By: Marion Gale, Ellen Heshusius, Ted Horton, Chelsea Medd, Thushanti Selvarajah

McGill University School of Urban Planning

Studio 2

Winter 2013

The Bassin du Moulin plan was built around the idea of a diverse community in a neighbourhood that promoted active-transportation. Oriented in the east towards the Peel Basin waterfront and a renewed Wellington Basin, which echoes the site’s industrial heritage; the site is divided by a chain of green parks that provide ample activity spaces for its residents and surrounding community. With one of the lowest parking minimums for a new development in Montreal, the Bassin du Moulin connects to active transportation paths both inside and outside of the site to bring residents downtown and to the surrounding communities of Griffintown and Pointe-Saint-Charles. Such green facilities and mobility options will serve the project’s diverse community well – 15% of the residential units are affordably priced and a further 15% will be allocated as social housing, positioned within a built environment of mid-rise buildings with a range of market and luxury units featuring spectacular views of the downtown and waterfront.”

Project Features and Factors:

•2,274 units

•27% public space

•9.6 hectares

•5,200 m2 of commerce

•12,000 m2 of office space

•12,000 m2 of park

•$573m total project cost

•36% return on investment

•$144m net present value

Building Uses

External Connections

Green Space

Internal Connections

Parcels

By: Mark Elsworthy, Cara Fisher, Lora Milusheva, Ève-Marie Surprenant

McGill University School of Urban Planning

Studio 2

Winter 2013

Wellington Blue team created a framework in order to capitalize on the site unique features.  The site’s barriers are isolating the housing development from the rest of the borough’s community. The main goals of our project were to find ways to improve the links to the surroundings and facilitate access to the Lachine Canal in order to foster a vibrant community.

Concept Plan

Master Plan

In our master plan we are proposing to restore one part of Wellington basin and bring back the docks ambiance along a green landscape design. Also, the new development can benefit from existing infrastructure. In order to improve connectivity, the Wellington tunnel is restored as a distinctive entry to the site. Oak street is being reconnected to Wellington street which it was before the construction of the basin in 1880. Saint-Patrick street is extended towards Oak street. Common area near the water is another important feature in the new development. We believe that the waterfront has to belong to the community. The public park can accomodate organizations promoting sporting activities related to the water and the Canal’s path. Citizens will be able to access dynamic activities on the Peel Basin. A visitors’ pavilion adjoining the recycled silos includes a multi-functional hall. This feature is a focal point from Ogilvie street.

Master Plan

We propose a variety of residential typologies. Due to the site location, we believe it is realistic to build more affordable and medium housing units. The density and the height culminate near the park and the water where the luxury units are found. The different lots include more than 1 920 housing units. Social housing gets special attention in the master plan with a nice inside courtyard.

Streetscape along rue Ogilvie

Cross-section West to East north of rue Bridge

Cross-section West to East north of Rue Oak

Community Space

Commercial and business spaces are located on the outskirt of the site. They shelter the housing units from the noises coming from the main arteries. The buildings are oriented towards the streets and they observe the existing grain of the area. Parking spaces are available on the rear. Bridge street offers medium size retail services on the ground level and office spaces on the second and third level. Mill street will be an ECOtainer’s area with offices and/or artisanal spaces such as la verriere.

Quantitive Summary

Project prices

Scenarios Based on Market Prices

Investment vs. Revenue

A Redevelopment Proposal for the Wellington Basin

By: Megan Albinger, Christian Binette, Simon Chauvette, Gabriel Damant-Sirois, Vincent-Charles Hodder

McGill University School of Urban Planning

Studio 2

Winter 2013

Pointe-Aux-Silos is a dynamic plan for the Wellington Basin that capitalizes on the on the site’s proximity to downtown Montréal, and preserves its historical character as a piece of the cradle of industry that once abutted the Lachine Canal. Connections to neighbouring Griffintown and to the thriving downtown core are enhanced with the construction of a footbridge over the canal and a pedestrian tunnel under the railway line.

Guiding Principles 

Our six guiding principles – water, social equity, industrial heritage, human scale, cultural corridor and employment – have inspired a plan that will create value for investors. Building off of the creative corridor, studio space in a beautifully restored industrial building will attract artists who will contribute to the exciting character of the new neighbourhood. Our housing portfolio offers a variety of options catering both to young urban professionals moving in the area, and families currently moving out of the island. The signature Wellington Basin and restored Tate Park will recall the industrial heritage of the site and extend the consciousness of water as a crucial element of the neighbourhood’s image. Environmental best practices, like bio-retention ponds and sidewalk rain gardens, promise to also reduce the costs of water management.

A sensible financial strategy and a respectable return on investment (33%) are central to the Pointe-Aux-Silos Redevelopment Plan. In order to minimize risks, it adopts a phased approach. Flexibility in the timing of each phase, guaranteed by the multiplicity of residential and employment uses, is an obvious advantage. Furthermore, including 22% affordable and 15% social housing minimizes the risk of opposition to the plan from surrounding residents.

All this is achieved in a walkable and human scale development that will open an exciting new chapter in the area’s history.

MasterPlan

Perspective: Park Wellington

Perspective: Neighbourhood Park

Transportation Master Plan for Gouin-Laurentien Study Area

By: Gabriel Damant-Sirois, Ellen Heshusius, Vincent-Charles Hodder, Ted Horton, Lora Milusheva

McGill University School of Urban Planning

Studio 1

Fall 2012

Introduction

The Borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville is geographically among Montréal’s largest, and it is comprised of distinct and diverse communities. The Gouin-Laurentien sector of Ahuntsic Cartierville is one of these communities, being an area in the northwest of the borough, roughly defined in the north and south by the Rivière-des-Prairies and the AMT rail line, and in the east and west by Boulevard O’Brien and Rue Cousineau. The area lacks an identifiable and memorable moniker, and this is a future branding concern, though within this report the study area will be referred to by its most prominent intersection, the central hub of Gouin-Laurentien.

Mandate and Vision

The mandate of this plan is to produce a master plan for the next thirty years, with a focus on transportation. Home to some 21,000 Montrealers in 2011, the area will grow at a rate of 3.8% over a five-year period according to our projection. By 2040 the population will have risen to 26,000 people in a status-quo scenario. Considering broader trends and the transportation and development goals of the city, we project a population of 33,000 residents in 2040 . This growth will require direction to accommodate the new population within the area, and foresight to respond to the demands it will place upon the transportation network.

Master Plan

In 2040, Gouin-Laurentien will be a livable, welcoming, well-connected community. Residents will enjoy an accessible, attractive, well-served community in which they can meet their daily needs. Priority will be given to sustainable practices, with emphasis on active transportation and improvements to public transit. Simultaneously, policy will be shifted to encourage a denser urban form, a more accessible, walkable neighbourhood, and a reduced reliance on cars as a primary mode of transportation. This plan will be oriented in line with the existing Metropolitan Community of Montreal Plan métropolitain d’aménagement et de development, sharing goals of sustainable transportation and seeking to be a leader in the city in shifting modal choice to more environmentally-friendly alternatives. Gouin-Laurentien will offer diverse modes of transportation and a flexible interaction between them. The current situation for public transportation is not a dire one. The area is connected to several bus routes and hosts the dedicated AMT bus lane on Laurentien Boulevard linking Laval commuters with downtown Montreal. Gouin-Laurentien lacks a direct link with the central city, however, as residents must navigate bus links that are frequently at capacity to reach metro lines outside of the area. This leads to a dependency on automobile transport, as the public transportation use in this area lags behind the rest of the City’s Average.

Green and Blue: Cartierville Shows its Colours

By: Simon Chauvette, Mark Elsworthy, Alanna Felt, Marion Gale

McGill University School of Urban Planning

Studio 1

Fall 2012

Introduction

Following detailed study of the Gouin-Laurentien area, this plan was prepared to assist in the revitalisation of the neighbourhood and to guide its future development. On 18 November 2012, the World Bank issued a report warning that by the year 2100, the global temperature will rise by four degrees Celsius. This shift will be marked by extreme heat waves, declining local food stocks, loss of ecosystems and biodiversity, and a severe rise in sea level.  This warning has particular implications for the City of Montreal regarding significant increases in temperature and sea level. As such, the development plan outlined below includes a series of goals, objectives and actions which will mitigate these risks, based on the vision and values outlined below.

Vision

The Gouin-Laurentien area of Cartierville will become a unified and green neighbourhood where residents from all cultures and economic backgrounds can live, work and play. In twenty years’ time, the sector will be socially, economically and environmentally sustainable. The neighbourhood’s unique identity will be evident, and its integration within the City of Montréal will be reinforced. Two vibrant cultural and economic nodes will contribute to the connection of the different urban fabrics in the area, and mark the entry points to the neighbourhood and the island of Montréal.

Master Plan

Values

• Environmental sustainability: the built environment should be coherently integrated into the natural environment and have the capacity to adapt to climate change.
• Social equity: all members of the community should have equal access to employment, cultural, educational, and housing facilities;
• Social cohesion: individuals in the community should have the opportunity to interact freely;
• Dynamic economy: diverse employment opportunities and commercial activity should be locally available; and
• Identity: the area should have a unique and strong sense of place.

Goal 1.   Manage resources at the source

Goal 2.   Enhance local and regional transportation choices and connections

Goal 3.   Strengthen identity through local features

Goal 4.   Foster a complete community

Key sectors of intervention

Green Network

Activity Map

Perspective: Civic Hub

Perspective: Civic Hub

Perspective: Civic Hub

Périnault Street Cross-sections Existing and Proposed

By: Cara Fisher, Kate-Issima Francin, Daniella Guerrero, Chelsea Medd

McGill University School of Urban Planning

Studio 1

Fall 2012

The Gouin-Laurentien sector of the Borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville serves as a link between the Island of Montréal, Laval, and the broader metropolitan area.  The Gouin-Laurentien sector has a diverse demographic composition in terms of ethnicity and in levels of income, making it an area of great contrasts and facing a number of challenges. The commercial activity on both Boulevard  Gouin  and  Boulevard  Laurentien  is  unstable,  and  the  areas  have  difficulty maintaining a loyal customer base.i  The sector has many parks and natural green spaces, but mobility and accessibility are an issue for many local residents. The analysis conducted in phase one identified that the sector suffers from a transient population, families move out of the in search of larger, more affordable housing or a better served neighbourhood.

This comprehensive plan, titled “A Place to Call Home”, aims to address retention of residents in the Gouin-Laurentien sector by offering a well-connected living environment where residents can meet their daily needs and where they will remain for many years to come. The plan outlines five strategic goals to create a better neighbourhood with a strong sense of place and an active community life.   A key component is a housing strategy that recommends new housing developments and implementation of the existing housing policies. To highlight the key recommendations, two areas for intervention have been selected that focus on housing and mobility.

Master Plan

Vision:

The year is 2035, and the Gouin-Laurentien neighborhood, part of the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough, is a vibrant residential community. The Gouin-Laurentien area welcomes diversity by attracting residents from all around the region with the affordability of its housing and the quality of life if offers. The variety of businesses and high quality public realm along boulevards Gouin and Laurentien offer an excellent shopping experience for visitors and residents alike. The neighbourhood has a mix of residential options that meet the needs of the population and is a place accessible by public transit, automobile, bicycle and foot. The Gouin-Laurentien neighbourhood’s cultural diversity, welcoming public spaces, strong local economy and its proximity to the Rivière des Prairies make it a place where people want to grow old.

Our vision is supported by five key goals: to stabilize local population with new housing options, to enhance accessibility and mobility, to encourage community building, to create a vibrant public realm and to revitalize economic activity.

Goals and Housing Strategy Diagram