NAMUR—JEAN-TALON WEST URBAN DESIGN COMPETITIONSponsor: The City of Montreal Location: Namur – Jean-Talon West sector in the Borough of Côte-des-Neiges – Notre-Dame-de-Grâce.
Type: Open, two-stage, Canada-wide ELIGIBILITY Any team may be accepted as a competitor that is made up of at least two principal designers. At least one principal designer per team must have a head office in Quebec at the time of entering.
Fee: None
Jury:
· Martin Brière, architect, Brière, Gilbert + associés (Montréal)
· Ken Greenberg, chair of the jury, architect and urban designer, Greenberg Consultants Inc. (Toronto)
· Daniel Lafond, Directeur de l’aménagement urbain et des services aux entreprises, Borough of Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (Montréal)
· Gérald Lajeunesse, former Chief Landscape Architect, National Capital Commission (Ottawa)
· Brian Smith, employment consultant and supervisor of the Minorités visibles project, Carrefour jeunesse-emploi de Côte-des-Neiges (Montréal)
· Annie Tardivon, landscape architect DPLG, In Situ Paysagistes (Lyon, France)
· Geneviève Vachon, architect and full professor of urban design, École d’architecture de l’Université Laval (Québec)
PURPOSE OF THE COMPETITION The competition’s objective is to transform some of the area’s road corridors into quality public spaces for community use, give greater prominence to pedestrians, encourage everyone to make the new spaces their own, and make a positive contribution to the district’s new identity. The project is inspired by the principles of transit-oriented development (TOD) and aims to leverage the proximity of two métro stations, an advantageous geographical location within the city, as well as the excellent potential for densification in the area. The competition is aimed at eliciting and evaluating redevelopment and urban design concepts that satisfy or exceed the expectations of the borough with regard to the challenges posed by the project that is the subject of the competition. Subsequently it is aimed at mandating the laureate to draw up plans and specifications for the project to be completed.
The competition follows a hybrid formula, being both a “project competition” and an “ideas competition.” The “project” component covers the public areas determined by Paré and Buchan streets and part of Victoria Avenue, the design of redevelopment to be completed in this space, and the installation of 4 pedestrian crossings on Mountain Sights Avenue, normally leading to a project completion mandate. The “ideas” component will be used to propose development plans for the remaining private and public spaces in the sector.
REGISTRATION Registration in the competition is mandatory and free of charge. The registration form can be filled out online on the following site: www.letrianglemontreal.com.
To register, the completed registration form must be sent by e-mail, no later than 4 p.m. on May 27, 2011, to concours@letrianglemontreal.com. Caroline Dubuc
Bureau du design | Ville de Montréal
303, rue Notre-Dame Est, 6e étage, Montréal (Québec) H2Y 3Y8
514.872.1968 | cdubuc@ville.montreal.qc.ca
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Young Architects in Competitions When Competitions and a New Generation of Ideas Elevate Architectural Quality 
by Jean-Pierre Chupin and G. Stanley Collyer
published by Potential Architecture Books, Montreal, Canada 2020
271 illustrations in color and black & white
Available in PDF and eBook formats
ISBN 9781988962047
What do the Vietnam Memorial, the St. Louis Arch, and the Sydney Opera House have in common? These world renowned landmarks were all designed by architects under the age of 40, and in each case they were selected through open competitions. At their best, design competitions can provide a singular opportunity for young and unknown architects to make their mark on the built environment and launch productive, fruitful careers. But what happens when design competitions are engineered to favor the established and experienced practitioners from the very outset? This comprehensive new book written by Jean-Pierre Chupin (Canadian Competitions Catalogue) and Stanley Collyer (COMPETITIONS) highlights for the crucial role competitions have played in fostering the careers of young architects, and makes an argument against the trend of invited competitions and RFQs. The authors take an in-depth look at past competitions won by young architects and planners, and survey the state of competitions through the world on a region by region basis. The end result is a compelling argument for an inclusive approach to conducting international design competitions. Download Young Architects in Competitions for free at the following link: https://crc.umontreal.ca/en/publications-libre-acces/
Night view of the memorial tapestry from Independence Avenue, with Gehry’s sketch of the Normandy cliffs.
Explaining the contributions of a World War II hero and later President of the United States on a very modest site on Independence Avenue just off the Washington Mall is tantamount to asking an author to describe the life of this person in no more than one paragraph. But on September 17th, after a long and bumpy journey, lasting almost 20 years and navigating a warren of the DC approval processes and public scrutiny, the Eisenhower Memorial finally was dedicated and opened to the public. Designed by Frank Gehry, it has received mixed reviews, the majority being more positive. But most have pointed out that the memorial is more impressive at night than in full daylight. This is due primarily to the illumination of an almost block-long metallic tapestry—featuring a sketch by Gehry, which depicts his interpretation of the cliffs of the Normandy coastline where the Americans landed on D-Day. Read more…
Professional winner: Brooklyn Bridge Forest (image © Pilot Projects Design Collective)
While looking for new adventures on a visit to New York City, friends suggested that I take time to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge—certainly a New York icon. For those intending to undertake this trek across the bridge for the first time, the bridge consists of layers, with a large platform for pedestrians on top of a lower level for cars and the metro system. Traversing this connection for the first time between Manhattan and Brooklyn is not just about getting from one place to another, but experiencing a great scenic view of both boroughs and occasionally interacting with other bridge crossers. As for the latter, they provide a flavor of the city’s demographics, as opposed to similar experiences one might have of the city’s inhabitants when riding the city’s subway system. Read more… Another Competition for Moscow’s Expanding Subway Network
Image © Zaha Hadid Architects
Even under Stalin, Moscow subway stations represented the crown jewels of the city’s projects when it came to design. In more recent years, the emphasis placed on modern design in the city’s expanding metro rail network has resulted in some major new projects, and this year’s competitions for two stations was no exception: the Klenoviy Boulevard Station 2 won by Zaha Hadid Architects (London), and the Prospect Marshala Zhukova station, won by the ASADOV Architectural Bureau (Moscow). Read More… Hangang District Urban Design International Master Competition
1st place entry by Dominique Perrault Architecture (image ©Dominique Perrault Architect)
China’s planning priorities for their urban areas experienced a sharp turn after the post-Mao reforms took place. During the early post-WWII period, when Soviet influence in the early urbanization of China dominated, industrial development took precedence over all other issues, with heritage, conservation, residential planning, and the amenities associated with it, being almost entirely neglected. Read more…
Winning design by ©Moreau Kusunoki /Genton
Although one might normally assume that local firms participating in a competition might have a clear advantage over foreign competitors, this has seldom been the case: just see Sydney’s Opera House, won by a Danish architect, and Toronto’s City Hall, won by a Finn—as evidence that well devised competition briefs as adequate documentation can create a level playing field for potential competitors, regardless of their location.
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