| The district is named after General Montcalm who led the French troops during the famous Battle of the Plains of Abraham (located on the southern edge of the neighborhood) in 1759 defending the French territory against the British army. While the French lost the battle and Montcalm also lost his life, he remains a much revered figure in French Quebec and has several statues of his likeness across the City. Montcalm is a pretty ideal neighborhood for me with its good mix of housing typologies, great commercial district along Cartier Avenue, and consistent medium density. Housing is also pretty affordable here especially for 1 & 2 bedrooms (both rental & for sale) and the district has great access to several great parks and is only a 10 minute bus ride to Vieux Quebec. The only area I see for improvement from an urban perspective would be more commercial and mixed-uses in the western half of the neighborhood which is almost exclusively residential. |
Click here to view my Montcalm album on my Flickr page
URBAN STRENGTHS:
* Av. Cartier is an excellent commercial district with gorgeous artistic street lights. The street is often a pedestrian zone in the summer. Also several mixed use blocks along Ch Ste-Foy, Rue Crémazie, Boulevard René-Lévesque
* Boulevard René-Lévesque is a grand boulevard with grand apartment buildings and large trees lining the boulevard.
* Good mix of housing typologies including single family homes, duplexes/triplexes, rowhouses, and apartment buildings ranging from the mid-19th century to the early 20th century. Decent amount of infill esp. along the western edge.
* Great tree canopy throughout.
* Good array of cultural amenities concentrated mostly along Cartier Av (restaurants, bars, cafes, a boutique theater, and a some performing arts theater. The neighborhood also hosts a couple art galleries and the Musee National des beaux-arts du Quebec.
* Solid retails amenities including a couple supermarkets, several drug stores, tons of boutiques, gift shops, and clothing stores concentrated on Cartier, plenty of banks, and lots of bakeries, dessert shops, and several bookstores.
* 1 & 2 bedroom apartments are very reasonable here leasing in the low 1Ks. 3 & 4 get pretty pricey however.
* For sale prices are very reasonable lots of smaller condos. 1-beds sell btwn 100K-400K, 2-beds sell mostly btwn 200K-500K. 3 & 4 beds start to get expensive starting at 500K.
* Great park access including the expansive Plains of Abraham, Braves Park, and several parks along the ridge adjacent to Saint-Sauveur.
URBAN WEAKNESSES:
- Not much commercial activity in the western half of the district.
- No rail access in Quebec City but still decent bus service.
- Lots of intersections don’t have modern ADA curbs.
Evaluating our Urban Communities [with a focus on America] 