Hochelaga-Maisonneuve (French pronunciation:[ɔʃlaɡamɛzɔ̃nœv]) is a neighbourhood in Montreal, Canada, situated in the east end of the island, generally to the south of the city's Olympic Stadium and east of downtown.
Historically a poor neighbourhood, it has experienced significant change and gentrification in recent years.[1]
Unpaved side streets, or ruelles, are a common sight
Present-day Hochelaga was founded as a suburban village in 1863. Industry soon started moving in, including the Hudon and Sainte-Anne cotton mills and in 1876 the terminal and railway shops of the Quebec, Montreal, Ottawa and Occidental Railway.[3]
In December 1883, Hochelaga was annexed to the city of Montreal against the demands of some of its landowners to the east. In response, they separated their territory to found the village of Maisonneuve.
Maisonneuve grew rapidly between 1896 and 1915 and became of one Canada's largest industrial suburbs, marketed as a model industrial city and the Pittsburgh of Canada during the first two decades of the 20th century. These factories hired many workers, including immigrants and people from the surrounding countryside. They worked in the shoe, textile, tanning, slaughterhouse, tobacco, food, and shipbuilding industries.
In 1918, $18 million in debt, Maisonneuve was forced to annex to Montreal, consolidated the neighbourhood as Hochelaga-Maisonneuve.[3]
The construction of major transportation infrastructures such as Highway 25 in 1967, required the demolition of some 2,000 homes and institutional buildings. These changes, combined with the movement of capital and production to Toronto, hurt the neighbourhood's economy and vitality. Many factories left the area, along with numerous residents.
Promenade Ontario shopping area (developed c.2020), corner Pie IX and Ontario
Beginning in the 1980s, factories started shutting down at an alarming rate, leaving the neighborhood ridden with poverty and a high concentration of welfare, especially in Hochelaga. This has led to a population exodus, relatively high crime rates, and a generally unfavorable view of the area.[4]
The district became particularly notorious for prostitution, a contentious issue for many years.[5][6][7][8][9]
During the Quebec Biker War, the Hells Angels had their clubhouse in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, which worsened its reputation for criminality.
In the most notorious incident of the guerre des motards, on 9 August 1995, a drug dealer was killed by a bomb planted in his jeep while the shrapnel badly injured an 11-year boy, Daniel Desrochers, who died of his wounds four days later.[10][11]
Present day
The 2010s were marked by increased gentrification, the arrival of students and professionals, and condo development leading to protests and some cases of vandalism of commerce.[1][12] Notable areas that developed include the Promenade Ontarioshopping street[13] and the Place Simon Valois revitalized in 2017.[14]
Despite this, areas continue to struggle with poverty, prostitution and drug trafficking, particularly in the south-western corner of Hochelaga on Rue Sainte-Catherine Est.[9][8]
In summer 2020, in the same area, a significant number
of homeless people began camping along Rue Notre-Dame, creating something akin to a tent city. This was attributed in part to the ongoing housing crisis in Montreal, significantly heightened by unemployment due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as overcrowding of existing shelters.[15]
In December 2020, the camp was shut down by the police, following a fire a few days earlier and hygiene concerns. This occurred despite promises from the mayor that they would not be forcibly relocated.[16]
However, by the summer of 2022, many of the occupants had gradually returned, and were again removed by the SPVM in June, leading to an outcry from homeless advocates and certain opposition politicians.[17]
The revitalized Place Simon Valois, a public square on the corner of Ontario and Valois, is home to a variety of new commerces and attractions as well.[14][18]
The borough operates the Hochelaga and Maisonneuve libraries.[19][20]
Maisonneuve library
Geography
A part of the borough of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, its borders are roughly the CP rail line west of Rue Moreau to the west, Rue Sherbrooke to the north, the train tracks east of Rue Viau to the east, and the Saint Lawrence River to the south.
Boulevard Pie-IX is the traditional dividing point between Hochelaga and Maisonneuve.
^Portrait du Territoire, L'Arrondissement Mercier/Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. Centreaide du Grand Montréal, Service d'analyse et d'allocation sociale. Octobre 2003
