250px, The Place du Portage complex facing the Ottawa River. 250px, The Place du Portage model on display in the main lobby 2014 Place du Portage is a large office complex in the Hull sector of

Gatineau Gatineau ( ; ) is a city in western Quebec, Canada. It is located on the northern bank of the Ottawa River, immediately across from Ottawa, Ontario. Gatineau is the largest city in the Outaouais administrative region and is part of Canada's N ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada, situated along

Boulevard Maisonneuve Boulevard Maisonneuve is an important arterial in the heart of Downtown Gatineau, Quebec. It serves as connector route between the Portage Bridge from Ottawa to Quebec Autoroutes 5 and 50 as well as Boulevard Fournier towards the Gatineau s ...

and facing the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (french: Rivière des Outaouais, Algonquin: ''Kichi-Sìbì/Kitchissippi'') is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word 'to trade', as it was the major trade route of Eastern ...

. It is owned and occupied by the Federal

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

. Place du Portage consists of four phases which were built in different stages during the 1970s and early 80s. The office complex was built in order to revitalize Hull's decaying downtown core and also to increase the proportion of the federal workforce in the overall

National Capital Region A capital region, also called a capital district or capital territory, is a region or district surrounding a capital city. It is not always the official term for the region, but may sometimes be used as an informal synonym. Capital regions can exis ...

. Although the installation of thousands of jobs in the Hull and Gatineau area has resulted in significant economic benefits to local businesses and the real estate market, some people feel that the complex has transformed downtown Hull in some negative ways. Much of the old downtown core was replaced with a series of massive towers and approximately 4,000 residents and businesses were displaced in the area that was once the town's main commercial area. The whole complex (Place du Portage I, II, III, IV and Place d'Accueil) accommodates approximately 10,000 office workers. That makes Place du Portage the biggest office complex in the National Capital Region. Pedestrian bridges to city hall, which in turn has a pedestrian bridge to a hotel, makes this the center of a mini-"

underground city An underground city is a series of linked subterranean spaces that may provide a defensive refuge; a place for living, working or shopping; a transit system; mausolea; wine or storage cellars; cisterns or drainage channels; or several of thes ...

". Connected to and situated between Phase II and III is Place du Centre, a retail and office complex with a shopping mall on the lower floors and nine floors of office space, for a total area of . Although it houses the Federal Government's Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada (DFATD) on floors 4 through 12, it is commercially owned and operated, and not part of Place du Portage.

Place du Portage I

Place du Portage I is the second tallest office tower in Hull, after

Terrasses de la Chaudière Les Terrasses de la Chaudière is a complex of government office buildings in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. The complex was built in 1978 as part of Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau's initiative to see more federal workers base ...

. It has 25 floors, is high, and completed in 1973, with an approximate gross surface area of . Place du Portage I accommodates approximately 1,200 office workers, between the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, and the

Competition Bureau The Competition Bureau (french: Bureau de la concurrence) is the competition regulator in Canada. It is an independent Canadian law enforcement agency that ensures that markets operate in a competitive, innovative manner. Headed by the Comm ...

Place du Portage II

Place du Portage II is adjacent to Portage I and was completed in 1975. Including underground parking, shopping,

mezzanine A mezzanine (; or in Italian language, Italian, a ''mezzanino'') is an intermediate floor in a building which is partly open to the double-height ceilinged floor below, or which does not extend over the whole floorspace of the building, a loft ...

, and

mechanical Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations of ...

levels, there are altogether 18 levels, 10 of which are office floors , with an approximate gross surface area of . Place du Portage II accommodates approximately 800 office workers. Additionally, the two-level commercial area has a total area of .

Place du Portage III

Place du Portage III consists of 6 connected towers of different heights, spanning both sides of Boulevard Maisonneuve, with an approximate gross surface area of . The tallest section is 18 floors above grade with another 5 below-grade levels. It was completed in 1978. Place du Portage III accommodates approximately 4,500 office workers, mostly

Public Services and Procurement Canada Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC; french: Services publics et Approvisionnement Canada)''Public Services and Procurement Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Public Works ...

staff. In 2000, Phase III was named by the

Royal Architectural Institute of Canada The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) is a not-for-profit, national organization that has represented architects and architecture for over 100 years, in existence since 1907. The RAIC is the leading voice for excellence in the built ...

as one of the top 500 buildings produced in Canada during the last millennium.

Place du Portage IV

Place du Portage IV is the latest phase, completed in 1979. Including underground parking, shopping, mezzanine, and mechanical levels, there are altogether 20 levels in a step-up design, with an approximate gross surface area of . Place du Portage IV accommodates approximately 3,500 office workers, almost exclusively

Employment and Social Development Canada Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC; french: Emploi et Développement social Canada; french: EDSC, label=none)''Employment and Social Development Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is De ...

staff (which includes

Service Canada Service Canada is the program operated by Employment and Social Development Canada to serve as a single-point of access for the Government of Canada's largest and most heavily used programs, such as the Social Insurance Number, the Employment ...

staff).

Notes

External links