Ville de Montréal presents the winners of the Le taxi prend ses aires! ideas
competition and announces the start of public voting

MONTREAL, July 5 /CNW Telbec/ - Helen Fotopulos, Executive Committee member responsible for Culture, Heritage, Design and the Status of Women, is proud to announce the results of the Le taxi prend ses aires! ideas competition, which designers in all disciplines were invited to enter this past spring. The competition aimed to nurture reflection on the issue posed by Montréal's existing taxi stands from the point of view of both taxi drivers and users. Members of the public are now invited to have their say by voting for their favourites among the five winning proposals at www.realisonsmontreal.com/taxi.

"Our administration encourages creativity in made-in-Montréal design and architecture. This competition has provided a chance for Montréal designers to share their visions with us and propose innovative solutions for enriching the experience of these public spaces in our city," Ms. Fotopulos said, adding: "I thank all of the entrants and congratulate the winners who took part in this ideas exercise. Montréal has been designated a UNESCO City of Design in recognition of the talent and know-how of designers who are helping to enhance the quality of life in our city."

"In Montréal's Transportation Plan, we recognized the taxi as a major mode of public transportation for Montréal and we are committed to supporting the taxi industry in its development," said Manon Barbe, member of the Executive Committee responsible for Transportation. "The improvement of taxi stands is a priority not only for passengers but the drivers. I am particularly enthusiastic about the proposals unveiled today. I urge residents and taxi drivers to choose their favourites among the five choices selected by the jury."

Winners of the Le taxi prend ses aires! competition

In all, 42 eligible entries were evaluated by the jury, which was made up of jury president, Patrick Messier, industrial designer, Messier Designers Inc.; Jean-Guy Chabauty, industrial designer, Moderno; Yung Cuong, President, Taxi Para-Adapté; Isabelle D'Astous, Co-Creative Director, Sid Lee; Michel Dufresne, urban planner, Groupe Cardinal-Hardy; Carl Gagnon, Creative Director and President, Imago; and Lucy Mungiovi, Director of Convention Services, Tourisme Montréal. The jury members noted the broad diversity of proposals received, ranging from concepts involving mostly signage to innovative, much more elaborate ideas. That diversity was seen in terms of scale and scope, the functions and attributes proposed, and the themes employed to convey the ideas.

"From simple objects to comprehensive site layouts, from integration to strong statements, the participants' entries lead us to reflect on the identity and even the very definition of these spaces for waiting and transition within the city," said jury president Patrick Messier.

The ex-æquo winning submissions, which were each awarded a $7,000 prize, are:

    
    - Taxi MTL - Hubert Pelletier and Yves Bourdeau de Fontenay, Pelletier de
      Fontenay, Montréal;
    - Transit - Guillaume Marcoux, architect, Montréal;
    - Untitled - Jacques Desbiens, industrial designer, Les produits
      d'intérieur ÔM, Montréal;
    - Folium - Geneviève Trudel, industrial designer, Montréal; Thomas-Éric
      Béliveau and Philipp Schaake, SensidStudio, Berlin;
    - Moai Statues - Louis Gagnon-Séguin, industrial designer, Bhavesh
      Mistry, Montréal.
    

Launch of voting for the Choix du public and Coup de cœur awards

Members of the public as well as taxi drivers can enter to win one of several prizes by voting online for their favourites among the five winning proposals selected by the jury, on the realisonsmontreal.com/taxi web page.

Voting ends at midnight, August 30, 2010. The jury selections, the "Choix du public" (the people's choice) and the "Coup de cœur" (favourite design in the taxi industry) will be announced in September. The designer or design team awarded the "Prix du jury" and "Choix du public" will each receive an additional award of $2,500.

Follow-up to the competition

The Le taxi prend ses aires! ideas competition is one of the five shûkos, or creative challenges, issued by the Mayor of Montréal during the Pecha Kucha Night for Elected Officials on September 30, 2008. It is directly in line with the ongoing commitments made by the Ville de Montréal and its partners in the Action Plan 2007-2017 - Montréal, Cultural Metropolis, the goals of which include the promotion of excellence in architecture and design. The City has launched several design competitions in recent months, including for the development of mobile street furniture for use by festivals and the design of a new bus shelter, as well as an ideas competition for redevelopment of the area surrounding the Champ-de-Mars métro station.

The Le taxi prend ses aires! ideas competition is an initiative of the Design Montréal office with the co-operation of the Bureau du taxi et du remorquage de la Ville de Montréal and support from the taxi industry. The public vote is organized in partnership with 98,5FM, Métro newspaper and the Place d'Armes Hôtel & Suites.

To view all of the competing entries, including the winning concepts, visit realisonsmontreal.com/taxi.

About Design Montréal

The Design Montréal office was created in January 2006 by the Ville de Montréal. Its mission is to implement the municipal action plan aimed at improving design throughout the city and positioning Montréal as a city of design.

For further information: To obtain images of the winning concepts: Stéphanie Jecrois, Design Montréal, 514 872-5388; Source: Bernard Larin, Office of the Mayor and the Executive Committee, 514 872-9998