- St. Leonard, Quebec
-
Saint-Léonard — Borough of Montreal — Saint-Léonard church on Jarry street
St. Leonard's location in Montreal
Coordinates: 45°35′09″N 73°35′46″W / 45.58583°N 73.59611°W Country 
CanadaProvince 
QuebecCity Montreal Region Montréal Merge into
MontrealJanuary 1, 2002 Electoral Districts
Federal
Saint-Léonard—Saint-MichelProvincial Jeanne-Mance—Viger Government[1][2][3] - Type Borough - Mayor Michel Bissonnet - Federal MP(s) Massimo Pacetti (LIB) - Quebec MNA(s) Filomena Rotiroti (PLQ) Area[4] - Land 13.51 km2 (5.2 sq mi) Population (2006)[4] - Total 71,730 - Density 5,307.7/km2 (13,746.9/sq mi) - Change (2001-06) 
3.1%- Dwellings 31,105 Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC−5) - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4) Area code(s) Area code 514/438 Access Routes[5] 
A-40 / TCHWebsite www.ville.montreal.qc.ca/st-leonard Saint Leonard is a borough (arrondissement) of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Formerly a separate city, it was amalgamated into the city of Montreal in 2002.
The former city was originally called St. Léonard de Port Maurice after Leonard of Port Maurice.
Contents
Borough council
As of the November 1, 2009 Montreal municipal election, the current borough council consists of the following councillors:
District Position Name Party — Borough mayor
City councillorMichel Bissonnet Union Montréal Saint-Léonard-Est City councillor Robert L. Zambito Union Montréal Borough councillor Lili-Anne Tremblay Union Montréal Saint-Léonard-Ouest City councillor Dominic Perri Union Montréal Borough councillor Mario Battista Union Montréal Città Italiana / Via Italia
Città Italiana is the nickname (uncommonly used) given to the borough because of its large number of Italian-Canadian residents, evident on major streets such as the eastern portion of Jean-Talon Boulevard, locally referred to as Via Italia, and Jarry Street, where Italian-Canadian businesses are located.
Many services are available to residents in Italian, in addition to English language and French. The Leonardo Da Vinci Centre, for instance, offers service in all three languages. This cultural centre contains theatres, gyms, bocce playing areas and a café.
Saint Leonard was the site of the dispute that led to the creation of Quebec's first language legislation. Italian immigrants wished to send their children to English schools, while the local school board refused and tried to force them into French-language education. At the time, there was no legislation on schooling and language, and the dispute was settled with the creation of Bill 63, Bill 22 and finally Bill 101. Their effect is that only students with a parent who was schooled in English in Canada may attend an English school, otherwise education in French is mandatory.
The community newspaper, Progrès Saint-Léonard, is offered exclusively in French.
Demographics
Home Language (2006)[4] Language Population Percentage (%) French 31,210 43.64% English 17,180 24.02% English and French 1,360 1.90% Other languages 21,755 30.42% Ethnic Origin (2001) Ethnic Origin Population Percent Italian 27,590 39.69% Canadian 18,915 27.21% French 9,290 13.36% Haitian 3,815 5.5% Lebanese 2,005 2.88% Irish 1,360 1.96% Spanish 1,190 1.71% Algerian 1,155 1.66% Arab 1,155 1.66% Portuguese 1,070 1.54% Located in the east end of the island of Montreal, Saint-Leonard was traditionally francophone. However, recent census information indicates that the city is now largely composed of numerous generations of 20th-century Italian immigrants.
Linguistic trend
Mother tongue language (2006)[4] Language 1996 2001 2006 French 28,140 25,935 23,440 English 4,890 4,905 6,265 English and French 870 520 335 Other languages 37,425 38,155 41,480 Population 71,325 69,604 71,730 Sports and recreation
Aquatics
The Saint-Léonard Aquatic Complex (French: Complexe aquatique de Saint-Léonard) was built in 2006 and is home to three swimming pools: one recreational basin, one 25 meter deep pool and one acclimation basin that includes a turbo bath spa. There are also two saunas, one for women and one for men.
Skate parks
Skaters can skate safely in any one of the two skate parks located in the city of Saint Leonard. Admission to these parks is free, and they are open to the public May through October.
Cycling paths
Saint Leonard has 10 KM of bike paths around the city, that connect various parks, pools and city structures.
Hockey
Saint Leonard has two hockey arenas, Aréna Martin Brodeur, located on 5300 boulevard Robert, and Aréna Roberto Luongo, located on 7755 Rue Colbert. These arenas host local games, and usually provide food, locker rooms, showers and public free-skating.
Saint Leonard also has many outdoor hockey rinks in the winter. There are seven rinks set up before winter, and then they are iced when the temperature is appropriate. There was a delay of rink making in 2007 when the weather was warmer than usual.
Soccer
Soccer is a very popular sport for the youth in Saint Leonard. Nearly every public park in has a soccer field open to the public.
Figure Skating
Both of Saint Leonard arenas are used by the figure skating community. Many Olympic and World Champions have trained here in different disciplines like singles, pairs, dance and synchronized skating.
Other activities
The city also has a newly domed football stadium, Stade Hébert, which is home to the Saint-Léonard Cougars. For the retired citizens, there are bocce courts located at almost every public park.
Saint Leonard contains underground caves, located at Pie XII Park.
Park Basketball Soccer Bocce Sledding Fountain Playground Ice rink Pavilion Tennis Swimming pool Skate Park Baseball Shuffleboard Pétanque Cave Coubertin Park x x x x x x x x x Pie XII Park x x x x x x x x x x x x x Ladauversiere Park x x x x x x x x x x Wilfrid Bastien Park x x x x x x x x x x Delorme Park x x x x x x x x x Ferland Park x x x x x x x x x x Garibaldi Park Pirandello Park Schools of Saint-Leonard
The Borough of Saint-Leonard is served by two school boards. The French schools are all part of the Commission scolaire Pointe-de-l'Ile while the English schools are all part of the English Montreal School Board.
Mayors
Logo of the former municipality, near the Le Boulevard shopping centre.
Includes mayors of the former city (1886–2001) and current borough (2002- ) of Saint-Leonard:
- Louis Sicard (1886–1901)
- Gustave Pépin (1901–1903)
- Léon Léonard (1903–1905)
- Jean-Baptiste Jodoin (1905–1906)
- Joseph Léonard (1906–1907)
- Louis-O. Roy (1907–1910)
- Wilfrid Bastien (1910–1929)
- Pascal Gagnon (1929–1935)
- Philias Gagnon (1935–1939)
- Alphonse Pesant (1939–1957)
- Antonio Dagenais (1957–1962)
- Paul-Émile Petit (1962–1967)
- Léo Ouellet (1967–1974)
- Jean Di Zazzo (1974–1978)
- Michel Bissonnet (1978–1981)
- Antonio Di Ciocco (1981–1984)
- Raymond Renaud (1984–1990)
- Frank Zampino (1990–2008)
- Michel Bissonnet (2008–
See also
- Boroughs of Montreal
- Districts of Montreal
- Municipal reorganization in Quebec
- Little Italy, Montreal
- Italian-Canadian
References
- ^ Ministère des Affaires Municipales et Régions: Saint-Léonard
- ^ Parliament of Canada Federal Riding History: SAINT-LÉONARD--SAINT-MICHEL (Quebec)
- ^ Chief Electoral Officer of Québec - 40th General Election Riding Results: JEANNE-MANCE-VIGER
- ^ a b c d 2006 Statistics Canada Community Profile: Saint-Léonard, Quebec
- ^ Official Transport Quebec Road Map
External links
- Borough website (French)
- Leonardo Da Vinci Center
- City of Montreal. Borrough of St. Leonard (French)
Montréal-Nord (Montreal) Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension (Montreal)
Anjou (Montreal)
Saint-Léonard (Montreal) 
Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie (Montreal) Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve (Montreal)Coordinates: 45°35′09″N 73°35′46″W / 45.585848°N 73.596066°W
Categories:- Quebec communities with significant anglophone populations
- Boroughs of Montreal
- Neighbourhoods in Montreal
- Little Italys in Canada
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