Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension

Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension
Borough of Montreal
Former Park Avenue train station (Gare Jean-Talon)
Logo
Location of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension on the Island of Montreal. (Grey areas indicate demerged municipalities).
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Montréal
Established	January 01, 2002
Electoral Districts Federal	Papineau Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel Ahuntsic-Cartierville
Provincial	Laurier-Dorion Viau
Government
• Type	Borough
• Mayor	Giuliana Fumagalli (Projet)
• Federal MP(s)	Justin Trudeau (LIB) Nicola Di Iorio (LIB) Mélanie Joly (LIB)
• Quebec MNA(s)	Gerry Sklavounos (PLQ) David Heurtel (PLQ)
Area
• Total	16.5 km2 (6.4 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	142,222
• Density	8,624.7/km2 (22,338/sq mi)
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
Area code(s)	(514) and (438)
Access Routes A-19 A-40	Route 125
Website	www.ville.montreal.qc.ca/vsp

Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension is a borough (arrondissement) in the city of Montreal, Quebec. It had a population of 142,222 according to the 2011 Census and a land area of 16.5 square kilometres (6.4 sq mi).

The borough of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension was created on January 1, 2002, following the municipal reorganization of Montreal. The borough includes the neighbourhoods of Villeray, Saint-Michel, and Parc-Extension.

Until the late Nineteenth century, the area that today comprises the borough of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension was predominately rural and dotted with farms. The inauguration of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1878 and the arrival of electric streetcars in 1892 permitted the growth of Villeray. It was also in this era that the Italian immigrant community chose the neighbourhood as their preferred location.

In the early Twentieth century, Park Extension became industrialized, and a dozen quarries opened which led to the economic development of the area. Beginning in the 1940s, the exploitation of the Miron and Francon quarries attracted workers to Saint Michel and Park Extension.

Construction of the Metropolitan Expressway was completed in 1959. It cut the area in two, but also attracted multiple industries, which opened along the expressway. In less than twenty years, the population of Saint Michel increased from 6,000 to 68,000 inhabitants.