MONTREAL -- Its construction is starting relatively quietly, in the heart of a usually buzzing downtown that’s now nearly silent.

But once it’s finished in 2024, a new condo project at Phillips Square will be the biggest of its kind. It will be 61 storeys high, roughly the same height as Place Ville-Marie.

Its 498 units will start at a price of $300,000 for a small studio and go up to three million for the penthouse. Seventy per cent are already sold, say the building’s promoters.

They also say it will be a feat of engineering and of architecture, and that they’re aiming for a design that nods to the history of the area.

The luxury towers won’t be subject to Montreal’s bylaw requiring portions of new condo towers to be set aside for social housing, affordable housing and family condos. That rule isn’t expected to come into effect until next year, making this tower one of the last of its era.

Watch the video above to learn more.