to live, work and play in the downtown core are looking at this area and particularly at our project as the place to be and they are willing to pay the price to be here,” he added.

While easy access to Habs games and a downtown location might have a draw, the new phase of the Tour Des Canadiens is in for some stiff competition as potential owners do some condo hunting.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation analyst Francis Cortellino said Montreal is still a buyer’s market for condos right now. Two years ago there were 2,851 new unsold units in the Greater Montreal area, a number that has only slightly been reduced to 2,155.

“We’re still far from a balanced market,” he said. “It’s still a buyer’s market, but with the sales picking up, listings decreasing, we’re going towards a balanced market but not this year.”

The flooded condo market has affected not just developers having a hard time moving units, but owners seeing their investments showing little growth.

Harman Khela bought a one-bedroom condo in the first Tour Des Canadiens four years ago for $320,000. Today, he said the value has increased marginally to around $335,000. He said some of the phase two condos are selling for the same price or less than what he originally paid.

“Actually, we’re all surprised,” he said. “The reason why is because they decided to make the second phase of the Tour Des Canadiens.”

Still, with the CHMC predicting a more balanced market within two years, prices should start increasing shortly. Until then, Montrealers can enjoy still being able to pick up a premier condo in the heart of downtown for less than $500,000, prices unheard of in other major cities.