BIKE PATH IRKS RESTAURATEUR
No consultation by city, he fumes
For Franco De Lauri of Elio, a third-generation Italian restaurant in Rosemont–la Petite-patrie, it’s about respect.
“Overnight and without consultation,” the existing bicycle path in front of his Bellechasse St. establishment was widened this month and a bike path installed on the other side of the street, where parking was eliminated. Most of Bellechasse, which used to be twoway, is now one-way.
“It seems the least they can do is say, ‘We have a project coming up. What do you think?’ ” said De Lauri, 57. “It’s about respect.”
Elio’s, founded in 1964 by his father and grandfather, “was built on families and receiving groups,” he said. “A lot of occasions are celebrated here. That’s what Elio’s is all about — and to not be consulted, at least with a letter, is disrespectful. It’s not the way to do things.”
De Lauri said other merchants in his neighbourhood are also upset. He has had complaints from the drivers with food delivery services and also “from the older generation: If they can’t park, they won’t come,” he said.
The work on Bellechasse is part of the Réseau Express Vélo (REV ) network of bike routes, announced by Mayor Valérie Plante in May 2019, and started this month. It will eventually be made up of 184 kilometres of wide, protected bike routes along 17 axes criss-crossing the island. They will make cycling safer — and reduce parking spaces and vehicle lanes, in some cases drastically.
Elio’s has always shared its success by giving back to the community — providing uniforms for hockey teams, for instance, and, recently, meals to front-line workers at Santa Cabrini Hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic, De Lauri said.
Like the rest of the industry, Elio’s was profoundly affected by the pandemic: the dining room was closed and reservations cancelled for functions in its two reception halls. Only pickup and delivery was available. This week the restaurant reopened its dining room and terrasse to customers, at reduced capacity as everyone adjusts to social distancing measures.
“I want to make sure that everybody is safe — certainly my staff. We’re all in this together,” he said.
When the place is fully staffed, Elio’s employs 42 people, 27 of them full-time.
“They pay taxes. They have mortgages, cars. I don’t think the mayor takes that into consideration. It’s as if businesses in Montreal are secondary to her overall political agenda.”
In April, Plante announced that, to promote social distancing, the city would add “health corridors” in several boroughs, widening sidewalks by closing off an adjacent section of road.
On May 15, she said 327 kilometres on city streets would be reserved for the summer for pedestrians, cyclists and terrasses. This “safe active transportation circuit” provided for the closing of sections of some thoroughfares to motorized traffic and increased pedestrian and cyclist access. Hundreds of parking spots disappeared.
On May 20, the Montreal ombudsman’s office sent the city a “notice of concern” about the circuit, citing several principles to be observed. Among them: that the new lanes be universally accessible; that alternate parking be provided; that concerned citizens and merchants be consulted.
The work went ahead anyway. On June 5, the ombudsman announced that it would investigate the circuit, having received a number of complaints from citizens.
Francesco Miele, deputy chief of the official opposition, Ensemble Montréal, said that seniors and people with reduced mobility had been “completely forgotten” by the administration, that Montrealers were not consulted about the circuit and that the pandemic was being used as a pretext by Projet
Montréal “in its ideological war against cars.”
There has been some pushback. A plan to close a section of St-laurent Blvd. in Little Italy to cars was walked back in late May because of opposition from local businesses.
Earlier this month, the Plante administration agreed to remove a pedestrian corridor from one side of Rachel St. after Rosemont merchants demonstrated, complaining that it was barely used, had eliminated parking spots and was affecting business.
A petition by St-denis St. merchants spearheaded by Maisonnette bistro owner Vianney De Godbout-Lescouzères demanded that work set to begin in July on the St-denis St. portion of the REV network be delayed until autumn so restaurateurs could set up terrasses: For many, a terrasse doubles their space — and social distancing requirements have put space at a premium. The petition garnered more than 1,400 signatures and Plateau Mont-royal borough mayor Luc Rabouin agreed on June 21 to postpone the work.