Little Burgundy is composed of 2780 renter households and 1310 owner households, according to Statistics Canada data from 2009, and 1350 of the renter households are low-rent housing. This means that one-third of all households in the neighbourhood are low-rent housing, and just over 68% are rental households.
A participatory project
Since 2013, the neighbourhood has been working on a Quartier 21 project aiming to promote active transportation and make connections among the area’s cultural communities by empowering neighbourhood residents to claim the path as their own. This process provides a perfect opportunity for citizens to discover (or rediscover) the history, culture and community life of the neighbourhood.
In concrete terms, the project will focus on three goals:
1. A walking trail: create a path that is accessible, safe, pleasant and green, linking the Lionel-Groulx and Georges-Vanier metro stations and the neighbourhood’s main activity hubs.
2. Public space: consult, propose improvements and take action on four different public spaces. Specifically, the project will involve constructing a pergola in front of the café/marché citoyen, making Chatham into a Green Alley and to propose improvements for Jazzmen Park and Vinet Park.
3. A bike path: consult the population and develop a proposal to develop a real cycling path from Lionel-Groulx Metro. Three different options are currently under study.
Burgundy Path map:
Citizen consultation
The Quartier 21 process in Little Burgundy is meant to be participatory and mobilizing for its residents. Since the process started, several consultations have taken place to take the neighbourhood’s pulse, with a focus on both the resident seniors and the youth, who make up a large part of the area’s population. In total, just over 600 citizens shared their neighbourhood vision. This year, citizens can participate in Burgundy Path activities including a festive marking and greening of the path.
Burgundy Path reports and documents:
Jazzmen Park:
Vinet Park:
Chatham Street:
Café-Marché Petite-Bourgogne :
Path :
Urban Safety encompasses all elements related to objective safety, such as crime rates, the number of incidents and accidents, feelings of insecurity related to poor lighting, large amounts of graffiti, large groups of people on the street, etc.
Only a few years ago, Little Burgundy was regularly in the headlines as a venue for murder. Since then, the situation has evolved as a result of collective efforts in the community—especially the English-speaking Black community, which pooled its resources to find solutions to the violence and crime that were rampant in the area.
Following this evolution, the Burgundy Urban Mediation Project (BUMP) project was established in 2002. BUMP employs three mediators that patrol the area’s public spaces, identify potential sources of violence and family problems, and accompany young people to available resources.
The mediators intervene to:
They take action with people:
As per the wishes expressed in the neighbourhood, this project has been managed by Prévention Sud-Ouest since early 2012. The project is monitored by a committee—composed of representatives from the police, housing services, the borough and the citizens—that evaluate its activities and budget. The BUMP Project has been a model intervention since its inception and is cited in various criminology courses.
The actions taken by this project and by various neighbourhood stakeholders have resulted in a significant decrease in crime rates in Little Burgundy. The citizens have regained possession of Oscar-Peterson Park and now feel safe there; various organizations use the park for activities and are present in the area. The residents also are less afraid of going out in the neighbourhood.
For more information:
Burgundy Urban Mediation Project
719, des Seigneurs
514-931-3157
Prévention Sud-Ouest
6000, Notre-Dame West
514-761-4151
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The current street layout in Little Burgundy is the legacy of various infrastructure projects over the years, including the Montreal-Lachine Railroad that cut through the neighbourhood, the tram line on Notre-Dame and the construction of the Lachine Canal. The urban renewal project undertaken by the Drapeau administration in the 1960s and the revitalization that took place in the 80s have also left their marks on the area.
In 1966, Little Burgundy was the target of an urban renovation project that saw around 3000 working-class dwellings demolished to make room for the Ville-Marie Expressway. The neighbourhood was reconstructed in three steps over the following decades: social housing was built in Little Burgundy’s northeastern part in the 1970s, townhouses went up in the centre in the 80s, and luxury condos were built along the Lachine Canal in the 90s. Another inheritance of that era is the large number of parks and public spaces in the neighbourhood. Little Burgundy is mainly residential, with commercial zones concentrated close to rue Notre-Dame. To the south, the former industrial sector is slowly being transformed into a residential area sprinkled with offices for small businesses.
Little Burgundy’s close proximity to the Ville-Marie Expressway to the north, the presence of five major traffic arteries (St-Antoine, St-Jacques, Notre-Dame, Atwater and Guy), and the fact that the neighbourhood is heavily paved result in extensive production of greenhouse gasses and air contaminants, as well as the creation of heat islands. These environmental characteristics have been linked to health issues, including increased incidence of chronic illness and increased mortality rates.
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