The Ironic Demise of the Redpath Mansion
In the infinite wisdom of the Parti Québécois’ Cameroonian-born culture minister, the Redpath House is officially lacking in any historical or architectural merit worthy of its protection. The...
View ArticleCovering Over Modernity
This here’s a photo of what Montreal looked like back in the early 1930s. To situate yourself, first you’re looking ‘Montreal east’ – that’s the Jacques-Cartier Bridge under construction, and by my...
View ArticleWhat a Night it Was
6:15 pm on a Friday night and Lionel-Groulx is busier than I’d expect. Throwback jerseys abound. Suburban knuckleheads on pilgrimage, smiles and high spirits all around. The train arrives packed and we...
View ArticlePointe-à-Callière Going Underground
The Pointe-à-Callière historical and archeological museum is going underground and expanding for the city’s 375th anniversary. Perhaps borrowing a cue from the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (whose...
View ArticleThe CBC should consolidate its operations in Montreal
Recently announced cuts to the CBC/Radio-Canada got me thinking: why is this particular crown corporation’s operations split between three different major Canadian cities and why is the CBC/SRC trying...
View ArticleOn the STM’s Wasteful Renaming Policy
Recent news is that the STM will temporarily lift its self-imposed moratorium on renaming Métro stations so that Square-Victoria can be re-christened “Square-Victoria-OACI”. The rationale is that it...
View ArticleThe Future of Institutional Space in the Mountain Domain
An important public forum will take place at the Maison Smith up on Mount Royal Thursday night beginning at 18h00 and dealing with the future of the soon to be vacated hospitals within the ‘Mountain...
View ArticleMonsieur le Maire, Tear Down this… Railing?
I don’t really know what to call that metal bar running along the edge of the property pictured above, but I’m pretty sure I know what it represents. I snapped this pic in Saint Henri but if you live...
View ArticleA few things every Montrealer ought to know about Mirabel International...
Recent news is that the unelected government agency responsible for Montreal’s airports will seek to demolish the iconic main terminal of Mirabel International Airport, effectively shutting the door on...
View ArticleCase for a City State No. 1 – Champlain Bridge Replacement Project is Federal...
I’ve decided to start a series I hope will help make the case for why our city needs to evolve into a city-state responsible for its own internal affairs. I firmly believe this is the ideal future...
View ArticlePersonae non gratae – Champlain, Richard, Taillibert
I feel this story might have slipped under the radar. The guy who designed the Big O has a counter-proposal to the Fed’s Champlain Bridge Redux project. Noted 88 year-old French architect Roger...
View ArticleA Thousand Words for this City in Time
I don’t know for certain but I’m guessing this shot was taken in the summer of 1962 or 1963. It fascinates me because it shows our city at a crucial moment of transition. Look closely at this...
View ArticleNine Reasons Why the Métro Blue Line Won’t be Extended Above Ground
Call it a problem of thinking aloud… Last Wednesday Denis Coderre was musing about public transit expansion and improvement when he let slip that he thought it might be possible for the Blue Line’s...
View ArticleYesterday and Today
This is Berri Square on June 9th 1976, the year of our Olympiad. I find this photo significant for a few reasons. First and foremost is that UQAM had not yet built its main campus. That came three...
View ArticleThe World’s Largest Holiday Inn
If you’ve been walking down René Lévesque around the Bell Centre of late, you’ve doubtless noticed our city’s in the midst of a building boom. And it’s not all condos either. The new Deloitte Tower,...
View ArticleMontreal Photo of the Day – April 16th 2015
Taken from Basin Street in Griffintown, from left to right you can see the Cité du Commerce Electronique, construction cranes around both the Roccabella (tower one) and Tour des Canadiens de Montréal,...
View ArticleMontreal Photo of the Day – April 20th 2015
From left to right, Windsor Station, 1250 Boul. René Lévesque (the tower with the prominent spire), St. George’s Anglican Church, Place Laurentienne and the CIBC Tower (which also has a prominent...
View ArticleMontreal Photo of the Day – May 4th 2015
Taken from Saint Jacques and Rue de la Montagne. From left to right: you can just see the penthouse of Place Ville Marie behind the fifteen-floor tower of the Romanesque Revival styled Windsor Station...
View ArticleMehta, Mahler and the Maison Symphonique de Montréal
Not Mehta or the OSM, but Leonard Bernstein conducting the Vienna Philharmonic. Close enough… Confession: I was neither familiar with Mahler’s Third Symphony, nor the city’s new concert hall, until...
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