Longueuil

Longueuil is a city in the province of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River directly across from Montreal. As of the Canada 2021 Census, the city had a population of 254,483, making it Montreal's second largest suburb, the fifth most populous city in Quebec and twentieth largest in Canada.

The city was founded by Charles Le Moyne in 1657 as a seigneurie. Over time, it grew from a parish to a village, then a town, and finally became a city in 1920. Longueuil is mainly a residential area, with many people living there and commuting to work in Montreal. The city has three boroughs: Le Vieux-Longueuil, Saint-Hubert, and Greenfield Park.

History

Longueuil was founded in 1657 by Charles Le Moyne, a merchant from Montreal. He named it after a village in his hometown of Normandy. His son built Fort Longueuil as a fortified home between 1685 and 1690.

Over time, Longueuil grew from a small settlement into a city. It became a parish in 1845, a village in 1848, a town in 1874, and finally a city in 1920. The city grew larger by merging with nearby areas in 1961 and 1969. Later, in 2002, it merged with several other cities, but some became independent again in 2006. Today, Longueuil includes parts of its former area along with Saint-Hubert, Greenfield Park, and LeMoyne.

Geography

Longueuil covers 115.59 square kilometres of land. It is next to several cities, including Saint-Lambert, Brossard, Boucherville, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, and is close to the Saint Lawrence River and Montreal. Longueuil is about 7 kilometres east of Montreal on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River.

The city is in the Saint Lawrence River valley and is mostly flat. Areas near the river used to be swamp land with mixed forests and were later used for farming. Some farmland still exists far from the river. Longueuil also includes Île Charron, a small island in the Saint Lawrence River, and part of the Boucherville Islands.

Climate

Like Montreal, Longueuil has a humid continental climate. The city experiences long winters from November to March, short springs in April and May, warm summers from June to August, and short autumns in September and October.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Longueuil had a population of 254,483 living in 113,086 of its 117,006 total private dwellings. With a land area of 115.77 km² (44.70 sq mi), it had a population density of 2,198.2/km² (5,693.3/sq mi) in 2021.

Of the 147,805 workers in Longueuil, the median income was $36,400. Several of Montreal's neighborhoods with lower incomes are located in Longueuil.

Language

As of the 2021 Canadian Census, French was the mother tongue language of 71.9% of Longueuil's residents while English was the first language of 5.8%. Other languages were spoken by 17.8% of the population, with the most spoken being Spanish (4.5%), Arabic (2.9%), Romanian (0.9%), Haitian Creole (0.9%), Portuguese (0.8%), Mandarin (0.8%), Russian (0.7%) and Dari (0.7%).

Ethnicity

People of European origins made up 73.4% of the population in 2021. The largest visible minority groups are Black (9.9%), Latin American (4.6%), Arab (4.4%), Chinese (1.7%), Indigenous (1.3%), and West Asian (1.1%).

Economy

Many people in Longueuil work in nearby Montreal, but the city also has many jobs in different industries. One big strength of Longueuil is its low property value even though it is close to Montreal.

The city is especially known for its aerospace industry. It is home to the headquarters of Pratt & Whitney Canada and Héroux-Devtek. Pratt & Whitney Canada is the biggest employer in Longueuil with 5,000 employees, while Héroux-Devtek has 550 employees. The Canadian Space Agency (John H. Chapman Space Center) is also located in Longueuil, near Montréal/Saint-Hubert Airport. Other companies based in Longueuil include Agropur, Innergex Renewable Energy, and the Canadian subsidiary of Hasbro.

Arts and culture

The Longueuil International Percussion Festival happens every July in the Old Longueuil area. Over six days, about 500 musicians perform, and it welcomes around 200,000 visitors each year.

Attractions

Longueuil has three nature parks: Parc Marie-Victorin and Parc Michel-Chartrand in Le Vieux-Longueuil, and Parc de la Cité in Saint-Hubert. It also has a wildlife reserve called the Boisé du Tremblay, which is partly in Le Vieux-Longueuil and partly in Boucherville.

The city has seven arenas, including Cynthia Coull Arena in Greenfield Park and several others in Le Vieux-Longueuil and Saint-Hubert. There are also notable places of worship, such as the Roman Catholic Co-Cathedral of Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue and the Montréal Québec Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Sport

Government

Municipal

The mayor of Longueuil is Catherine Fournier. She is the fifth mayor since the city joined together in 2002. Before her, Sylvie Parent was mayor from 2017. Other past mayors include Jacques Olivier, who served from 2002 to 2005, and Claude Gladu, who was mayor from 2006 to 2009.

Longueuil has three areas called boroughs: Le Vieux-Longueuil, Greenfield Park, and Saint-Hubert. There are 26 city councillors, with each borough having its own leader. The city hall is in the Saint-Hubert borough.

Federal and provincial

Longueuil has three federal areas, called ridings. Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne is represented by Sherry Romanado. Longueuil-Saint-Hubert is represented by Pierre Nantel. Montarville is represented by Michel Picard.

In provincial elections, Longueuil has four areas. Laporte includes Greenfield Park and Saint-Hubert and is represented by Nicole Ménard. Marie-Victorin includes part of Le Vieux-Longueuil and is represented by Catherine Fournier. Taillon covers another part of Le Vieux-Longueuil and is represented by Marie Malavoy. Vachon covers Saint-Hubert and is represented by Martine Ouellet.

Infrastructure

Many people in Longueuil travel to work in Montreal every day. In fact, more people from Longueuil go to work in Montreal than stay in Longueuil. Some also travel to nearby cities like Boucherville, Brossard, and Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville for work.

Longueuil has several important roads. Two big crossings connect Longueuil to Montreal over the Saint Lawrence River: the Louis Hippolyte Lafontaine Tunnel and the Jacques Cartier Bridge. Major highways like Autoroute 20 and Autoroute 30 run through the city, linking it to other places.

Public transportation in Longueuil is provided by the Réseau de transport de Longueuil (RTL). It operates many bus routes and shared taxis. Most buses end their trips at the Longueuil Bus Terminus or the Panama REM station in Brossard. The Longueuil–Université-de-Sherbrooke Metro station connects Longueuil to downtown Montreal using the Metro’s Yellow Line. There is also a commuter train station called Longueuil–Saint-Hubert station.

Longueuil has Saint-Hubert Airport, which is an important airport for small planes. There is also a small marina called the Réal-Bouvier Marina on the Saint Lawrence River, and a ferry service that runs to the Old Port of Montreal.

Longueuil has two hospitals. The bigger one is Charles-LeMoyne Hospital in Greenfield Park. The smaller one is Pierre-Boucher Hospital in Le Vieux-Longueuil.

Education

The city of Longueuil has many places for learning. You can find campuses from big universities like the Université de Sherbrooke and the Université de Montréal in the Borough of Le Vieux-Longueuil.

There is one college called Collège Édouard-Montpetit in Le Vieux-Longueuil. This college even has a special school for airplane technology, École nationale d'aérotechnique, located near Saint-Hubert Airport in Saint-Hubert.

For younger students, there are public schools for English and French speakers. English schools are run by the Riverside School Board and include three bigger schools for older students. French schools are run by the Commission scolaire Marie-Victorin and there are seven bigger schools for older students in different parts of Longueuil.

Media

Longueuil and nearby cities have two free weekly newspapers in French. Le Courrier du Sud, published by Quebecor Media, is the oldest one and includes special sections for different areas. Rive-Sud Express, published by Transcontinental Media, is a newer weekly paper. Both newspapers are delivered to homes and also available in boxes. There is also a free monthly paper called Point Sud that you can find on stands.

Longueuil has its own radio station, CHAA-FM 103.3. Another station, CHMP-FM 98.5, is licensed to Longueuil but its studio and transmitter are in Montreal. Local cable viewers can watch Télé Rive-Sud (TVRS), a cable TV station owned by Quebecor Media and affiliated with Canal Vox. It is available only to Videotron cable subscribers.

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Canada

Longueuil is twinned with:

• Lafayette, Louisiana, United States
• Whitby, Ontario, Canada

Notable people

Longueuil has been home to many talented individuals who have made their mark in different fields. Some well-known people from the city include Micheline Beauchemin, a celebrated textile artist, and Maxime Comtois, an ice hockey player.

Other famous residents are Elizabeth Hosking, an Olympic snowboarder, and Jon Lajoie, a comedian. The city has also produced professional athletes like Anthony Mantha, who plays for the Pittsburgh Penguins, and Abraham Toro, a Major League Baseball player for the Boston Red Sox. Additionally, actors, painters, and soccer players such as Émilien Néron, Judith Sainte-Marie, Lysianne Proulx, Nathan Saliba, and graphic novelist Zviane all hail from Longueuil.