Downtown Montreal has been heavily affected by the pandemic and specific efforts are needed to restore its vitality. In response to this exceptional situation, Valérie Plante, Mayor of the City of Montreal, announced that $400,000 would be injected to develop and animate the downtown area.
The Entertainment District Partnership and the Montreal Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce were mandated by the Mayor of Montreal, as part of the advisory committee for The Economic Recovery and Recovery of Montreal, to develop and implement an action plan to stimulate downtown activity and optimize ridership.
From today until the fall, Montrealers and visitors to the city centre will enjoy activities and activities in an area redeveloped in accordance with the health rules put in place by public health. This newly revitalized public space will stretch from Atwater to Papineau, from Sherbrooke to the river. These temporary facilities will allow merchants, restaurateurs and pedestrians to take over the public space in order to enjoy the beautiful summer season in Montreal.
The primary mission was to create facilities and activities that encourage walking and avoid gatherings. Drawing on the rich diversity of Montreal’s creativity, the recovery plan brings together a multitude of activities, works and routes that promote the discovery or rediscovery of urban space. Whether playful, contemplative or entertaining, the program promises to cater to the tastes of visitors.
A REDEVELOPMENT OF PUBLIC SPACE
The new facilities include seven large terraces and outdoor public squares that will be able to accommodate visitors and families wishing to drink and refuel with nearby restaurateurs. Cultural entertainment, ambient music and episodic and spontaneous performances will complement these meeting places. Accessible from July 31, these public terraces will be set up in hotspots, including one at the St. Jax Centre Gardens hosted by Le Monastère in collaboration with XP_MTL, then one on the Place d’Youville designed by Multicolor and a surprise urban concept created by La Pépinière at the corner of Boulevards Saint-Laurent and René-Lévesque. Residents and visitors can enjoy an oasis of greenery with original ambient music by Patrick Watson at the Place des Festivals in the Entertainment District. The vast central square is decorated with picnic tables painted by six MU artists. As for the Jardins Gamelin, they have been redesigned to ensure greater distance and offer a lot of musical surprises.
MORE THAN 150 ARTISTS AND CREATORS WILL ANIMATE THE CITY CENTRE
Art installations have begun to appear in the vast quadrangle of 7 Placott’arts, relaxation stops designed by 9 Montreal artists and designers and piloted by Massivart. Judith Portier, Waxhead and Pelouse are among the artists who will design these stops, which are true works of art. The iconic 21 Daily Swings are also back in the Entertainment District until early August for a 10th year.
Ambulatory shows, at different locations and at different times of the day, will complete the downtown setting on weekends, throughout the summer. Travelling cabaret, musical performances, theatre performances and circus acts will be presented in downtown venues and environments from July 23. In total, some 200 surprise performances will be offered by more than 150 artists.
Many other initiatives by the various players in the area, including the Destination Centre-City Business Development Corporations (SDCs), the Latin Quarter, Old Montreal, the Gay Village of Montreal, as well as the Old Port of Montreal, XP_MTL, Chinatown and the Museum District, will be created in the coming weeks to provide a diverse and safe cultural offering for downtown visitors.
A STEP TOWARDS ECONOMIC RECOVERY
The revitalization of the city centre brings together nearly 20 business partners, including the five SDCs gathered in the territory and their partners, as well as Desjardins. The animation is made possible by the collaboration of more than 50 arts companies and cultural organizations in visual art, dance, cinema, digital art, street art, music and urban design.
It should be remembered that this cultural animation and these developments in the city centre are intended to encourage Montrealers to move in the spaces available to them and to support the economic recovery of commercial arteries, in accordance with public health guidelines.
Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montreal
“The unprecedented crisis we are facing offers significant challenges in many ways. One of these is the survival of downtown Montreal: an important area whose economic vitality has an impact on all of Quebec. This place usually so lively, festive and diverse has been in recent months almost completely deserted by workers, students and the millions of tourists who visit it every year. With that in mind, I have called for a recovery plan to be developed and I am pleased to announce today that the City of Montreal will spend $400,000. »
