“Royalmount is a disaster waiting to happen!” said the distinguished urban planner Jean-Claude Marsan in 2019. Here we are. The disaster has come to pass: the usurpation of a territory that should have been intended for housing, worsening pollution in an area already ravaged by traffic congestion, and the creation of a “second downtown,” which risks killing Montreal’s historic downtown, even as it finds itself greatly weakened by teleworking, online shopping, and the paralysis of its major artery, Sainte-Catherine Street West.
This street has been a disaster area for six years. The renovation work is progressing at a snail’s pace. Only the section between De Bleury and Mansfield streets is finished, two years behind schedule. Between Mansfield and Stanley streets, passersby squeeze through fences under the eyes of desperate merchants. At this rate, the cranes won’t arrive at Guy Street before 2030, and even then… Not to mention the REM construction site that has been blocking McGill College Avenue for five years.
It is in this context that the opening of Royalmount comes about, which holds out the promise of an alternative “downtown.” An aberration in itself, because in this same place—a vast disused area in the centre of the island and close to the metro—a residential neighbourhood aimed at young middle-class families could have been born. Instead of a mega-commercial complex inspired by the suburban urban planning of the 1970s, a neighbourhood that meets today’s needs, with townhouses three-story, affordable, shaded squares, local shops…
In 2019, all of Montreal’s urban development specialists had begged the public authorities to intervene to stop the Royalmount project. It would have been legally possible, but political will was still needed.
The Minister of the Metropolis, Chantal Rouleau, did nothing. In the Montreal agglomeration, chaired ex officio by the mayor of Montreal, the sacrosanct “municipal autonomy” prevailed. The Town of Mount Royal, this island of 20,000 inhabitants enclosed in the Montreal fabric, therefore remained master of the game.
Valérie Plante obtained a few concessions, then abandoned the file. After all, the developer Carbonleo paid for everything, and committed to building housing — although we never knew what it would be: luxury condos or affordable housing? The question no longer arises, because the Town of Mount Royal now refuses all new residential construction!
Much has been said about this on the luxury brands in Royalmount. This is a false debate. All major cities offer luxury storefronts, and it is perfectly normal for Montreal to have them too. The problem is that this offer is in direct competition with that of the city centre.
With the exception of Le Creuset, all of Royalmount’s prestigious brands already have boutiques at the Holt Renfrew Ogilvy on Sainte-Catherine Street or a storefront in the city centre. The same goes for luxury watches, which can be found at Birks and elsewhere. Similar duplication in the mid-range.
At Holt Renfrew Ogilvy, the ultra-chic boutiques are deserted, the idle salespeople waiting for the Chinese tourist, who is rarer than before. How long will it take for Royalmount to cannibalize the downtown stores? Especially since the boutiques there are particularly spacious. Whether you want to buy a $5,000 dress or a pair of sneakerswon’t you go where there are more models on display?
Cruel irony, the footbridge over Décarie Boulevard, which the developer built for the sake of social acceptability, will have the perverse effect of facilitating the abandonment of a city centre reduced to a construction site. From the Peel metro station, you can reach the De la Savane station and the second floor of Royalmount in less than half an hour. As for motorists, they will be even more numerous in avoiding the city centre, because Royalmount awaits them with its vast parking lots. Royalmount also promises office towers… while those in the city centre are being depopulated!
The Royalmount Cineplex will show the same films as the two downtown Cineplexes, in a more exciting setting. Its 2,800-seat theatre will compete directly with Place des Arts. Its five hotels will draw some of the downtown clientele. And if its food court compares to the Time Out at the Eaton Centre, it also offers a pleasant terrace.
Downtown Montreal has French and English in its DNA. Under its unilingual English name, Royalmount offers a culture of translation: “Pleased to meet you,” proclaim its opening posters—a translation of the time-honored phrase “ Nice to meet you “…
The surgery performed on “the Catherine” threatened to kill the patient; Royalmount could give her the final blow. Yes, Royalmount is gleaming, bright, attractive if you like that kind of thing. Alas, it is a mortal danger for the authentic city center. The one that lives outside, in the open air, rather than locked in a bubble. The one that has a history, a human depth, a soul.