Incumbent Brownstein to run again in Côte-St-Luc

Competition may come from previous pro-merger mayor Robert Libman

Côte-St-Luc Mayor Mitchell Brownstein announced Friday morning during a news conference he will be running again for mayor in the municipal election in November.

Last year, the former Côte-St-Luc councilman won unopposed, but could face more opposition this year. Former mayor of Côte-St-Luc Robert Libman said he is considering a return to municipal politics.

Libman, who became mayor in 1998, left municipal politics in 2005 after the demerger from the megacity of Montreal. He had a stint in federal politics from 2014 to 2015.

Originally opposed to the forced merger, Libman became a member of mayor Gérald Tremblay’s new megacity executive committee. Libman angered many of his constituents when he campaigned in favour of the merged city during the June 2004 referendum on demergers.

When asked about the possibility of Libman returning to municipal politics, Brownstein was surprised he would consider it, calling him the “enemy of Côte-St-Luc.”

“No one on council wants him, not one of the councillors, the association of suburban mayors are surely not going to want that guy sitting around the table with them ... all those cities who demerged. The community doesn’t want somebody who turned their back on them,” Brownstein said.

“If someone was to run against me, Robert Libman is the least (threatening).”

Libman said Côte-St-Luc needs stronger leadership, citing the city has the second-highest tax rate in Montreal.

“Seems that they’re scared of the possibility of me running,” he said of Brownstein’s news conference, “otherwise, they wouldn’t have gone to this extent.”