Martin C. Barry

Was it déjà vu? Or, perhaps more ominously, a foreshadowing of something that stands to become a lot more common in Laval in this era of global warming?

Whatever, there was an eerie sense of having seen it all before last week when officials from the Quebec government were in Laval for a public information meeting with property owners who were seriously impacted by the flooding in April.

Panel answered questions

After all, the last time this happened was in 2017 and the drill then was pretty much the same: a panel of bureaucrats facing hundreds of sometimes irate Laval residents (albeit fewer than last time) at the Château Royal.

The residents were addressed in a way they had more or less come to expect of governmental consultants and employees: responses couched in departmental codes, ciphers and technospeak, with bureaucrats replying as best they could to traumatized people who probably would have much preferred hearing plain language.

Towns and cities affected

According to a summary of the government’s post-flood plans for establishing new flood zones, 813 of the province’s municipalities are affected as new zones are set up for zero to 20-year risks as well as all sectors which suffered flooding this past year and two years ago.

For properties within these zones, there will be no possibility of constructing or reconstructing a building that has lost more than half its value, and there will be no expansion of buildings or outbuildings in such zones. Getting permission to rebuild flood-damaged properties will depend on whether the cost of reconstruction amounts to 50 per cent or more of the value of the house.

Municipalities, including the City of Laval, will be issuing renovation and construction permits within these zones based on criteria set down in new provincial legislation that was drafted taking into account the impact of past and potential future flooding.

Venting their anger

During a question period, several Laval residents from areas seriously affected by flooding this spring (including Laval-sur-le-Lac, Île Verte, Laval-Ouest, Fabreville and Sainte-Rose) expressed their disillusionment – or in some cases outrage – over the way municipal and provincial authorities have dealt with the aftermath.

Unhappy with a proposed new flood zone map the provincial government has developed, Eli Chakieh of Laval-sur-le-Lac said the chart is designed to cover the entire area. “This is inaccurate,” he said. “None of the houses in Laval-sur-le-Lac were flooded. I’ve been there for forty years and I lived through two floods before.

“You are mixing up houses with land,” he continued. “The land had flooded on the riverside. The houses never flooded. And you’re amalgamating all the problems for the houses and the land and you’re preventing the citizens of Laval-sur-le-Lac from doing improvements.”

Improvements forbidden

Chakieh said that according to the new flood-zone law, he’s being prevented from installing a new pool in his back yard because it falls under a definition of prohibited construction. Marc Mongeon, a spokesman for the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Habitation who answered most questions during the meeting, told him that the government hasn’t finished the final draft of the legislation and that there will still be time to iron out details involving those sorts of situations.

Another resident, Rose-Lise Arrelle of Chomedey, complained that the government’s proposed new flood-zone map includes her property, even though her street has never been flooded. “We deplore the fact that someone – we don’t know who – coloured the map red in such a way as to cause a lot of people concern,” she said. “This is needless anxiety that you are encouraging. The map does not correspond to our reality.”

Some officials attended

At the same time, Arrelle noted the absence of virtually all provincially-elected representatives at the meeting. (A few members of Laval city council, including Laval-Les Îles councillor Nicholas Borne, Sainte-Rose councillor Virginie Dufour and Auteuil councillor Jocelyne Frédéric-Gauthier, did attend the meeting as observers and interveners.)

Guylaine Riendeau of Fabreville complained about a shortage of information and a lack of transparency regarding the official response to the floods. Like many of the other residents, she complained of being subjected to severe flood-zone restrictions in the new chart, even though her property had never suffered flooding.

Martin C. Barry

Appreciators of fine sculpture and exquisite art will be coming from all over Quebec and other parts of eastern Canada to Laval’s historic Old Sainte-Rose neighbourhood for four days in late July to participate in the 24^th annual Sainte-Rose Art Symposium.

A real crowd pleaser

Each year, more than 25,000 attend the highly popular event, which is taking place this year from July 25-28. Many of those attending the Symposium, sponsored by the Corporation Rose-Art, will be purchasing hundreds of works produced by 90 talented artists expressing themselves in styles ranging from traditional and impressionistic to modern and abstract.

Actor is spokesperson

The Saint-Rose Art Symposium’s organizing committee was able to persuade Quebec film and TV actor Nico Racicot to be the event’s official spokesperson this year.

Born on York St. in Rosemère across the river from Sainte-Rose, he has acted in English-language TV (Degrassi: The Next Generation). However, Racicot is perhaps better known in Quebec for his role in the 2013 French-language film Louis Cyr.

In an interview with The Laval News, Racicot said he was deeply impressed by the Symposium and its beautiful setting on the edge of the Rivière des Mille Îles in northern Laval.

Inspired by the setting

“Just being here – where Marc Aurèle Fortin grew up and where he got a lot of his inspiration – to me is so inspiring and such a really nice opportunity to be here as part of the Symposium,” he said, referring to the famed Quebec landscape painter who was born in Sainte-Rose.

In addition to being an actor, Racicot is also a visual artist and some of his works will be displayed in a special location during the Symposium.

“I do mostly illustration art either with markers or on my iPad and I started painting not too long ago,” he saud. “So there will be a showcase showing where I am currently at in my creative journey.”

Skeete honourary president

Sainte-Rose MNA Christopher Skeete has agreed to serve as honourary president of the Symposium. “It is a privilege to have been chosen,” he said, noting the hard work done by Symposium volunteers. He also praised the Symposium organizers for conserving the artistic “soul” of Sainte-Rose where art continues to flourish.

Since last year’s exhibition, the organizers of the Sainte-Rose Art Symposium received a significant honour when the Laval Chamber of Commerce and Industry awarded them a 2019 Dunamis Award in recognition of Sainte-Rose Art Symposium’s successful efforts to promote tourism in the Laval region.

A draw for summer tourists

Tourism has indeed been growing by leaps and bounds in Laval over the past few years, as travellers from all over Canada and the U.S. discover hidden treasures such as the Symposium de Sainte-Rose.

As always, the Symposium will be taking place in downtown Sainte-Rose along Sainte-Rose Blvd. next to the Old Firehall (la Vieille Caserne), near the historic Sainte-Rose-de-Lima church, between Filion and Deslaurier-Hotte streets. The hours are as follows: Thurs. Jul. 25 and Friday Jul. 26, 11 am to 8 pm; Sat. July 27, 10 am to 8 pm; and Sun. Jul. 28, 10 am to 5 pm.

Special venues to view art

While most of the artists and sculptors will be exhibiting under tents, a few works created by members of the Corporation Rose-Art can be viewed at the Vieille Caserne as well as at the nearby Centre d’Art. In addition, a special room has been set aside to display the works of Nico Racicot.

The organizers have also decided once again this year to hold a special “Initiation to Painting” event for those wishing to learn how to develop a budding personal talent for painting into a serious pass-time. All the activities are free of charge.

Martin C. Barry

Where were you on July 4, 2004? For those with short memories or who are perhaps too young to remember, it was on that memorable date that Greece – playing for just the second time in a EUFA European soccer championship – defied massive odds to win the UEFA Euro 2004 Final against Portugal.

On May 31 next year, members of the 2004 European Championship “Legends” team will be coming to the Complexe sportif Claude-Robillard in Montreal to play against a Canadian all-star soccer team in an exhibition benefit match during which everybody present will be invited to “Relive the Magic.”

15^th anniversary

“We expect around 5,000 people to attend this event,” spokesperson Simon Tsalikis of TSN 690 Montreal told a gathering of supporters and media who turned up for an official announcement held at Souvlaki Bar at the Laval Centropolis on July 4 – the 15^th anniversary of Greece’s monumental victory.

“It’s something that’s hard to explain to a younger generation,” added Tsalikis, referring to the feeling that swept the global Greek community at the time. It was like a combination of the recent Toronto Raptors basketball victory along with the legendary 1972 Team Canada hockey win against the Soviet Union.

Was a proud moment

As he said, a lot of people of an older generation can remember Labelle Blvd. in Chomedey or Jean-Talon St. in Montreal’s Park Extension neighbourhood having to be shut as thousands of exultant Greeks manifested their collective pride.

According to Tsalikis, the match will be part of a series of exciting events taking place over an entire weekend. The organizers are hoping to raise $150,000 for Kik for a Cause, which is overseen by a team of Montreal professionals and business people who share a love for soccer as well as a desire to give back to the community.

The members of this not-for-profit organisation include Peter Nikiforos, Jimmy Nikolidakis, Nick Katalifos, Michael Mastronikolas, George Papadakos, Dimitri Liosi, John Limnatis and Simon Tsalikis.

Remember and celebrate

“On May 31, 2020, Kik for a Cause is inviting everybody, whether you’re Greek or it doesn’t matter what nationality or background, to see a very special group of players,” said Kik for a Cause president Peter Nikoforos.

“These are the players who won in 2004. They’re going to come to Montreal where they will be playing a group of Montrealers, Torontonians and Canadian soccer players at this charity event. We are expecting most or all of the team roster to be here.”

No winners or losers

“The game itself won’t have any meaning as far as who wins and loses,” said former Montreal Impact head coach, Canadian Soccer Hall of Famer and Laval native John Limniatis who is supporting the cause.

“This is all about bringing together two competitive teams. I’m really happy to be doing this. It’s a real honour and personally very satisfying to be doing something like this from a Canadian perspective. I hope it’s a very competitive game and that it is a great success.”

Martin C. Barry

Senior citizens with reduced autonomy living in western Laval will have 141 additional units of affordable housing to retire in beginning by the spring of 2020 with construction well underway on a ten-storey retirement residence at 3270 Saint-Elzéar Blvd. in Chomedey.

Quebec Municipal Affairs Minister Andrée Laforest joined Laval mayor Marc Demers, Sainte-Rose CAQ MNA Christopher Skeete and other guests on June 21 for a brick-laying ceremony outside the building, marking the culmination of a heartfelt community effort.

A community effort

The project, costing $27.5 million in all, is a collaboration between the Société d’habitation du Québec and les Habitations Le Repère, the community-based group that initiated and led the project.

The SHQ, through its AccèsLogis program, is paying $10.3 million, in addition to acting as guarantor for a mortgage taken out by Les Habitations Le Repère. The City of Laval contributed more than $2.8 million, although the sum will be reimbursed by the Montreal Metropolitan Community (CMM). Le Repère will be managing 3270 Saint-Elzéar once it is completed.

Meeting seniors’ needs

In an address, Mayor Demers noted that 17 per cent of the population of Laval consists of senior citizens “and their needs are growing,” he said. “We have to make affordable housing available for them throughout the city. We are very proud of this announcement today. We have some catching up to do with regards to affordable and social housing. We have to continue with the efforts.”

The Municipal Affairs Minister pointed out the importance of remembering senior citizens. “The Coalition Avenir Québec government – our government – is proud to participate financially in the realization of this housing project,” Laforest said. “Proud because we all have a duty to remember our seniors who helped us to build the Quebec we have today and they deserve some peace at this stage in their lives.”

Staying in community

Skeete said he wanted to emphasize that a partnership made it possible to undertake the project. “Thanks to Les Habitations Le Repère, people who are aging will be able to continue living in their community in Laval near other persons who are important to them,” he said. “This new building will also have the advantage of being near services while being accessible by public transit.”

Danae Savides, president of the Habitations Le Repère board of directors, said: “We are seeing, thanks to support from the community, the City of Laval, and the Société d’habitation du Québec, this dream taking shape on which we have been working a long time – to offer a roof over their heads and support services to seniors citizens. Already hundreds of persons have registered on the waiting list.” According to Savides, more than 500 people have expressed interest in coming to live at 3270 Saint-Elzéar.

An experienced builder

Gestions Ges-Cam, which is building the project, has vast experience in the construction of concrete high-rise senior citizens residences since the 1980s. In addition to building them, the company also owns and operates seniors residences with a total of around 1,000 housing units.

“We’ve built around 2,000 units since the 80s,” Charlie Migliara, president of the company, said in an interview with The Laval News. “The people we worked with on this were really amazing. We had fun meeting with them every month while working on it. The energy has been really great: everything has come together and we’ve been blessed.”

Martin C. Barry

Canadian Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan announced to a drill hall full of Canadian Armed Forces reservists on June 14 at the Royal 22^nd Regiment 4^th Battalion’s Laval headquarters that Ottawa is raising the base pay of reserve soldiers to the same level as wages earned by regular forces personnel beginning in August.

The venue for the announcement was appropriate, since the Royal 22^nd Regiment’s 4^th Battalion is a Primary Reserve infantry unit of the Canadian Forces. The 4^th Battalion is responsible for Laval and the 20-odd municipalities on the North Shore of Montreal.

Fair compensation, says minister

The Defence Minister was accompanied by several Laval and North Shore-area MPs, including Laval-Les Îles Liberal MP Fayçal El-Khoury, Vimy Liberal MP Eva Nassif, Marc-Aurèle-Fortin Liberal MP Yves Robillard, and Rivière-des-Mille-Îles Liberal MP Linda Lapointe.

“This important initiative laid out in Canada’s defence policy – Strong, Secure, Engaged – will ensure that our Reserve Force members are fairly compensated for their service,” said Sajjan. “It is a clear demonstration of how our government and all Canadians value the dedication and sacrifices of all members of our Canadian Armed Forces.”

Helped during flooding

Nassif noted the crucial role reservists have been playing in Laval and on the North Shore in recent years. This past spring, reservists helped civilians during seasonal flooding. “As a local member of the parliament for the riding of Vimy, it’s an honour to have this important reserve unit in our community,” said Nassif. “We are immensely grateful for the work our Canadian Armed Forces did in responding to our community’s emergency needs following this natural disaster.”

According to a press release issued by the Department of National Defence, the restructuring of pay is part of an overall vision outlined in the Liberal government’s defence policy, which also includes increasing the Reserve Force by 1,500 members and further integrating reservists into operations.

Were paid 15 per cent less

“The Reserve Force is crucial to the success of our Canadian Armed Forces,” says the DND. “Reservists come from all walks of life, and include students, civil servants, labourers, business people, academics, and former members of the Regular Force.”

The DND says reservists will receive more money in the new system in order to more fairly compensate them for their service. Previously, Reserve Force remuneration amounted to 85 per cent of the total regular force pay.

Regular force pay is composed of two parts: base pay and Military Factor. The Military Factor is a percentage added to the base salaries of Canadian Armed Forces members that compensates them for additional requirements that don’t affect most public servants.

Near 8 per cent pay hike

The Military Factor is calculated using three military and two additional elements. The military considerations are: personal limitation and liability, separation, and posting turbulence. The two additional elements are overtime and acting for supervisors without an increase in pay.

The department says the change of calculation from 85 percent to a base pay plus Military Factor approach will result in an increase of 7.8 percent. For example, the pay rate for a first year corporal will increase from $140 to $153 a day.

Raise effective in August

Reservists on Class A and Class B periods of service are paid on a daily rate, based on their rank and time in that rank. Reservists on Class C periods of service, such as those who deploy on operations, receive the same pay as regular force members, which is calculated at a monthly rate. Reservists will begin receiving the new rate by the end-month pay in August 2019. That rate will be retroactive to April 1, 2019.

The Military Factor elements that apply to reservists under the new system are: personal limitation and liability, overtime, and acting for supervisors. As well, according to the DND, reservists cannot be posted to a different geographic location or be sent away from their families on an operation or exercise without their personal consent. This is different from Regular Force members, who are expected to move or deploy when directed, often frequently and on short notice.

Martin C. Barry

The first annual APGA Tour golf tournament, held at the Atlantide Golf Club in Île Perrôt on June 9, raised more than $23,000 for the Hellenic Chronic Care Hospital Foundation.

Nick Liounis, vice-president of the Hellenic Chronic Care Hospital Foundation, said the foundation “could never foresee raising so much money at one event and we are truly, truly grateful for this.”

Almost Professional Golf

As cause supporter Peter Vamianakis explained to more than 60 people who spent the day on the course then sat down to a sumptuous meal that evening in the restaurant/clubhouse, APGA stands for Almost Professional Golf Association.

“We started the APGA in 2000, which was a very long time ago, but we’re not going to go into all that,” he said. “The APGA is a bunch of retired and semi-retired gentlemen who get together every Monday to play golf in a very competitive golf league.”

Having fun with the PGA

According to Vamianakis, the APGA mimics the PGA, which is the Professional Golf Association, in every way, copying their events, even their point system. But, more importantly, the APGA “takes photos of their winners with their trophies and PhotoShop our heads on them,” he added. “And we have a creative genius who does that. So we have a lot of fun with it.”

While noting that the APGA “is not real – it’s fantasy,” Vamianakis said the evening’s fundraiser “is reality bringing all you people together at this event. And at the end of the night to be able to present a nice big cheque to the Hellenic Chronic Care Hospital Foundation is something we can all be very proud of.”

Vlogiannitis on golf

Tournament director Terry Vlogiannitis, who is also the APGA Tour’s statistician and treasurer, joked that there was once a time, in his younger years playing baseball, when he didn’t consider golf to be a real sport.

When Vlogiannitis was invited out one day around four years ago by an APGA supporter to play golf with a few other guys, he discovered it was harder than he had imagined. “As a matter of fact, most of my divots were going further than the balls,” said Vlogiannitis, drawing some laughs from the golf-savvy crowd.

But then, he continued, somehow when he was close to calling it a day, one of his shots hit the sweet spot down the middle. “And believe me when I say this, I was hooked big time, and I’m not ashamed to say right now I’m addicted to the sport. It is absolutely phenomenal.”

Remembering with golf

Tournament co-founder Bill Kampouris said: “The purpose of the memorial tournament is to remember friends, teammates and loved ones that are not with us today, but we’re missing them so much. It gives us an opportunity to remember the good moments we had with them. And of course gives us an opportunity to remember and share all these beautiful golf stories that we all can tell so well and always with a little jest.

“Most importantly, it gives us an opportunity to give back to our community by donating all proceeds to philanthropic organizations,” he added. “I thank you all for being here today. I thank the organizing committee, the volunteers who made this event possible.”

Martin C. Barry

Construction got underway earlier this month on Espace Montmorency, a towering residential and commercial building complex in Laval’s downtown core that will be the city’s largest-ever mixed-use project when completed three years from now.

The modernistic $450 million urban hub is being built near Collège Montmorency, next to the University of Montreal’s Laval campus, as well as Place Bell, and will be directly connected to the Montréal region’s expanding multimodal public transit system via the Montmorency Metro station.

Three-way partnership

The project’s developers, Groupe Montoni and Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ, have a third partner, retirement residence builder/administrator Groupe Sélection, for the development and construction of the residential portion, which will integrate three different types of living spaces to serve the needs of a diverse intergenerational clientele.

According to the developers, Espace Montmorency will offer three of Groupe Sélection’s flagship products to create a community within the project: “frïdom,” which targets a clientele aged 55 and over, will offer 200 boutique apartments at a monthly “all-inclusive” price; REZ, which is aimed at a diversified clientele (young households, professionals and families), will offer 300 rental units at a value price; and Yimby, a banner designed by and for millennials, will offer 200 units for people under age 35.

Generations together

The developers say that in addition to quality housing and neighbourhood services, common spaces will be designed to encourage intergenerational mingling and to foster a sense of belonging to a community for all.

Conceived in a style of bold architecture revolving around a “block design,” while aiming for both LEED Gold and LEED ND environmentally sustainable certification, Espace Montmorency is slated for completion in the fall of 2022. To facilitate construction management, the project is being divided into three parts.

Three-phase development

The first part involves construction of the foundation, an underground parking lot with 1,400 spaces (connecting the project to Montréal’s underground network via the Montmorency Metro station) and a 150,000-square-foot commercial podium erected on two floors.

The second part will see construction of towers 1 and 4, which will house 700 residential units over 635,000 square feet. And a third part will be the construction of tower 2, which will offer 350,000 square feet of office space, and tower 3, which will include a 180-room hotel.

Citing Espace Montmorency’s modern and user-friendly workspace, as well as easier access to parking and the Metro, Laval-based Groupe Sélection has announced that it will be moving its head office to the Espace Montmorency complex when it is completed.

‘Smart building’ technology

Espace Montmorency is also expected to be completely outfitted with “smart building” technology, allowing a wide variety of web-enabled services to facilitate things like food preparation, parking, security and building management.

“True to our values, we have carefully planned Espace Montmorency so as to combine sustainable design and high-quality spaces while respecting the environment,” Groupe Montoni president Dario Montoni said during an official launch held on June 11.

“We are very proud to break ground today,” added Montoni. “With the expertise of our partners, we are confident that the project will be completed on schedule. We chose to build this multifunctional project in a single phase so that future occupants can fully enjoy the Espace Montmorency experience as soon as the work is finished.”

Leap forward for core area

Mayor Marc Demers said that Espace Montmorency is “a major project in the development of the City of Laval’s downtown area. We have been working on it for several years now. It is a wonderful project that represents the direction in which the City of Laval wants to develop itself and that adds one more ingredient to the development of the city’s centre.”

“We are proud to contribute to Espace Montmorency, an innovative project that embodies a new way of thinking about urban development,” said Groupe Sélection founding president and CEO Réal Bouclin. “This flagship project for the City of Laval is in line with our mission to create communities by building living spaces that foster business relationships and bring together individuals of all generations.”