SmartStop’s Strategic Storage Growth Trust III Expands Its Québec Footprint
Strategic Storage Growth Trust III, a private real estate investment trust sponsored by an affiliate of SmartStop Self Storage REIT (NYSE: SMA), has opened its first self-storage facility in the Greater Montréal Area, a three-story Class A property in Laval, Québec developed in partnership with SmartCentres.
The facility, located at 5205 Boulevard Robert-Bourassa, offers 124,925 net rentable square feet of climate-controlled storage space across 1,312 units. The building includes a semi-basement level and three elevators. It sits adjacent to Autoroutes 440 and 19, a corridor that sees approximately 84,000 vehicles per day.
The opening marks SSGT III’s fifth Canadian operating property. As of June 29, the fund’s Canadian portfolio comprises 3,180 units and 326,190 net rentable square feet across five properties, complementing a U.S. portfolio of seven properties totaling 6,040 units and 655,275 net rentable square feet.
“This Montréal-area opening is a testament to the strength of our partnership with SmartCentres and our continued commitment to high-quality, strategically located self-storage properties,” said H. Michael Schwartz, chief executive officer of SSGT III. “Laval’s demographics and accessibility make it a compelling addition to our Québec portfolio, and we look forward to serving the residents and businesses throughout the surrounding communities.”
The Laval opening follows a similar expansion by SSGT III’s sister vehicle, Strategic Storage Trust VI – a publicly registered nontraded REIT also sponsored by a SmartStop affiliate – which opened its first Québec location in Dorval in June 2025. That facility offers approximately 112,000 net rentable square feet and nearly 1,250 climate-controlled units.
The SmartCentres partnership, in place since 2018, follows a consistent model: SmartCentres identifies and entitles sites within or adjacent to its retail centers and constructs the facilities; SmartStop operates them. Schwartz said in an interview with AltsWire earlier this month that SmartStop is now the largest self-storage operator in the Greater Toronto Area and owns or manages 50 operating properties across four Canadian provinces.
SSGT III’s primary investment strategy targets growth-oriented and development-stage self-storage assets in the United States and Canada. In addition to its operating portfolio, a subsidiary of SSGT III serves as sponsor of three Delaware statutory trusts, which own eight U.S. operating properties comprising 5,420 units and 697,400 net rentable square feet.
SmartStop, through its managed REIT platform, also sponsors Strategic Storage Trust VI and Strategic Storage Trust X, a perpetual NAV REIT launched in January 2025. Together, the three vehicles had a combined portfolio of 52 operating properties and approximately $1.1 billion in assets under management as of year-end 2025, Schwartz said in the AltsWire interview.
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