It has been a wonderful experience writing various blogs pertaining to urban planning issues in the Montreal, Canada area, as well as learning the advantages of professional logo design. After six months, it is with much regret that I am leaving my blog-writing position at Global Site Plans (GSP), but this lets me do more [...]
Montreal has long been a bike-friendly city, with well over 500 kilometres (or 310 miles) of bike paths on Montreal Island to date. An interactive map of bike paths in the metropolitan area shows these paths. In fact, in 2011, Montreal was ranked the best city in North America for bicycling (and eighth worldwide). In [...]
Greater Montreal is one of the few large metropolitan areas in North America that do not have effective beltways (or ring-roads) surrounding the metropolitan region. This situation prevents passing vehicles from bypassing the inner parts of the city. There were plans to build two partial beltways north of Montreal (Autoroutes 440 and 640), but certain [...]
Thus far, I have covered how amateur logo design can lead to many mistakes and how logo design by a specially qualified professional can ensure a logo’s success. To sum it up, urban planners should not risk being too cheap and quick with their logo designs, lest their firms or agencies look unprofessional. They should [...]
In the past decade or two, similar to other North American metropolitan areas, Greater Montreal (with a population of 3.7 million and an area of 4360 km² – or 1683 mi²) has grown outward in area, beyond Montreal Island (the core), creating residential and commercial sprawl in the process. Due to this growth, natural and [...]
It is important for every business to have a logo that distinguishes it from its competitors and attracts clients; proper logo design is crucial to maintaining a business. Indeed, investing in good logo design is just as important as investing in property and equipment. A logo should be immediately recognizable and be able to communicate [...]
Montreal Island (the core of the Montreal region) boasts of a city bus network, a subway system (hereafter, the metro), and a commuter rail system serving the entire metropolitan region. Eventhough Montreal has one of the highest public transit riderships in North America, some places in the Montreal area are not served by public transit [...]
It is important for every business to have a logo that distinguishes itself from its competitors and attracts clients. Proper logo design is crucial to maintaining a business. In fact, investing in good logo design is just as important as investing in property and equipment. There are many ways in which logo design can fail [...]
Montreal Island, the core of Greater Montreal, used to be mostly covered by agricultural areas (including some of Quebec’s best farmland), but as the city expanded and its population grew further, agriculture got ever more marginalized. According to “Metropolitan Natures: Environmental Histories of Montreal,” by Stéphane Castonguay and Michèle Dagenais, agriculture was still present in [...]
Trees form an essential part of the landscape of any city, and Montreal is no exception. Their functions include the following: ● Providing shade; ● Purifying the air; ● Beautifying neighbourhoods and providing ornamental value; ● Improving curb appeal and adding to property values; ● Saving on home heating and air conditioning costs. In fact, [...]
The Turcot Interchange is a major highway junction in Montreal, connecting the north-south Autoroute 15 and the east-west Autoroute 20/720. The elevated interchange accommodates about 280,000 vehicles a day. It is located near several working-class neighbourhoods, and is next to a rail-yard as well as the Saint-Jacques Escarpment. Hastily constructed in 1966-67 in time for [...]
For almost fifty years, there has been a missing link in Montreal’s road network between two segments of Cavendish Boulevard; one ending in Cote Saint-Luc (an independent municipality), the other in an industrial park in Saint-Laurent (a Montreal borough) to the north. Canadian Pacific and Canadian National railyards separate these areas, and the two sections [...]
According to a study, Montreal has one of the lowest percentages of greenspace of any major North American city. One of the largest pieces of undeveloped greenspace is Montreal’s West End is Meadowbrook Golf Course. Meadowbrook has been repeatedly threatened with residential development by Groupe Pacific, for over 20 years. A local environmental non-profit group, [...]
