Glen site

The Glen site (French: Site Glen) is the flagship hospital campus of the McGill University Health Centre (Centre universitaire de santé McGill, CUSM), a bilingual academic health centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Located at 1001 boulevard Décarie in the Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough, the campus opened in 2015 and consolidated several historic MUHC institutions under one roof: the Royal Victoria Hospital, the Montreal Children's Hospital, the Montreal Chest Institute and the Cedars Cancer Centre. It also integrates the Research Institute of the MUHC directly into the campus, alongside teaching and specialized care missions. The Glen site was built between 2010 and 2015 as a public-private partnership (PPP) at a final investment of approximately CAD 1.343 billion, part of a broader MUHC redevelopment envelope of about CAD 2.819 billion. The land, a former Canadian Pacific Railway passenger yard known as the Glen yards, was acquired by the Quebec government through the Corporation d'hébergement du Québec and closed as a rail yard in 2004. The new complex provides roughly 500 inpatient beds, mostly single rooms, and about twenty operating rooms, making it one of the largest integrated adult and pediatric care centres in Quebec. It is adjacent to the Shriners Hospital for Children – Canada and is directly connected by tunnel to the Vendôme intermodal station (metro orange line and commuter rail). The campus is organized around a digital wayfinding system and offers a wide range of patient services, including Indigenous patient services, spiritual care, food services, medical records access and parking. It became one of the first Quebec hospitals to earn LEED Gold certification in 2016. During the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020, the Glen site served as a major hospital hub for the Montreal region, hosting screening and mass vaccination clinics. The site remains a subject of public debate regarding its size, internal travel distances and PPP management model, and it continues to be a key pillar of the MUHC's clinical, teaching and research activities.

The Glen site occupies land that was historically the Glen yards, a Canadian Pacific Railway passenger rail yard that opened in 1906. It was one of only three facilities in Canada reserved exclusively for passenger trains, serving CPR and pooled CNR trains as well as connections with several American railways to cities such as Boston and New York. Traffic increased after the closure of Viger Station in 1951, and an additional yard, Glen Extension, was built further west in 1954 to reduce congestion. The Glen continued to serve intercity trains and later commuter trains operated by VIA Rail and, from the second half of the 1990s, by the regional transport authority. In 1998, the Quebec government approved the purchase of the former Glen yards and acquired them in 2001 through the Corporation d'hébergement du Québec. The yard was finally closed on October 8, 2004, and the 43-acre site was reserved for the McGill University Health Centre to build a new hospital. In 2004, relocating AMT facilities to Sortin station in Saint-Pierre cost CAD 5.6 million. Decontamination of the 186,000 m² site began in 2005. The new hospital plans were produced by architects Groupe IBI, HDR Architecture, Yelle Maillé Architectes Associés and NFOE et associés architectes. Construction of the Glen site was carried out as a public-private partnership, representing a final investment of approximately CAD 1.343 billion, a little more than half of the Quebec government's envelope for an MUHC redevelopment project valued at CAD 2.819 billion. The Research Institute of the MUHC received a CAD 100 million grant for the construction of research facilities on the Glen campus, plus CAD 100 million from the Quebec government and CAD 50 million from donors. In 2009, the MUHC and the City of Montreal began roadwork around the Glen campus. In April 2010, three weeks after selecting the SNC-Lavalin and Innisfree consortium to build its mega-hospital on the Glen site, the MUHC announced that construction would begin in June 2010. In 2015, three hospitals moved together into the new facility: the Royal Victoria Hospital, the Montreal Children's Hospital and the Montreal Chest Institute. The Cedars Cancer Centre also relocated to the site. Shortly after opening, in 2016, the complex became one of the first Quebec hospitals to be certified LEED Gold. At the same time, staff and users adapted to the site, not without criticism: the size of the site, long internal travel distances and certain constraints related to the public-private partnership model fueled ongoing debate about the design and management of the facility. Between 2016 and the eve of the COVID-19 pandemic, the MUHC optimized the use of the Glen site. Overflow units were opened to respond to pressure on the adult emergency department, internal logistics were adjusted, and the clinical advantages of the new environment were highlighted, notably the widespread use of single rooms, which contributed to a reduction in nosocomial infections. From 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic redefined the role of the Glen site, which became one of the major hospital hubs for managing patients with the virus in the Montreal region. The complex was rapidly reconfigured: separate circuits, dedicated COVID sectors, reorganization of operating rooms and critical care units. A screening clinic was installed and later a major vaccination clinic that administered hundreds of thousands of doses to health workers and the public. In terms of physical accessibility, an important step was taken with the opening of the new entrance building and intermodal tunnel at Vendôme station, directly linking the metro, commuter trains and the hospital entrance. At the same time, certain legal and financial disputes inherited from the construction phase, notably with SNC-Lavalin, were gradually settled after an amicable agreement of CAD 108 million. In July 2024, a major water main break occurred on the site, causing disruptions. The Glen site continues to serve as the central campus of the MUHC, integrating care, teaching and research.

• 2024

  Major water main break occurs in July, causing disruptions.

• 2020

  COVID-19 pandemic redefines Glen site as a major hospital hub; screening and vaccination clinics installed.

• 2016

  Glen site becomes one of the first Quebec hospitals certified LEED Gold.

• 2015

  Royal Victoria Hospital, Montreal Children's Hospital and Montreal Chest Institute move into the new facility.

• 2010

  Construction begins in June after SNC-Lavalin/Innisfree consortium selected.

• 2009

  MUHC and City of Montreal begin roadwork around Glen campus.

• 2005

  Decontamination of the 186,000 m² site begins.

• 2004

  Glen yard closes on October 8; 43-acre site reserved for MUHC.

• 2001

  Quebec government acquires the land through Corporation d'hébergement du Québec.

• 1998

  Quebec government approves purchase of former Glen yards.

• 1954

  Glen Extension yard built to reduce congestion.

• 1951

  Traffic increases after closure of Viger Station.

• 1906

  Glen yards passenger rail yard opens, serving Canadian Pacific Railway.

Bilingual academic super-hospital and integrated health campus of the McGill University Health Centre, combining specialized and subspecialized care, teaching and research.

• Royal Victoria Hospital

  Adult tertiary and quaternary care hospital relocated to the Glen site in 2015.

• Montreal Children's Hospital

  Pediatric hospital relocated to the Glen site in 2015.

• Montreal Chest Institute

  Respiratory care and research institute relocated to the Glen site in 2015.

• Cedars Cancer Centre

  Comprehensive cancer centre relocated to the Glen site.

• Research Institute of the MUHC

  Research facilities integrated into the Glen campus.

1. 1Centre universitaire de santé McGillcusm.ca
2. 2Journée nationale de la vérité et de la réconciliation | Centre universitaire de santé McGillcusm.ca
3. 3Patients autochtones | Centre universitaire de santé McGillcusm.ca
4. 4Aide spirituelle | Centre universitaire de santé McGillcusm.ca
5. 5Glen site - Wikidatawikidata.org
6. 6Site Glen (CUSM) - Wikipédiafr.wikipedia.org