Sainte-Catherine Street 1 |
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It is not known how Sainte-Catherine Street got its name, but several hypotheses have been suggested: the street may have been named in honor of Catherine de Bourbonnais (1749–1805), the natural-born daughter of Louis XV; it may also have been named after Catherine Viger, the adopted daughter of Jacques Viger, first mayor of Montreal; or it may bear the name of the old country road that led to the Sisters of Our Lady convent .
Nearly 1,200 stores line Sainte-Catherine Street between Guy and Saint-Denis Streets including 450 with storefront access to the street. This is the highest concentration of stores in Canada as well as the largest collection of fashion boutiques and ready-to-wear shops in the country .
The Parisian metro grille in the Square-Victoria station 1
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Montreal has an authentic Parisian metro grille (Guimard). Given to the city as a gift from Paris on the occasion of Expo 67, the Parisian metro grille was installed in the Square-Victoria station, near the Montreal Exchange tower in the Quartier international .
In a small lane called ruelle des Fortifications near the World Trade Centre, stands a portion of the Berlin Wall which the German city gave to Montreal to mark the 350 th anniversary of its founding .
John Lennon and Yoko Ono held their Bed-In downtown Montreal in 1969 from May 26 to June 2, in Suite 1742 at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel . Surrounded by celebrities such as Tommy Smothers, Timothy and Rosemary Leary and Petula Clark, Lennon and Ono wrote the peace anthem, “Give Peace a Chance” .
The highest building on the island of Montreal is the 1000 de la Gauchetière. It measures 205 meters, has 51 floors and was built in 1991.
Its 3,000 retail businesses
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Downtown Montreal with its 3,000 retail businesses is the largest concentration of retail establishments in Canada.
More than 255,000 workers2 and 100,000 students are in the area every day, and up to 3,500 pedestrians an hour have been recorded at some intersections.
Downtown Montreal counts 60% of commercial real estate in the metropolitan area 3 and is home to most of the 60 international organizations with offices in Montreal.
Between 1998 and 2004, 375,000 m2 of office space have been added4.
The downtown underground pedestrian network 3
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The downtown underground pedestrian network spreads on more than 30 kilometers with 178 entrances that give direct access to subway stations, 2000 businesses, shopping centers, seven hotels, movie theatres, concert halls, department stores, restaurants, apartment and office buildings with no need of stepping outside.
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1Montréal est…, Tourisme Montréal, juillet 2004. Pour en savoir plus , visitez www.tourisme-montreal.org
.2 Recensement des établissements et de l'emploi à Montréal, 2001. Pour en savoir plus : www.ville.montreal.qc.ca , Services aux entreprises / Montréal en chiffres / RÉEM.
3 Analyse de Royal Lepage, 2001. Pour en savoir plus : www.royallepage.com .
4 Profil économique du centre-ville, extrait du profil de l'arrondissement Ville-Marie (Sommet de Montréal).
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