Category Archives: Photos

| Business, Montreal, Photos

NDG wants to change the face of St. Jacques Street

St. Jacques Street, looking east from Madison

St. Jacques Street, looking east from Madison

St. Jacques Street in NDG has a reputation, and not a good one. It’s lined mostly with used car dealerships, auto repair shops, seedy motels and deteriorating parking lots. The neighbourhood around it is known more for being on the “wrong side of the tracks” than anything else.

The borough, as part of its master plan, is trying to change all that. It’s proposing a by-law (PDF) that would disallow the creation of new gas stations, auto parts shops and car dealerships on St. Jacques between Madison and the Decarie expressway. Instead, it wants to see more other kinds of commerce (restaurants, grocery stores and the like) on the south side and more residential development on the north side.

Midas shop on St. Jacques

Midas shop on St. Jacques

While some major franchises are located in this area (such as this Midas shop and an Ultramar gas station), the vast majority are Mom & Pop shops with fading signs and improvised setups.

The draft by-law, which will see public consultation next month, would not force these businesses to close. But it would prohibit new ones from forming in their places if they do.

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| Montreal, Photos

Fireworks quality scale

Impressed looks from small children: Good.

Surprises you didn’t expect: Better.

Perfect synchronization with cool music: Great.

Cheers and applause from the crowd: Awesome.

Having to take a shower when you get home because you’re covered in soot: Total pwnage.

| Fun, Montreal, Opinion, Photos

Blastback Babyzap: Electrifying

I’ve always been a big fan of comedy, and I’ve lived in Montreal my entire life, so you’d think Just for Laughs and I would be a perfect fit (it’s only a year younger than me). But I’ve never been to a gala, and before last night had never been to any live production related to the festival.

The main reason behind that is money. Why should I pay $40 for a nosebleed seat for a show I’ll get highlights from a few months later on TV?

The other reason is that I’m not easily impressed by comedy. Jokes about relationships and making fun of people’s acccents got old about three decades ago.

But last night, both those problems were alleviated as I stopped by to see the Uncalled For’s Blastback Babyzap production at Mainline Theatre. I’ve seen the group perform improv shows, so I had an idea that there would be some funny stuff going on. And at only $12, it didn’t hurt the wallet to attend.

I must say, I was very impressed.

SPOILER ALERT: If you haven’t seen the show, some of the stuff below may ruin the surprise. But it’s still worth watching.

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| Fun, Montreal, Photos, Public transit

The metro car ice cream parlor, and other Just for Laughs outdoor fun

The other day (you know, back when it wasn’t raining), I wandered on to the Just for Laughs outdoor fun zone. For those of you who have never been here, it’s not so much funny ha-ha (the comics are saved for shows people pay for), it’s more about having fun with games, clowns, mimes and other amusing things.

The most amusing thing for me was this: a metro car, pulled out of the garage and parked on the street to be turned into an ice cream parlor.

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| Montreal, Photos

Street sale mania

I pity people who have to drive around downtown this weekend. It’s worse than usual because of all the street closures:

  • Ste. Catherine Street is closed between St. Marc and Jeanne-Mance because of a street sale this weekend
  • St. Hubert is closed between Bellechasse and Jean-Talon because of a street sale
  • The area around Place des Arts on Ste. Catherine Street is closed… just ’cause there’s a giant stage there and no point in moving it between festivals
  • St. Catherine Street is closed between Berri (really St. André) and Papineau for the summer
  • The Latin Quarter (St. Denis and de Maisonneuve and the streets around it) is closed for the Just for Laughs festival
  • Notre Dame was closed last night near de Lorimier because of the fireworks
  • Crescent Street is closed between de Maisonneuve and Ste. Catherine for expanded terrasses and entertainment

And I’m sure there’s plenty I missed. It all adds up to one giant headache for downtown drivers.

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| Montreal, Opinion, Photos

The day after Moving Day

From July 1, 2008

Anyone who wants to understand the vast excess of western society need only walk around anywhere in Montreal on July 1. There, you’ll find discarded furniture, empty boxes and lots and lots of garbage.

What gets me most about it, though, is the thought that before today, people had these things in their homes. Now it’s so useless even people walking the streets want nothing to do with them.

This is a post about Moving Day told in photos.

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| Montreal, Navel-gazing, Photos

Another fire

Just as I was about to hit the hay late in the night, I started smelling some burning paper through my window. I ignored it at first but it began to intensify, so I went out onto my balcony and saw the street was filled with smoke.

I went outside to check out what was going on and I found this:

Fire at 370 Crémazie Blvd. W.

A fire broke out just past 3am at 370 Crémazie Blvd. E., near St. Denis St., in a space shared by Club Magnum downstairs and Studio 88 Swing upstairs.

Fortunately, because of the late hour, the bar was already closed and there was no one inside the building. There’s no word on what started the fire, but firefighters took a good look at the air conditioning system at the back of the building where the fire broke out.

One thing I always find interesting when I stumble upon stuff late at night is the eventual arrival of the newspaper photographer or TV cameraman. In this case we had both:

Some of the larger media outlets still keep people on standby at all hours of the night to take pictures of fires, car crashes and other routine-but-visually-appealing events that happen.