Héritage Montréal, shaping the metropolis’ DNA for 50 years! For Montreal, for you.
Gala
🎉 Héritage Montréal’s 50th Anniversary Benefit Gala: A Not-to-Be-Missed Event of the Fall Season !
On Wednesday, October 22, 2025, at 6 p.m., Héritage Montréal will host its 50th Anniversary Benefit Gala, marking five decades of commitment, mobilization and concrete action in support of Montreal’s built heritage.
The event will take place in the prestigious Grande Salle du 9e and will feature a cocktail dinatoire in a refined and festive atmosphere (business attire). This evening will bring together key stakeholders in the heritage field, engaged citizens and all those dedicated to the city’s future.
A special tribute will be paid to Phyllis Lambert, Founding President of Héritage Montréal, in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the preservation of Montreal’s architectural heritage.
Presented by La Caisse, this benefit gala will provide essential support for Héritage Montréal’s ongoing and future initiatives.
🎟️ Reserve your tickets now—availability is limited
📞 514 286-2662, ext. 0
💌 rsvp@heritagemontreal.org
🔖 A tax receipt will be issued for the eligible portion of each ticket.
Activities
From September to April, the MEM and the Laboratoire d’histoire et de patrimoine de Montréal at UQAM will be holding a one-day gathering every month to explore citizens’ involvement in history and heritage. Historical societies and Montréal heritage organizations will visit the museum to talk about their missions, areas of expertise and actions: the production, presentation and sharing of historical knowledge; participation in cultural and community life; and actions to protect our heritage. Come and chat with their members . . . and perhaps get involved!
For this second gathering, we’re delighted to welcome Héritage Montréal, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year! We invite you to this panel discussion to learn about the organization’s milestones. Dinu Bumbaru, Policy Director at Héritage Montréal, and Claudine Déom, an exceptional volunteer at the organization and adjunct professor at the Université de Montréal’s school of architecture, will talk to their guests about highlights over the course of five decades of mobilization, education and proposals to save, preserve and enrich the urban heritage of Montréal and its neighbourhoods.
About the Laboratoire d’histoire et de patrimoine de Montréal at UQAM
This series of gatherings is part of the ECHiPa project (Engagement citoyen en histoire et patrimoine), led by the Laboratoire d’histoire et de patrimoine de Montréal. The project aims to document and better understand the multiple facets of citizens’ involvement in history and heritage.
Exhibition
Initiatives to preserve Montréal’s heritage date back to the 19th century with a string of successes, such as the protection of Mount Royal and the Château Ramezay, saved in 1890. Demolitions in the 1970s prompted citizens to join forces and create Save Montréal. In 1975, Héritage Montréal, under the presidency of architect Phyllis Lambert, was founded to encourage and promote the protection of the historical, architectural, natural, and cultural heritage of communities in Quebec, a mission that is still relevant today.
Discover this free outdoor exhibition presented by Héritage Montréal and the Château Ramezay – Historic Site and Museum of Montréal, just steps from Place Jacques-Cartier, on Le Royer and Saint-Claude streets (alongside the Governor’s Garden), on view until November 2, 2025.
A heartfelt thank you to the team at the Château Ramezay for making this exhibition possible.
Héritage Montréal, Preserving Heritage for 50 Years
Education
The pilot project “Mon patrimoine de quartier, une histoire à explorer” (“My Neighbourhood Heritage: A Story to Explore”) offers in-class activities and guided outings around the participating schools.
The educational material was designed and adapted to reflect the architecture, geography and history of each neighbourhood, and has so far been implemented at Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption Elementary (Hochelaga-Maisonneuve), Sainte-Odile (Ahuntsic-Cartierville), and Sainte-Bibiane (Rosemont).
Radio-Canada journalist Philippe-Antoine Saulnier visited the students to talk with them about what they learned and discovered about their local heritage.
This activity is offered free of charge thanks to the financial support of La Caisse and a private foundation.
Learn more about the school project
For 50 years, education—and especially raising awareness among young people about the many facets of Montréal’s heritage—has been at the heart of Héritage Montréal’s mission. As early as 1979, the organization partnered with the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts to develop activities for youth and schools. Over the years, through various partnerships, initiatives such as Archibus and Quartiers de la diversité have followed, along with family workshops in Little Burgundy and, more recently, educational activities for elementary students that inspire young people to discover the architectural heritage around them.
Hydro-Québec Berri 2
Hydro-Québec is rethinking its plans for the Berri/Ontario site following public outcry — and the former Miséricorde Hospital has emerged as a new possibility.
Decommissioned by the government in 2002, this heritage complex stands out for its historical, architectural, and social significance. Recently, the City of Montréal used its “Bill 31 superpowers” to authorize a real estate project involving multiple demolitions, a 90-metre residential tower, and some community components. Hydro-Québec’s scenario would maintain public ownership of the site, but raises concerns. How will this technical facility be integrated into the neighbourhood and coexist with other desired uses for the site? Will heritage once again be sacrificed to make up for a lack of planning? Hydro-Québec will need to explain how it intends to help repurpose this historic site, and how the OCPM consultations, the promised design competition, and future site management will ensure a viable and exemplary outcome. In short, details and commitments are expected.
Bâtiments patrimoniaux, anciennes casernes, bâtisses délabrées… la Ville de Montréal possède 78 bâtiments vacants, dont certains sont tellement vétustes qu’il en coûterait moins cher de les reconstruire que de les remettre en état.
«Ça montre qu’on n’est pas fort sur l’entretien à Montréal et dans la société en général. C’est un reality check», laisse tomber Dinu Bumbaru, directeur des politiques à Héritage Montréal.
« Ça va demander un peu de talent et de fermeté de la part de l’arrondissement » de Ville-Marie pour éviter qu’un grand immeuble soit construit à cet endroit, dit M. Bumbaru.
Ce dernier presse la Ville de mettre en place des mécanismes plus efficaces pour prévenir la dégradation et protéger du risque d’incendie les bâtiments d’intérêt patrimonial de la métropole.
Citoyens et organismes s’inquiètent de l’avenir du site de l’ancien hôpital de la Miséricorde maintenant qu’Hydro-Québec songe à y construire son futur poste électrique au centre-ville de Montréal. Ils pressent la société d’État d’être plus transparente quant à ses intentions.