(TLN) On Jan 15, Laval city council adopted a by-law
that included $1 million in spending for a program, in conjunction with the
Quebec government, to give subsidies to owners of houses whose foundations have
been damaged by settling of the soil.
Laval residents who are owners of such buildings have
until March 18 to apply for financial assistance of up to two-thirds of the
total cost of repairs for a total of $35,000.
Financial
relief
“This subsidy will make it possible to offer some
important financial relief to Laval residents who are going through difficult
times due to damage to the foundations of their property,” says Sainte-Rose
city councillor Virginie Dufour who also sits on the executive-committee.
“We are certain that the allotted sums will allow the
greatest number of citizens possible who must restore the integrity and
security of their building,” she adds.
The Criteria
To
qualify for the program: you must be the owner of a residential building with 1
to 4 units; you must have had the necessary work done no more than 1 year
before the coming into effect of the present by-law, or you anticipate getting
the work done following acceptance of your application and issuing of the
construction permit; you must have spent or anticipate expenses of at least
$5,000 for the work; you must have installed or foresee installing at least 1
stake; you must have applied for a construction permit.
Officials from the City of Laval, as well as provincial MNAs and Jeux du Québec – Laval 2020 sponsors are seen here in front of the official logo for the event which was unveiled last week.
Martin C. Barry
Although there’s more than a year to go before the
City of Laval plays host to the 55th Jeux du Québec
finals, members of a local
organizing committee joined Mayor Marc Demers, city councillors and several
provincial MNAs last week to unveil the logo and to announce some of the first
commercial and institutional partners who will be helping to provide support.
A
community project
“The organization of the Jeux du Québec
finals in Laval is a project uniting and bringing together the community, which
emphasizes youth and the dynamic forces of sports associations, businesses and
institutional partners,”
said Mayor Demers.
Michel Allen, president of SportsQuébec which is the provincial organization behind the
organization of the event, said he had complete confidence in Laval to organize
a games event from July 31 to Aug. 8 in 2020 that will be memorable.
One of two cars that Vimont Toyota is lending to the organizers of the Jeux du Québec – Laval 2020 as a corporate sponsor.
An
event to remember
“Under the leadership of a committed administration,
the COFJQ – Laval 2020 is putting everything into place to make this major
competition a memorable event in the sports development of young athletes who
will be taking part,” Allen said.
The City of Laval estimates 130,000 people will
converge here next summer from all over Quebec for the Jeux du Québec
finals. Laval previously hosted events for the Jeux du Québec finals in 1971
and 1991.
Laval mayor Marc Demers at last week’s unveiling of the Jeux du Québec – Laval 2020 logo and the announcement of the event’s corporate and institutional sponsors.
The
sponsors
The corporate and institutional sponsors that will be
providing support for the Jeux du Québec in Laval in 2020 are Vimont Toyota (which is lending
a Corolla and a RAV4 with Jeux du Québec markings to the organizing committee), Courchesne Larose
(fruit), MonCloudPrivé.ca (IT services) and SS Info (telephone services).
The institutional partners are the Government of
Quebec, SportsQuébec, the City of Laval, Collège Montmorency,
Sports Laval, Tourisme Laval,
the Société
de transport de Laval, the Commission scolaire de Laval and the Sir Wilfrid
Laurier School Board, Collège Laval, Collège Letendre and the Cosmdôme.
The top 3 Laval real estate
agents for 2018 were announced last month by Rate-My-Agent.com. The review site
compiled and published the list of top rated Laval agents based on
ratings and reviews received during the past year.
In ranked order, the agents are:
Voula Kottaridis
Gabriela Jonas
Wassim Ibrahim
Unlike other agent ranking sites, agents can’t pay to have negative reviews removed or hidden and cannot pay to be included on the list of top-rated agents. The company says the reviews are verified through a process they wouldn’t disclose in order to protect the integrity of the process. When asked if they’ve had agents try to cheat, a spokesperson confirmed, “Yes, there have been many attempts by agents to game the system and rankings, which is why we keep our algorithms a closely held secret.”
The list will be published
annually based on that year’s verified reviews.
Rate-My-Agent.com is a rating and review website for Canadian and American
markets. It’s free for the general public and real estate
professionals. The company pledges 50% of profit to worthy causes.
A former police chief and narcotics enforcement officer, federal Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction Bill Blair is convinced Canada has done the right thing with its new marijuana decriminalization and regularization laws.
Martin C. Barry
As the federal minister responsible for the
implementation and enforcement of Canada’s new marijuana legalization and
regularization laws, there’s no mistaking the fact Bill Blair stands one
hundred per cent behind the Trudeau Liberal government’s groundbreaking policy.
If anybody might be in a position to question the
government’s stance, it could easily be Blair. The veteran policeman and former
chief of the Toronto Police Service spent years fighting on the front lines
against drug-related crime as a narcotics squad officer.
Former
narcotics cop
“As a police officer for 40 years, I was involved in
drug enforcement,” Blair, who is
Minister
of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction, said in an interview with Newsfirst Multimedia while
on a ministerial stopover in Montreal.
As chair of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of
Police’s Organized Crime Committee, he said he was “well aware of the impact
that illegal drug trafficking as controlled by organized crime was having in
all of our communities.”
Drugs
and violence linked
While noting that the link between organized crime and
illegal drug trafficking had a lot do with an escalation of violence in
Canadian cities these past few decades, Blair also pointed out that organized
crime was earning billions of dollars in profits each year being the sole
purveyors of a range of illegal substances that included marijuana.
Since the only means of controlling the situation
available to society was criminal sanction, young people got swept up in the
overall enforcement of the country’s drug laws, “which was disproportionate,”
added Blair, “and was actually causing in many cases more harm. We wanted to
discourage their use of the drug. But we also did not want to saddle that child
with a criminal record for the rest of their life.”
Approached
by Trudeau
According to Blair, all of this transpired long before
he was asked by Justin Trudeau to run in the suburban Toronto riding of
Scarborough Southwest in the October 2015 election. Blair and the future Prime
Minister discussed the possibility of radically changing Canada’s cannabis
laws.
“We talked about Canada’s control of cannabis. And he
said ‘What do you think of legalizing it?’ And I said if we lift the criminal
prohibition it gives the opportunity to get the situation back under control.
Because currently the situation we were in was we had the highest rates of use
among our kids in the world. And this is a dangerous drug for children. This is
a drug that can have very serious implications for children.”
One
third were breaking law
Leading up to the changes last October by the Liberal
government to the country’s longstanding prohibition on cannabis, more than a
third of Canada’s population had been breaking the law, Blair added. As such,
“we began the process of looking at how do we reduce the harm of this drug.
“Some people say to me, ‘Well you’ve legalized
cannabis.’ And I say no – we’ve regulated the daylights out of it. We’ve
brought in all sorts of new rules – enforceable, proportionate, sensible rules
– that control every aspect of its production, its sale and its consumption.
Says
no to other drugs
“Whereas before we had only one tool and it was like a
sledgehammer and we were trying to drive a nail. And no one wanted to swing the
sledgehammer. But now we have the right suite of tools to control the system.
And I believe it’ll result in a healthy situation for our children and a safer
situation for our communities.”
Blair insisted that neither he nor the Liberal
government would ever consider going down the same route with other street
drugs as it has done with marijuana. “Cannabis is not a drug that kills
people,” he said.
“But unfortunately with other more serious drugs which
are deadly – the opioid crisis, for example, crystal methamphetamine, which is
ravishing some of our prairie and northern communities – those drugs represent
such a significant risk. And we don’t have a system of regulated production and
control.
Meth
and fentanyl out
“There is no alternative. We can go to a Health
Canada-regulated production facility for marijuana, for cannabis. But we’re not
going to create a similar thing for crystal methamphetamine. So there will be
no other source other than the criminal source.”For drugs like methamphetamine and fentanyl,
Blair said an important of the approach for dealing with them is to “interdict
the supply to keep those drugs out of our country. We need to be very effective
at restricting the supply. But we also have an enormous amount of work to do –
and we have embarked as a government on this – to reduce the demand for those
drugs. And that’s to prevent people from beginning to use them in the first
place.”
From the left: Sainte-Rose MNA Christopher Skeete (representing the CAQ government), SNQL president Jean Desautels, Laval mayor Marc Demers, and Quebec historian Gilles Desroches are seen here on Jan. 21 at the ceremony paying homage to the Quebec flag.
(TLN) At noon last Jan. 21, a group of around 60
people, mostly elected officials and other dignitaries, paid homage to Quebec’s
Fleur de Lys flag in a ceremony which took place outside Laval city hall.
All
had accepted an invitation from the Société nationale du Québec to mark the 71st
anniversary of the flag. The flag was first unveiled on Jan. 21, 1948 by the
government of Premier Maurice Duplessis. It first flew on the flag pole at the
Quebec Parliament building in Quebec City, replacing the Union Jack.
Fleur de Lys origins
Gilles
Desroches, a historian, gave a presentation on the origins of the flag, with
particular emphasis on the Fleurs de Lys. He suggested these elements of the
flag were inspired by details which originated on a banner belonging to Clovis,
king of the Franks during the 5th century.
Despite
the cold, the flag in which millions of Québécois take pride was raised on the main mast outside Laval
city hall while a musical piece paying tribute to the flag was played by
musicians and accompanied by song words. The event culminated with a wine
reception inside city hall courtesy of the mayor.
Last January 21st multiple voices and interests were
reflected by parents, teachers, politicians, and community members on several
aspects of the tarnished reputation and curriculum of Laval Senior Academy
(LSA), perceptions of concern to stakeholders. About 100 people filled LSA’s
cafeteria , sitting on edge, not knowing what to expect from this Town Hall whose origins dated back to
November 2018, when 189 parents sought freedom of choice for schools their children
could attend, asking specifically for Board-funded transportation to Rosemere
High.
The group gathered to digest addresses from Laurier Board Director-General
(DG) Gaelle Absolonne and Chairperson Paolo Galati. At the outset, freedom of choice and paid
transportation were off-table, replaced by intention to discuss, at length, LSA’s
merits, portrayed as a school second to none.
Participants were treated to a five-minute presentation by one
of two INM facilitators who introduced herself as Valerie, stating the
objective was to provide structure and ease
communication between stakeholders and the school board, delineating
format and procedure for unfolding of proceedings. The focus was on input and suggestions from
stakeholders concerning demands for 2019-2020, as TLN reported in its previous
issue. No surprises. A back seat was taken by hired facilitators.
Galati and Absolonne delivered power-point presentations of LSA
curriculum and successes, emphasizing
its 94.4 graduation rate. Galati
repeatedly reiterated that “transparency” was imperative and the town hall was
a path to solutions. Focusing on Laurier
history and territory, he announced that “This school board covers three regions
– Laval-Laurentides-Lanaudière, has 15 municipalities and a unique character.
It’s the size of Belgium.”
Absolonne added that
the Board boasts 14,000 successful students and 1750 dedicated employees, elaborating on business and vocational
centres, hinting at a new 240 School offering STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, Math), a curriculum-based approach
of educating students in specific disciplines based on real-world applications. Teacher qualifications were not discussed. “We produce bilingual students – something
specific to celebrate,” she stated, echoing
the Board’s slogan of An English
education, a bilingual future.
Adding more to the LSA promotional/marketing bullet,
Absolonne noted that ”The school offers 50 extra-curricular activities, it’s in a
perfect location for transportation, and students have access to STL benefits
24/7. The benefit of LSA is location, location, location.” No details omitted –
from safety to police partnerships.
Director General Gaelle Absolonne and Chairperson Paolo Galati address the concerned crowd.
The fun begins:
Questions and Comments
An unnamed parent misunderstood the objective. “I came for transportation and school choice, not for a sales pitch,” adding that success rates are not the only priority when choosing a school. Not holding back, she complained that “teachers don’t care about students, and kids are taking over the classroom.”
“What’s being done about the LSA rumours,” she asked Absolonne. Quick to respond, the DG said “They are exactly that – rumors. We have dedicated staff.” No response from parent.
Parent representative Theresa Andrusko, in obvious frustration, addressed the crowd and officials. “This is a sales pitch. We want to know about transportation,” echoing the unnamed parent. “Rosemere is under-utilized and that’s not being addressed. Why are 300 students leaving for other boards?”
“The aim of this Town Hall,” Galati responded, is to know the problem.” However, he informed
the crowd that out-of-zone transportation would not be provided. Disappointment for those awaiting a positive
response. Zoning determines bussing, he
repeated. Parents wishing children to attend
Rosemere, if there’s room, must provide their own transportation.
Parent Laura wanted to know: “What are the numbers over the last two years, why are students leaving, and where are they going?” Absolonne responded that it was about demographics and student-numbers at LSA and Laval Junior Academy (LJA). Not satisfied, Laura deplored poor transportation service since her child can’t get on most of the time due to over-crowding, or the driver doesn’t stop. When she inquired at Société de Transport de Laval (STL) she was told to contact customer service, which is the school. Deadlocked.
Former Laurier Board Chairperson Jennifer Maccarone, parent of child presently at LSA, commented publicly: “We must respect the framework of the law or there may be legal repercussions.” Also in attendance was former commissioner Ailsa Pehi, telling TLN she came for her son who will soon be eligible for LSA. City Councillor and Laurier Senior graduate Isabella Tassoni, told TLN she came to get to know the issues and for more information about stakeholders’ concerns.
Transportation – a non-starter
Parent Cristina Silva told TLN that two of her children who graduated
from Laval Senior Academy and accepted by Marianopolis College suffered lack of
organizational and study skills coming from the public sector. “They were not prepared for higher education. Work is needed.”
Half the attendees left during intermission when Galati
announced unequivocally that transportation to Rosemere would not happen, and not negotiable due to zoning restrictions. 40 people stayed for small-group discussions, two
specific questions to be answered for INM to produce a report, with solutions,
submitted to the Board.
TLN learned that a teacher was turned away for lack of
registration. Laurier Communications
Coordinator Maxeen Jolin told TLN that no one was turned away since places were
available. In a post-meeting scrum with
Galati, Jolin, and Commissioner James Di Sano, Absolonne told TLN that outsourcing could cost up to $10,000. Asked if
it was worth it considering the number of parents (40), she said that lots of
work is involved. “If we get the results
we’re looking for, it’s worth it.”Questioning outsourcing at a cost of up to $10,065 in public funds,
TLN was told by Laurier Secretary-General Stephanie Krenn the event was not financed by taxpayers. In
part, Krenn stated: “The funds used to
pay for these services do not come from taxpayers’ revenues. The profits
generated by our QualificAction services, (a service that offers customized
training for businesses) has enabled us to reinject generated profits within
our community.”
Members of the Sir Wilfrid Laurier Foundation board and others gathered towards the conclusion of the evening to unveil the amount raised by the 2019 Gala – $48,265.
Martin C. Barry
The Sir Wilfrid Laurier Foundation’s Annual Gala
fundraiser raised $48,265 for educational equipment, programs and resources at
schools and training centres across the Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board’s
territory in the Laval, Laurentian and Lanaudière regions.
Held at the Embassy Plaza
in Laval on Jan. 24,
the popular event raised nearly $9,000 more than last year’s January Gala. “The
amount is very good,” SWLF president Christian Fréchette said when asked about the increase. “People are
participating in our fundraising efforts and we’re very happy about this,” he
said.
Some SWLF January Gala guests admire some of the offerings from the silent auction, including this Montreal Canadiens jersey signed by Habs forward Jonathan Drouin #92.
Silent auction items
A
silent auction segment during the gala featured, among other things, Montreal
Canadiens jerseys signed by left-winger Jonathan Drouin and right-winger
Brendan Gallagher, a photo montage of Habs goalie Carey Price, a framed photo
montage with CD of Céline Dion, as well as many items of jewelry, art and home
accessories.
The
evening’s Grand Prize was a $1,500 gift certificate for an all-inclusive trip,
cruise or guided tour of the winner’s choice. It was won by Gordon Truesdale, a
member of the Lake of Two Mountains High School teaching staff. There was a good turnout by elected officials from all
over Laval and the North Shore areas.
The winner of the evening’s Grand Prize was determined with balloons which contained a winning number when exploded.
Officials
show support
Among them were Laval mayor Marc Demers (who was
accompanied by more than a half-dozen of his city councillors), Westmount-St.
Louis MNA Jennifer Maccarone (formerly chairwoman of the Sir Wilfrid Laurier
School Board), Mille-Îles MNA Francine Charbonneau, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles MP Linda Lapointe,
Rosemère
mayor Eric Westram who was accompanied by town councillor Melissa Monk, and
councillors from the municipality of Lachute.
SWLSB chairman Paolo Galati gets into the swing of things while hawking a long strip of tickets for raffle prizes.
SWLSB
now in the Top-10
According to SWLSB chairman Paolo Galati who delivered
one of the evening’s addresses, the board’s schools and training
centres have managed to achieve a graduation rate of 85.9 per cent. As a result, the SWLSB now ranks among the 10 best
school commissions in Quebec.
“We have achieved this success thanks to our 1,700
outstanding employees who ensure that all our students reach their full
potential,” said Galati.
$850,000
raised so far
“The Council of Commissioners is grateful to have a
partner like the Foundation. The board of directors work tirelessly year after
year in raising funds to meet the needs of our schools and adult education and
vocational training centres.”
SWLF president Fréchette revealed that the
foundation has raised $850,000 since it started. “You should be proud to be contributing to such a noble
cause – education,” he said. “Today’s students are tomorrow’s future. The
better education they receive, the better equipped they will be in their life!
Seated at the Gala’s head table were SWLSB and SWLF officials, as well as provincial and municipal representatives from Laval and the North Shore.
Board
members thanked
“I would like to thank my colleagues on the board of
directors for their dedication and involvement,” he added. “Without them, the foundation
would not be able to reach the goals set out and be in the position to hit the
million-dollar target by the end of 2020.”
In a special segment this year, Fréchette,
as well as SWLF vice-president Ailsa Pehi and treasurer Harold Ashenmill, paid
tribute to former SWLSB chairman Maccarone, who was elected to the Quebec
National Assembly in the provincial election last October after leading the
school board since November 2014.
Feb 2 – Police arrested a 51-year-old
man for illegally growing more than 150 cannabis plants in his house on
Isabelle St in Fabreville. The unlicensed,
and thus illegal, pot plantation was located a stone’s throw from Coeur-Soleil
Elementary School.
Stemming from information received several
weeks ago from a tip, investigators from the LPD’s Drug and Morality Squad also
received information from Hydro-Quebec about the possible theft of electricity
at the residence, indicating the likelihood of an illegal growing operation.
Police busted the weed grower during a
search of the residence that took place at 10:40 a.m. on Feb 1.
The man was previously known to police,
and has a prior record for similar offenses.
Car
Crash and a Ticket
Feb 1 – Police responded to a violent
car crash shortly before midnight at the intersection of boulevards
Curé-Labelle and Louis-Payette. A driver headed south on Curé-Labelle ran a red
light and plowed straight into the driver’s side of a vehicle turning north
from Louis-Payette. Police called firefighters for help extricating the driver
from her smashed car. Firefighters used the Jaws of Life to free the woman and
she was taken to hospital to be treated for minor injuries to her head and
back.
The faulty driver did not suffer any
injuries, but he was treated to a ticket for his negligent driving.
Seeking
Identity of Sexual Assault Suspect
Jan 31 – Laval police are asking the
public for assistance in tracking down a sexual assault suspect who claimed he
was a nurse working for a CLSC. The suspect is wanted in connection with two
separate incidents.
The first incident occurred in Chomedey
on Dec. 6.
According to police, a man approached the victim’s residence and, once she opened the door, identified himself as a nurse from a CLSC. The victim was already receiving medical care and had no reason to be suspicious. Police say the suspect then exposed himself. The victim immediately closed her door and the suspect calmly walked away.
Police say the second incident occurred
at the same address on Dec. 14. The
victim recognized the suspect from the previous incident and refused to open her
door.
Police have confirmed the suspect is not
an employee at a CLSC.
The suspect is described as a male with
a dark complexion, between 25 and 30 years old. He is of medium build and
stands about 5-foot 7-inches (1.7 m) tall. At the time of the incident, the
suspect was wearing a dark coat with a fur-trimmed hood, and carried a red back
pack.
Anyone with any information is urged to
call 450-662-INFO (4636) or 911, and mention file LVL 181206 097. Calls are
treated confidentially.
Thieves
Steal TV & Fireplace
Jan 29 – After breaking in to Coiffure
Extase in Fabreville at about 11 p.m., a duo of thieves treated themselves to
the hair salon’s 55” television, electric fireplace, and about $500 in cash.
The salon suffered minor damage, including busted locks on the front door, as
well as a hole in the wall leading to a neighbouring store.
Police are reviewing security footage
from the salon’s surveillance camera.
Igloos
Prohibited on Laval Roads
Jan 25 – Police want to remind motorists
that motorized igloos are not permitted on Laval roads.
Drivers must assume the responsibility
of clearing the snow from their vehicle before attempting to drive.
A vehicle’s front and rear windshields,
as well as side passenger windows, must be free of ice, snow, or anything that
obstructs visibility for the driver.
Fines for this infraction range between
$100 – $200, plus fees.
For the safety of pedestrians and others
on the road, drivers must also remove any accumulated snow or ice that may
detach and fly off once the vehicle is in motion.
Failure to adhere to this regulation may
earn drivers a ticket ranging from $60 – $100, plus fees.
(TLN) A Quebec Superior Court judge last week refused
to grant an injunction that would have forced the women-only Leclerc
Institution provincial jail to improve conditions for two inmates.
After detainees complained for years about conditions
at the centre, a lawyer recently filed an injunction request on behalf of two
inmates to force improvements. Although a temporary injunction was refused,
Quebec’s correctional services department has pledged to provide better heating
in the building.
Mounting
problems
Among the problems reported by the inmates in whose
name the injunction was sought were poor water quality, limited access to
showers, inadequate heating and overall uncleanliness. There have also been
complaints about frequent and arbitrary strip searches.
At one time a high-security federal penitentiary,
Leclerc is now rented by the provincial government. Critics have pointed out
the facility’s inappropriateness as a detention centre for women, saying among
other things that the cells are small, while also noting it offers little in
terms of rehabilitation programs or health care services.
On January
9, Laval police arrested 77 years old Roland Leroux for producing juvenile
pornography. The alleged “producer” met at a public place a 16 year old
pretending he was an agent for an international model agency. The young victim
developed a confidence relationship with him that lead to inappropriate video
tapings.
Police believe that many other young girls were victims of Roland Leroux known also to them as Ronnie and Samuel.
77 years old Roland Leroux arrested for producing juvenile pornography.
Anyone
having information on this or was a victim of this man should contact police
authorities 450-662-INFO (4636) or by dialing 911, mentioning the file LVL
180928 049.
