Chinatown community says city has scrubbed plans for public toilet
Members of the city’s Chinese community said Sunday the city has flushed its plan to install a public toilet in the pagoda in Sun-Yat-Sen Park at La Gauchetière and Clark Sts.
Bryant Chang, vice-president of the Chinese Association of Montreal, said community members learned on Thursday from workers who were dismantling the work site that the toilet would not be installed after all.
“The project has been terminated but with no official confirmation,” he said.
Six weeks ago, community members held a press conference in the park to denounce the plan to install a self-cleaning toilet in the pagoda’s electrical room, describing it as a sign of disrespect toward the community and to the park’s namesake, Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925), the founding father of the Republic of China.
They also criticized the city for not consulting the community beforehand. The city, however, claimed that officials had met with community members.
On May 15, Mayor Valérie Plante said she would meet with the Chinatown community and if members remained opposed, she would cancel the toilet.
“If there’s no consensus, we’re not going to impose it,” she said at the time.
Chang said despite that promise, the city did not contact the community and no meeting was held. However, he said the work site has been dismantled and local organizations have obtained a permit to hold a Fête nationale celebration in the park next Saturday, which would not have been possible if the work had continued.
He added that the Chinese community was forced to cancel its annual Ancestral Ceremony, usually held in the second week of June, because workers had fenced off part of the park to install the toilet.
But Chang said now that the park has been cleaned up and returned to its original state, the Ancestral Ceremony has been rescheduled for July 15.
Chang said community members are happy the toilet plan seems to have been scrapped, but would have appreciated being informed directly and would have liked an opportunity to meet with the mayor and St-Jacques city councillor Robert Beaudry.
Plante’s spokesperson, Geneviève Jutras, said no one from the administration was available to comment, but noted that Plante said last month the city would not install the toilet if the community was opposed.
Last year, the Ville-Marie borough approved a $3.1-million, three-year contract to install 12 self-cleaning public toilets downtown and in Old Montreal, and $561,538 in preparatory work for the first three toilets.
Five weeks ago, the borough inaugurated the first two selfcleaning toilets at Papineau métro station and Place Émilie Gamelin. A third one is planned at la Commune St. E. and St- Gabriel St. in Old Montreal.
In April, the Ville‐Marie borough approved a $263,000 contract for preparatory work for the toilet in Sun-Yat-Sen Park.