Empress to rise from ruin?
Radio-Canada has an audio report about how the new Ensemble administration of Côte‑des‑Neiges‑NDG has big plans for the Empress Theatre.
Filed under “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
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DeWolf 12:43 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
This seems to be exactly the same plan launched by the previous PM administration in 2024.
maggie rose 13:06 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Sorry, as a very long-term resident of NDG, all I can say is lol. With rainbows & unicorns thrown in for good measure.
Mark Côté 13:58 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Frustration and disappointment at that building sitting there and slowly rotting is probably the single biggest shared sentiment amongst all NDGers.
Kevin 16:45 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Mark
I’ve lived in NDG for most of my adult life, and I don’t know anyone under the age of 55 who remembers being inside the Empress.
I’d say most people I know who live in this neighbourhood haven’t even heard the name and just think of it as the empty building across from a park, if they think of it at all.
jeather 19:21 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
That was the movie theatre I first went to without an adult dropping me off. If I am not mistaken, I saw Green Card, and we snuck in chocolate milk. I am under 55!
Taylor C. Noakes 20:51 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Another demonstration of the city’s supreme inability to be imaginative when it comes to historic preservation
They could have applied to the HSMBC 30 years ago and got federal money to fix the roof and plug any holes. They did nothing because a former mayor who worked in the real estate business convinced everyone the building was a write off and would fall apart on its own
Ian 21:25 on 2026-02-24 Permalink
Well yes, exactly. It was supposed to be earmarked as a development opportunity even as recently as when Sue Montgomery stuck her nose in where it apparently ‘didn’t belong’.
bob 03:29 on 2026-02-25 Permalink
I used to go to the Empress fairly often when it was Cinema V (no one I know had ever heard of “the Empress”). They used to do Rocky Horror regularly. It was there and the Seville, the latter which actually was allowed to decay until its roof collapsed.
Mark Côté 15:30 on 2026-02-25 Permalink
@Kevin I guess I’m just judging from Facebook groups, where many other topics (say, bike lanes/parking) are incredibly divisive. Mentions of plans for the Empress just result in a collective sigh.