The Parc Jean-Drapeau Master Plan 2020-2030 is the result of a massive public outcry against a plan to develop a large open-air amphitheatre on Saint Helen’s Island in 2017. This major project, implemented without any public consultation process, included the removal of approximately 1,000 mature trees in the heart of the park and the destruction of an ecological water feature. The result, an expansive, mineralized surface that can accommodate up to 65,000 spectators, opened in November 2019.

The development of the Espace 67 amphitheatre in 2018 galvanized one of the most extensive public consultation processes in Montreal’s history and raised awareness of the park’s current state: the degraded condition of its green spaces due to a combination of overuse and neglect, the disconnection between residents and the park as a public place, and the lack of a shared vision or identity for the park.

The Parc Jean-Drapeau Master Plan responds directly to the recommendations from this public consultation process and commits to regenerate, reconnect, and reinvent the park in a way that puts people and nature (and their relationship with each other) at the centre of all its discussions and actions.

The Master Plan embodies a commitment to transform decision-making processes and to update the practices and operations of Société du parc Jean-Drapeau Corporation (SDJP)in a way that is both people- and nature-centred. The strategic framework of the Master Plan – comprised of guiding principles, design principles, development axes, and strategic orientations – provides a comprehensive structure upon which all processes and actions are based.

With this Master Plan, Parc Jean-Drapeau is making a clear socio-ecological shift. While greatly enhancing the diversity, quality, and quantity of its open spaces for visitors, the Plan sets bold targets: to increase the tree canopy by 30% and wetland areas by 40% and to decrease high-maintenance horticultural zones by 50%. The creation of an ecological corridor between two biodiversity hotspots where fauna and flora are particularly abundant – the Mont Boullé hackberry stand on Saint Helen’s Island and the riparian zones of Notre-Dame Island – illustrates a commitment to restore the ecological connectivity within the park.

The Master Plan aims to improve ecological complexity by integrating the concepts of landscape performance and ecosystem services into the design and management plan, which will also incorporate traditional indigenous knowledge. Most lawn areas (which primarily align the roadways) will evolve into more diversified natural landscapes as the three-stratum forest expands. The introduction of sustainable management practices allow for the expansion of unmanicured herbaceous lands. Among the new types of plant habitats in the park, shrublands will provide new littoral environments near the river, which will differentiate the renewed contact with the water from inland landscape experiences. The uniqueness of these spaces will be reinforced by the development of new wetlands and the use of phytotechnologies.

In addition to the development and management of its lands, the park aims to achieve 85% of materials recycled, carbon-neutrality of all development activities, and 100% eco-responsible programming while introducing urban agriculture on the roofs of several buildings.

The Master Plan lays the groundwork for many educational opportunities and exchanges of knowledge. Learning and sharing knowledge are facilitated through several efforts, both internally, within the park, and externally, in exchange with other municipal entities and partners. For example, bio-indicator surveys and monitoring in the forested area will be part of research-action projects in collaboration with universities and the Ecological Transition Campus as well as in partnership with indigenous traditional knowledge experts to inform both park operations staff and the project design team to guide the redevelopment and restoration plans. Communication strategies include adding informational signs to explain our ecological practices and ways to enhance and protect biodiversity in urban parks. In addition, parks grounds staff are engaged in a process of learning and adopting new ecological management practices, including methods to reduce pesticide and herbicide use, planting strategies that augment biodiversity, and operations that encourage naturalisation in the park.

The Plan includes an ambitious funding target of nearly $970 million. $490 million, 50% of the total, is financed by the City of Montréal through an annual budget of $49 million in its 10-year capital investment plan. This sum is dedicated to the projects proposed in the Plan, with the budget being divided between new development projects and the maintenance and renovation of existing park facilities. The City’s contribution includes amounts it allocates to the SPJD as part of the three-year investment plan, which represents almost half the annual budget allocated to restore existing buildings and infrastructure. The remaining $480 million will be covered through public-private partnerships.

Given the radical transformation encapsulated by its mission and the massive infrastructure investments planned, the SPJD has developed a sequencing and financing plan to minimize the time required to implement the Plan and match the investments required with the sequencing of the realization of the various projects.

The Plan’s feasibility requires a transitional period to allow the SPJD to initiate its organizational transformation and acquire the skills necessary to begin the first projects. Spreading expenditures over time also helps ensure the availability of required human and financial resources.

Project planning was carried out using the cascade principle to take into account the many dependencies that exist between completion of certain projects and the start of others. This approach also assumes that refinement of the planning for each project will provide regular opportunities to adapt and update the overall sequencing of the Plan.

The completion of the Master Plan required a new performance-based management process that was specific and measurable enough to be able to monitor and report on

In a progressive way, the park is currently:

• Establishing priority initiatives and action plans to be deployed, based on targeted objectives.
• Investing significantly to ensure profitable, sustainable, responsible development and efficient use of resources.
• Adopting a results-based management approach that will allow the gradual implementation of a management dashboard.

The SPJD has moved from a means-based management approach to a results-based approach. This evolution allows the SPJD to meet the targets defined in the Master Plan and ensures accountability for their achievement. The SPJD is committed to maintaining transparency in its governance by communicating all relevant information to the public.

The SPJD aims to achieve a high level of excellence in all its areas of activity. Performance management will allow for benchmarking, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting on project progress. This reform will enable the organization to measure and be evaluated on the quality of its service delivery.

Due to the previous lack of a plan to guide development, Parc Jean-Drapeau has long suffered from a paradox of chronic neglect and intense, one-off modifications that failed to respect its essence as an insular urban public park. Over previous decades, the natural areas and heritage buildings degraded, and the park became more fragmented as private uses took hold of public spaces.

The Master Plan has established itself as a model in Montréal and an example for others to follow. Representatives from SPJD have been invited to present the Master Plan at several conferences, notably the World Urban Parks Congress and The Nature of Cities Festival.

The SPJD also shares its initiatives through multiple discussion and exchange spaces bringing together, among others, municipalities, institutional organizations, and non-profit parks organisations. Issues such as responsible procurement, low-impact event organization, responsible waste management aiming at zero waste, and carbon neutrality are all addressed. The objective is not only to inform and promote their targets and practices in terms of sustainable development, but also to mobilize these institutional actors to work toward ecological and social transition.