Parc Gérald-Leblanc Park

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Consultation has concluded

The late Gérald Leblanc is a well-known and recognized Acadian poet and writer, who placed Moncton and its local dialect chiac (an eclectic mix of French and English) as the central elements of his work. Prior to his passing in 2005, he was a familiar face in downtown, encouraging impromptu artistic and philosophical discussions in cafés, etc. He was also a songwriter for legendary Acadian artists 1755 and Marie-Jo Thério.

In 2016, two Université de Moncton professors (Benoît Doyon-Gosselin and Raoul Boudreau) proposed that a prominent space in downtown be name to honour Gérald Leblanc’s literary legacy. The green space at City Hall was deemed the ideal location (with the family’s blessing); in the 2019 budget, City Council approved Capital Works funding to move forward with renovating the space.

Public feedback is requested, in order to design a beautiful and functional area, considering the following:

  • The space chosen for this project is an ideal area in downtown;
  • It is a popular location for downtown workers and residents to gather – understanding how people use and feel about it is essential to designing an inviting (and useful!) space.
  • It is important to honour Gérald Leblanc and his work appropriately in the design.
  • The space was also envisioned in 2014 to be an extension of the Downing Place redevelopment, to further connect Main Street to the Petitcodiac River.

The late Gérald Leblanc is a well-known and recognized Acadian poet and writer, who placed Moncton and its local dialect chiac (an eclectic mix of French and English) as the central elements of his work. Prior to his passing in 2005, he was a familiar face in downtown, encouraging impromptu artistic and philosophical discussions in cafés, etc. He was also a songwriter for legendary Acadian artists 1755 and Marie-Jo Thério.

In 2016, two Université de Moncton professors (Benoît Doyon-Gosselin and Raoul Boudreau) proposed that a prominent space in downtown be name to honour Gérald Leblanc’s literary legacy. The green space at City Hall was deemed the ideal location (with the family’s blessing); in the 2019 budget, City Council approved Capital Works funding to move forward with renovating the space.

Public feedback is requested, in order to design a beautiful and functional area, considering the following:

  • The space chosen for this project is an ideal area in downtown;
  • It is a popular location for downtown workers and residents to gather – understanding how people use and feel about it is essential to designing an inviting (and useful!) space.
  • It is important to honour Gérald Leblanc and his work appropriately in the design.
  • The space was also envisioned in 2014 to be an extension of the Downing Place redevelopment, to further connect Main Street to the Petitcodiac River.
Consultation has concluded

This space is available to those who wish to ask specific questions about the project. 

Submissions will be moderated, and responded to either publicly or privately. 


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    Kindly, I’m not familiar with Mr. LeBlanc’s work. I’m guessing most Monctonians are not. To me, it seems to be more appropriate to honour him on or near the U de M. For a relatively unknown person this seems like an extremely high-profile location for him to be remembered. This upgrade to the City Hall area seems like digging up something nice to replace it with something else that I assume will be nice also. We are not rich and I think it would be best to leave the City Hall space alone. Furthermore, it’s very nice to have a greens pace in downtown MONCTON. Let’s not dig it up.

    Murray asked about 3 years ago

    Hello, 

    Thank you for sharing your thoughts. This project was completed and officially opened in August 2020, following several years of discussion and planning with residents and City Council (details of which can be found on this site).

    For clarification, the rationale for recognizing Mr. Leblanc in this space was precisely because downtown Moncton was his 'muse', so to speak, in much of his literary work, and he was a very familiar character in the neighbourhood until his passing. His family, friends and colleagues very much approve of this project. 

    Riverfront Park is an excellent location to visit!

    Regards,
    Nicole