Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension () is a
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
...
(''
arrondissement
An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, and certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands.
Europe
France
The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissem ...
'') in the city of
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
,
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
. It had a population of 143,853 according to the
2016 Census and a land area of .
The borough of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension was created on January 1, 2002, following the
municipal reorganization of Montreal. The borough includes the neighbourhoods of
Villeray,
Saint-Michel, and
Parc-Extension.
History
Until the late Nineteenth century, the area that today comprises the borough of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension was predominantly rural and dotted with farms. The inauguration of the
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...
in 1878 and the arrival of electric
streetcars in 1892 permitted the growth of
Villeray. It was also in this era that the
Italian immigrant community chose the neighbourhood as their preferred location.
In the early Twentieth century,
Park Extension became
industrialized, and a dozen
quarries opened which led to the economic development of the area. Beginning in the 1940s, the exploitation of the Miron and Francon quarries attracted workers to
Saint Michel and Park Extension.
Construction of the
Metropolitan Expressway was completed in 1959. It cut the area in two, but also attracted multiple industries, which opened along the expressway. In less than twenty years, the population of Saint Michel increased from 6,000 to 68,000 inhabitants.
Jobs derived from competing industries along with the efficient transportation infrastructure resulted in strong demographic growth. The growth of the
manufacturing sector, notably the
textile industry
The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of textiles: yarn, cloth and clothing.
Industry process
Cotton manufacturing
Cotton is the world's most important natural fibre. In the year 2007, th ...
, were incentives for new immigrants to settle in the borough.
The borough of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension was created on January 1, 2002, following the
municipal reorganization of Montreal. The borough includes three neighbourhoods that were part of Montreal before the reorganization:
Villeray,
Saint-Michel, and
Park Extension. The Saint-Michel neighbourhood was formerly an independent city known as
Saint-Michel-de-Laval which was annexed to Montreal in 1968. Villeray was once also an autonomous municipality but has been part of the city of Montreal since 1905. Parc Extension left the parish of St-Laurent to join the city of Montreal in 1910.
Geography
Located in north central Montreal, the pipe-shaped borough is bordered by
Ahuntsic-Cartierville
Ahuntsic-Cartierville ( (local accent)) is a borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The borough was created following the 2002 municipal reorganization of Montreal. It comprises two main neighbourhoods, Ahuntsic, ...
to the northwest,
Montreal North to the northeast,
Saint Leonard to the east,
Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie to the southeast,
Outremont to the southwest, and
Mount Royal
Mount Royal (, ) is a mountain in the city of Montreal, immediately west of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The city's name is derived from the mountain's name.
The mountain is part of the Monteregian Hills situated between the Laurentian M ...
to the west.
Saint-Michel is the easternmost neighbourhood of the borough, Park Extension is the westernmost neighbourhood and Villeray is in the centre.
Government
Municipal

The current borough mayor is Laurence Lavigne Lalonde of
Projet Montréal.
The borough is divided into four districts located in three different neighborhoods. The districts bear the same name as their respective neighborhood with the exception of François-Perreault which is part of the Saint-Michel and Villeray neighborhoods.
*
Saint-Michel
* François-Perreault
*
Park Extension
*
Villeray
Borough council
Federal and provincial
The borough is divided among the following federal ridings:
*
Papineau
*
Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel
Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel (; known until 1996 as Saint-Léonard) is a federal electoral district within the City of Montreal in Quebec, Canada, which has been represented in the House of Commons since 1988. Its population during the 201 ...
It is divided among the following provincial electoral districts:
*
Laurier-Dorion
*
Viau
Demographics
The 2016 census found that 88% of the population only spoke one language at home. The five most common of these languages were
French (57%),
English (10%),
Spanish (5.9%),
Arabic
Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
(3.25%) and
Vietnamese (2.9%).
According to 2016 census, 48% of residents grew up learning a language other than French and English. Of these other languages, the most common are Spanish (8.5%), Arabic (6.35%), Creole languages (4.23%), Italian (4.1%) and Greek (3.25%).
Features
It is served by the
Orange and
Blue
Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...
lines of the
Montreal Metro
The Montreal Metro (, ) is a rubber-tired underground rapid transit system serving Greater Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The metro, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), was inaugurated on October 14, 1966, during the tenure ...
. It is traversed and partly delimited by
Autoroute 40 (Metropolitan Aut.) and
Autoroute 19 (Papineau Ave.)
Transit stations
*
Crémazie
*
Jarry
*
Jean-Talon
*
Acadie
*
Parc metro and train station
*
De Castelnau
*
Fabre
*
D’Iberville
*
Saint-Michel
A future unnamed station on the
Blue Line of the Montreal Metro will be built in the borough transferring with the
Pie-IX BRT.
Attractions
Attractions in the area include the old
Park Avenue train station (now containing
Parc Metro station and near the
Parc commuter train station), Jarry Park, and
TOHU, La Cité des arts du cirque (including the
Cirque du Soleil
Cirque du Soleil (, ; ) is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, Montreal, Saint-Michel, Montreal, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Jun ...
and the École nationale du cirque). The former Miron and Francon
quarries are also located here.
The former studios of
CTV Montreal,
TQS,
CFCF radio & CFQR-FM (now
CKBE-FM) were located in the Parc Extension section of the borough. Today, the borough hall is at the former studios of those stations on 405 Ogilvy Avenue.
Education

The ''
Commission scolaire de Montréal
In-Commission or commissioning may refer to:
Business and contracting
* Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered
** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...
'' (CSDM) operates French-language public schools.
The
English Montreal School Board
The English Montreal School Board (official name: Commission scolaire English-Montréal English-Montréal School Board; CSEM or EMSB) is one of five public school boards and one of two English-language school boards on the island of Montreal in Q ...
(EMSB) operates English-language schools.
The
Montreal Public Libraries Network
The Montreal Public Libraries Network ( , previously ''Réseau des bibliothèques publiques de Montréal'') is the public library system on the Island of Montreal in Quebec, Canada. It is the largest French language public library system in North ...
operates the Le Prévost, Parc-Extension, and Saint-Michel libraries.
See also
*
Boroughs of Montreal
The city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada is divided into 19 boroughs (in French language, French, ''arrondissements''), each with a mayor and council.
Powers
The borough council is responsible for:
*Fire prevention
*Removal of household waste and ...
*
Districts of Montreal
This is the list of the neighbourhoods in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are sorted by the Boroughs of Montreal, borough they are located in.
Ahuntsic-Cartierville
* Ahuntsic
* Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Nouveau-Bordeaux
* Cartierville ...
*
Municipal reorganization in Quebec
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
*
Stade Jarry
*
Parc Jarry
Jarry Park is an urban park in the Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Jarry Park has total area of 36 hectares. It is considered by the City of Montreal as one of its List of parks in Montreal, large ...
*
Park Extension
References
External links
Borough website(in
French)
Historical building of borough VillerayVilleray Saint-Michel Parcextension(in French)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension
Boroughs of Montreal
2002 establishments in Quebec