The former Lagacé quarry, which long served as a snow depot along Highway 15 in Laval, will be transformed over the next 15 years according to an ambitious plan, aimed at making it an exemplary living environment.
Updated at 12:00 p.m.
Everything has been designed to take advantage of the enormous potential of the 42-hectare land belonging mainly to the City of Laval, bordered by three arteries (Highway 15, Saint-Martin Boulevard and Daniel-Johnson Boulevard) and a wooded area. . At the heart of the future Carré Laval, a 22-hectare park will be built, almost as large as La Fontaine Park in Montreal. Over the years, 3,500 housing units will be built around it, a good portion of which will be affordable, a primary school, an early childhood center, a community center and sports and recreational infrastructure, as well as an employment center focused on innovation and life sciences, along Highway 15.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, LA PRESSE
The immense 42-hectare plot of land, which mainly belongs to the City of Laval, is bordered by a wooded area (to the south) and three main roads: Highway 15 (to the east), Boulevard Saint-Martin (to the north). ) and Daniel-Johnson Boulevard (to the west).
“It challenged me to rethink how we can build a neighborhood, but it is a collective work,” indicates the mayor of Laval, Stéphane Boyer, who published the essay in 2022 Car-free neighborhoods, from audacity to reality.
As the City owns the land, this allows us to create a project in our image, since it is not left to the discretion of a private developer. Obviously, as a City, we have the collective interest at heart. We have this concern to imagine a neighborhood in such a way as to meet all needs.
Stéphane Boyer, mayor of Laval
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PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, LA PRESSE
Nature has reclaimed its rights in the old Lagacé quarry. It will be put to good use in the heart of the future Carré Laval.
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PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, LA PRESSE
The basin is overlooked by a cliff, located not far from Highway 15, where a peregrine falcon made its nest. The raptor’s habitat will obviously be protected.
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PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, LA PRESSE
Activities in the old Lagacé quarry have long since ceased. They left behind them a huge hole 40 meters deep, where rainwater accumulates.
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Nature as a starting point
Following a call for tenders, the responsibility for supporting the City of Laval was entrusted to the Provencher_Roy agency, which designed the Carré Laval master plan.
“It’s rare that we succeed in planning a neighborhood around a natural setting,” notes architect Céline C. Mertenat, project manager and member of the sustainable development team at Provencher_Roy. Often, we develop a neighborhood, then we see how we integrate nature. Here, nature was the starting point. We had to see how to build a neighborhood in such a way as to draw out all the ecological, natural and landscape potential of the land, in a context where we are trying to create a city center. The image of Central Park in New York comes to mind and also Mount Royal. »
PHOTO SARAH MONGEAU-BIRKETT, THE PRESS
Architect Céline C. Mertenat, project manager and member of the sustainable development team at the Provencher_Roy agency, stands next to a model of Carré Laval.
In the heart of a large city center, which accommodates a great density, this takes a natural element, which becomes a bit of its lungs and helps it breathe.
Céline C. Mertenat, architect, project manager and member of the sustainable development team at the Provencher_Roy agency
In a context of climate change, great attention is particularly paid to rainwater management. “We want to try to create ecological green infrastructure, which will support the metabolism of the eco-district that we are creating,” explains M.me Mertenat. Yes, we will densify, we will bring a diversity of uses, but in a living context, which will be based, among other things, on the functioning of nature. »
The buildings will be constructed on the outskirts of the site, which already has a large water basin and some vegetation. The three road axes that they will run alongside will provide access to indoor parking, to encourage travel on foot and biodiversity in the heart of the land.
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ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY PROVENCHER_ROY
The buildings will be constructed on the outskirts of the site, which already has a large water basin and some vegetation.
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ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY PROVENCHER_ROY
The construction of more than 3,500 housing units of various types, promoting social diversity, is planned.
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ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY PROVENCHER_ROY
The construction of a primary school, an early childhood center, a community center and sports and recreational infrastructure is planned.
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ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY PROVENCHER_ROY
Facilities will encourage travel on foot and by bike.
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As part of the first phase, 1,000 housing units, 500 of which will be affordable, and the first building of the future hub focused on health and life sciences will be built in collaboration with the Angus Development Corporation (SDA). It was selected because of its social mission and its achievements in urban revitalization, explains Elizabeth Muir Lepage, head of the Carré Laval program at the City of Laval.
The SDA, which is also piloting the first project of the “Qualified Developers” program set up by the Société d’habitation du Québec in order to accelerate the construction of affordable housing, will take the time to do things well, underlines Christian Yaccarini , president and CEO of the nonprofit organization.
“We bring our ability to look at a development as a whole and not building by building,” he explains. We will look at the rainwater on the site, how we will treat the snow, if there will be an energy loop or geothermal energy. We will do all this work with professionals before constructing the first building. »
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, ARCHIVES LA PRESSE
Christian Yaccarini, President and CEO of Angus Development Corporation
I think we can go further in Laval, in terms of eco-districts, than we did in Angus. Technologies have been developed in terms of energy and waste management, for example, but above all because there is a partner, which is the City of Laval, who wants that. The fact that it remains the owner of the land guarantees the maintenance of the overall plan.
Christian Yaccarini, President and CEO of the SDA
He believes in the diversity of functions, which will also be at the heart of the future Carré Laval. “This makes environments more lively,” he observes.
So far, the Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Energy has granted financial aid of 10 million for the decontamination and redevelopment of the site. Other sources of funding are being studied. This is a long-term project, notes Mayor Stéphane Boyer. “It will allow the City of Laval to enter a new era,” he believes.
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