Street fair in Saint-Henri aims to celebrate St-Jean holiday, ‘beautiful Notre-Dame Street’

Summer has officially kicked off and with Fête Nationale festivities happening around Montreal and the mood is for celebration.

In Saint-Henri, residents can head over to Notre-Dame Street West on Saturday, for the first ever street fair, organized by La Société de Développement Commercial (SDC) – Les Quartiers du Canal.

READ MORE: Your Montreal guide to Fête nationale 2018

“It’s a big event,” said SDC marketing and communications co-ordinator Andyriwan Gernet. “We started today at 10 a.m. and it’s going to finish tonight at 1 a.m., with a lot of Québécois artists and a lot of merchants.”

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Activities include not only musical acts, but face painting, street clowns, giant board games and everything in between.

READ MORE: Bylaw looks to restrict where restaurants can establish on Notre-Dame Street West

The event, according to Gernet, is about more than celebrating Fête Nationale.

“We celebrate today the St-Jean but also the beautiful Notre-Dame Street.”

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Notre-Dame Street underwent a facelift last year, with roadwork to upgrade pipes, sewers, and sidewalks.

READ MORE: Artwork on Notre-Dame Street looks to add relief during construction

While the repair work was necessary, it turned the street into a construction zone for the better of 2017 —  a situation that left several businesses struggling.

Saturday’s event, with 40 merchants participating, is a chance for those businesses to bounce back.

“At this time last year, Notre-Dame Street had been under construction for almost 11 months,” Gernet said. “So, it was time actually, to bring back the people to the street and tell them that the merchants are ready to welcome everyone.”