Les Forges de Montréal have officially taken possession of the former Riverside pumping station which they now own after years of uncertainty. This completed step paves the way for the creation of an “Artisans’ Quarter” intended to highlight heritage and traditional trades in the Mill Street sector.
Installed in the heritage building on Riverside Street since 2000, the Forges de Montréal were threatened with eviction in 2016 by the City of Montreal, which accused them of not having respected certain provisions of their lease. After years of sometimes difficult negotiations, the non-profit organization finally reached an agreement with the City and the Canada Lands Company (CIS) so that the building would be transferred to it.
This step is decisive, believes Mathieu Collette, blacksmith and founder of Forges de Montréal. “As long as we were not the owner, we could not mortgage the property to the bank and obtain the subsidies we need to really launch the educational heritage space project that we want to carry out,” he explained Thursday.
For two decades, Les Forges has wanted to expand the building and create an interpretation center on three floors to accommodate students and the general public. Ultimately, the Forges intend to make investments of 6.5 million in their project.
A neighborhood of artisans
As part of the development of the Bridge-Bonaventure sector, the City of Montreal intends to create an “Artisans’ Quarter” in the MIll Street sector. Espace VERRE, a center for research and promotion of glass arts which includes a workshop school, as well as Juget-Sinclair, which specializes in the construction of mechanical organs, are already present in the sector, but the City wishes to attract other artisans in order to create a creative hub around the “identity marker” that is the old pumping station. “We want to encourage the population to visit these places in a different way, whether through training, workshops or demonstrations,” underlines Robert Beaudry, responsible for urban planning on the executive committee of the City of Montreal. “But that will require safer and more peaceful arrangements. »
The SIC has also ceded Mill and Riverside streets to the City of Montreal, which will allow the latter to carry out more user-friendly developments in the area.
Other artisans could soon conclude agreements to set up in the sector, indicates Marc Douesnard, blacksmith and president of the Quebec Crafts Council. Negotiations are underway with two craft schools and the SIC, owner of land and buildings in the area, he said. Mr. Douesnard, however, is careful not to reveal their identity for the moment. “In Montreal, there are nine arts and crafts schools which are part of the national arts and crafts program and which are experiencing situations similar to that experienced by Les Forges with premises with precarious leases,” he explains. . “In four to five years, there are many things that will change. »