Les Cours Mont-Royal

Les Cours Mont-Royal is an upscale shopping and mixed-use complex in the downtown core of Montreal, Quebec. The complex occupies the former Mount Royal Hotel, a large Beaux-Arts building designed by the Montreal architectural firm Ross and Macdonald. The site combines a fashion-oriented shopping centre with offices, luxury residential condominiums, health and wellness services, and event facilities, and forms part of Montreal’s underground pedestrian network. The property’s architectural history begins with the Mount Royal Hotel, which opened on December 20, 1922. Built at 1455 Peel Street on the former site of the High School of Montreal, the ten-storey hotel contained 1,036 rooms and was described in contemporary accounts as the largest hotel in the British Empire. Its construction reflected Montreal’s effort to attract affluent visitors through grand hotels and other prestigious urban buildings. Ross and Macdonald also designed several other important Montreal structures, including the Holt Renfrew building, the Montreal Neurological Institute, the former downtown Eaton’s building, the Dominion Square Building, and Trinity Memorial Church in Westmount. The hotel was initially managed by the United Hotels Company. In 1950, Cardy Hotels sold it, together with other Canadian properties in Quebec and Ontario, to Sheraton Hotels. The property became the Sheraton-Mt. Royal Hotel in 1951. It continued operating under the Sheraton name until March 31, 1982, when the opening of the nearby Le Centre Sheraton Hotel provided a replacement property. The former hotel subsequently closed on November 17, 1984. The building was later gutted and renovated in a reported redevelopment costing $140 million, then reopened in 1988 as Les Cours Mont-Royal. The conversion changed the building from a conventional hotel into a vertically integrated urban complex. Retail areas occupy the lower levels and basement, while office floors sit above them and luxury condominiums occupy the upper portion. The retail centre is connected to Montreal’s Underground City and to the Peel metro station, giving it access to the city’s enclosed pedestrian circulation system. The name Les Cours refers to the complex’s organization around four large interior courts. The preserved original hotel lobby is the principal surviving interior element from the former hotel. It includes a large chandelier associated with the Monte Carlo casino. The central skylight area features six bird-human sculptures by Inuk artist David Ruben Piqtoukun, providing a notable contemporary artistic intervention within the historic building. The shopping centre is primarily oriented toward fashion and upscale lifestyle retail. Additional facilities and services have included Spa Diva, described in reference material as Montreal’s largest spa, the Les Cours Medical Centre, and a catwalk used for fashion shows and other events. The complex’s positioning therefore extends beyond conventional shopping: it combines heritage architecture, downtown convenience, fashion retail, wellness, medical services, offices, residences, and event programming. It remains an identifiable component of central Montreal’s retail and underground-city landscape, although detailed current tenant, ownership, executive, and financial information is not established in the supplied sources.

The history of Les Cours Mont-Royal is rooted in the Mount Royal Hotel, which was built at 1455 Peel Street in downtown Montreal. Designed by Ross and Macdonald in the Beaux-Arts style, the ten-storey hotel was constructed on the former site of the High School of Montreal and opened on December 20, 1922. With 1,036 rooms, it was presented as an exceptionally large hotel and formed part of Montreal’s early twentieth-century effort to attract affluent travellers with monumental hospitality buildings. The hotel was managed by the United Hotels Company after opening. In 1950, Cardy Hotels sold the property and other Canadian hotels in Quebec and Ontario to Sheraton Hotels. The building was renamed the Sheraton-Mt. Royal Hotel in 1951. Its hotel operation ended its association with Sheraton on March 31, 1982, after the nearby Le Centre Sheraton Hotel opened. The Mount Royal Hotel then closed on November 17, 1984. After closure, the building underwent a major internal transformation. It was gutted and renovated in a redevelopment reported to have cost $140 million. Rather than being demolished or returned to hotel use, the structure was converted into a mixed-use complex containing a shopping centre in the lower levels and basement, offices in intermediate floors, and luxury condominiums at the top. The redeveloped property reopened in 1988 under the name Les Cours Mont-Royal. The conversion retained elements of the original building while adapting it to a new downtown commercial role. The former hotel lobby remains as the main interior remnant of the original property and includes a large chandelier linked to the Monte Carlo casino. The retail area is arranged around four large courts, reflected in the French name Les Cours. Beneath the principal skylight are six bird-human sculptures by Inuk artist David Ruben Piqtoukun. The complex became part of Montreal’s Underground City, with connections toward Peel metro station and the city’s extensive underground pedestrian network. Its commercial identity has centred mainly on fashion retailers, supplemented by wellness, healthcare, and event uses. Facilities identified in reference material include Spa Diva, the Les Cours Medical Centre, and a catwalk for fashion shows and other events. The result is a hybrid property rather than a single-purpose mall: its retail base operates alongside offices and high-end residential spaces, with the historic architecture serving as a central part of the destination’s identity. The supplied reference material does not establish the current owner, operating company, senior executives, detailed tenant roster, or current financial performance. Les Cours Mont-Royal is nevertheless described as an active upscale shopping and mixed-use complex in central Montreal.

• 1988

  Les Cours Mont-Royal opens

  [1]Les Cours Mont-Royalen.wikipedia.org

  Following a major gut renovation, the building reopens as Les Cours Mont-Royal, with shopping, offices, and residential condominiums.

• 1984

  Mount Royal Hotel closes

  [1]Les Cours Mont-Royalen.wikipedia.org

  The former hotel closes on November 17, preceding its conversion into a mixed-use commercial and residential complex.

• 1982

  Sheraton hotel operation ends

  [1]Les Cours Mont-Royalen.wikipedia.org

  The property leaves Sheraton on March 31 after the nearby Le Centre Sheraton Hotel opens as a replacement.

• 1951

  Hotel renamed Sheraton-Mt. Royal Hotel

  [1]Les Cours Mont-Royalen.wikipedia.org

  The property adopts the Sheraton-Mt. Royal Hotel name after its acquisition by Sheraton Hotels.

• 1950

  Property sold to Sheraton Hotels

  [1]Les Cours Mont-Royalen.wikipedia.org

  Cardy Hotels sells the Mount Royal Hotel, along with other Canadian properties in Quebec and Ontario, to Sheraton Hotels.

• 1922

  Mount Royal Hotel opens

  [1]Les Cours Mont-Royalen.wikipedia.org

  The ten-storey, 1,036-room Mount Royal Hotel opens on December 20 at 1455 Peel Street in Montreal. The Beaux-Arts building was designed by Ross and Macdonald.

An upscale downtown Montreal lifestyle and shopping destination combining fashion retail with wellness, medical, office, residential, and event uses in a landmark former hotel connected to the Underground City.

• Shopping centre · 1988

  Les Cours Mont-Royal Shopping Centre

  The lower levels and basement form an upscale shopping centre focused mainly on fashion retailers. The retail space is organized around four interior courts and benefits from direct integration with Montreal’s Underground City and access toward Peel metro station. The historic setting and central location are key components of the centre’s retail proposition.

• Wellness and spa services

  Spa Diva

  Spa Diva is a wellness facility associated with Les Cours Mont-Royal. Reference material identifies it as one of the complex’s principal service offerings and describes it as Montreal’s largest spa, although current operating details are not provided.

• Medical services

  Les Cours Medical Centre

  The Les Cours Medical Centre is a medical-services facility located within or associated with the complex. It broadens the property’s use beyond fashion retail and contributes to its mixed-use lifestyle and service positioning.

• Events

  Event and fashion-show facilities

  The complex includes a catwalk used for fashion shows and other events. This facility supports the centre’s connection to fashion, promotional programming, and downtown cultural or commercial activities.

• 1984

  Conversion from hotel to mixed-use complexStrategy

  Background

  The Mount Royal Hotel had closed after the end of its Sheraton operation and required a new use for its large downtown building.

  Action taken

  The building was gutted and renovated, then adapted for lower-level retail, intermediate office floors, and upper-level luxury condominiums. It reopened in 1988 as Les Cours Mont-Royal.

  Aftermath

  The redevelopment preserved selected historic features while creating an upscale shopping and mixed-use destination connected to Montreal’s Underground City.

  Reported redevelopment cost. $140 million (1980s redevelopment, exact year not specified)

  Source

1. 1Les Cours Mont-Royalen.wikipedia.org