(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.

(TLN) Laval residents will once again be able to benefit from a financial assistance program offered by their city for the purchase of an all-electric car or an electric bicycle.

“The fight against climate change is a real preoccupation for our administration which remains concerned that good programs for the reduction of greenhouse gas are in place on our territory,” says Mayor Marc Demers. “The keen interest by Laval residents in our subsidy programs is undeniable.”

Electric cars and bikes

In 2018, 300 citizens benefited from the financial push offered for the purchase of a 100 per cent electric vehicle, while 260 Laval residents took advantage of the financial aid for the purchase of an electric bike. “It should be noted that our initial goals have been met,” added Demers, “since we needed to grant a budget extension to favourably answer the demands from everyone.”

According to the mayor, the amount of the subsidy will remain at $2,000. The program will be ending on March 31 this year. For electric bicycles, the subsidy will be $400 and the program for this will be ending on Dec. 31 this year.

(TLN) K-eCommerce, a company that develops innovative management solutions in the rapidly growing e-commerce sector for Canadian and international businesses, will receive a $250,000 repayable contribution from Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED) to enhance its competitiveness and support its growth.

With the help of the funding, announced last week by Eva Nassif, MP for Vimy, k-eCommerce will be able to acquire state-of-the-art computer equipment, including high-performance servers. The objective of this project is to increase the capacity of k-eCommerce’s cloud infrastructure and support the strong growth of the business. k-eCommerce plans to create 30 new jobs over the next two years.

Company is expanding

“CED’s support is vital, as it allows us to add high-performance equipment to our world-class cloud infrastructure,” said Laurent Allardin, CEO and founder of k-eCommerce. “K-ecommerce is expanding rapidly in both the business-to-business (B2B) and retail sales (B2C) models. More and more businesses are turning to the web to boost their sales, improve the quality of their services and reduce their operating costs.

“Whether accessed from a mobile device, tablet or computer, our clients’ transactional websites must be available at all times and have the capacity to respond instantly,” he continued. “This new equipment will help us not only improve the quality of our services for our existing clients, but also support the growth of our company while serving more clients.”

Having rapid growth

K-eCommerce has grown rapidly and has become one of the leaders in the development of customized eCommerce management solutions. The company constantly invests in research and development in order to offer products that are higher performing and more competitive. Its solutions have already won over more than 600 business clients in North America and Europe.

During an announcement, Nassif said the Government of Canada is committed to supporting innovative Canadian businesses. According to Nassif, innovation, a driving force of the economy, is the key to success because it generates growth that benefits both businesses and communities. “This is why we are committed to ensuring that businesses are able to rely on adequate resources to create and market innovative products.”

Helping businesses

“By helping businesses such as k-eCommerce grow and invest in order to enhance their performance and be able to hold their own in a highly competitive global market, the Government of Canada is standing by its commitment to foster expansion and innovation and help grow exports,” added Nassif. “Furthermore, by creating quality jobs, this project will generate real benefits for Laval.”

“I am pleased with CED’s support for k-eCommerce, a Canadian business that has come up with innovative solutions to improve the efficiency of eCommerce operations, and has also found ways of ensuring its growth for almost 20 years now,” said the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister responsible for CED, who issued a statement.

(TLN) The official opening of the new Lausanne Park community centre on Jan. 17 was attended by Mayor Marc Demers, who toured the facility with representatives of several community organizations, as well as Laval city councillor for the district of Saint-Bruno David De Cotis.

Fruit of consultations

The $5.5 million project was undertaken by the City of Laval after a need for the centre was expressed by local community groups. In all, five community and sports activities groups were consulted by the city before proceeding.

“The City of Laval is happy to be able to offer to these groups community spaces of high quality that will serve simultaneously as sports chalets as well as locations for other types of gatherings,” said Mayor Marc Demers. “This mixed use centre which has long been awaited by people from the area is the result of a participatory consultation.”

LEED certification

The new centre, measuring 1,393 square metres, contains multi-use rooms, locker areas, sanitary services, a snack bar, a community kitchen and storage space. The building has received a LEED Gold certification for environmentally-responsible construction. It also includes three re-charging stations for electric vehicles.

David De Cotis was accompanied to the launch by fellow city councillor Michel Poissant, Gordon Berry of the Club de soccer Monteuil, Danielle Mercure of Loisirs St-Bruno and Anabela Monteiro of Vimont MNA Jean Rousselle’s office. In a statement, De Cotis said the opening of the community centre was a sign that the people of Saint-Bruno were no longer being ignored by the Demers administration.

De Cotis pleased

“When I decided to run in the municipal elections in 2009, I quickly understood that the population of the sector wanted this space,” he said. “For me, promises are meant to be kept. I had committed starting in 2009 to get this community centre and I am very proud to deliver it to those supported me so strongly in 2013 and 2017.”

“This is a space that will become the heart of the district of Saint-Bruno,” De Cotis added. “Already there is a lot of activity in this park during the winter as well as during the summer, and now it will be structured even better. While we now have here multiple sports facilities of the highest level, there were none before for the organizations, the referees, the players and the equipment. Loisirs Saint-Bruno were struggling to grow in their facilities far from the population, although now they’re close to the clients they serve.”