The downtown we know today was transformed by the crises, reforms and major projects of the Quiet Revolution that gave Montréal its status as an international metropolis. Our city center is thus a large open-air construction site; a reflection of its evolution and emancipation.
Posted at 1:00 p.m.
Hydro-Québec’s head office, the Montréal metro, Place Ville Marie and its underground galleries, just like the Complexe Desjardins inaugurated in 1976 and the Palais des Congrès in 1983, are all emblematic symbols of this era whose liveliness and audacity are the strength of today’s downtown.
This gradual metamorphosis also owes much to the democratization of higher education which, with the inauguration of UQAM in 1969, of Concordia in 1974 and the sustained expansion of McGill, raised Montreal to the title of university capital of Canada. Moreover, this metamorphosis continues briskly: after 50 years of absence, HEC Montréal will inaugurate its downtown pavilion in the fall and McGill University is proposing an ambitious expansion project on the former site of the Royal Victoria Hospital.
And what about the cultural ferment of the 1960s thanks to which our city center became the cultural center that we know! The proliferation of venues, including the Place des Arts and the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, has made Montréal a cultural capital today, ensuring Québec’s influence internationally. Even in the midst of a pandemic, this cultural center has been able to attract Quebecers and tourists from all over the country. While the magnificent Esplanade Tranquille has just been inaugurated and the Îlot Balmoral and the Wilder Building now bring together some of our greatest cultural jewels, including the NFB, the Grands Ballets Canadiens and the École de danse contemporaine Montreal, this bubbling shows no signs of slowing down.
An effervescence always present
Despite the long period of Great Darkness caused by two decades of recession between 1976 and 1996, our downtown held firm thanks, among other things, to the diversification of Montreal’s economy and the modernization of strategic infrastructures such as Place des Festivals and the International Quarter. These major projects have given rise to a new dynamism, always present before the pandemic and which has never left despite the turbulence it will have caused.
We hastened to speak of “revival” to reactivate the city center, losing sight of the essential: our city center has never ceased to be active.
The metamorphosis of rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest, the revitalization of the emblematic squares Phillips and Dorchester, the creation of the square on avenue McGill and the place Oscar-Peterson, the connection of the city center to the airport by the REM, the refurbishment of Place Ville Marie, the Maison Alcan redevelopment project, the construction of the new head office of the National Bank: all of the projects completed or in progress that contribute to strengthening the strategic positioning of the heart of Montréal and its reputation as a international metropolis. The development project for the La Baie store, the first of its kind in the country, as well as the ambitious redevelopment project for the Molson factory are also part of this historic dynamism that our downtown is experiencing.
Main tourist pole of Quebec welcoming more than 50% of all tourists who visit the Belle Province, our downtown is also the North American capital for hosting international congresses, of which more than 180 are already planned for 2022. ‘we go there and we will go there again for the pleasure of discovering our heritage, our culture, our knowledge, our businesses, our gastronomy, our language and our major events that make Quebec shine around the world .
Despite the orange cones, more than half of which are due to private construction projects, our downtown is as beautiful as it has ever been. It is experiencing rapid population growth – the second largest population increase in Canada, and an unprecedented real estate boom with more than 13% of housing starts in the Montreal metropolitan area in 2021.
Reflecting its cultural and economic dynamism, which attracts talent, entrepreneurs, academics, artists and international investors, the downtown area today has the highest rate of returning workers in North America.
While we took downtown Montreal for granted, this pandemic will have reminded us of its importance. In this sense, this crisis will have contributed to a collective and necessary awakening, an awareness of the importance of promoting our know-how to meet collective challenges, enhance the attractiveness of our city center, make it even more prosperous. , more accessible, more environmentally friendly and more livable, but also to be proud of.
Its development arouses the enthusiasm of all walks of life. The challenge now is to align ourselves, to strengthen the complementarity and synergy between our efforts and expertise rather than retreating into the silos of yesteryear. To do this, we must rally around a pragmatic governance model similar to what is found in other major city centers such as New York and Chicago. We need to create a real alliance for the city center of tomorrow.
Because basically, downtown Montreal is much more than a downtown. It is, perhaps, something like… a big city center.