/R E P E A T -- Montréal, Smart and Digital City - The Intelligent Community Forum Names Montréal "Intelligent Community of the Year"/

MONTRÉAL, June 16, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Greater Montréal has been selected Intelligent Community of 2016 from among seven finalists at the annual summit of the Intelligent Community Forum in Columbus, Ohio. The award salutes the accomplishment of communities in developing inclusive prosperity on a foundation of information and communications technology.

"It's with great pride that we welcome this honour from ICF! Our participation in this awards program is in line with our commitment to joining the world's smart and digital city leaders. Backed by strong institutional partnerships and a vibrant socio-entrepreneurial ecosystem, Greater Montréal has soared to the top. We'll continue to pursue this ambition and work to ensure that projects developed under our action plan provide concrete benefit to Montrealers," said Mayor Denis Coderre.

Selected as a Top7 finalist in February, Greater Montréal welcomed ICF judge and co-founder Robert Bell in April. This trip provided an opportunity to demonstrate the region's dynamism as well as the exceptional collaboration and commitment of its ecosystem. Over 125 partners collaborated to show what Montreal has to offer in terms of innovation in the fields of culture, healthcare, entrepreneurship, transportation, mobility, digital inclusion and citizen engagement. Projects and initiatives presented included Quartier de l'Innovation, Quartier des spectacles, je fais Montréal, SAT, InnoCité MTL, District 3, E-180, Codex, Youth Fusion, Hacking Health, Space for Life and more.

The vitality of Montréal's ecosystem also caught the attention of ICF judges.

Montréal joins other distinguished award winners, including Stockholm, New York, Singapore and Eindhoven.

Mr. Harout Chitilian, Vice-chair of the executive committee in charge of the smart city, was present to receive this prestigious award on behalf of Mayor and Montreal Metropolitan Community President Denis Coderre.

About the Intelligent Community Forum
Headquartered in New York, the Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) is a non-profit research organisation dedicated to the study of 21^st century city development. This independent think tank is dedicated to job creation and the development of the digital economy. Centered largely on research, conferences, consultancy, education and an international awards program, ICF identifies and promotes intelligent community development best practices. www.intelligentcommunity.org.

Montréal, Smart and Digital City Action Plan
The 2015-2017 Montreal Smart and Digital City Action Plan introduces 70 projects divided into 6 programs. The projects were chosen based on their direct impact on the population, the return on investment and production deadline. The full action plan is available online.

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SOURCE Ville de Montréal - Cabinet du maire et du comité exécutif

Source : Marc-André Gosselin, Press Secretary, Office of the Mayor and the Executive Committee, 514-290-1194; Information : Valérie De Gagné, Public Relations Officer, Service des communications, 514-872-6013