No it's not that one; that one is actually by my house too and that one is pretty cool, a striking example of unique artwork. I think that's what gets me about these; they're hardly unique. Unique to Montreal maybe, but obviously so, it's a city!
With Silos 1 and 2 gone it's no longer a full evolution
In the text from the Heritage website, I dont think the word evolution was referring to the other silos, but to the way grain was distributed from the Prairies through to Montreal through the last one hundred plus years.
It absolutely is a critical part of the history of the city. Replacing it with condos would be fantastically shallow. We're not exactly running out of space for condos or gyms and to demolish it simply for that reason really shows a lack of understanding of how important this city's port has been to its development and the development of Canada as a whole.
Full disclosure: Im a large donator and full-member of Heritage Montreal, and fully support this project.
I support heritage but to me a silo is not heritage. It's a storage bin for grain. And the evolution totally is about the architecture styles through the 20th century. If people want to see silos they can go visit Saskatchewan. I don't necessarily want condos but a huge ugly hulking useless building that is a danger (in its current state) to other humans is not cool.
Reading the articles Kayla linked to I am still skeptical. To me it's this huge ugly blight of a view blocker. :-/ It's the agricultural version of the Turcot. Ugly, took in no use of the surrounding land and views, and blocks any asthetic value.
Honestly, if it's views you want, get out of the city. Turcot may be a pile of ugly engineering, but the city would crumble without it. Cities are about functionnality and the boonies are for ''looking out''
Oh I don't really care about the Turcot. The new plan is fine and people need to get over it. I am after all the one who suggests plateau residents angry with cars and lack of green space may wish to try Hudson. The city would not crumble without the silos. The port is largely for looking nice now. Except that ugly monstrosity.
Also, you seem a wealthy of knowledge, do you know what's up with the hate on the Old Port Society seems to have for dogs? I went with mine today for a good long walk and got down there to find dogs are not allowed on the quays.Nowhere south of de la commune, period. :-( That sucked. So we went to the Basillique Notre Dame (not inside obviously, but got some nice outdoor shots).
There may be other reasons, but one is that Le Corbusier thought our grain elevators were terrific (mind you, that was in a book written in 1923). I suspect that's made the city too embarrassed to take down Silo #5.
I'm really beginning to think it's my upbringing clouding my view. This is sort of like... Oh I know, sort of like if some hick town in Alberta kept an abandoned freeway as a heritage site to pay honour to the time when it was a boom town. I'm pretty sure someone from a city would go there and be all "wtf are you kidding me?"
In 1960, everybody thought we should be demolishing old houses and buildings in Vieux-Montréal, because it was time for modernity. Back then, it made no sense at all to keep these old, wooden houses.
I guess I see this as very different (and I know this is so late but my computer was broken, sorry) because to me removing the silos would be correcting a wrong. Sort of like refilling that horrible gouge down the middle of our city called the decarie and the monstrosity that is the Turcot. These structures should never have been built as they don't take into account anything regarding the layout of the land, environmental impacts, urban neighbourhood progression, natural asthetics and conservation. And I realize it's blaspheme what I'm about to say but Place Ville Marie should go there too. Blech. Have never understood why a big fugly boring block of concrete that looks like an army bunker is supposedly some architectural wonder.
As for the '60s and their blight on urban planning, I'm with you. I swear that's the decade common sense just checked out and stupid juice was passed around the urban planning meetings of the cities. :-(
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It was all over the news last week :/
eta http://news.google.ca/news/search?aq=f&pz=1&cf=all&ned=ca&hl=en&q=silo+no.+5
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In the text from the Heritage website, I dont think the word evolution was referring to the other silos, but to the way grain was distributed from the Prairies through to Montreal through the last one hundred plus years.
It absolutely is a critical part of the history of the city. Replacing it with condos would be fantastically shallow. We're not exactly running out of space for condos or gyms and to demolish it simply for that reason really shows a lack of understanding of how important this city's port has been to its development and the development of Canada as a whole.
Full disclosure: Im a large donator and full-member of Heritage Montreal, and fully support this project.
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Reading the articles Kayla linked to I am still skeptical. To me it's this huge ugly blight of a view blocker. :-/ It's the agricultural version of the Turcot. Ugly, took in no use of the surrounding land and views, and blocks any asthetic value.
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Also, you seem a wealthy of knowledge, do you know what's up with the hate on the Old Port Society seems to have for dogs? I went with mine today for a good long walk and got down there to find dogs are not allowed on the quays.Nowhere south of de la commune, period. :-( That sucked. So we went to the Basillique Notre Dame (not inside obviously, but got some nice outdoor shots).
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The French Wikipedia article on the Élevateurs de Montréal is a pretty good survey of the silos, both demolished and extant.
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This article is all about that:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/douaireg/4057016678/
Tearing down Silo No.5 would be a similar mistake.
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As for the '60s and their blight on urban planning, I'm with you. I swear that's the decade common sense just checked out and stupid juice was passed around the urban planning meetings of the cities. :-(
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