Like many Montrealers, Daniel Langlois had always been fascinated by the building located at 357 de la Commune Street West because of its architecture, its historical role, and its strategic location west of the Old Port of Montreal.
Although Daniel Langlois' activities often are in fields associated with the development of new technologies, his architectural vision for a city like Montreal involves maintaining a rich, diverse environment, both historically and culturally, in parallel with supporting architectural research and evolution.
For Langlois, to avoid the standardization of the urban architectural texture which can become monotonous with the addition of new constructions almost identical to one another, buildings that played an important role in the progression towards the modern city must be preserved and integrated into contemporary activities.
Given its unique characteristics, it was disconcerting and heartbreaking to see a building such as 357 de la Commune Ouest, the former building of the Port of Montreal Commissioners, abandoned for many years, in an advanced stage of deterioration which presaged its inevitable disappearance if no safeguarding intervention was put in place.
Langlois therefore decided to acquire it in order to save it, restore it and to give it back its place in the urban fabric of Old Montreal, a purchase that became possible in May 1997.
Following the acquisition, Langlois quickly began a project for the complete restoration of the building. The project proved to be absolutely necessary not only to stop the visible deterioration of the building but also to avoid its possible collapse since the initial examination of the building indicated that the original foundations dating from 1875, laid on clay soil, had been affected by adjacent modern constructions.
Unfortunately, the work carried out by a contractor caused a major fire on December 18, 1997 which completely destroyed significant portions of the building including the tower with its dome and the 5th and 4th floors, in addition to completely burn or damage the interior of the 3rd and 2nd floors leaving only an envelope of blackened stone.
Considering the extent of the damage caused by the fire, Langlois was faced with a dilemma: should the remains of the Port Commissioners' original building be replaced by a completely new construction, which would be simpler and faster to build, or should he try to save the ruins of the building in order to reconstruct the envelope of the original building?
Langlois opted for an entirely new reconstruction. The initial restoration project therefore became by necessity a reconstruction project on a much larger scale than expected, including not only the reinstallation of the destroyed exterior envelope but also the reconstruction of the missing floors and that of the entire interior of the building.
The main reconstruction work was completed towards the end of 2000. Since then, 357 de la Commune Ouest not only has a meticulously reconstructed and solidified exterior facade but also a new stone wing with a turret and a large glass pavilion offering a bright, versatile space, connecting the building's history with a look to the future.
From September 2002 to May 2019, this building housed the private club "Le 357c" (press release).
The Daniel Langlois Foundation for Art, Science, and Technology
357 de la Commune Street West, Montreal (Quebec) H2Y 2E2 Canada
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