Local business owners & City Councilor Mary Deros not happy with end result of the construction at the corner of Jean Talon and L’Acadie—situation has ended in petition & could get worse
Good intentions aside, the work done at the intersection of L’Acadie and Jean Talon has solved one problem and has perhaps created a more serious one, and at the worst possible time for local vendors and businesses.
As we previously reported, work at the intersection has created a pretty difficult time of getting in and out of Park Extension, as well as at other areas across the borough, but in the end, we had hoped that all the difficulty and discomfort would lead to something quite positive for everyone in the area. As it turns out, what occurred was exactly the opposite, essentially solving one problem and creating another one.
The initial plan
City councilor Mary Deros has been working on this for many years … essentially the work creating the possibility for eastbound cars to make protected turns left at the aforementioned intersection. This was the goal, thus creating easier access for said vehicles, but what they ended up doing was not at all what she had in mind.
In a letter addressed to Mr. Caldwell, City Councilor Mary Deros stated: “ … what I do not understand why the sidewalk was modified and the parking lot was removed on Jean Talon north side between L’Acadie and Birnam. This arrangement has not been discussed with me, nor with the services of our borough. There was already a ledge in the southeast corner as well as two voices for eastbound traffic. So the parking lot was protected without night traffic. The current layout will not help with sidewalk snow removal or a stop to easily disembark people at this location. With the University of Montreal to the south as well as the densification of secure on Beaumont there are more cars in the area. Our borough has increased the SRRR sector, therefore less space for traders. Mr. Caldwell, this development does not meet the realities of local needs …”
So it’s essentially the parking areas at the above-mentioned area that have been removed, and a whole other bunch of problems have come along with that decision.
Fallout
She started receiving complaints from merchants early, complaints she agreed with wholeheartedly. She stated: “This is a tendency of this administration—any changes they bring about, they remove parking.” She talked about how difficult it has been for businesses in the area during the pandemic and also states that she understood why work was slow in coming on the site, understandable during the era of Covid-19, but what she cannot fathom is the removal of parking. She states: “Just as we started to breathe, you’re cutting the clientele space,” speaking of the businesses perhaps doing a little better after Covid-19 and now, having to deal with this.
Local business owners take action
And in a petition addressed to the Ville De Montreal, local businesses made their sentiments known. Their letter states: “ … This is very regretful to say that Ville De Montreal has removed the parking space for these business owners bellow, we are already facing a huge business crisis and removing this parking doesn’t help our clients to come and we are receiving complaints from our clients for not finding parking. We are giving 30 days Notice to city to reinstate parking space otherwise we will sue the city. We Undersigned the concerned above …”
Many business owners (if not every single one so far at the spot) signed the petition, especially those directly affected.
I spoke to some business owners myself while scouting out the location, and they all concur, some of which signed the above mentioned petition. I spoke specifically with Lakhvir Singh, owner of Flavors of India Restaurant, the restaurant right on the corner, and he stated that there were serious parking issues already, but now they’ve been made severely worse.
When a construction job isn’t as simple as it may seem
While on-site, I spoke to a city construction worker and he stated that later that day (The 21st of September), work was to resume in late afternoon, but at deadline, we cannot clarify if this was so.
Regardless, the job almost finished, they’ve left many disappointed and frustrated people in their wake, and City Councilor Mary Deros is certainly one of them. In the end, all that remains to be seen is what happens next, but with City Councilor Deros on their side, we’re sure we haven’t heard the last of this story. We’ll keep you posted, folks.
