Montreal's Cultural Identity Under Threat

From brownstones to greystones.

Lambert, the design doyenne and founder of Héritage Montréal, and Bumbaru, policy director of Héritage Montréal, argue that a block of historic greystone Romanesque Revival style commercial buildings next to the Monument National on St. Laurent Blvd., "form a pioneering and vigorous example of late-19th-century Montreal's modernism and popular culture" and reflect the era's "raging competition between the two founding nations of our modern metropolis."

The authors argue that, "Given the massive public investment in the revitalization of the Quartier des Spectacles, to abandon the remarkable architectural treasures spanning St. Laurent represents an unacceptable step backward for Montreal and Québécois culture, which, thanks to the noble efforts of its citizens, now has a solid cultural and sustainable vision of development."

"The restoration of this group of buildings should be a starting point for any future development of this neighbourhood, and this condition must be guaranteed publicly in writing by both the city of Montreal and the government of Quebec."