A public conversation about establishing a Quebec architecture policy - Montrealers invited to share their views on the future of architecture in Quebec as part of a tour of 13 cities Français
MONTREAL, May 29, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - The public consultation tour on establishment of a national architecture policy for Quebec, initiated by the Ordre des architectes du Québec (OAQ), comes to the Cœur des sciences de l'UQAM (200 Sherbrooke St. W.) on Thursday, June 1. Montreal-area residents are invited to express their opinions and aspirations when it comes to architecture (the event will take place in French). The tour, which began in Quebec City this past March, has given voice to citizens from all backgrounds in 13 different cities. It marks the first occasion on which Quebecers have been so extensively consulted about architecture.
These public conversation workshops, facilitated by the Institut du Nouveau Monde, aim to raise Quebecers' awareness of how architecture influences their quality of life, and to hear their concerns with respect to the built environment. After the tour wraps up, the OAQ will submit a brief to the Quebec government demonstrating the need for an official policy on architecture.
"So far, the consultations we have held all over Quebec have yielded a number of meaningful conclusions. There is a sense that people want their cities to build public spaces on a more human scale. Citizens are also concerned about the decline of city centres, and about urban sprawl. Enhancing built heritage and doing away with the lowest-bidder rule have also been mentioned several times. Now, we are very much looking forward to hearing what Montrealers have to say."
– Nathalie Dion, President, Ordre des architectes
An extensive tour
How does architecture affect your everyday life? What do you appreciate about the buildings and public spaces where you live? What things would you change? If you were the "minister of architecture," what would you do to improve the quality of the built environment? To preserve and highlight heritage buildings and landscapes? These are some of the questions participants are asked.
Thus far, conversations have been held in 11 cities across a large part of the province: Quebec City, Rouyn-Noranda, Saguenay, Rimouski, Sherbrooke, Longueuil, Drummondville, Saint-Jérôme, Laval, Joliette and Trois-Rivières. After the June 1 workshop in Montreal, the tour will conclude in Gatineau on June 6.
In addition to these gatherings, citizens can join the conversation online, via a forum at www.architecture.quebec.
Toward adoption of a Quebec architecture policy
The current conversation tour is in keeping with actions taken by the OAQ since 2014 in favour of adoption of an official architecture policy. Based on the premise that architecture shapes the quality of life of all citizens, the policy would frame government orientations with regard to the planning, design, construction, maintenance, and renovation of buildings, infrastructures and public spaces. It would serve to harmonize legislation and regulations pertaining to architecture and institute measures to foster architectural quality—that is, to ensure a built environment that emphasizes functionality, aesthetics and sustainability.
Some forty cities and boroughs, including Quebec City, Laval, Sherbrooke, Gatineau, Longueuil and Saguenay, have thus far adopted resolutions in support of the OAQ's vision of an architecture policy.
The findings of the public conversation tour will be unveiled on September 28 in Montreal, at the Forum pour une politique québécoise de l'architecture, organized by the OAQ and the INM. Then, during the winter of 2017–18, the OAQ will submit its observations and recommendations in a brief to the Government of Quebec.
About the Ordre des architectes du Québec
The Ordre des architectes du Québec is a professional order; as such, its mission is to ensure the protection of the public. To that end, it controls admission to the title of architect and the right to practice the profession in Quebec. As part of its mandate, the Order takes an interest in any issue that is of concern to the profession or that may influence the quality of architecture and the built environment. The Order currently has 3,893 members along with 1,041 intern architects.
SOURCE Ordre des architectes du Québec (OAQ)
Béatrice Gougeon, Morin Relations Publiques, [email protected], 514-289-8688, ext. 236, 514-688-3936
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