Mayor Valérie Plante Has Just Announced Another Huge Park Expansion In Montreal
- Mayor Valérie Plante announced last week that Montreal would soon be home to the largest municipal park in Canada, planned to be 8 times larger than NYC's Central Park.
- Now, the mayor has announced ANOTHER park that is getting an upgrade by 2021.
- Parc Frédéric-Back will continue its history of environmental stewardship by way of expansion with 18 new hectares.
- Visit MTLBlog for more headlines.
After the exciting news that Montreal will soon become home to the largest municipal park in the country, Mayor Valérie Plante is back with some more awesome park-related news.
Not only will Montreal soon boast a park that is planned to be eight times larger than NYC's Central Park, but Parc Frédéric-Back is also going to be getting a facelift.
The mairesse de Montréal took to her Instagram story yesterday to share the exciting news and show off some of the ideas for the new 18-hectares that will make up the "true lung for the Saint-Michel district."
Parc Frédéric-Back has a pretty storied history, as Plante mentions in her stories below. The site was a quarry before it was acquired by the city of Montreal to be used as a landfill.
Residents in the area had already been dealing with respiratory issues due to the quarry, and the landfill did little to help the air quality in the area.
Finally, in 1995, the space began a slow transformation into the green space it is now, a park that is nearly as large as Parc du Mont-Royal.
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The images above are from Plante's Instagram story, where she dove into the announcement and her excitement for the plans. The images above read:
"Environmental Announcement!
Today, our administration is taking another strong step in protecting green spaces in Montreal! After the creation of the Great Western Park last week..."
"It is now time for parc Frédéric-Back to be improved! The parc Frédéric-Back is one of Montreal's most distinctive parks, not only because of its size, but also because of its history!
This space, which was first a quarry..."
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[rebelmouse-image 26890238 photo_credit="@val_plante" expand=1 original_size="3300x1500"] @val_plante
"... then a landfill, has not always been so inviting!
It took daring to imagine all the beauty that could be born there.
Today, the parc Frédéric-Back, the most ambitious urban environmental rehabilitation project in the country, is distinguished by its rich and diverse flora and fauna."
There's no question that this is a fantastic second step in growing Montreal's green spaces, particularly because of this area's long history with curating this space into one that encourages environmental awareness.
Plus, you can also find the TOHU there, a one-of-a-kind circular theatre, a LEED GOLD Canada certified green building that hosts some of the world's best circus performances.
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Plans for the space include expansion, rehabilitation of plant life and the addition of communal spaces for Montrealers to enjoy.
The images below read:
"Today, I am happy to announce a new development phase that will add 18 hectares to the park!
We will completely transform the Iberville North and Eastern Plain sectors.
Notably, through the rehabilitation of soils, intensive greening, the installation of spheres on biogas sensors, and the addition of urban furniture made from recycled ash trees!"
[rebelmouse-image 26890239 photo_credit="@val_plante" expand=1 original_size="3300x1500"] @val_plante
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"This new phase will reinforce the role of the parc Frédéric-Back as a true lung for the Saint-Michel district and for the city!
Thank you to all those who, in the City and among our partners, helped to imagine and make possible the creation of this exceptional place!
"A park that is concrete proof that we can transform a bold vision into sustainable projects... for the well being of all Montrealers."
I can't say I'm anything other than proud that our mayor and our city is making immediate and exciting moves to change the way we live in our cities and decrease our environmental impact in every way possible.
Stay tuned for more details about this awesome addition to Montreal's already amazing network of parks.
*All translations, seen italicized above, are my own.
