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THE DEVELOPMENT APPROACH
IN A HISTORIC NEIGHBOURHOOD |
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Place d’Armes and the streets surrounding it have exceptionally profound historical significance. Below ground, the soil still holds clues to just how deep history runs here. Recent archeological research has revealed several sites of interest still intact, below the streets bordering the Place and below the parvis of the Notre-Dame Basilica. These sites take us back to the original plan of the old city drawn up by the Sulpicians. |
Place d’Armes proper has never been the site of archeological research, but its western part may comprise prehistoric archeological vestiges, the remains of the Gadbois well, and traces of the Place’s different layouts dating back to the late 17th century.
The principal archeological sites that have been identified are the first parish church, the third cemetery in Montréal, and the fortifications built to the plans by Chaussegros de Léry.
The site of the original parish church is unquestionably the most valuable archeologically, historically and symbolically. Built between 1672 and 1683 and modified several times before its eventual demolition in the 19th century, the church stood on Notre-Dame St., west of Saint-Sulpice St., across from the current basilica. Its stone foundations were found a mere 60 cm or so below the present street level. To understand the significance of the structure, and its good condition, note that graves were observed in 2006 in a vaulted crypt used for burials, located in a section beneath the choir and apse (in other words, exhumation was only partial).
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Excavation of the well at Place d'Armes. Archeological digs / Edgar Gariépy.
September 1933 Call no. G-2628
Source: © Ville de Montréal, Gestion des documents et archives
Comment: Excavation work to build the underground washrooms.
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Notre-Dame St. and the parvis of the basilica, summer 2007.
Source: Mario Brodeur
Comment: The permanent granite marker on the parvis
and the painted marking of the original church contour on Notre-Dame St.
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These vestiges were left in place and the contour of the original church was temporarily marked out in paint on the street and sidewalks in the summers of 2006 and 2007. A permanent pale-granite inlay marking the location of the southern transept was added during the recent restoration of the basilica parvis.
The original parish cemetery, first used in 1691, enlarged in 1733 and closed in 1803, lies to the south of the former parish church. It includes a rubble-stone enclosure wall. The remains of some 200 individuals were exhumed and studied by archeologists during engineering work. Many graves, still intact, were left in place. Needless to say, the presence of this cemetery contiguous with the basilica brings great emotional intensity to the site. |
Beneath the east sidewalk of Côte de la Place-d’Armes, an archeological dig uncovered the vestiges of part of the escarp wall of the Chaussegros de Léry fortifications. This portion of the city walls was built between 1722 and 1724.
These archeological remains are all the more important in that they bear witness to the French Regime, scant traces of which subsist in Old Montréal.
Management of the archeological resource will be a significant part of the redevelopment of the Place and surrounding roadways. Vestiges may be preserved in situ and/or identified via surface markings. The latter process, already employed on the basilica parvis, is in keeping with a fundamental shift in approach that consists in “revealing the historical” when developing public infrastructure, and this is particularly so in the case of Old Montréal.
The 1990s were a period of major work to requalify the public domain under the Agreement on the Cultural Development of Montréal. All sites redeveloped in the historical borough of Old Montréal since then have reflected the will to demonstrate the new use of the neighbourhood; i.e., one related to memory.
To this end, Place Royale has become an archeological crypt; the remains of the old city’s fortifications have been exposed on the Champ de Mars, as has the William collector sewer beneath the eastern portion of Place D’Youville; the positions of the escarp wall and the perimeter of the Château de Vaudreuil are marked on Place Jacques-Cartier; lengths of railway have been integrated into the redeveloped Dalhousie Square; and the foundation of the Charron mill will be recalled in the forthcoming Parc des Frères-Charron. |
Considering the work that has been carried out thus far, one of the challenges awaiting the designers participating in the “Imaginer la Place d’Armes” (“Envision your Place d’Armes”) workshop will certainly be evaluating the necessary degree and level of historical interpretation for the Place, with regard to the following observations.
First observation: The layout of Place d’Armes has undergone radical changes over time. From a place of assembly with no particular design, to a Victorian square, to a concrete-covered traffic island, and finally to a raised amenity space, the successive layouts have consistently suited the needs and spirit of their times.
Second observation: The buildings surrounding the Place synthesize the major periods of Montréal’s development. They include the Seminary of Saint-Sulpice, one of the most important buildings of the French Regime, built beginning in 1685 and still occupied today by the same priestly order; Notre-Dame Basilica (1824), the largest church in the Americas when it was built; the head office of the Bank of Montreal (1859), Canada’s first bank; the New York Life building (1887), Montréal’s first skyscraper; the Aldred Building (1929–1931), a luxurious office tower whose set-back profile was determined by municipal by-laws; and the National Bank of Canada building (1965), a skyscraper in the international style. These buildings are of very different sizes, styles and materials, and each contributes significantly to the personality and identity of the Place.
Third observation, a corollary of the second: No lot adjacent to the Place is available for construction today, meaning the above-mentioned synthesis of Montréal’s development stops at the 1960s.
The necessary redevelopment of Place d’Armes thus presents an opportunity for the designers to illustrate the current period of development as we enter the 21st century, and to extend that synthesis into the present day. To that end and in that context, it is important to identify the relevant features of today’s development projects and contrast them with the precepts of historical “contextualism” that have been used up to now in Old Montréal, and which more often than not have been translated into palimpsests and surface markings. This may allow us to fulfil our duty towards history! |
Do you appreciate the historical education elements of recent urban redevelopment projects in Old Montréal, such as ground markings to explain to the observer what is found below public places and streets? |
Do you appreciate the historical education elements of recent urban redevelopment projects in Old Montréal, such as ground markings to explain to the observer what is found below public places and streets? |
City impress us by its place, street, buildings (which along the street), and activities which take place on these open spaces. Open space is the node of city; it represents the character of city.
Role: Place d’Armes, a monument place for the first governor of Montreal, It evidenced establishment and development of Montreal. Place d’Armes had played an important historic role in the evolution of Montreal.
Topic: However, our city doesn’t stop its step of developing. The theme of “Make this historic place to satisfy contemporary urban expectation” becomes considerable topic by our society.
Metaphor: In fact, relationship between historic place and contemporary urban is like the relationship of woman and man whom are facing the danger of apart because the gap of their different pace of development.
Strategies: In order to satisfy urban expectation, place d’Armes has to find out its problems, revitalize itself to attain a higher standard of urban need. The way to find out solutions is to understand urban need of Montreal, understand place d’Armes and the problematic which relate to it.
Urban need: Psychological need of public: pleasure from the quality of the place and feelings of experience which people can get from it. Multiple usages need- usages which can satisfy different people in different levels. Social need- social contact and social exchange.
Quality: Place d’Armes has high value of art aesthetic quality because of its beautiful sculpture, fountain, and its environment building’s classical architecture style ( Bank of Montreal and Basilica of Notre-Dame). It also have high historic quality because its position in Montreal’s history. Place d’Armes has clear identity quality because of its location, its symbolic sculpture, its historical heritage as well as the architect character of its environment. Undoubtly, place d’Armes together with Basilica of Notre-Dame became a landmark of Montreal.
Usage: Place d’Armes has multiple usages like aesthetic usage, monument usage, transportation usage, leisure usage, and social contact usage.
Problematic: However, series of problems diminish the quality and usages of Place d’Armes and hence this place cannot satisfy today’s public demanding.
1. Problem of equipments
1.1) lights are too dark
1.2) tourist service store lack of beauty and not properly locate
1.3) Plantations are not properly chosen and not growing well
2. Problems of buildings
The buildings which enclose place d’Armes lack of dialogues with the place and the unity of their volume, style, color and material. They diminished the place’s aesthetic level, enclosed space feeling, atmosphere and identity.
3. Problems of street caused by vehicles
City’s structure, appearance and our mode of life had changed because of automobile. Width of the roads around place d’Armes is much wider than sidewalk. Vehicles separate the place from streets and limit the area of place. Also, because of vehicle, Montreal structure itself in different single functions of zonings. Place d’Armes, which isn’t located in resident zone, is not convenient for habitants to reach.
Revitalize: We can revitalize place d’Armes by solving problems of its equipment; by improving quality of the place and its environment buildings; by soften conflict between vehicle and pedestrian.
Shun Yao
Montréal |
Oui on devrait conserver cette pratique qui nous instruit sur les aménagements des différentes époques.
Carole Leblanc
Montréal |
Je trouve que ces marquages ne sont pas très utiles parce qu'ils ne sont pas entretenus. Est-ce que la ville et les cols bleus vont récréer un tel marquage chaque fois qu'ils creusent...? Je ne suis pas certain.
Iain Blair
Montréal |
Ground markings are often good, especially when the open space used to be something else which can be explained in markings.
In this case, this has been a square since the earliest days so a modern re-interpretation of the historic layout would probably be best.
Perhaps there could be a very subtle indication of where the first Notre Dame Church was; but this should not be the driving force of the design.
Mark London
Martha's Vineyard, USA |
Yes, this is an intelligent approach to redevelopment. On the tour of Place d'Armes I overheard several people mentioning that there ought to be some interpretive plaque related to the outline of the chapel on Notre-Dame. Clearly people notice these elements but they have to be identified and interpreted.
Bill Buholzer
Montreal |
It's fine, as long as it doesn't increase the sense of the Old City being a "tourist destination" rather than a historic urban setting. I would hope such ground markings would be subtly executed -- expensive as it may be, perhaps cast?
Christopher Carlisle
Massachusetts, USA and Old Montreal |
Je me permets cette petite suggestion concernant la plaque sur l'édifice de la BMO concernant mon ancêtre en ligne directe Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne de qui les Sulpiciens ont "acquis" la terre de sa succession.
Depuis ma tendre enfance mon père m'amenait voir cette plaque avec mon frère et maintenant c'est à mon tour de m'y rendre avec mes jeunes enfants ce qui représente pour nous une grande source de fierté.
Alors SVP pourriez-vous laisser cette plaque ou encore mieux installer des pictogrammes expliquant aux générations futurs qui furent ces premiers colons qui s'installèrent sur l'actuel site de la place d'Armes pour que d'autres familles puissent à leur tour faire ce petit pèlerinage?
Merci
Patrice Tessier
Le Gardeur, Québec |
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Oui (voir réponse à question1)
Yves Deschamps
Montréal |
En tant que guide touristique présentant très souvent la Place d'Armes, je dois dire que la présentation visuelle du marquage au sol de l'église un point fort de la description de l'histoire de l'église et de la place.
Michel Jutras
Montréal |
Je crois que cette façon de souligner et de marquer est appropriée. L'entretien et le maintien sont une autre affaire. L'interprétation de ces traces doit être accessible tout en étant discret.
Jules Bélanger
Montréal |
Tout ce qui peut être fait pour bien rappeler l'importance du site dans toute l'histoire de la ville est intéressant et devrait être mis en valeur... mais tout est dans la façon de faire. Il faut que ce soit discret et durable et intégré dans le design de la place.
J. Hébert
Montréal |
Je crois que c'est une bonne idée à condition que ce soit fait discrètement, surtout pas comme une grande tache telle qu'illustrée dans la Gazette samedi dernier mais plutôt comme les pierres qui marquent le tracé des murs de l'hôpital Place Jacques Cartier.
Huguette Gagnon
Montréal |
Je dis Oui (mais) à JC Marsan... on doit conserver la statue...
Par contre moi :
1- Je démonterais cette statue de son piédestal et la reboulonnerais au niveau du sol pour que finalement on la voit, on la touche, position en axe avec la porte d'entrée de la cathédrale (classique), le plus soin possible d'elle, presque sur Saint-Jacques. Mais surtout pas en plein milieu de l'espace... laissons cet espace sacré au peuple des vivant.
2- Laisser le reste de la place vierge... que du dallage, même sur les rues pour que les voitures aient conscience qu'ils roulent sur un espace public. Aussi plusieurs bancs (amovibles). Créer un espace adaptable aux événements, fêtes, funérailles officielles... etc. Et laisser des commerces s'y installer de façon itinérante ! Cela crée de la vie et une place sans vie, sans événement, figé dans le béton, est un cimetière...
Keep it simple, then more adaptable.
J'ai aucune idée si ce courriel sera lu mais j'aimerais bien voir Montréal enfin être une 'city'. J’aimerais bien voir Montréal avoir une vraie place... pour qu'on s'y rassemble. Quel bel endroit pour se manifester en tant que citoyen. Non?
Pascal Moreau, arh urb.
Montréal |
Pourquoi pas, mais comme le disent d'autres personnes, il faut s'assurer que cela ne se dégrade pas avec le temps.
Yves Girard
Montréal |
| Bibliography |
CHOKO, Marc H., The Major Squares of Montréal. Trans. Kathe Roth, Montréal: Meridian Press, 1990.
DUFRESNE, Sylvie, “Fête et société: le carnaval d’hiver à Montréal (1883-1889).” Essay in Montréal: Activités, habitants, quartiers. Société historique de Montréal. Montréal: Fides, 1984.
LAFONTAINE, Luce, Place d’Armes, Montréal: Évolution urbanistique et architecturale. Survey conducted for the Société de développement de Montréal. Montréal, March 2007.
LÉGER MARKETING, Sondage auprès des clientèles pour le Vieux-Montréal et analyses comparatives avec une étude réalisée en 1998. Survey conducted for the Société de développement de Montréal. Montréal, 2004.
PRESSMAN, Norman, “The Idea of Winterness: Embracing Ice and Snow.” Essay in Sense of the City: An Alternate Approach to Urbanism, under the direction of Mirko Zardini. Montréal: Canadian Centre for Architecture & Lars Müller Publishers, 2005.
TISCHER, Stefan et al. Place d’Armes: Étude sur la circulation des piétons. Laboratoire de création en architecture de paysage, École d’architecture de paysage, Faculté de l’aménagement, Université de Montréal. Study conducted for the City of Montréal. Montréal, June 2007. |
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