A Complex and Strategic Project

The school was conceived as a transitional and reversible infrastructure: it must first operate as a fully functional secondary school, and later be converted into a neighborhood elementary school. This functional duality guided every design decision, in line with MEQ requirements.

A Sensitive and Well-Controlled Insertion

The site, located in a mixed urban fabric, posed significant integration challenges: it needed to coexist with the existing school (serving young adults) while preserving a distinct identity for each institution. The project successfully managed the overlap of uses and populations by ensuring separate access points and a harmonious coexistence of functions.
The school is located in a context that is both residential and commercial, bordered by major roadways. The building’s massing was carefully studied to respond to this duality of scale, establishing a strong institutional presence on the public thoroughfare while maintaining a human scale on the residential side.

A Comprehensive and Flexible Program

The new Marie-Anne Secondary School incorporates the key components expected of a modern educational facility:

18 standard classrooms

Arts classrooms

Science laboratories

Library

Cafeteria

Sports hub

All these spaces were designed and organized to facilitate a potential reconversion into an elementary school, without requiring major modifications to the building envelope or primary circulation routes.