New Montreal square lined with orange cones after reports of tripping, injuries

MONTREAL — A brand new Montreal public square that is designed to resemble a “suspended blossoming meadow” is lined with orange construction cones after reports that people were tripping over its concrete terrain.

The Place des Montrealaises, which was inaugurated in mid-May, was billed as a tribute to influential Montreal women and a passageway connecting Old Montreal with downtown.

But the site may have turned into a sore spot for Mayor Valérie Plante’s administration after La Presse reported this week that people have fallen and hurt themselves in an unmarked rain gutter that runs alongside the concrete sidewalk.

The city’s reflective pylons and orange tape didn’t stop Karen Rowan from tripping in the shallow channel as she crossed to take a picture midday Wednesday.

The British tourist said the square’s design was “absolutely stunning” but “maybe a little too artistic,” acknowledging that the gutter was hard to see.

“A bit of a hazard, isn’t it?” said Rowan, who was unhurt by her brief stumble.

The city confirmed Wednesday that it had received four reports for “security issues” at the square since its opening, including that of a 74-year-old man who told La Presse he’d fractured three ribs in a fall.

A city spokesperson also said they would add new signs in a few days and a permanent fix within weeks.

The square is a sloping concrete expanse punctuated by sunken flower beds, ramps, ledges and steps. Framed by city hall in the background, the space leads down to a grassy area with a spot for a stage and a mirrored monument to women who marked history.

“The Place des Montréalaises transforms an urban landscape long scarred by a sunken expressway with suspended blossoming meadow, rejoining disconnected districts and their majestic landmarks to one another,” architecture firm Lemay wrote on its site.

“Arranged on an inclined plane, the meadow is filled with 21 sections of indigenous plants to explore by foot, each chosen to represent a female Montrealer of influence.”

But on Wednesday, another emblem of the city was drawing attention: orange traffic cones.

The cones, which have become so ubiquitous in Montreal that miniature versions are sold in souvenir shops, were placed at intervals in the rain channel on Wednesday to try to prevent stumbles.

Bernard Cormier and Christine Durocher, who were heading to an appointment, worried the gutter and sunken flower beds will catch inattentive people off guard.

“It’s one of the issues today, you have to think about people who are on their phones,” Cormier said. “If this was made 20 years ago would people be hurt? I think we were more conscious of our environments (then).”

Durocher suggested the site had been designed by “conceptual artists who didn’t reflect on the practical.”

However, the couple praised the square’s ambience and its scenic views of downtown. “It’s a great gathering place,” Cormier said, as dozens of people lounged on the grassy areas and the steps in the bright summer sun.

The head of opposition party Ensemble Montreal has criticized the city’s planning and said safety can’t be an afterthought.

“We deserve a city that is accessible and adapted to the needs of all,” wrote Soraya Martinez Ferrada on X. “We deserve better.”

The mayor said Tuesday that she was “disappointed that we see orange cones, but mostly that people are hurt.”

Plante told reporters that workers would soon be installing protective equipment over the rain gutter in order to help prevent injuries.

She maintained that the new public square was “an absolutely magnificent, fabulous place,” adding “I want people to come see and use it.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025.

Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press