Place Bonaventure
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| Place Bonaventure | |
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| Information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Montréal, Canada |
| Coordinates | |
| Status | Complete |
| Groundbreaking | 1964 |
| Constructed | 1964-1967 |
| Use | Commercial |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 12 |
| Floor area | 288000 m² (3100000 sq ft) |
| Elevator count | 27 |
| Cost | CAD 82 500 000 |
| Companies | |
| Architect | Ray Affleck |
Place Bonaventure is an office, exhibition and hotel complex in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada, adjacent to the city's Central Station. At 288,000 m² (3.1 million sq ft) in size, Place Bonaventure was the world's largest building upon its completion in 1967.[1]
Place Bonaventure was first conceived as an exhibition hall, international trade centre, and hotel. The building covers an area of 2 ha (5 acres) and is built over 18 CNR tracks leading to Central Station. Construction begin in 1964, and was completed in 1967.
Designed in the Brutalist style, the exterior walls are poured-in-place, ribbed sand-blasted concrete, with the interior walls sand-blasted concrete or brick.
Concordia Hall is a 23,000 m² (250,000 sq ft) exhibition hall. The first trade show was hosted in 1966, while the upper floors were still being constructed. Adjacent to this vast space are two large mezzanines.
When Place Bonaventure opened, there were five floors of wholesale suppliers above Concordia Hall, featuring fashions, home furnishings, and children's toys. An additional floor contained the offices of the principal trading nations of the world. At ground level there were two floors of retail shopping.
In 1998 Place Bonaventure was renovated at an expense of 60 million CAD. The building was re-designed to offer large, continuous office space. Retail space was reduced. Windows were added to all four sides, on all floors, to allow light into the building.
The building takes its name from Bonaventure Station, a former railway station located nearby.[2] A planned expansion to the south was never constructed.
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[edit] Tenants
The complex houses a 395 room rooftop hotel, Hilton Bonaventure, featuring an 1 ha (2.5 acres) outdoor garden with trees, flowers and waterfalls. Major tenants also include the Société de transport de Montréal (headquarters), Fido, Corus Entertainment radio stations, banks and a few federal government departments.
[edit] Access
Place Bonaventure is connected to Montréal's underground city. It is also linked to the Bonaventure metro station, to the AMT commuter train stations (Lucien-L'Allier and Central Station), AMT's downtown bus terminus and to inter-city train service (VIA and Amtrak at Central Station).
[edit] References
- ^ Our History (HTML). Place Bonaventure Web site. Retrieved on 2008-02-21.
- ^ Bonaventure Metro Station: origin of station's name (HTML). Translated from Tour toponymique Les stations de métro, Communauté urbaine de Montréal, 1989. Société de transport de Montréal. Retrieved on 2008-04-06.
- Ede, Carol (1971). Canadian Architecture 1960/70. Toronto: Burns and MacEachern, 264. ISBN 0887680216.
[edit] External Links
- Place Bonaventure official website
- Place Bonaventure pictures on IMTL.org Images Montreal
- Canadian Encylopedia article
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