Gatineau takes next step on Place des pionniers

----Library building design ideas revealed to public

On May 17, Gatineau hosted an online presentation showcasing the four finalist design ideas as part of an architectural contest for the Place des Pionniers reconstruction project. Allowing the population to vote on its favourite design for the new home of the Lucy-Faris library, the event included time for people to ask questions about the projects and provide their expectations on what it should look like. A public vote on the favourite design followed the presentation.

Led by different teams of multidisciplinary professionals, the four finalists were IN SITU + DMA in collaboration with CIVILITY ET EXP (proposal 1); BGLA Architecture + Design urbain – A4 Architecture + Design – Rousseau Lefebvre – CIMA + (proposal 2); ATELIER BIG CITY + GRC Architects avec Pageau Morel Associés QDI et Vlan Paysages (proposal 3); and PELLETIER DE FRONTENAY – ARCHITECTURE 49 – WSP – CIMA (proposal 4). 

According to city spokesperson Josée Laurin-Jolicoeur, the presentation attracted 246 participants and had 1,600 people vote for their Coup de Coeur – favourite design.

After the municipal council votes on the contest’s selection jury’s recommendation during a special meeting, the next step will be to temporarily move it to the Galeries Aylmer shopping center this summer, before the building’s demolition in the fall. Hoping to start construction in the summer of 2022, Laurin-Jolicoeur said the new library should open in 2025.