Gone are the dust, jackhammers and construction crews from around Phillips Square at Sainte-Catherine Street and Union Avenue in downtown Montreal.
The newly restored space was inaugurated Monday after work started two years ago.
As a result of the $50-million facelift, City of Montreal officials say the space is now 35 per cent larger, 35 trees — triple the number that were there before — have been planted and more street furniture as well as water jets have been installed.
“Our objective is to make downtown Montreal the greenest downtown in North America,” Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante said Monday during the square’s inauguration. “Square Phillips, I would say, launches the completion of the first phase of Sainte-Catherine renovations.”
The work was done as part of the redevelopment of Sainte-Catherine Street West.
“Next year we begin Phase 2 of Sainte-Catherine between Mansfield and Peel,” said Emilie Thuillier, Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough mayor and City of Montreal executive committee member responsible for infrastructure.
“We will do Peel, the REV (Express Bike Network) on Peel between Rene Levesque and de Maisonneuve and also Metcalf Street between Square Dorchester and Les Cours Mont Royal. Two years.”
Business owners around the square say they are relieved the renovations are finally over.
“Now we have a really nice view from our rooms,” said Lucie Manceau, rooms division manager at Hotel Birks Montreal on the western side of the square. “That’s really important for our guests to have a nice environment.”
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