The city of Montreal is moving forward with Devimco's Griffintown development. (CBC)

Despite some pressure to delay the vote, Montreal city council has approved a revised urban plan for Griffintown, the last major hurdle for a $1.3-billion project to transform the semi-industrial district into a commercial and condominium complex.

Council voted on the revised urban plan Monday night, approving it nearly unanimously.

City councillor Marvin Rotrand — who pushed to delay the vote by a month to give elected officials more time for review — said the vote was a letdown.

"[It's] rather disappointing that Montreal council thinks that a $1.3-billion project merits a 33-minute debate," he told CBC News.

"Construction is supposed to [start] in August 2009 … So I don't really understand why there was the rush," he said. "The promoter doesn't own all the land. But evidently the majority feeling was that this is the best thing to happen to Montreal in ages, so let's just go ahead and do it.

"I think that a lot of people are going to have a lot of doubts for a long time."

Private developer Devimco wants to demolish most of Griffintown and build a commercial shopping complex with residential condominium buildings.

The revised urban plan for the project was modified earlier this spring to include some green features recommended during the course of several public hearings held on the project.

Critics were concerned the project would mark the loss of an important period of Montreal's industrial history. Griffintown was settled by Irish immigrants in the 19th and 20th centuries and is the site of several heritage buildings, as well as one of the country's oldest grid street designs.

Many architects, urban planners and prominent Montrealers have spoken out against the scale and scope of the Devimco project, calling for more discussion about what to do in the sparsely inhabited neighbourhood.

Most residents aren't opposed to some kind of development in the southwest district, but feel uncomfortable with Devimco's plans. "It doesn't smell good," said Véronique Staham, who owns a loft in Griffintown. "I think there's some [competing] interests underneath that, and I have no [faith] anymore in the democracy," she said.

Several community groups pressured the city to send the project to Montreal's public consultation office for further review. The southwest borough held several public meetings on the Devimco proposal but shied away from formal public consultations.