Montreal Gazette

2021 couldn't be any worse ... could it?

- BILL BROWNSTEIN

The end is nigh.

We're only talking 2020. With any luck.

Can't get rid of this year from hell fast enough.

Yes, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. But it's yellow.

That means we will still have to proceed with extreme caution through 2021.

The good news: the vaccines.

The sobering news: It probably won't be until late into the third quarter of 2021 that life returns to anything remotely resembling quasi-normalcy here. And that's only if people continue to follow social distancing rules, wear masks and wash their hands till they chafe. And take the vaccines when offered, please.

The bad news: The fear that even more daunting coronaviru­s numbers could come shortly, particular­ly with the return of reckless residents who chucked caution to the wind and decided to go south for a respite. Like — shame, shame, shame — Liberal MNA Pierre Arcand caught beaching it in Barbados.

Hopefully, this time the feds will not only monitor returnees far more vigilantly at airports — unlike the situation following spring break in March — but also that these can't-happen-to-me folks are scrupulous­ly checked at home to ensure they're properly quarantini­ng.

In the short term, the return of the Habs in NHL play, Jan. 13, should lift sagging spirits that need serious lifting, even those of non-hockey fans.

In the longer term, it may still be the stuff of dreams, but the hope is that Osheaga will come back next summer as planned. And it's doubtful few will carp about decibel levels on the Parc Jean-drapeau site if it does go ahead.

Nor should many complain about decibel levels if the Canadian Grand Prix returns to Circuit Gilles-villeneuve in June.

Regardless, it might require some form of divine interventi­on for the jazz and comedy spectacles and myriad other summer-gathering staples to resume non-virtually and to bring Montreal back to its Festival City glory days.

Downtown will remain a major concern in 2021. Office buildings will stay largely vacant much of the year. Same with the universiti­es. And same with the hotels. And who knows how long restaurant­s and bars will be in lockdown?

With a dearth of office workers, students, tourists and tipplers, foot traffic will be down considerab­ly, as well.

Lest anyone forget: Municipal elections take place Nov. 7. As much as Mayor Valérie Plante had a year from Hades in 2020, with defections from her Projet Montréal team and sniping with Côte-des-neiges—notre-damede- Grâce Mayor Sue Montgomery, she ain't seen nuthin' yet. Polls have indicated that not only former supporters are beginning to bail on her, but that she also trails former mayor Denis Coderre, who has yet to commit to running.

That could soon change. Several sources say the slimmeddow­n Coderre will soon toss his hat into the mayoral ring. Many appear to have forgotten some of the surreal excesses surroundin­g the city's 375th birthday bash — although perhaps not the Formula E race clunker.

It's a good bet that Montreal merchants, particular­ly those in the downtown core, will embrace the return of Coderre.

The view is that Plante was far too late to come to the aid of beleaguere­d downtown shopkeeper­s in offering some free parking during the holiday season and postponing a few constructi­on projects.

Downtown decision-making was bungled during the pandemic. The erection of concrete barricades on Ste-catherine St. in an ill-fated attempt to turn the area into a pedestrian mall last summer was a bust. Nor did tossing in some clowns and ukuleles on the street do the trick.

Yet while the coronaviru­s has exacerbate­d woes, the situation downtown had been in increasing­ly dire straits many years prior. Merchants could barely subsist on our very own Cone-y Island prior to COVID-19.

Constant road constructi­on had already been driving many batty and away from downtown. No question, our city infrastruc­ture is in ever-crumbling mode, and roadwork must be done. Stuff like that happens in a city set to celebrate its 379th birthday. But all the constructi­on at the same time?

Really, why would anyone from Laval, the West Island or the South Shore, not to mention those living in other parts of the city, have chosen to shop downtown pre-lockdown, other than to satisfy their more masochisti­c urges?

To Plante's credit, however, she has succeeded in making the city more green during her tenure. And with the addition of many new bike corridors, Montreal could soon resemble Amsterdam — to the delight of cyclists and to the chagrin of cynical merchants and residents in town. And while her long-term goal to eliminate non-electric vehicles from the city centre is noble, it could be quite the long-shot. Hopefully, that's not the case with her plan to create more affordable housing.

Also on the plus side, the city has made up for some losses on the manufactur­ing front by attracting major players on the video-gaming and special-effects scene.

Regardless, what is seemingly lost on the mayor is that — pandemic notwithsta­nding — Montreal's status as a world-class city has been diminished. This does not mean a return to the spending orgy of the 1976 Olympics et al, but it does mean that prudent planning would go a long way toward the restoratio­n of badly-needed civic pride here and our reputation throughout the rest of the world.

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