MONTREAL, PLACE OF THE MONTREALS
1 - Territory & History
The new Place des Montréalaises occupies an emblematic location in the City of Montreal. It is located at the crossroads between the historic center and the old suburbs, and is part of a network of squares and squares built above the Ville-Marie highway. The project for the new square offers the opportunity to imagine an exceptional place, a true pivot between the old city and the new city, between the heritage and the institutions of the neighbourhood, between the infrastructure and the landscape. The Place des Montréalaises can thus bring together and compress the different identities and temporalities of Montreal.
The City of Montreal developed on a hill between the St. Lawrence River and its tributary Saint-Martin. In the course of this development, a number of landscape forms have been transformed into infrastructure. The shoreline of the St. Lawrence River developed into a port, while the bed of the St. Martin became the location for underground infrastructures such as the subway and the Ville-Marie highway.
2 - Landscape Figures & Crossing Axis
The covering of the highway produces three parallel spaces of similar width between Viger Avenue and Saint-Antoine Street. In the middle of the site is the overlay slab, to the north is the subway where the Champ-de- Mars station is located, and to the south the ramp connects the highway with Saint Antoine Street. Each of these three linear strips is characterized by its own constraints and opportunities, creating three very different conditions. For each condition, a landscape figure is elaborated, the three figures are crossed by an axis, linking the metro station to the administrative city, and beyond, the northern suburbs to the historic center. The three figures and the axis together anchor the project in its urban landscape and guarantee rich and varied atmospheres through a project perfectly adapted to the characteristics of the place.
The Gardens
The gardens of Place Marie-Josèphe Angélique offer a public space on the scale of the neighborhood, inviting residents and visitors to relax. The gardens continue the plot to the north and integrate the subway station into this first landscape figure, as well as a children's playground and a large lawn. Numerous benches line the beds and face southwest to take advantage of the sun. Made of wood, these long benches are very comfortable and invite visitors to rest. The gardens become the perfect place to read, relax, have a picnic or spend time with the family.
The true character of the gardens is given by the choice of plants. Composed of deciduous trees, shrubs, grasses and perennials, the plant palette is very rich. All the vegetation has been designed as a programmed nature to ensure a maximum of flowering throughout the four seasons. The trees are planted on either side of the underground metro passageway to ensure good growth in the ground. The paving is planned in agglomerate, reinforcing the intimate character of the gardens.
The Square
The square is located above the highway overpass. It makes the trace of the highway visible, while its granite pavement refers to the old river bed. Bordered on the north and south by abundant vegetation, the central square remains open and allows for a great deal of flexibility in programming according to the seasons: weekly markets in the spring; music festivals or sports activities in the summer; outdoor cinema screenings in the fall; and the installation of an ice rink in the winter. At the ends, two pavilions frame the square. They are designed as real 'climatic machines', to improve outdoor comfort. The summer pavilion, to the southwest, and the winter pavilion, to the northeast, produce a microclimate that extends the use of the public space.
With artist Alicja Kwade we developed a proposal for the commemoration of the Montreal women in the square. Twelve spheres made of solid granite from different places in Quebec are positioned on the square. They are placed on the slab and sink slightly into the ground, creating a microtopography. This topography becomes a dynamic water feature throughout the day. A puddle emerges around a few spheres and grows to cover part of the square with a thin sheet of water, only to disappear. This rising water movement follows the tides of the St. Lawrence River. The twelve spheres recall the memory of all the hidden women in the history of Montreal.
The Hills
The strip south of the highway is marked by the highway exit, which cuts off the new square from the historic center. The figure of the three hills responds to the Champ-de-Mars embankment and allows the ramp to be integrated into a strong and effective landscape, like a mountain stream. Planted with conifers such as pine, cedar, spruce and eastern hemlock, the hills are reminiscent of Quebec's mountain ranges and the emblematic figure of Mount Royal. The conifers will help capture fine particles. The walls of the trench are partially vegetated and sloped to absorb and reflect the noise of cars. A lookout is built at the top of the highest hill. It provides new panoramic views of the Administrative City and the modern city. In winter, the belvedere becomes the starting point for sledding on the southward slope.
Crossing axis
The traversing axis connects the metro station to the administrative city and creates a direct and obvious connection to the historic center, crossing the three landscape figures. Starting from the metro station, the axis begins in the Gardens, crosses the Square and climbs with a generous staircase to the top of the Hills. A gentle slope on the side ensures accessibility for all, without the need for an elevator. A new footbridge laid between the hill and the Champ-de-Mars embankment becomes a natural extension of this movement. The footbridge is presented as a pure arch, optimized to be as light and thin as possible. In order to reconnect the portion cut by the Saint-Antoine ramp to the main portion of the Place, a secondary spur joins the main span of the bridge. This spur acts as an intermediate support that cuts the span in two. This conceptual reversal of the notion of span-support gives a touch of magic to the whole by reducing the thickness of the bridge. The bridge and the hills are thus perfectly integrated.
3 - Climate & Uses
With the help of Transsolar, a firm specializing in climate engineering and outdoor comfort, we carried out a precise study of the climatic conditions of the Place des Montréalaises. The
City of Montreal has a continental and humid climate, marked by an average variation of 31° C between winter and summer. In summer, the prevailing winds come from the southwest and in winter from the northeast and west. As a result, in winter it is essential to block the prevailing winds and create a place protected from snow, while in summer the prevailing winds can help cool the place.
Through an understanding of Montreal's particular climate, the project adapts to the seasons, while producing outdoor comfort adapted to the uses.
4 - Summer and winter pavilion
Located at the two ends of the central square, the winter and summer pavilions create a programmatic and spatial polarity that animates the entire square. Although they share an identical structure, they offer radically different and complementary potentials. The winter pavilion, placed near the Champ-de-Mars metro exit, gathers the closed programs: information point, café, public toilets, storage of equipment for the activities and maintenance of the square. The building forms an angle that blocks the prevailing winter winds, while its roof is cut along the winter path of the sun, allowing the sun's rays to heat the spaces inside. The information point and the café are entirely glazed and show the animation generated by the traffic axis. Even in the middle of winter, they maintain a constant activity on the square, serving both passers-by and CHUM users. The branch of the pavilion that contains the toilets and storage is opaque and creates a backdrop by leaning against the vertical plane of the CHUM.
The summer pavilion, placed at the southwest end of the plaza, is a flexible structure, open to programmatic appropriation. It is a metallic structure, colonized by a profusion of climbing plants and cooled by a series of integrated misters. The plant mass acts as a visual screen attenuating the visual and acoustic nuisance of the traffic and filtering the west winds. By creating an oasis of coolness and greenery, the summer pavilion becomes an attraction, shifting the center of gravity of the square to its western portion. In winter, the climbing plants lose their leaves to let the sun shine through.
(From competitor's text)
(Unofficial automated translation)
This proposal shows an excellent reading of the site and a good urban analysis. The proposal is sober and the proposed spaces are versatile. This treatment in simplicity allows for several possibilities in terms of appropriation and programming. In addition to offering great flexibility, the central section recognizes the specificities of the site: the slab is straightforward, assertive and makes the trace of the highway visible. The commemoration of Montreal women on the slabs is a beautiful allegory in homage to those who paved the way.
The jury members were very pleased with the gradually ascending path and the footbridge, which link the metro station to the Champ-de-Mars in a strong linear gesture. They structure the square and contribute to the quality of the views. The spaces near the CRCHUM are usable and well integrated. The hill responding to the Champ-de-Mars embankment also offers a south-facing slope, which is appreciable in a northern city, the jury noted.
However, this hill implies a complete covering of the Saint-Antoine ramp and the jury will want to be reassured about the technical and budgetary feasibility of this avenue.
In Stage 2, the jury also suggested that the team work more specifically on the garden of Place Marie-Josèphe Angélique and explore the avenues in terms of vegetation in order to give it a stronger and more distinctive character in line with the identity of the square.
In conclusion, although the simplicity of the proposal was appreciated, a more assertive personality and signature should be developed for the site in phase 2. In this sense, the canopy at the western end of the site should be worked on at the formal level and its functionality should be clarified.
(From jury report)
(Unofficial automated translation)
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