Granby to become part of Estrie as early as 2019

For years now, the Haute-yamaska regional county municipality (MRC) has been sitting on the fence between two administrative regions: Estrie and Montérégie. Haute-yamaska’s prefect, Paul Sarrazin, indicated earlier this year his desire to merge his MRC into Estrie. That idea might become a reality as early as 2019 thanks to Granby MNA François Bonnardel.

Bonnardel, who is also Quebec’s Minister for Transport, recently expressed that he wants the Estrie region's expansion to quickly become a reality, starting with Haute-yamaska.

Haute-yamaska, which includes eight municipalities such as Granby and Shefford, already has ties to Estrie through its health, transportation, and tourism sectors. According to Sarrazin, the municipalities have had to rely on ministerial budgets tied to Montérégie.

“We have had to sit in Montérégie, but we have not been able to participate in discussions about transportation, tourism, and health, because these budgets are allotted by departments in Estrie,” explained Sarrazin to French newspaper La Tribune this summer.

Granby Mayor Pascale Bonin agreed, explaining that it created an imbalance for the MRC. Moreover, after the CIUSSS de l’estrie-chus merged the Granby region into Estrie, many organizations had to cover a larger territory without extra resources.

In an interview with La Tribune, Bonnardel indicated that “Granby is ready,” and that they simply need to get through bureaucratic intricacies. Bromemissisquoi might also join the transition from Montérégie to Estrie. “Even if Brome-missisquoi decides not to follow, it won’t stop Haute-yamaska. However, Estrie would be much stronger with the two MRCS,” he added.

According to Bonnardel, Andrée Laforest, Quebec’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, is aware of the case and that the process should run smoothly. “We are all ready,” he said. “We have felt more like Estrie residents than Montérégie residents for a very long time now.”