Canadian firm Menkès Shooner Dagenais LeTourneux Architectes has rehabilitated a planetarium in Montreal into an incubator for entrepreneurship and technology, and retaining its viewing area.

The Dow Planetarium in Montreal was converted into a building for Centech, a non-profit incubator to support technology and entrepreneurship. The structure was built 45 years ago, but closed in October 2011 and was left abandoned.

Local firm Menkès Shooner Dagenais LeTourneux Architectes overhauled the planetarium, converting it to be occupied by Centech – which was founded by the École de Technologie Supérieure (ÉTS), a branch of the Université du Québec.

The building is located in Montreal's Griffintown, in the Quartier de l'Innovation, and spans 2,000 square metres. It features a winged layout, with a dome at the entrance and centre of the structure.
The adaptive-reuse project involved leaving the original planetarium space intact and functional. The stark white marble slab overhead is still used as a projection screen for observing the cosmic movements of stars, planets, and other celestial objects.

The space below the domed ceiling now features an updated lounge, with dark grey flooring and red furniture, which also serves as a meeting and work area.

The rest of the plan is designed around the volume below – a circular structure wrapped with curved glass walls, and surrounded by a glass railing on its upper level....