Our trip to the Catskills this weekend was wonderful- it’s great to get out into the country, and away from the everyday hassles of city life. Our friend’s 160 year old farmhouse gave us the pleasure of things we cannot get in Montreal- silence, the sound of birds singing, and absolute darkness. The 2.5 hour commute from NYC is certainly justified for our friends.

I had not been south on the autoroute 15 in several months and was shocked to see a whole new region of suburban sprawl appearing along beside the autoroutes 15 and 30 in Candiac.

What used to be beautiful landscapes that were reminiscent of Peter Hoffer painting are now row after row of Styrofoam chateaus. Each home is a miniature Versailles or Fontainebleau, and takes up every square inch of its site 150 feet off the Autoroute.


Le Groupe Beaumont's Corbusier model home.

Why is this happening? Who do these homes appeal to?

Candiac is calling itself “a harbour of peace” five minutes from the Champlain Bridge. The slogan must be effective, judging by the rate of development along the autoroute. Apparently, people are anxious to escape the rat race of the big city, and live a simpler, rural life on the south shore. Unfortunately, people are not leaving the urban problems on the island of Montreal, but are moving them out to these new developments As time goes on these projects will be completely urbanized, and people seeking a home in the country will have to go to developments further out.

These developments have lost what is appealing with the country- open space and buildings in harmony with their settings.