Landscape & Urban Design Issue 22 2016 | Page 4

The Viger Square Revitalization: A Hybrid Landscape Grounded In Its Built And Artistic Heritage Ville de Montréal and NIPPAYSAGE V iger Square is about to reclaim its past glory thanks to a complete redesign and redevelopment led by the landscape architects at NIPPAYSAGE. 4 Landscape & Urban Design Work will begin on the first phase, affecting the square’s two western blocks – part of Montreal’s 375thanniversary legacy – in the spring of 2017. The two eastern blocks will be the focus of the next phase, completing the revitalization of Montreal’s very first square outside the old town’s fortifications. Historical context Viger Square, bounded by GuyFrégault St. to the west, SaintAndré St. to the east, Viger Ave. to the north and Saint-Antoine St. to the south, was the first large public square created in Montreal. In the 19thcentury, it had the distinction of being the largest public square in Canada. Viger Square was a prestigious,