Considering the critical mobility issues, the city government has expanded the site’s planning scale to include the whole Namur-De la Savane area. This planning approach makes it possible to have a better territorial coherence.

Due to its location, the area enjoys considerable economic vitality. Several large employers are located there with the number of specialized businesses increasing. However, due to the physical barriers that divide the territory, much of its potential remains untapped and this hinders diversification of economic activity.

The presence of two metro stations that offer a direct and fast link to the city centre should be a significant asset to the area. However, after nearly 30 years of operation this has not significantly increased the use of public transport in the area. Moreover, despite the importance given to car traffic in the area, circulation is also difficult. Highways and service roads generate a large number of vehicles that converge in the area and congest portions of the local road network, particularly during peak hours. Given this context, the transformation of the area depends on the implementation of a public transit service with better accessibility to the existing metro stations.

Characterized by a shortage of parks and green spaces, the absence of natural environments and the widespread use of dark and impermeable materials, the area itself is a vast heat island. However, it has the potential for greening both on public and private properties.

Considering all these findings, the transformation of the former racecourse site into a new neighbourhood will be based on the following objectives.

Objectives

• Transforming a large vacant site into a  new neighbourhood.
• Improving travel conditions to enable the area to reach its full potential.
• Financing of interventions, particularly in the area of travel.
• Enhancing the image of the area by defining a new identity.
• Raising community expectations for family, social and community housing.

Since February 2014, the City of Montréal’s centre of area development (Service de la mise en valeur du territoire de la Ville de Montréal), in collaboration with representatives of the municipality and borough departments have been collaborating to develop a planning process for the Namur - De la Savane area.

The main streams of research include:

• Diagnosis of the territory
• Noise and vibration
• Partial covering of the Décarie Autoroute
• Financial analysis
• Transportation needs and travel solutions
• Functional and landscape characterization of public places

The city government aims to integrate the issues associated with the various territorial components in order to establish a coherent development and planning concept in terms of employment, urban form and mobility. To do this, particular attention is paid to the two sub-sectors that the planning process identified as priority areas for intervention:

1. The redevelopment of the surroundings of the Decarie axis is a prerequisite for improving the quality of life in the adjacent neighbourhoods. Objectives are to increase urban activities and to improve travel conditions, with priority given to public and active transport that will serve existing neighbourhoods and new projects. In particular, it will be essential to make the Namur metro station and its surroundings the hub and link between the neighbourhoods on either side of the Décarie autoroute, for all modes of transportation.
2. The grounds of the former Montreal Racecourse are one of the last major vacant sites on the island. Integrated into the planning of the Namur-De la Savane sector, a development concept for the site and its surroundings is accompanied by a series of challenges, particularly with regard to the isolation of the land, the safety of the site and the proximity of nuisance-generating activities.

 Development hypotheses are being studied based on the following principles:

• densify and diversify urban activities around metro stations and public transit corridors;
• multiply the links and increase the quality of the development;
• revitalize the development of the public domain and increase greening;
• connect the “Triangle” area with the site of the former Montreal racetrack while integrating the metro station;
• reduce the ecological footprint of the planned area.

These development hypotheses made it possible to identify the main municipal interventions required to support the revitalization of the area. These are also studied on the basis of their technical and financial feasibility.

The main interventions relate to the following goals:

1. The improvement of travel conditions:

• The Cavendish project, which meets a current need to complete the road network in this part of the agglomeration, will also provide access to the area from the west, particularly by public transit.
• The addition of new links in the vicinity of Namur, which will contribute to offering, in addition to the Cavendish project, better accessibility to the site of the former racecourse and better access to the metro station, particularly for pedestrians.

2. The quality of public domain development:

• Municipal interventions will be required to enhance the overall image of the neighbourhood. These interventions will focus on pedestrian comfort, safety and the revitalization of the site of the former racecourse.
• Interventions prior to the revitalization of the site, such as street access, underground infrastructure and even certain community facilities, will be required.

Planification du Secteur Namur-De-la Savane, Diagnostic, Service de la mise en valeur du territoire, Montreal, Novembre 2014

RECHERCHE DOCUMENTAIRE PRÉALABLE À L’ÉVALUATION PATRIMONIALE DU SITE DE L’ANCIEN HIPPODROME DE MONTRÉAL