The district, called the Quays or Maritime Quarter, was known for its wholesale shops, fruit and vegetable auctions and market halls.

Next to the Citroën garage is the Kaaitheater, a theatre built in Art Deco and modernist styles that was known as the Lunatheater in the early 1930s.

The Square Sainctelette has a mixture of residential and office buildings, with culture represented by the Kaaitheater and Citroën garage, which has been converted into the KANAL - Centre Pompidou museum of modern and contemporary art.

[2] At the beginning of 2022, an application was made to transform the square into a contiguous space with the Place de l'Yser.

[3] On 16 October 2023, an intersection and building just off the square were the scene of a terrorist attack in which two Swedish football supporters were killed by a gunman and a third injured.