Alexis Nihon Complex

Alexis Nihon Complex is a 223,000 m2 (2,400,000 sq ft) building complex in Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada (on the border with Westmount), consisting of a shopping centre, two office towers, and a residential building. It is named after the inventor and businessman Alexis Nihon. The shopping mall is directly connected to the Atwater metro station, which joins the building by a short tunnel with the adjacent Dawson College, and by a longer one adjoins nearby Westmount Square. The original complex was designed by the Montreal architect Harold Ship,[1] and its architectural plans are housed at the Canadian Centre for Architecture.[2]

Alexis Nihon
Location1500, rue Atwater
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
H3Z 1X5
Coordinates45°29′20″N 73°35′9″W
Opening date1967
DeveloperAlexis Nihon Group (REIT)
ManagementCominar REIT
OwnerCominar REIT
ArchitectHarold Ship, master concept and plaza design, Dimitri Dimakopoulos, office building design
No. of stores and services100+
No. of anchor tenants6
Total retail floor area37,200 m2 (400,420 sq ft).
No. of floors3
Parking1,100 vehicles
Websitewww.alexisnihon.com

On October 26, 1986, a major fire heavily damaged its 16-story office building and is still considered the city's biggest fire in a skyscraper. At least six stories were destroyed in the blaze. In 2002, the service de sécurité incendie de Montréal was heavily blamed for negligence and incompetence according to the Cour d'Appel du Québec. Several tenants including the federal government sued the then-owner of the building for several million dollars.[3]

During the Dawson shooting incident on September 13, 2006, the building was fully evacuated and some workers thought there were gunshots fired in the complex. Shots did reach the building during the shooting.[4][5]

On April 5, 2017, a minor fire broke out near the roof of the food court. Minor damage occurred as a result.

The shopping mall portion is anchored by Canadian Tire, IGA, Sports Experts, Winners and Pharmaprix.

The block now containing the mall was once the site of Atwater Park, home of the Montreal Royals baseball team through 1927.

Directions
The residential tower.

Alexis Nihon, at the corner of Atwater Avenue and Ste-Catherine Street West, is accessible:

  • By Metro: Green line, Atwater Station. This station directly connects to Alexis Nihon Plaza.
  • By Bus: Bus lines 24, 63, 90, 104, 138, 144, 356, 360.
  • By Car: A-720/Ville-Marie Expressway, Exit 2 - Atwater Avenue.
  • By Bicycle: Bicycle stations levels P1 and P3 of the parking.
  • By BIXI: BIXI Station De Maisonneuve Boulevard West at the corner of Atwater.
  • By Taxi: Waiting area Atwater Avenue at the corner of de Maisonneuve Boulevard West.

Stores
Exterior of Alexis Nihon Plaza.

The complex is directly connected to the Atwater Metro station and offers numerous services, a variety of shops and superstores, and a food court with over 25 restaurants. From 1982 until 1986, it housed Montreal's only downtown IKEA Store, which due to a lack of space, moved out to its own building at to boul. Cavendish in Saint-Laurent.[6] Alexis Nihon also previously housed Miracle Mart (later becoming an M-Store, a three-screen cinema operated by Cineplex Odeon, Zellers and Steinberg's supermarket. When the complex first opened in 1966 the French department store Au Printemps opened it first location outside France.

See also

References
  1. Fitterman, Lisa (22 September 2013). "Architect Harold Ship spent decades making a mark on Montreal". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  2. "Harold Ship Alexis Nihon Plaza and Nuns' Island Master Plan project records". Canadian Centre for Architecture. 15 June 2020.
  3. Noel, Andre, Incendie de 1986 à la place Alexis-Nihon : La Ville a été négligente (Alexis Nihon Plaza fire of 1986 : The City of Montreal was negligent), La Presse, September 5, 2002, page A3
  4. Le Soleil (article from la Presse), Fusillade au Collège Dawson, "Il tirait au hasard" (He was shooting randomly), Le Soleil, Quebec City, September 14, 2006, page 3
  5. Myles, Brian & Bourgault-Côté, Guillaume, Montréal, ville blessé : Panique, pleurs et attente insoutenable dans les rues du centre-ville (Panic, tears and interminable wait in downtown's streets), Le Devoir, Montréal, September 14, 2006, page A3
  6. Pailliez, Caroline (21 February 2013). "IKEA fête ses 25 ans au Québec". TVA Nouvelles. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
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