A luxury building boom is transforming Montreal

New York

ALONG the main shopping street in the area of downtown Montreal known as the Golden Square Mile, Sonya Szczygiel and her husband, John Guinto, have sold beaded bracelets made of semiprecious stones for the last five years.

From their kiosk on Saint Catherine Street, near Montreal's downtown Apple Store, the pair have had front row seats for a transformation playing out in the neighbourhood and throughout Montreal.