The community of the Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough is called upon to pursue the development of "living together" in a context of mix and diversity between a population that has been established for decades and sometimes presents numerous social problems, and new residents with more education and more affluent backgrounds.
However, a library project in the 21st century is more than a space, it is a social project. And the new Maisonneuve Library project is well within its time with the intention of contributing to making a difference in its community by offering citizens a social crossroads, a community place.
The new Maisonneuve Library claims a signature and a vision that is attached to the concept of the street and the urban vitality that accompanies it. Street of possibilities, the Maisonneuve Library is a citizen's crossroads and a laboratory for sustainable living.
The street plays the role of symbol and unifying theme. The street is at once a public space, a third place, a vehicle for urban animation, a trigger for encounters and exchanges, a device that encourages spontaneous contact between people, which feeds opportunities to nourish sociability. A place for experimentation and social transformation, the street is the territory of celebrations, demands and free speech. In the digital age, the image of the street is merging with that of networks and the circulation and sharing of ideas.
This concept of the "street of possibilities" also refers to the rich history of the City of Maisonneuve, a "fundamental chapter in the history of Quebec". Combining the social and civic vocation, in the spirit of the City Beautiful movement, this visionary urban planning project laid out streets, boulevards, buildings and, more generally, the path to an idealized destination that is one of prosperity and well-being for its inhabitants.
It is this destination, rethought in terms of sustainable development, that is now proposed by the new library "street" that serves as the threshold of the cultural district, in the extension of Promenade Ontario.
Planning Objectives and Parameters
The objectives of the renovation and expansion project are as follows:
- To create quality outdoor public spaces that are animated and heavily vegetated.
- Establish a link between the library and the Maison de la Culture.
- Improve the visibility of the library and its transparency from Ontario Street.
- Enhance the architectural quality of the current building, without denying the desire to create a new image for the library.
- To design an extension with a contemporary language in order to project an image of openness and transparency.
- To create user-friendly interior spaces that foster the development of community spirit.
- Create spaces that encourage creative and collaborative learning.
- Offer a diversity of space types to respond to different ways of appropriating the space.
The parameters of the renovation and expansion project are as follows:
- Restoration of certain characteristic elements of the current building, considered to be of heritage value.
- Renovation of the current building to bring the electromechanical services, exits and universal accesses up to standard.
- Restoration and improvement work on the exterior envelope.
- Expansion of approximately 1,754 m2 in addition to the 865 m2 usable for a total of approximately 2,619 m2 (gross programmed area of the expansion is estimated at 2,069 m2).
- Development of a green public square on the site.
- Development of a cultural patio on Desjardins Avenue as a structural link between the Maison de la Culture and the library (this development is not included in the project costs).
- Obtaining LEED Silver accreditation.
(From competition program)
(Unofficial automated translation)
Concours d'architecture | Rénovation de la bibliothèque Maisonneuve : une superficie qui sera plus que doublée au bénéfice des citoyens, Kollectif, 2016
Corriveau, Jeanne, 23 millions pour agrandir la bibliothèque Maisonneuve, Le Devoir, 2016
Projet de rénovation et d'agrandissement, Ville de Montréal
Rénovation de la bibliothèque Maisonneuve : une superficie qui sera plus que doublée au bénéfice des citoyens, Ville de Montréal, 2016
La Ville de Montréal lance un concours d'architecture pour le projet de rénovation et d'agrandissement de la bibliothèque Maisonneuve, Ville de Montréal, 2017
Concours d'architecture de la bibliothèque Maisonneuve - La population montréalaise invitée à découvrir les propositions des 4 finalistes le 10 octobre prochain, Cision, 2017
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Gobert, Céline, Début du chantier à la bibliothèque Maisonneuve, malgré les critiques, Journal Métro, 2020
Rédaction, Bibliothèque Maisonneuve : le projet vainqueur du concours architectural est dévoilé, Journal Métro, 2017
Mormina, Marie-Lise, Le coût de trois bibliothèques de Montréal explose, Le Journal de Montréal, 2021
Une transformation en chantier à la bibliothèque Maisonneuve, Portail Constructo, 2020
