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
designmontreal.com | mtlunescodesign.com
facebook.com/designmontreal
twitter.com/designmontreal |
©Bauen+Wohnen
 An article, Trois tourettes et un jardin (Three Turrets and a Garden) by Swiss landscape architect, Valérie Hoffmeyer, in Werk, Bauen + Wohnen, is another recent example highlighting the value of green space in the design of mid-rise residential buildings. At a time when developers endeavor to maximize their profits by turning to highrise buildings, even when higher density is at stake, referencing the Garden City concept has been turning up as a more frequent theme.
Read more… 
Aerial view ©Grimshaw Architects
After the conclusion of the second stage of the Nyugati Railway Station Competition, Grimshaw Architects has been declared the winner. This conclusion was reached by a jury after twelve teams had been shortlisted from the initial stage of the competition in an RfQ process. Read more… 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/ 
Boardwalk photo: Courtesy Atlantic Beach
Boardwalks, especially on oceanfront locations, have a pretty universal look. But how they fit into their local context is another matter. Topography, real estate and commerce all play a role in their function, and to some extent, design. In the case of Miami Beach, it’s primarily a promenade; Brooklyn’s 2.7 mile Coney Island boardwalk stretching all the way to Brighton Beach is a mixture of promenade and commerce, with the latter at both ends. In the case of Atlantic City, it’s mostly about retail.
Read more… 
Winning entry – Hyunjoon Min Architects Office
National Library of Korea Data Preservation Center Competition
Retrofitting existing buildings is nothing new. The abandonment of old factory structures, especially in the northeast of the U.S., has been occurring at a rapid pace ever since those businesses ceased to be profitable in the face of foreign competition. However, in North America, retrofitting those structures has seldom been the subject of a design competition. In Korea, the recent plethora of design competitions for all types of projects has also included several for providing a new life for abandoned buildings. Read more… Countryside Dilemmas – New Rural Planning 
1st Place – ©Tianjin University Team
Planning used to be at the bottom of Chinese students’ lists of design priorities. One western architect, whose firm was at the forefront in the design and implementation of numerous planning projects in China, surmised that planning was an area that received little attention in the university curricula. So when planning for a major metropolitan area has occurred, the Chinese have almost always turned to outside international firms for ideas and implementation. Read more… The Chicago Architecture Club Shines the Spotlight on Another Endangered Landmark 
Public Pool Image: ©Perkins&Will
What do Bertrad Goldberg and Helmut Jahn have in common? Besides having high-profile buildings threatened by demolition, both served as subject matter for two competitions sponsored by the Chicago Architecture Club (CAC)—raising public consciousness about their impending fate. They both produced buildings in a city famous for its architecture that have been abandoned: Goldberg’s Future Prentice Women’s Hospital, demolished in 2014 after a valiant effort by preservationists to save it from the wrecking ball; and Jahn’s Thompson Center, now the object of a similar effort by the State of Illinois to sell it to a developer. Read more… |
