The enigmatic “Château de la 40”

This story originally appeared in URBANIA, an online magazine based in Quebec focused on pop culture and society.

Every small town is home to mysterious places—those unique structures with unusual geometries that captivate the eye without ever explaining their differences. Along the service road of the Métropolitaine, Montreal’s hellish highway, stands one of these improbable monuments that has made us all turn our heads at least once: Ivan & Co, better known by its popular nickname, the “Château de la 40.”

The abundance of posted signs suggests it’s a stage equipment rental shop. But what story hides behind its gothic fortress-like façade? Big subjects call for big investigations.

"I go by instinct—if I see something interesting, I buy it, and then I’ll find a spot for it.”

Navigating my bike along the westbound Crémazie sidewalk, I dodge clusters of pedestrians as best I can. Passing a procession of dusty buildings, I finally arrive at the address, where a man in a tie-dye shirt, drill in hand, is busy with repairs. I introduce myself to the owner-handyman, Ivan Dow.

Affable and soft-spoken, he steps down from his ladder to guide me through the intriguing façade: “I found this and that at a flea market,” he says, pointing to various grey-toned ornaments. “This statue, I spotted in an alley after Halloween. Basically, it’s all from different places. I go by instinct—if I see something interesting, I buy it, and then I’ll find a spot for it.”

The wooden structure is home to dozens of plaster gargoyles, imps, dragons, multicoloured stained glass, and swirling hallucinogenic visuals. It’s a spooky spectacle, somewhere between a medieval castle and a haunted cathedral. A locomotive even bursts through the front wall. By night, a rainbow of lights bathes the fantastical ramparts.

As for the iconic façade, Ivan shrugs: “I have no idea how much I’ve spent in total. If I have a concept, I go for it. I try, I experiment, I let my creativity run free.”

He eagerly shows me the new LED lighting system he plans to install later in the day. “I was one of the first buildings in Montréal to be lit with LEDs. I brought them back from a trip to China in 2004. I was shocked at how far ahead they were compared to us.”

We can barely hear each other over the relentless roar of heavy trucks speeding past. The façade’s proximity to the highway makes it nearly impossible to photograph without risking life and limb. Ivan recounts how, a few years ago, a vehicle ploughed into the store’s basement during a wintertime driving mishap.

“I’m a natural tinkerer. It’s kind of always Halloween for me.”

Inside, the shop’s fragmented rooms echo the house it once was. A jumble of lights, speakers, mixers, and countless cables fills the space. “I think you’re the first media person to visit my shop,” Ivan notes as he flips on his latest acquisition—a state-of-the-art smoke machine. Within seconds, the entire floor is engulfed in thick fog.

Originally from Manchester, England, Ivan is now 67. As a child, he crossed the Atlantic with his parents “in search of a better, more prosperous life.” He began working in the industry in 1969 at just 15, handling church basement dances and bar rock bands.

“Everywhere I went, I’d study the lighting systems and think, ‘There’s a business here!’ A few years later, I was touring with Offenbach! When I became a father, I decided to shift to rentals, and since then, I’ve offered the best prices in town!”

Ivan traces the origins of his cosmetic modifications: “I bought the property in 1994. Crémazie was pretty bleak back then. Still is, honestly,” he laughs, “so I just started a conversion that’s never really stopped. And here we are almost 30 years later.

A work in progress, like life itself,” he muses, handing me a miniature chocolate palette. “I made the façade for fun, but I won’t deny it—it does attract curious customers. The Château de la 40!”

He leads me to the ambitious project in his backyard in Dorval: a massive landscape of ruins that evokes Böcklin’s painting The Isle of the Dead. “I’m a natural tinkerer. It’s kind of always Halloween for me.” Every October 31st, he and his wife invite the neighbourhood’s bravest kids to explore their eerie domain.

As for the future, Ivan hopes to keep the business running for many more years, maintaining the strong bond he’s built with his customers. And the future of the château itself?

“It always needs more lights!”

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