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www.buildings tonemagazine.com Fall 2014
RESTORING A HISTORIC
MONTREAL LANDMARK
SETTING A NEW STANDARD
FOR NATURAL STONE
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M A G A Z I N E
Restoring more
than 100 years
of history
Peribonka Black granite from Granicor Inc. was a key component
to the restoration of Dorchester Square — a social gathering area
in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada
BY JASON KAMERY
Located in the heart of Montreal,
Quebec, Canada, Dorchester Square
underwent a restoration and enhancement, which was guided by a deep
appreciation of its evolution, reflecting
its more than 100 years of history.
Peribonka Black granite from Granicor
Inc. of Saint-Augustin, Quebec, Canada,
was used to form pathways that flow
throughout the park.
Photos by Marc Cramer
B
ack in 1867, a central location for festivals, political and cultural gatherings was created in Montreal, Que-
bec, Canada, to celebrate the Canadian
Confederation, the process by which the
federal Dominion of Canada was formed.
Dorchester
Square,
originally
called
Dominion Square but renamed in 1987,
represents civic ambition through the garden square — the epitome of Victorian
Montreal — because of its planning, size,
landscaping, and its use as a bourgeois,
or middle class, promenade.
Completed in 2010, Dorchester Square’s
restoration and enhancement was guided by a deep appreciation of its evolution, reflecting its more than 100 years of
history. The project features the restoration of four monuments from the City of
tem through realignments and changes in
ish that reflects light and creates a visual
Montreal’s art collection, reclaims the
street widths, in order to restore the urban
effect. The use of the materials intensifies
spirit of St. Antoine cemetery and features
form and accommodate more sustain-
the landscape experience and enhances
a high-profile urban quarter.
able modes of transportation. This includ-
visual contrasts in the park. The material
ed the addition of a bicycle path and a
was given three different finishes, includ-
space for a new tramway lane.
ing honed, flamed and Gem 8 waterjet
Before its restoration, Dorchester Square
was in an advanced state of deteriora-
— a textured finish that accentuates the
tion. At the site, the ground was mostly dirt.
Peribonka Black granite from Granicor
The old stone and the mortar joints inside
Inc. of Saint-Augustin, Quebec, Canada,
of the statue bases were badly damaged
was chosen for the pathways that flow
from natural dirt, carbon and water. The
throughout Dorchester Square. The pavers
landscape
picnic tables had replaced the historic
are primarily 4 x 4 x 3 inches, while curb-
design firm located in Montreal, and
park benches, pathways had been paved
stones measure 12 x 10 inches with various
founded by Claude Cormier in 1995,
mostly with asphalt and flower beds had
lengths. Additionally, Granicor supplied
worked closely with Granicor Inc., on the
been removed.
stone’s color.
Claude Cormier and Associates, a
architecture
and
urban
the large pieces surrounding the exist-
landscape design. Working with Claude
One goal of the project was to reconfig-
ing plinth and statue at the center of the
Cormier and Associates was Cardinal
ure the structure of the traditional road sys-
square. The black granite features a fin-
Hardy Architects, an architecture and
In the Dorchester renovation, a Latin cross with a footing was
designed, a device taken from the graphical representations on
maps for the cemeteries. There are 58 crosses distributed in
staggered rows on all paved surfaces of the square.
landscape architecture firm founded in 1986 by Michel
Hardy and Aurele Cardinal, also of Montreal.
“The finishes were used randomly, and were carefully
designed with mockups, testing different percentages
for each of the three,” said Isabelle Giasson, associate
in landscape architecture for Cardinal Hardy Architects.
“These finishes were chosen to create an uneven surface,
creating a vibrant effect on the ground.”
According to Cardinal Hardy Architects, the design of
the square was twofold. One was guided by the understanding of the history of the site and restoring it to a state
similar to the original forms, and secondly, it is contemporary in its direction and design strategy in that it reinvents
the urban and landscape forms.
“We did many mock-ups of the site,” said Giasson. “To
do the pattern [of the pavers], we drew in our project
Meshoppen Stone Inc.
Please Visit our Website: http://www.meshoppenstone.com or Call us: 1-800-836-1269
The project featured the restoration of four monuments
from the City of Montreal’s art collection.
specifications. We wanted to make sure the pavers would
fit correctly on the site. Mock-ups were used to check the
size of the pavers and their finishes.”
Alain Robitaille, president of Granicor Inc. explained that
as the stone producer, Granicor worked closely with the
architects on the design. “Our Peribonka is a warm coarse
grain black stone with lots of life in it,” he said. “Mrs. Beaudoin’s [of Claude Cormier and Associates] beautiful
design — using different surface finishes — was a perfect
match with our stone.”
For Cardinal Hardy Architects, the most challenging
aspect of the project was the installation of the granite,
namely because of the two large L-shaped granite pieces
installed at either end of each of the pathways. “We needed to make sure that the curves on either side of the pathways were not installed half an inch too tight or too loose,”
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According to Cardinal Hardy Architects, the design of the square was twofold. One was guided
by the understanding of the history of the site
and restoring it to a state similar to the original
forms, and secondly, it is contemporary in its
direction and design strategy in that it reinvents
the urban and landscape forms.
said Giasson. “We didn’t want to have it inter-joined at the intersection of the L shape.
We wanted a really nice clean piece of
granite, right at the corner of the L shape,
so that it would not move, and it would be
a perfect corner. That gave us no place for
mistakes because those huge pieces were
cut in the quarry, and when they were delivered, we had to install them one in the
beginning of the pathway and the other
at the end — and in between, we had to
install the remaining pathway pieces. It left
no room for error.”
Besides the urban and landscape reconfiguration of the road systems, the existing
plants were restored, and new plants were
added. The result was a replacement of
the trees added over the years.
All four monuments in the square, and
the plinth in the center of the square, were
restored, refurbished and cleaned. “Cleaning it is always a challenge,” said Trevor Gillingwater, an architectural stone conservator. “You don’t want it to look too bright and
new, but still have a fine age look. You have
to be able to control the level of clean.”
The Sir Wilfrid Laurier monument was given a new foundation of monolithic blocks
of black granite in the form of a circular
disc. The large and bright geranium flowerbed that now circles the Boer War Memorial marks the center of the square and
highlights the rare equestrian monument.
Moved in 1953, the Jubilee Fountain, also
known as the Lion of Belfort, has been
placed in its original location in the center
of a pedestrian avenue. Finally, the Robert
Burns monument was refurbished and left
in an original grassy environment.
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During the 18th century, two extramural cemeteries were established.
Then following a law in 1854, both cemeteries ceased operations. Eventu-
“SET”
ally, the graves were relocated to a new burial ground. In the Dorchester
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renovation, a Latin cross with a footing was designed, a device taken from
the graphical representations on maps for the cemeteries. There are 58
crosses distributed in staggered rows on all paved surfaces of the square.
In the middle of the square, 3,500 brightly colored red and pink geraniums
compose a flowerbed to mirror the horticulture of the Victorian era.
Dorchester Square has been restored to its status as one of the tremendous public spaces in Montreal. The high number of visitors since the reopening testifies to the success of its restoration and enhancement. n
Before its restoration, Dorchester Square
was in an advanced state of deterioration.
At the site, the ground was mostly dirt. The
old stone and the mortar joints inside of
the statue bases were badly damaged from
natural dirt, carbon and water.
Dorchester Square
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Landscape Architects: Claude Cormier and Associates, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Cardinal Hardy
Architects, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
General Contractor: Ramcor Construction Inc.,
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Stone Supplier: Granicor, Saint-Augustin, Quebec,
Canada (Peribonka Black granite)
Stone Installer: Ramcor Construction Inc., Montreal,
Quebec, Canada
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