Brossard ( , , ) is a municipality in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada and is part of the Greater Montreal area. According to the 2021 census, Brossard's population was 91,525.Census Profile, 2021 Census – Brossard, Ville Census subdivision, Quebec and Brossard, Ville Census subdivision, Quebec It shares powers with the urban agglomeration of Longueuil and was a borough of the municipality of Longueuil from 2002 to 2006.
According to the website of the city of Brossard, the municipality was named in honour of the Brossard family (the surname derives from a word meaning "brushwood"), a prominent settler family of the area whose presence was first attested in 1766. A member of this family, Georges-Henri Brossard, had been mayor of the predecessor parish municipality of La Prairie-de-la-Madeleine since 1944 and became the first mayor of Brossard.
Other names that were considered included Maisonneuve (which was also considered as a possible name for the Champlain Bridge), La Vérendrye, Marquetteville, or Forgetville. The latter name, in honour of the recently deceased Mgr. Anastase Forget, bishop of Saint-Jean; however, Premier Maurice Duplessis intervened, to avoid the connotations of the English word "forget," and the name Brossard was ultimately chosen.
History
The city of Brossard was founded on February 14, 1958, and was before part of La Prairie-de-la-Madeleine Parish. Its first mayor was Georges-Henri Brossard. At the very beginning, there were 3,400 inhabitants.
The city has some homes dating from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, particularly along Prairies Road.
On August 8, 1964, a portion of land from Greenfield Park was added to Brossard. Furthermore, Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Cœur was annexed to Brossard on March 25, 1978, becoming the "A" section to form the current city.
In the 1970s, an attempt was made by René Désourdy to construct a cemetery in Brossard. The attempt failed due to the water table being too high in most of the city, and as of 2026 Brossard has no cemetery.
Brossard was forcibly merged into the city of Longueuil on January 1, 2002, as a result of municipal reorganization in Quebec. and a demerger movement was started by Pierre Senécal, Jacques St-Amant and Gilles Larin which resulted in a municipal referendum, the largest demerger vote in Québec, that took place on June 20, 2004. 38.70% of the 50,539 qualified voters voted YES for demerger, which met the requirements (35% or more of total voting population) needed for de-amalgamation. As a result, Brossard would continue to be a borough of the city of Longueuil only until the end of 2005.
On January 1, 2006, Brossard was reconstituted as a city and Jean-Marc Pelletier was elected as the new mayor. However, Brossard still remains part of the urban agglomeration of Longueuil and thus, Brossard sits on the agglomeration council which determines certain powers of reconstituted cities.
On November 11, 2017, Doreen Assad was elected mayor of Brossard, the first woman of Egyptian descent to hold such position in Canada.
Geography
Brossard is surrounded by four municipalities on the South Shore of Montreal: Saint-Lambert, Longueuil (Borough of Greenfield Park and Borough of Saint-Hubert), Carignan and La Prairie. Brossard is situated on the Saint Lawrence River to the west and by the Saint-Jacques River to the south. (see Geographic location section below)
Many parks are scattered throughout the city of Brossard, including Parc écologique des Sansonnets. The parks are connected to the other areas of the city by about 37 km (23 miles) of biking paths.My Spring, My City – Ville de Brossard The city also has a municipal library building connected to its city hall building via an indoor passageway.
Brossard is subdivided into many smaller sections. These sections are characterized by having street names that all begin with the same letter of the alphabet. The only notable exceptions are few major arteries (such as Taschereau Boulevard and Rome Boulevard) that span across two or more sections. The lettered sectors were created under a 1960s planning and zoning scheme, pursuant to a guiding plan established by the engineering firm of Beauchemin, Beaton et Lapointe, and had the goal of easier wayfinding in the absence of a right-angled street grid. Some of the sectors correspond to former neighbourhoods or municipalities, as follows:
Sector Original name A Saint-Alphonse, Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Cœur B Vanier, Southgate I Parc Industriel M Aster, Asterville O, R, S Brosseau-Station P, V Marie-Victorin, Parkland T Champlain
Some constructions in the "A" and "R" sections of Brossard are older than the city itself because they were built in the former communities of Notre-Dame-du-Sacré Coeur and Brosseau Station, respectively. The "M" and "V" sections are the first neighbourhoods built after the inauguration of Brossard in 1958.
Two sparsely inhabited parts of Brossard, containing no streets other than main arteries and industrial roads, are arbitrarily called the "X" and "Y" sections.
Climate
Demographics
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Brossard had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Language Mother tongue Mother tongue languages Statistics for the population according to mother tongue (the first language learned and still remembered) vary significantly from the statistics for home language (the language spoken most often at home), as well as also varying significantly from the statistics for official language usage.
Mother Tongue (2021) Population Percentage French 35,285 39.0% English 10,545 11.7% English and French 1,915 2.1% French and a non-official language 1,730 1.9% English and a non-official language 1,490 1.6% English, French and a non-official language 1,045 1.2% Mandarin 6,530 7.2% Spanish 5,090 5.6% Arabic 4,855 5.4% Yue 4,785 5.3% Dari 1,660 1.8% Vietnamese 1,520 1.7% Romanian 1,240 1.4% Iranian Persian 1,045 1.2% Greek 1,015 1.1% Portuguese 1,000 1.1% Russian 935 1.0% Italian 625 0.7% Morisyen 545 0.6% Urdu 530 0.6% Bengali 430 0.5% Bulgarian 385 0.4% Haitian Creole 370 0.4% Korean 370 0.4% Punjabi 345 0.4% Tagalog 345 0.4%
Canada Census Mother Tongue – Brossard, Quebec+Mother tongue language Census Total Year Responses Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % 35,285 5.6% 39.0% 10,545 6.9% 11.7% 1,915 53.2% 2.1% 38,160 14.9% 42.2% 37,385 0.1% 44.3% 9,865 4.3% 11.7% 1,250 10.1% 1.5% 33,215 15.9% 39.3% 37,340 5.2% 47.4% 9,460 6.5% 12.0% 1,135 97.4% 1.4% 28,665 17.5% 36.4% 35,510 2.0% 50.2% 8,885 1.1% 12.6% 575 20.0% 0.8% 24,385 26.6% 34.5% 36,235 1% 56.0% 8,985 6.6% 13.7% 690 23.1% 1.1% 17,890 2.2% 27.7% 36,615 n/a 55.5% 9,575 n/a 14.5% 850 n/a 1.3% 17,505 n/a 26.6%
Spoken at home Aside from French, a variety of other languages are spoken in Brossard on a daily basis, as according to the 2021 census. The prominent languages spoken primarily at home and their relative share are French (43%), English (18%), Mandarin (6%), Yue (4%), Spanish (4%) and Arabic (3%).
Ethnicity Brossard is among the most multicultural municipalities in Greater Montreal, as there are 30 ethnic groups that represent at least 1% of the population. According to the 2021 census the prominent ethnic groups and their relative share are Chinese (16%), French (14%), Canadian (13%). Québécois (5%) and Irish (4%) + Panethnic groups in the City of Brossard (2001–2021)Panethnic group20212016201120062001 European 43,850 47,575 48,310 46,255 46,580 East Asian 15,095 12,345 10,195 8,255 6,600 Middle Eastern 9,750 7,080 5,715 4,245 2,340 African 5,760 4,360 3,335 2,445 2,615 Latin American 4,615 3,600 2,475 2,145 1,320 South Asian 4,440 3,910 3,420 3,805 2,590 Southeast Asian 3,305 3,190 3,575 2,755 1,985 Other/multiracial 1,880 1,560 1,460 645 425 Indigenous 465 370 310 185 195 Total responses 89,140 84,000 78,785 70,740 64,655 Total population 91,525 85,721 79,273 71,154 65,026 + Major ethnic groups in the City of Brossard (2021 census)Chinese15.8%French13.5%Canadian12.7%Québécois4.7%Irish3.8%Italian3.6%French Canadian3.4%Arab2.9%Vietnamese2.6%Indian2.5%English2.1%Scottish2.1%Greek2.1%Afghan1.9%Spanish1.8%Haitian1.8%Moroccan1.8%Romanian1.7%Lebanese1.6%Colombian1.6%Iranian1.5%German1.5%Portuguese1.4%Egyptian1.4%African1.3%Russian1.3%Pakistani1.2%Algerian1.1%Polish1.1%Filipino1.0%
Housing Brossard is a mainly residential suburb with a moderate diversity of structural styles. The most popular styles of housing are semi-detached houses which represent 44% of private dwellings and apartment buildings with fewer than five storeys which represent 31% of private dwellings.
Economy Brossard is the commercial hub of the south shore, most businesses located along Taschereau Boulevard, inside Champlain Mall and Place Portobello or at the lifestyle centre, Quartier DIX30. A particular segment of Taschereau Boulevard near La Prairie and the Saint-Jacques River is home to a large concentration of car dealerships offering most available makes and models.
Arts and culture Brossard has a cultural scene influenced by its population. The city hosts cultural events, including music festivals, art exhibitions, and theater performances. Brossard's cultural facilities include museums, galleries, and historical sites.
Brossard is home of many festivities: New Year's Get-Together with Municipal Officers (January) Fest-Hiver (February) Gala de l'action bénévole (May) Journée de l'animal de compagnie (May) Journée nationale du sport et de l'activité physique (May) Fête nationale (June) Fête du voisinage (June) L'OSM dans les parcs (July) Demi-Marathon Sun Life de Brossard (August) Festin culturel (August) Jour de l'arbre (August) Perform'ART (September) La Grande marche de Brossard (October) Marché de Noël de Brossard (November) La Grande Guignolée des médias de la Rive-Sud (December) Saute à l'eau! (December)
Sports Soccer L'association de soccer de Brossard has been given exclusive authority from the City of Brossard to organize recreational and competitive soccer primarily for youth (ages 4 to 18). Programs are also offered for adults. The Association is affiliated with FIFA via the Canadian and Quebec Provincial soccer federations.
The sport is amongst the most popular in the city given it is quite accessible (i.e. very little equipment required) and the continued increase in popularity of the sport in North America. Consequently, there are more than 2,500 annual registrations of which approximately one third are for the winter season and the rest for the summer season. The summer program is run on the various soccer fields in the city. The winter program is held indoors, at the CN Sports Complex and at various gyms in the schools within the city boundaries. Notorious footballers from Brossard includes former Canadian national team player Patrice Bernier and ex bundesliga striker Olivier Occean.
The Association also hosts the Brossard Challenge tournament during the first weekend in August every year. The tournament attracts teams from all areas of the province of Quebec. There are also teams from outside Quebec, mainly Ontario.
Ice Hockey The CN Sports Complex is a multipurpose sports facility located in Brossard that contains two ice hockey rinks and one indoor soccer pitch. It is used as the official practice facility of the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadiens.
Brossard is home to the Brossard Mustangs and the Brossard Flames in the Ligue de Hockey Junior A Rive-Sud.
Figure Skating Figure skating in Brossard is very popular amongst children of all ages. The Brossard Figure Skating Club (Brossard FSC) is the only organization to provide figure skating lessons in accordance with Skate Canada's standards in the city of Brossard.