Redevelopment Namur Jean-Talon, Le Triangle

Making streets for people
A sea of asphalt swept by dust and heat, that is what Namur-Jean-Talon looked like before the City of Montreal launched a Canada-wide urban design competition to redesign the area. Catalyse Urbaine won the competition to transform this car-dominated area into a vibrant neighborhood which premieres innovative water management and shared street design.
One of the first shared streets in Montreal
Nowhere is the innovation of this project more evident than in the creation of one of the first shared streets in Montreal, Buchan Street. The street showcases a remarkable mosaic of paver textures and colors to ensure pedestrian safety and a welcoming environment for the mobility impaired.
An innovative model of green infrastructure
The project’s bioretention system absorbs 80% of the streets’ run-off. It comprises three separate prototypes which each showcase a different method of collecting and treating street runoff. Working closely with the public works department, granite paver shoulders were added for snow stock-piling areas, and granite boulders added to protect from snow removal vehicles.
To ensure population support for the bioretention systems, the watercourse and workings of the system are clearly legible. The rain gardens are showcased in the Canadian Standards Association's Design of bioretention systems as an exemplary model to follow.
Challenges encountered

One of the major challenges was to reconcile the project's innovation objectives with the technical constraints inherent to the proper functioning of a street. To ensure such imperatives as pedestrian safety, snow removal and drainage, we worked closely with the City of Montreal and the public works department to resolve technical constraints and create custom street details for the projet.

Financial success
The project has attracted investors and been a financial success for the City of Montreal. The project has generated sufficient income to reimburse the initial investment in less than three years, instead of the ten years that had been initially projected.