TRANSFORMATION of the TURCOT YARDS 10 Things to Know About the New Nature-Park Project
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TRANSFORMATION OF THE TURCOT YARDS 10 things to know about the new nature-park project August 2018 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW NATURE-PARK PROJECT IN THE TURCOT YARDS NEW NATURE-PARK IN THE TURCOT YARDS Ville de Montréal. (2018). Design vision for a new nature-park in the Saint-Jacques Escarpment Ecoterritory. 1 INTRODUCTION THE MUNICIPAL A NEW NATURE-PARK DEVELOPMENT VISION ON THE SITE OF THE 1 FORMER TURCOT RAIL YARDS The transfer of the autoroute northward, to the site of the former Turcot yard, will free up The Ville de Montréal will develop a completely Since this major park is to belong to citizens, a vast space between rue Notre-Dame and the new nature-park in the heart of the city, in the the municipal administration seeks to learn new highway. space freed up by reconstruction of the Turcot their aspirations with regard to the project. interchange. Located in the Saint-Jacques The Office de consultation publique de This newly vacant space offers a rare Escarpment Ecoterritory, this major park will Montréal will start the consultative process well opportunity to create a new green space. cover almost 30 hectares along 2 km. This ahead of the project’s realization. Subsequently, The major park project will provide numerous unique ecosystem offers a variety of landscapes various participatory activities will be deployed social, economic and environmental benefits — woods, wetland, prairie — and will allow for throughout the project development process. and will significantly improve quality of life the creation of a new green gateway to the city, for Montrealers. It will fulfill the following one which will be iconic for the metropolis. The Ville de Montréal would like to take strong objectives: Alexandre Cv. (2016). Vista point of the Île-de-la-Visitation nature-park. action for the environment and the quality of • Increase the extent of protected areas in This green space will help improve the life of its citizens, by creating a park that is truly the urban setting, in compliance with the biodiversity of the Saint-Jacques Escarpment theirs and that responds to their needs. municipal policy on the protection and sector and will offer users special contact enhancement of natural spaces (Politique de with nature. protection et de mise en valeur des milieux naturels) A north-south link (also known as the • Improve Montréal’s park and green space dalle-parc) is proposed to extend the park network, essential for citizen well-being above Autoroute 20 and the railways, opening • Establish infrastructure to provide safe and an additional corridor for pedestrians and enjoyable active transportation opportunities, cyclists between the new park and the Lachine which will improve access to the Saint-Jacques Canal. This outstanding facility will restore links Escarpment and the Lachine Canal between the Sud-Ouest and Côte-des-Neiges– • Create a distinctive entranceway to the city Notre-Dame-de-Grâce boroughs and encourage • Encourage revitalization of the districts active transportation. around the new park, in a sector targeted James Ewing. (2014). Long Dock Park, Beacon, NY, United States. [On-line image]. by an economic development strategy This new major park will embody Montréal’s innovative spirit and will represent its concrete commitment to the quality of life of its citizens, protection of natural sites and the development Air Imex Ltée. (2018). Turcot projet work status, May 2018. of its neighbourhoods. 2 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW NATURE-PARK PROJECT IN THE TURCOT YARDS 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW NATURE-PARK PROJECT IN THE TURCOT YARDS 3 A NEW GREEN SPACE THE SAINT-JACQUES FOR BETTER QUALITY ESCARPMENT ECOTERRITORY: OF LIFE 2 AN AREA TO PROTECT The Saint-Jacques Escarpment Ecoterritory is The Saint-Jacques Escarpment is a significant 3 located in the heart of a sector with a great landscape on the island of Montréal. Located deal of asphalt and is currently inaccessible between Mount Royal and the Lachine Rapids, to the public. it covers more than 20 hectares and is a strategic The creation of a nature-park, complete with stopover for migratory birds and a habitat for walking trails and a bicycle path, will provide the brown snake. opportunities for socializing and physical activity, and offer numerous other benefits. The Escarpment is one of ten natural spaces of interest–or ecoterritories–identified in the Improve the quality of the environment 2004 Politique de protection et de mise en With the new park, a natural ecosystem valeur des milieux naturels de l’agglomération will be born. Benefits will include: de Montréal. The objective of this Policy is to Alexandre Cv. (2016). Cyclists at the Pointe-aux-Prairies nature-park. • Increasing biodiversity protect natural areas in an urban setting. • Improving air quality • Improving rain water management Ecoterritories include existing protected • Creating new tree canopy areas and natural spaces to be protected and • Reducing the heat island effect enhanced. These extensive spaces contribute to biodiversity: they are home to a variety of animal and plant species, some of whose status Develop the bicycle network The bicycle path proposed in the new park is precarious. will improve the municipal bicycle network. In addition, it will help meet the growing needs They offer the potential for conservation of Montréal cyclists, whose number jumped projects and invite citizens to become closer 57% between 2008 and 2015 (source: Vélo- to nature. For these reasons, the Saint-Jacques Québec). The proposed dalle-parc will add Escarpment Ecoterritory will be the site of conservation and design initiatives in order to: to other municipal initiatives to improve the Ville de Montréal. (2018). Boundaries of the Saint-Jacques Escarpment Ecoterritory and the new nature-park. quality of active transportation and allocate • Protect ground cover to prevent erosion Alexandre Cv. (2016). Île-de-la-Visitation nature-park. more space to this mode, which helps public problems health and the environment. • Diversify animal habitats, especially for the brown snake These actions will protect the Saint-Jacques Escarpment ecosystems, while also helping to Enhance the sector • Revegetate the base of the Escarpment and A neighbour to the Lachine Canal, this new offer vista points of the park integrate this green space into adjacent sectors. major park will become an attractive space for • Connect the site to surrounding districts with Montrealers and a feature of the sector, which walking trails and bicycle paths is currently undergoing transformation. • Develop and implement a protection and enhancement plan for the Escarpment, in collaboration with the boroughs involved 4 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW NATURE-PARK PROJECT IN THE TURCOT YARDS 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW NATURE-PARK PROJECT IN THE TURCOT YARDS 5 THE SAINT-JACQUES A DEVELOPMENT PLAN ESCARPMENT: A UNIQUE SITE 4 FOR CONCRETE INITIATIVES The Saint-Jacques Escarpment is one of the most In 2014, the Service des grands parcs, du 5 New gateway to the city prominent geographic elements in the city, verdissement et du Mont-Royal created a • Create a new, green entrance to the city, as distinctive as Mont-Royal. While the name development plan for the Saint-Jacques which will cross the Saint-Jacques Escarpment “falaise Saint-Jacques”, is not official, Escarpment, which contained the following Ecoterritory, and mark this entrance by an it has been used for decades. It probably initiatives: impressive work of art or design became common in the 1960s, when chemin • Use excess soil generated by the Turcot project Upper Lachine became rue Saint-Jacques and The district north of the Escarpment work to create, adjacent to the autoroute, the Décarie autoroute was constructed. • Create an attractive entrance on rue Saint- land art, i.e., large pieces created by shaping The district along the ridge of the Escarpment Jacques and a pedestrian trail to lead down the landscape and nature presents a varied building profile, comprised of to the green corridor at the bottom of the • Develop vista points and panoramas offered large-scale retail buildings, vast parking lots, as Escarpment by the autoroute well as smaller stores and residential buildings. • Create new vista points or new entranceways Air Imex Ltée. (2018). Turcot projet work status, May 2018. at the top of the Escarpment Turcot yards and adjacent industrial sectors The current topography of the Escarpment • Revegetate the top of the Escarpment • Enhance the newly opened up land is the result of a long history of unregulated • Create a landscape design that evokes the lac dumping. The accumulation of this construction Saint-Jacques Escarpment and lower greenway à la Loutre and rivière Saint-Pierre previously debris and other rocky material, thrown from • Landscape the Escarpment to stabilize the soil, located there the top of the Escarpment, gradually changed improve biodiversity and protect fauna • Transform rue Notre-Dame to make it more its natural appearance, enlarging its base from • Open up certain areas to offer vista points on attractive and add active transportation and 20 to 100 metres in certain places. Today, the the park transit Escarpment rises 30 metres and has a very • Create a north-south passageway to cross the • Create an attractive park accessway from the abrupt slope, its incline about 40 degrees. autoroute and railway tracks and provide Lachine Canal access to the old railway yard and the Lachine During the 1980s, Montréal planted trees and Canal National Historic Site bushes to consolidate the ground, naturalize the • Create a greenway below the Escarpment, Escarpment and limit soil erosion; currently the as provided for in the Turcot project by the ground is more stable. Nowadays, Escarpment ministère des Transports, de la Mobilité vegetation offers a refuge for migratory birds Ville de Montréal. (n.d.). Boisé de la falaise Saint-Jacques.