Re-envisioning Montreal's Village in a post-pandemic world

Olivier Demaisonneuve remembers the days when a quarter of his customers at Armada, a store in Montreal's Village, were tourists.

But when both parties and tourism were cancelled by the COVID-19 pandemic, Armada had to change its business model. 

"A lot of the things that we sell are for special evenings, parties and everything," he said.

"Since there aren't any, we had to change what we were selling. We went from sportswear to daywear and things like that."

Now with the economy opening back up and things feeling a bit more normal these days, the Village's merchants' association is working to attract more residents and tourists to the shopping district that runs along Ste-Catherine Street East between Berri and Cartier streets.

"We want the Village to be a safe space for everyone," said Demaisonneuve.

But after watching the Village change over the two decades he's lived there, Demaisonneuve said the area may be losing what made it special back in its heyday.

"I'm a bit worried that it could be diluted, or toned down because people don't want the excitement of the night when they have expensive condos around," he said.

Finding a balance

The merchants' association is now working to find a balance between the Village's reputation as a party hot-spot while also trying to make the district a more family-oriented, tourist destination.

The association has been putting out calls for a more diverse array of business owners and according to the group's deputy executive director, Gabrielle Rondy, it's working.

"Some woman came to me last week, she says 'I'm a florist. I'm queer. I'd like to be in the Village. How does it work? ' And I felt so blessed that our message was heard by women because the village needs more women entrepreneurs," said Rondy.

Rondy said she wants the Village to make a comeback. Long known as the Gay Village, the district's name was changed recently as part of the rebranding effort.

Jeanne Bonneville, who  lives in the Village, says he would love to see a larger selection of businesses in the area.

"There's only like two big stores that are like IGA or Metro. So we were missing smaller stores. something more local," said Bonneville.

Focusing on identity while looking ahead

The merchants' association says it is focused on conserving the neighbourhood's identity through activities like burlesque and drag street exhibits throughout the summer.

But the area was on decline even before the pandemic hit, admits Rondy, and that's why the association is looking for ways to spice things up.

Rondy said the aim is to get closer to the people who live in the community and those who are moving to the area in the near future.

It is predicted that more than 15,000 people will settle in and around the Village in the next few years thanks to the many large-scale real estate developments in the area.

There are new businesses coming to the area, such as the Ton quartier grocery store, a new African restaurant and soon a microbrewery.

But the association would like to see cafés, florists, bookstores, bicycle repair shops and shared workspaces develop.

"Of course, there is work to be done with our partners, in particular the city of Montreal, because the rent is expensive," said Rondy.