Dare to combine sun and work | The Press

Need a change of scenery? Tired of your four walls? And this bad light, as insipid as it is artificial? Come on, get out, get out! Hybrid shift obliges, the options to reconcile sun and work abound in town. Here are four, to make the most of summer.

Silvia Galipeau
The Press

The good old park!

Admittedly, it’s not for everyone. Nor for all tasks. Obviously, certain conditions must be met (basically: no rain, and a full stack!). But on occasion, admit that a text is read much better in the park, an expense allowance is officially less tedious, and this list of emails to go through is infinitely shorter, all of a sudden, there, well settled in the open air. Choose your destination (Bellerive, Frédéric-Back, Westmount?) according to its proximity (café, toilets?) and its different qualities (shade, Wi-Fi?). Then dare! Since the pandemic, it is at Père-Marquette Park that we have started to work like this, quietly and in the shade of large trees. To combine freedom and efficiency, not far from the game modules, supervising the children from the corner of the eye. We appreciate here the sparse picnic tables, the shelter of the trees, the Wi-Fi, and even these toilets, courtesy of the water games. Of course, you will have to compose, in doing so, with the cries of the children and the song of the birds. Let’s say it endures!

Greendesking in my neighbourhood

After the success of its daring cabins last year (30,000 users), the Aire Commune team is doing it again, promising to double the number of its “summer islands” to facilitate outdoor work (greendesking), urban style, Wi-Fi and electrical outlets included. In total, 40 spaces should be installed this year, from Tétraultville to Saint-Henri via Montreal North, without forgetting downtown, of course. Seductive concept, much more economical than a day strolling in a café, at the price of the latte these days, admit it. So, have you tried? Yes, it is indeed worth the detour. A few tips, however, before plunging your eyes closed into the trend: wait for the passage of the cleaning team, which offers a very welcome service, before settling in (each station is cleaned three times a week); avoid big heat waves, or days that are too windy, it goes without saying; and then while you’re there, remember to bring a water bottle, a little wool, a homemade matcha or any other necessity. No, you won’t spend the day there (an urge to pee happens so quickly), but these islands offer a very interesting option to change your working environment for an hour, why not two (or more!) . All without spending a penny.

Outdoor city center

Do you like public islands? Here are now the public meeting rooms! Always signed by the Aire Commune team, this “Summer Station” planted on the esplanade of Place Ville Marie was designed to motivate workers to return to the city center, in addition to all these “digital nomads ” in work, as we say in good French, or in “tracances”, as translated by cousins ​​who combine work and holidays. You have a business meeting, an important meeting, or simply need a bit of privacy, this is where it happens. Outside, or almost. In a glass container, with Wi-Fi, electricity, air conditioning, even a TV, decorations and plants, on top of that. Free, as a bonus. But beware: reservations are required at least two weeks in advance. Both containers are run, beyond expectations. “We were hoping for 200 reservations for the season, and we have already exceeded it! We smash all the targets! “, confided this week Philippe Pelletier, co-founder of Aire commune.

Over here on 5 to 7

Some swear by their neighborhood cafe (Pista, Station W, Tommy, you name it!). We personally fell for this space, a kind of biergarten, as inviting as it is unknown, as convivial as it is hidden. The Jardin de la Pépinière is a well-kept secret: behind a building that looks disused, along this sad end of Ontario Street, with its vast terrace, its many tables, without forgetting this garden, these modules of wood (and what about the land!), stands here a real oasis. Designed by the team to whom we owe the festive Village au Pied-du-Courant, this quieter garden is ideal for working nonchalantly in the shade of one of its large parasols, while sipping a lemonade. or, why not, a Toronto microbrewery beer. The only, albeit not insignificant, downside: the opening hours, all in all limited (Thursday to Sunday, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. only, except weekends, from 2 p.m., although an extended schedule is in the boxes, we are told). We console ourselves by saying that workers with atypical hours find their account here, and we fall back on the place to end our days.