1501 McGill College & Other Quebec Curios

1501 McGill College

Forget about the Christmas trees in the shopping centres. 1501 McGill College is much better. Built at the same time as its architectural cousins, 1000 de la Gauchetière and 1250 René-Lévesque, 1501 McGill College was built in 1992 by WZMH Architects. At a grand height of 158 m, this primarily office-space building is Montreal’s seventh tallest building.

Tenants of 1501 McGill College are mostly professional businesses, such as the Bank of Montreal, the Royal Bank, and the law firm Davies Ward Phillips and Vineberg. One of France’s many diplomatic missions, one of its Consulate Generals, call the building home. It is one of the many buildings in Ville-Marie to be connected to the Underground City.

1501 McGill College is built in the postmodernist style prevalent in the later half of the twentieth century. Its exterior is made from its continuous glass windows with a granite façade. Its roof is triangular, reminiscent of 1000 de la Gauchetière, and its sides light up according to the holidays. During the Christmas season, its roof lights up in green and red and its main entrance is wrapped in an oversized red bow. While not a holiday, one can also not forget the hockey season, where the roof lights up in—what else?—red, white, and blue.

Visit the building at none other than 1501 McGill College.