Place des Montrealaises Honors Women in Urban Space

Designed by Lemay, Place des Montrealaises introduces a powerful new civic space in Montreal that reconnects Old Montreal with downtown while transforming an infrastructure divide into a meaningful urban landmark. Built over a sunken expressway, the project merges landscape architecture, memory, and mobility into a single public environment. The intervention by Lemay, developed in collaboration with artist Angela Silver and engineering teams, redefines the area not simply as a plaza but as a cultural landscape dedicated to women whose influence shaped the city’s identity.

More than a physical connection between neighbourhoods, the project represents a symbolic repair of Montreal’s fragmented urban fabric. By layering circulation routes, public gathering areas, and ecological landscapes, urban reconnection becomes the central architectural strategy. Through its design, Place des Montrealaises transforms what was once a barrier into an inclusive civic stage that invites both residents and visitors to experience the city differently.

A Memorial Embedded in Landscape

A key ambition of the plaza is to address the historic underrepresentation of women in urban toponymy. The design commemorates 21 influential women whose stories are woven directly into the spatial narrative. Among them are the 14 victims of the 1989 École Polytechnique tragedy and seven pioneering figures who helped shape Montreal’s social and cultural life. Through this approach, the project becomes both a living memorial and an evolving urban narrative.

Rather than relying on conventional statues or monuments, the project integrates remembrance into the landscape itself. A cylindrical mirrored installation displays the names of the women honoured, with letters dispersed across surrounding elements. Visitors can reassemble these fragments visually as they move through the plaza, ensuring that memory becomes an active and participatory experience within the city.

A Floating Meadow Above Infrastructure

The most striking architectural gesture is the inclined plane that forms the heart of the site. Suspended above the expressway, the structure supports a flowering meadow composed of 21 plant species arranged in 86 clusters. These plantings evolve throughout the seasons, reinforcing the symbolic presence of the women commemorated while also enhancing urban biodiversity and creating a dynamic public landscape.

Wide staircases surrounding the meadow double as seating areas and gathering platforms. From here, visitors gain new visual connections to the Champ-de-Mars metro station, whose stained-glass panels by artist Marcelle Ferron form an artistic dialogue with the plaza. The design invites reflection while maintaining the lively rhythm of a downtown public space.

Integrating Art, Ecology, and Infrastructure

One of the project’s defining strengths lies in its multidisciplinary approach. Architecture, landscape design, art, and engineering were developed simultaneously to address the site’s complex conditions. An urban forest planted above railway tunnels introduces a softer threshold to the plaza while demonstrating innovative solutions for vegetation in shallow soil environments.

More than half of the site is vegetated, a remarkable achievement given the infrastructural constraints below. Species were carefully selected for resilience and ecological performance, ensuring the landscape contributes to urban cooling, biodiversity, and environmental resilience.

A New Urban Destination

Since opening in spring 2025, the plaza has quickly become a vibrant civic destination. Cultural performances, public gatherings, and spontaneous activities now animate the space daily. The amphitheatre-like stairs and open meadow offer a flexible stage for both organized events and everyday encounters.

By transforming infrastructure into a civic landmark, Place des Montrealaises demonstrates how contemporary landscape architecture can reshape collective memory and urban experience. Through its layered design and symbolic power, Lemay has created a place where the past, present, and future of Montreal converge within a living public space.