ALL QUIET ON THE PIERREFONDS WEST FRONT
The Office de consultation publique de Montréal released a report that calls on the city to come back with an acceptable development vision for the Pierrefonds West area. See story
Protesters opposing the development of former agricultural land in Pierrefonds West gathered at the foot of the steps fronting Pierrefonds-Roxboro borough hall Monday. They held posters depicting an image of Denis Coderre, Montreal’s incumbent mayor, holding a chainsaw Photoshopped onto an image of a lush green space.
“We will not stop,” Sauvons l’Anse-à-l’Orme spokeswoman Sue Stacho said. “This needs to be a campaign issue. We want (the land in question) to stay as natural as possible and for it to be accessible to everyone.”
Last Friday, the Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM) released its recommendations on the proposed Pierrefonds West residential development of up to 5,500 units — called CapNature. The OCPM consultations in May had attracted record attention with 272 briefs submitted and with 87 per cent of the opinions voiced on the nay side.
Vrai changement pour Montréal candidate for borough mayor and outgoing councillor Justine McIntyre said the OCPM report “accurately reflected the sentiments of the citizens — their confusion, frustration and lack of trust.”
She said public opinion about natural environments has shifted over the last decade and that the borough, as a governing body, must reflect the evolving mentality.
“People are realizing the importance of these green spaces; there are so few left,” McIntyre said.
McIntyre said that if she were elected mayor, her administration would start from zero when it came to plans for the sector.
“First, I would look into whether due process was followed 10 years ago when zoning changes were made (in the sector),” she said.
Incumbent borough mayor Jim Beis said the opinions voiced at the OCPM consultations were overwhelmingly negative, but that they did not paint the full picture.
“The 87 per cent (negative response) doesn’t represent 87 per cent of the population of Pierrefonds-Roxboro,” Beis said. “It represents 87 per cent of the people who participated in the consultations.”
Beis said the OCPM report stated that information was missing and that the process of deciding what should be done with the land should include all the players, including citizens. “The report didn’t say ‘build,’ but it also didn’t say ‘don’t build,’ ” he said. “I’m not disappointed. I am encouraged. Now we have to work on a (participatory) model that will respond to the report’s recommendations.”
Both McIntyre and Beis agreed that the priority for the region was to build a much-needed northsouth urban boulevard. “Development or no development, we need a boulevard,” Beis said.
The north-south commute in the area is a strain, with St-Charles, St-Jean and Sources boulevards slowed to a crawl most rush hours. Beis said that the environmental consultation body BAPE is supposed to weigh in on the project sometime next year.
McIntyre said another crucial piece to the Pierrefonds West puzzle is the adoption of a Special Planning Program (SPP) — an overall vision — which would need to be presented to citizens for consideration. No development plan can be approved without an SPP in place.
Adam Daifallah, spokesman for the developers, said they were disappointed by the “lack of consideration given to the very real benefits of the project, including the preservation of almost half of the land currently zoned for residential construction and the plan for affordable and social housing (30 per cent of the planned dwellings).”
In an email, he said the consultation was “taken hostage by a number of well-organized, professional opponents” and that “we are confident that the project has strong support from the local population.”