Residents doubt green space will be accessible
Green space plan for falaise St-Jacques draws support, accessibility questions
After holding consultation meetings with a dozen community groups last fall, Transport Quebec revealed its preliminary plans for a new green space along the falaise St-Jacques on Monday.
Deemed the “bande verte,” or green strip, a provincial environmental review board ordered the ministry to include the space as part of the Turcot reconstruction project in 2011.
The strip, which will have an average width of 30 metres, will serve as a buffer zone between the bottom edge of the falaise and a fence that will separate the path from CN tracks and Highway 20.
The space is meant to ensure the falaise’s protection and will include a multipurpose path for cyclists and pedestrians. It’s expected to be completed by 2020.
“We want to create a green space that people living in the area can enjoy and create a link with the falaise,” said Transport Quebec spokesperson Martin Girard.
In a small room in a St-Henri community centre Monday, residents were shown drafts of what the strip could look like and invited to visit information kiosks on different themes: the general concept, vegetation and biodiversity, wetlands and facilities.
Rachel Michie, a member of the N.D.G. Cyclists and Pedestrians Association, said she was pleased with the plans, but questioned how accessible the space will be.
“It looks nice, but it’s almost as if it’s an isolated island,” Michie said. “The problem is how to get there with your bike. There’s a problem of connectivity. They have to make it accessible.”
On the preliminary plans presented Monday, an arrow appearing to link St-Jacques St. to the planned bike path was described as a “link being studied by the city of Montreal.”
Steve Charters, of the N.D.G. Community Council, said his main concern is seeing how the space incorporates north-south connections once complete.
“That hasn’t been completely resolved yet,” Charters said, noting the importance of linking Notre-Dame-de-Grâce to the Sud- Ouest.
“That can’t be forgotten,” he said. “There are a lot of positive things shown here. But we want to make sure they go all the way and finish the job.”
Absent on Monday’s drafts was any mention of the once-promised Dalle Parc.
In 2010, Transport Quebec said the original $4-billion Turcot project would include a green bridge over Highway 20 and the CN train tracks. The concrete overpass, decorated with trees and grass, was to be reserved for cyclists and pedestrians crossing between the Lachine Canal and the new bike/ walking path.
But the bridge, which had been estimated at $40 million, was dropped from the ministry ’s plans in 2012.
Numerous environmental groups and cycling activists have since called for the idea to be revived. Several people asked for the same Monday.
Lisa Mintz, who founded Sauvons la falaise, said she’s confident it will be. Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante and the Projet Montréal administration are in favour, she said, as are thousands of Montrealers. She’s hoping the city will hold public consultation meetings on it soon.
“Everybody wants it,” Mintz said. “It’s a matter of getting people moving now.”
It looks nice, but it’s almost as if it’s an isolated island.