In 1975, Mail Saint-Roch still attracted shoppers, as we can see in this photograph. Over the years, the Saint-Roch district’s reputation continued to deteriorate. The mall turned into a place for loitering. This led to a change of name: the Mail Saint-Roch became the Mail Centre-Ville, in 1980, to enhance its image.

1974 - 2012

Decline and revitalization of the downtown Saint-Roch district

The Saint-Roch district in downtown Québec City faced the same destiny as many other North American urban centres. At the end of the 1960s, the commercial artery in the Saint-Roch district gradually emptied as new shopping centres sprung up in the suburbs. To counter the decline of this downtown area, an open-air mall, the Mail Saint-Roch, was inaugurated in 1968 on Saint-Joseph Street. In 1974, more than a kilometre of the mall was covered with a roof. However, popular preference for suburban shopping soon made the area obsolete. In the 1990s and 2000s, a new effort of innovative architectural and social initiatives was made to revitalize this neglected downtown area.

The Mail Saint-Roch shopping centre’s main section

Auteur inconnu In 1975, Mail Saint-Roch still attracted shoppers, as we can see in this photograph. Over the years, the Saint-Roch district’s reputation continued to deteriorate. The mall turned into a place for loitering. This led to a change of name: the Mail Saint-Roch became the Mail Centre-Ville, in 1980, to enhance its image.

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Depicted period: 1975

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