At the time of their creation, the Dickson and Carrières incinerators were part of the winds of change that swept through Montreal in the early 1900s. As the city grew denser, it acquired modern waste management infrastructure for the time. It was a powerful symbol of innovation, which is why it is so important today to preserve this architecture, which reflects a rich history, despite its folded and imposing architectural character.
Unlike each of these buildings, which appear to be frozen in time, the surrounding neighborhood has undergone a major metamorphosis. There is thus a clear disconnect between the Dickson and Carrières sites and the rest of their neighborhood, which now consists of an imposing residential density. This disjunction is leading to accelerated abandonment of these spaces. As they lose their function, they in turn become a waste product of the city, an enclosed, dark and dreaded place.
To honour them, it seems essential to put these entities back on the map, making them usable and, above all, regaining the innovative character that distinguished them and made their reputation. In the past, this innovation helped to make the city of Montreal, which was beginning to cover itself in waste, a healthier place to live.
Today, pollution is still a major issue, but for other reasons. As cities have become denser, the land used for farming has gradually disappeared, and the food supply has become less and less local. As a result, the transportation network for goods has multiplied, and nature has disappeared. Similarly, the decentralization of local production led to the creation of completely residential environments, with a few pleasure parks dotted around the neighborhoods. While abandoned sites can be compared to spaces whose existence has been forgotten, the "Impérissable" project puts them back at the heart of the community and at the center of activities.
The idea is to create prefabricated greenhouses comprising an electronic system for lowering planting trays, horticultural LED lighting, a heating system and individual air filtration system powered by a multitude of rooftop solar panels, a battery storing energy within the structure itself, and work spaces for future gardeners. By prefabricating the greenhouses into a single module, the City of Montreal is able to use a single premise to help solve the problem of the abandonment of certain historic sites. These cost-effective greenhouses, which can be rented out to residents over the years, bring a monetary gain that ensures the building's longevity under the right conditions. With their simple form, we can imagine these modules evolving over the years, at the same pace as the surrounding neighborhood. Perhaps some will serve as music practice areas, co-working spaces or even futuristic laboratories, all suited to the times in which they endure. To link each of these greenhouses, and to pierce the incinerators' private shell, a slightly elevated walkway takes the public through the building, encountering innovation from the past and the future.
While the incinerators were still in operation, they contributed significantly to the pollution of the surrounding soil and air. To remedy this situation, the land on which the incinerators are located is being transformed into parks for the enjoyment of local residents. Although the soil is heavily polluted, the demineralization of these wastelands and the planting of vegetation will help reduce their contamination.
Ironically, incinerators have in turn become waste that is difficult to dispose of. "Impérissable" proposes to breathe new life into abandoned industrial buildings in the spirit that the Carrières and Dickson incinerators are resources to be reused rather than waste. These buildings, with their rich past, deserve to be revitalized, as they symbolize a waste management method that is now a thing of the past in Montreal. Now we're back to a time when we're trying to come full circle when it comes to waste management. That's why it seemed obvious to us to breathe new life into this obsolete industrial building, a relic of another era. Whereas this building was the apotheosis of a linear economy, it now becomes our starting point for a circular economy. By no longer considering incinerators as waste, but rather as resources to be recycled, the function of this structure is no longer to pollute, but rather to breathe life into the surrounding neighborhoods.
(From competitor's text)
(Unofficial automated translation)
Of all the proposals submitted by up-and-coming architects, two tied for the jury's special mention for their strong, nurturing themes with universal appeal, and their reflection on the public's involvement in their program. The proposal entitled IMPÉRISSABLE won the jury's attention for its clear approach to transforming the site through gentle industrialization, while taking advantage of the qualities of standardization and the potential for replication of the solution of prefabricated greenhouses aided by abundant technology.
(From jury report)
(Unofficial automated translation)
3 scanned / 3 viewable
- Presentation Panel
- Perspective
- Site Plan
