Downtown Montreal now has a stunning new four-season public square for festivals and ice skating

Some are saying that it's the just the thing that was missing from downtown Montreal: Yesterday, the City of Montreal inaugurated the Esplanade Tranquille, a 5,000 square meter four-season public space that will have as many reasons to attract Montrealers in the summer as it will in the winter.

When it's hot out, the city aims to install relaxation stations that includes chairs, tables, and hammocks to give the space a "backyard" type of feel, but it's mainly meant to be another site for festivals; it can accommodate up to 5,000 people (even more if you count whenever Clark Street is pedestrianized). Sprinklers and water games are scheduled to be installed in 2022.

Once it's cold enough, the public square will be turned into a large ice rink that's going to be free of charge to use. According to the City of Montreal's webpage for the Esplanade Tranquille, up to 400 people can skate there at one time from November to March. An ice refrigeration system will allow the rink to operate once temperatures drop to 10C or less. At night, the space  will light up from projections on the ice. The addition of a strip on the concrete surface should make for smooth gliding.

By the end of 2021 a multifunctional pavilion will open, a sort of urban chalet that will features a restaurant, a place to change for ice skaters and a production room for festivals. Outdoor terrasses will also be there to use for "school groups, cultural or artistic workshops, receptions and events, or other activities intended for the general public," the City writes. The name and owner of the restaurant will be announced later on.

Events have already been schedules for the space, with free open-air cinema screenings with both French and English subtitales happening this weekend on behalf of Festival du nouveau cinéma.

Located at the corner of Sainte-Catherine Street West and Clark Street, the public space is named after Henri Tranquille (1916-2005), a bookseller and owner of the Librairie Tranquille which operated from 1937 to 1974. There's a mini library set up to honour him which will be operational so long as it's warm enough.