Aire commune takes over downtown Montreal with two outdoor meeting rooms on the Esplanade PVM

27 Sep 2022

Since the start of summer, the installation has attracted nearly 10,000 visitors and 400 bookings

Photo credit: Raphaël Thibodeau

In June, Aire commune launched Station d’été, an outdoor workspace on Place Ville Marie’s Esplanade PVM. Free, and open to all, the station features two bright meeting rooms installed in glass containers, with an exterior work patio.

Photo credit: Raphaël Thibodeau

Using bold design to attract workers downtown

The pandemic hurt the business districts of every major city in the world, and Montreal was no exception. This initiative is a way to revitalize the downtown area and to invite workers to make the spaces their own, in keeping with the vision of Nouveau Centre, Ivanhoé Cambridge’s experiential destination. Groups of eight fit in these streamlined spaces, which are ideal for meeting with colleagues while rediscovering the heart of the city. Wi-Fi, power outlets, TV, air conditioning, integrated greening: everything professionals need to have a satisfyingly unique work experience in downtown Montreal.

Photo credit: Raphaël Thibodeau

More than 400 bookings and 10,000 visitors in 3 months of activity 

Located in the heart of Montreal’s most important business district, Station d’été proved to be very popular among workers of the area.

  • More than 400 bookings over the summer of 2022;
  • Nearly 10,000 visitors; 
  • The occupancy rate of more than 65%. 

A network of 40 connected workspaces in Montreal 

Station d’été is part of the Îlots d’été network, creation of Aire commune. The organization became involved in green desking in 2017 and has since activated a network of 40 outdoor workspaces. It was immediately a huge success, attracting nearly 30,000 users in the first year. As such, the network doubled in size this year and is now the largest outdoor workspace network in North America.

 

Thanks to our partners! 

The Îlots d’été network is made possible by the financial support of Tourisme Montréal’s Fonds de maintien des actifs stratégiques en tourisme, with financial contributions from the Government of Canada and the Government of Quebec. The project also received financial support from the City of Montreal’s Service du développement économique, the Ville-Marie borough, Fizz, PVM, and Desjardins Group.

Technical sheet

  • Location: 1 Place Ville-Marie, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
  • Developer: Aire commune 
  • Surface area: 800 square feet
  • Manufacturer: JackWorld Inc
  • Interior design: Élyse Bibeau
  • Exterior design: Anick Juneau 
  • Photographer: Raphaël Thibodeau 

About Aire commune

As the first outdoor co-working and event space to open in Canada, in 2017, Aire commune is the flagship project of the Îlot 84 organization and has now spread beyond the limits of the Mile End district. Green-desking, festive terrasses, concerts, tourism packages: Aire commune offers a vast array of solutions to fully enjoy the urban hustle and bustle.