As part of preparations for detailed planning for the Griffintown sector, the city collaborated with the Sud-Ouest Borough and the Design Montréal office to organize an urban design workshop for professional designers in different disciplines.
The workshop was organized in the spirit of the conceptualization exercises carried out in 2003 and 2004 under the supervision of the Sud-Ouest borough's Direction de l'aménagement urbain et des services aux entreprises.
The workshop was part of a broader urban event intended as a planning, joint action and communication exercise, with the goal of establishing constructive dialogue among the different players interested in the sustainable revitalization of Griffintown: local residents and other Montrealers, representatives of the Sud-Ouest Borough and the city, developers, businesses and institutions located in Griffintown, urban planners, etc.
The Dialogues de Griffintown, an urban design workshop complemented by activities for the public, was held from October 23 to 26, 2006, and generated some innovative perspectives on development.
The event was organized jointly by the Sud-Ouest Borough and the Design Montréal office, as part of the detailed planning for Griffintown stipulated in the Master Plan and the city's desire to promote design in its urban development.
The workshop consisted of three teams of development professionals from such disciplines as architecture, design, urban design, landscaping, and urban planning, selected through a public call for candidates and aided by art and communication designers. The mandate of the three teams was to think about urban strategies and come up with innovative development concepts for one of the sector’s three target sites.
- Site 1: École de technologie supérieure properties
- Site 2: Rue des Seigneurs and surrounding area
- Site 3: Block north of rue Ottawa near the mail sorting centre
An expert panel of managers and professionals with extensive knowledge of urban development issues in Montréal also took part in the workshop. Their role was to comment on the designers’ proposals and issue conclusions on the workshop outcomes.
- Charles-Mathieu Brunelle, Executive Director, TOHU, la Cité des arts de cirque
- Caroline Dubuc, Urban Planning Adviser, Conseil du patrimoine de Montréal
- Louis-Paul Lemieux, architect, Schème, Architecture + Aménagement
- Pierre Morrissette, Executive Director, Regroupement économique et social du Sud-Ouest (RESO)
- Juliette Patterson, landscape architect, Catalyse urbaine, Architecture et Paysages
- Jacques Vincent, President, Groupe Prével
