Laval News Volume 26-03
This issue covers local events such us politics, sports and human interest stories. It features editorials and other columns. Click on the image to read the paper.
Snow removal in the winter of their discontent
Martin C. Barry
As a resident and taxpayer in the City of Laval, how angry are you about the efficiency of the city’s snow removal this winter? Be that as it may, if you were a retired couple living on Bennett St. in Laval’s Chomedey sector, you’d be fuming indeed during this winter of snow removal discontent.
Never as bad
“We’ve been living here for 28 years and we’ve never had a problem like this,” said Andreas Pantelis, who lives, along with his wife, Eleni, less than a block from Centre du Sablon and across the street from Sablon Park.
“We’re paying taxes and I think they should do better than this,” said Pantelis. “This year is much worse. Sometimes they come once in a blue moon and they just throw the snow on the side in the park when there’s too much snow and they can’t do anything else.”
Poor snow service
While in the past, according to Pantelis, the city’s snow removal crews cleaned away snow banks from one side of Bennett (which is a secondary street where snow removal is slower), so that residents might at least have room to park their cars, that’s not the case this winter, he insisted – and it’s taking a toll on him and his wife.
“She has problems, I have problems and it’s a mountain of snow,” he said, noting he suffers from a heart ailment, while Eleni has a problem with a joint in one of her legs. When a snow removal crew arrives – often in the early morning hours – everyone with a car parked on the street (and Pantelis owns three) has to move quickly. In addition to all this, there is often nowhere else to park.
Neglected side streets
“I see everywhere else, they clean one side of the street, then they put up no parking signs, they go the next day and they clean the other side,” Pantelis continued, while complaining that the city should carry out snow removal evenly on all streets, rather than neglecting side streets like Bennett. “I don’t think the way they do it is the right way.”
Pantelis told the Laval News that when he has called the City of Laval’s 3-1-1 hotline for public works, he was told by the operator to park in his driveway. He claimed that repeated calls to 3-1-1 failed to spur the city into action. But as he also pointed out, he’s unable to move the mountain of snow sitting on the street in front of his driveway because of his heart condition.
Waiting, nearly a week later
On Thursday last week, six days after the snowfall, residents on Bennett St. were still waiting for snow on both sides of the street to be cleared away. “When I called, they told me that by the end of the week probably,” said Pantelis, while adding that another heavy snowfall was expected.
With the new snow, he continued, the city crews would begin another cleanup, starting with the main streets, but leaving the unfinished snow cleanup on the side-streets to be continued along with the newly-fallen snow.
Rather than treat side-streets as low-priority for snow removal, Pantelis reasons the city should take into account that streets like Bennett, which are next to large green spaces like Sablon Park, should be given a higher priority when they are near schools and are more likely to be used by children and parents.
What 3-1-1 said
During the Laval News’ interview with Mr. and Mrs. Pantelis, we asked them to call the City of Laval’s 3-1-1 public works hotline so we might get some idea of the response to their complaint about poor snow removal service. What follows is a slightly shortened transcript of the exchange.
Pantelis: Good morning, my name is Pantelis and I called you a couple of days ago about the snow we have in the street. We can’t walk, we can’t park. You told me that you were going to take care of it, but nobody has showed up.
3-1-1: That’s for sure we will take care of it. But we don’t know exactly what day they will do it because the residential is the last thing we take care of. And we received a lot of snow so this also doubles the time. In two days we received many centimetres of snow. It’s a big quantity and we have a lot of streets to take care of, so you have to be a bit patient.
Pantelis: You say it’s going be the last day when it’s going to be cleaned?
3-1-1: It’s always the last we do, sir. It’s always been like this, sir.
Pantelis: No, no. It’s not always like this. I live here for 28 years.
3-1-1: Sir, I am working here for more than that, so I know this is always the way they treat all the streets. We have your request, sir, you have to be patient and we have a lot to do.
Pantelis: But this is a one-way street.
3-1-1: Yes sir, I know that street. I live in Chomedey sector, too.
Pantelis: Okay, there is a school behind my house, there are people passing by to go to Centre du Sablon, and it’s a main street to me.
3-1-1: It’s not a main street. We have a by-law from Gouvernement du Québec so that we have to do big streets before small residential streets.
Pantelis: I went yesterday everywhere in Chomedey and I see you cleaning a lot of streets.
3-1-1: Just be patient. We received a lot of snow. We are doing our best, sir.
Pantelis: Yes, I understand, but at least clean one side so that we can park.
3-1-1: We will do, sir. Just be a bit patient.
Pantelis: We had the snow fall on Friday and tomorrow is Friday. You’ve had a week already.
3-1-1: We’ve got to work all the weekend, sir, don’t worry.
Pantelis: Well I hope you will try your best, because it’s frustrating.
3-1-1: We try, sir. As I told you, we have a lot of snow to take off so just be patient.
Pantelis: I know that. But at least to me one side should be clean so we could park.
3-1-1: I can understand that, sir, but you have driveways on that street.
Pantelis: I have a driveway, yeah, but it takes only one car. I have three cars already.
3-1-1: Yes, but it’s not the city’s fault that you bought three cars.
Pantelis: No, it’s not the city’s fault, but where am I going to park?
3-1-1: Sir, I’ve just told you the request time. Be patient. We cannot do more than that. If we could stop nature from sending snow it would be what we would want for us and for you. But we can do nothing about that.
Aglaia Revelakis sticking to Action Laval for now
Martin C. Barry
With Action Laval no longer the official opposition at Laval city hall since last November’s municipal elections, the party’s lone member on city council, Chomedey councillor Aglaia Revelakis, was asked by the Laval News about the future of the party as well as her own plans.
What the future holds
“We are looking forward to a great year are continuing to do the great work that we were elected for at city hall,” Revelakis said in an interview with the Laval News during a break at the first city council meeting for 2018 on Jan. 16.
Regarding her own future, she said, “Right now I’m with Action Laval. I got elected under the banner of Action Laval. Right now I’m here at city hall. I got elected by the citizens of Laval, and for now this is the plan. For the future, it’s hard to say anything else, but right now I’m here. And if anything else happens we are sure to let you know.”
A reversal of roles
In the meantime, Action Laval and its former rival for official opposition status, the Parti Laval, have switched office spaces on the ground floor at Laval city hall. Revelakis, who is regarded as an independent on city council, is currently the only elected councillor occupying her office space which was set aside for any independent members.
The Parti Laval – which is led by former Fabreville councillor Michel Trottier, who is biding his time on the sidelines after failing in his bid for the mayoralty in the November election – now occupies a small suite of offices used by Claude Larochelle, the only city councillor elected under the Parti Laval’s banner.
January council meeting fails to draw a crowd
Martin C. Barry
Cold and turbulent weather on the evening of Jan. 16 may have been a contributing factor in the low public turnout for Laval city council’s first meeting of 2018. Despite the meagre attendance, those who did show up were eager nonetheless to bring up their issues – which included the quality of the city’s snow removal.
Snow removal complaint
During the public question period, Litsa Eftaxias of Laprade St. in Chomedey said that she and other residents on the street were dissatisfied with the snow removal service for years. She said she tried to bring the problem to the attention of city council in February last year without any resolution.
While noting that snow removal on Laprade St. obviously isn’t a priority for the city, Eftaxias said that after waiting weeks for the street to be cleared since the last storm, the situation had become unacceptable. “Laprade St. was forgotten once again,” she told the mayor. “This is unacceptable and intolerable for the citizens.
Whose responsibility?
“It should not be the responsibility of citizens to have to call each time there’s accumulation of snow and then wait up to a month for snow removal,” she continued. “There is absolutely a problem with the snow removal team and those who are responsible for removing snow on Laprade St. You must evaluate and solve this problem please.”
According to Mayor Marc Demers, streets being cleared of snow in Laval are done in order of priority, with streets with institutions such as hospitals and schools being at the top of the list, while residential avenues are at the bottom.
All the same, he acknowledged that residents on Laprade St. “have a right to be cleared of snow within a normal time frame.” He said he would look into the possible reasons why snow removal may have been poor on the street up to now.
Raising urban chickens
Suzanne Lessard of Fabreville asked Mayor Demers about the City of Laval’s official policy for allowing residents to raise chickens at home. Lessard said she first started raising chickens in August 2014 when she was by a city official that the practice was “tolerated” in Laval.
All the same, she continued, in September she was visited by the same official, informing her that a complaint about the chickens was filed by another resident. She then received an order to get rid of the chickens by May 31 this year. Lessard asked Mayor Demers to rescind the order.
While confirming that Laval used to forbid raising chickens in its zoning regulations, the mayor said city council decided it would study the issue. However, he continued, since a third of Laval’s territory is zoned for agricultural use, there is no doubt that raising chickens is allowed in these areas.
By-law changes coming
However, Demers pointed out, a specific by-law for urban chicken farming won’t come into force until the provincial government approves the City of Laval’s master urban plan. As for the by-law violation ticket Lessard was issued, he said he isn’t empowered to repeal it, as it can only be cancelled by a judge in court. “I’d feel very uneasy if police or inspectors were issuing notices of infraction and we were deciding to revoke them,” he said, adding that “it’s something that’s not done.”
Viviane Monette, a resident of the Maritime high-rise tower on Lévesque Blvd. West, told Mayor Demers that following the December Laval city council meeting during which she went up to the microphone to raise an issue, she was visited by a police officer who said he had been mandated by city council to follow up on her intervention.
A visit from the police
As well, she added, she received a phone call after the Christmas holidays from the policeman’s superior who questioned her again. Monette asked the mayor what motivated the city to authorize the police to follow up on an initial complaint by her and other residents concerning a new construction project in their area, while taking into account that they first complained last June.
The mayor explained that whenever a resident makes an allegation at a city council meeting involving potentially illegal acts, the police become involved to investigate. He pointed out that officials from other city departments, such as urban planning and public works, regularly attend council meetings to monitor for complaints and to follow up if necessary.
Laval City Watch January 2018
City Grants for diverse groups
$52,000 to Centraide
The City has awarded a $52,000 grant to Centraide as part of city of Laval’s employees and retired employees fund raising efforts to contribute to Centraide’s annual financing campaign. This amount represents the corporate contribution of Laval’s administration to the campaign which raised a record amount of $196,705.
$20,000 to Laval’s Volunteer Center and Food Bank
The administration has awarded a grant of $ 20,000 to Laval’s Volunteer Center (Centre de benevolat) and food bank (Moisson Laval) for 2017 to help fund the 33rd annual Christmas basket campaign. The Volunteer Center and Moisson Laval’s mission is to develop and promote volunteerism in Laval. Recruitment, training, mentoring and coordination of volunteers is promoted to increase the well-being of the community and provide support for the less fortunate. In addition, the Center operates the regional Moisson Laval food bank, which meets the needs of local organizations through the recovery, processing and distribution of quality food. These organizations also offer lunches and snacks in schools and food service. Even today, 10% of Quebec families live below the poverty line. Every month, more than 21,000 people in Laval use food banks.
$10,000 to the medias of Laval annual food drive
Every year on the first Thursday of December the annual media food drive sponsored by Quebec’s media is held throughout all of the province. During December of 2017 staff and volunteers from a hundred Quebec media outlets with the help of thousands of volunteers came together to help people in need. In Laval, the Volunteer Center and Moisson Laval and the Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Society work together to ensure the success of this event. More than 400 volunteers collected donations of cash or non-perishable food at various collection points. As a corporate contribution for 2017, the City has awarded a $ 10,000 grant to the cause.
$9,000 to the Bruny Surin Foundation
A grant of $ 9,000 has been awarded to the Bruny Surin Foundation to offer six conferences in Laval elementary and secondary schools. Organized in collaboration with Sports Laval, these conferences are part of the Foundation’s mission, which is to promote an active and healthy lifestyle in youth as well as fostering educational and sporting success with young people. In addition, the Foundation will endorse these conferences through the media in order to promote the Quebec Games Final to be held in Laval in 2020.
Top of Form
$27,636 to eight Laval recreation organizations
The municipal financial assistance program covering areas of recreation and community life for children in the City of Laval stipulates that nonprofit recreation community organizations qualify for financial support from the city administration in the amount of $6.00 per every young person under the age of eighteen participating in activities at most twice a year. A total of $27,636 was approved to be shared by the following eight associations providing children’s activities: Loisirs Duvernay Saint-Vincent received $3966; Service des loisirs Renaud/Coursol was given $942; Service des loisirs de Laval-Ouest was awarded $3522; Loisibourg received $3162; Loisirs Sainte-Dorothée received a grant of $6354; Association des résidents de Champfleury received $3240;
Service des Loisirs Sainte-Béatrice was given $2670 while Service des loisirs Saint Bruno’s grant totalled $3780.
1.2 million dollars for the revision of the city urban planning by-laws
Under the Planning and Development Act, the City of Laval must adopt leading bylaws attached to the revised urban development plan of action that was voted in city council and took effect since December 8th 2017. The City intends to take advantage of this opportunity to carry out a complete revision of its urban planning by-law inventory which has been operational since 1970. The revision of the rules and regulations mandate, which consists of the overall management of the drafting process, was the subject of a call for tenders. The winning bid to review and revise the bylaws by Urban Workshop’s will cost a total of $ 1,201,097.84 (taxes included) for all professional and legal services. Funding of this project will be placed on the agenda of the next Municipal Council for pronouncement.
Follow-up of the Val-Martin Realty Revitalization Project, Phase 1
The City has authorized the Laval Municipal Housing Office (OMHL) to proceed with the decontamination and demolition of three buildings on lots 1,637,248, 1,637,249 and 1,637,566. This is the first phase of the Val-Martin Real Estate Revitalization Project. Two of these lots will be used to develop a new park that will be located adjacent to a future multi-functional community service center building which will also house 75 social housing units. The third lot will be modified so that it can be sold to the Laval Municipal Housing Office (OMHL) in early 2018 and allow for the construction of the community service social housing building project.
Laval submits brief to Quebec on marijuana use
(TLN)
As part of public consultations being made by the Quebec government leading towards the legalization of marijuana, officials from the City of Laval presented a brief to their provincial counterparts recently containing comments on the proposed legislation – Bill 157.
“The government recognized the necessity to increase the autonomy and powers of municipalities,” said Laval Mayor Marc Demers. “It is in this spirit that we have proposed various modifications to Bill 157. Laval hopes, among other things, that the Quebec government gives municipalities financial levers and rules allowing to better deal with the use of cannabis on our territory.”
Marijuana-free zones
According to the mayor, Laval wants to be able to establish zones where the sale of marijuana would be prohibited to youths. These zones would be in areas around schools, for example, as well as near recreational facilities or youth drop-in centres. The mayor noted that this type of practice has already been implemented in some U.S. states.
In addition, according to Demers, the City of Laval wants Quebec to grant municipalities the right to a veto on questions concerning the location of marijuana points of sale. As well, Laval is not ruling out the possibility that it would enact regulations making it illegal to consume marijuana in public places such as parks and green spaces. The city would also like to have the right to prohibit the use of marijuana during large public outdoor events such as Laval’s annual Fête de la Famille and the Fête des Pompiers, for example.
Estimated costs for Laval
According to the mayor, the city currently estimates it will cost Laval at least $1.5 million to implement new measures made necessary by the legalization of marijuana. These would include new equipment and training for police officers. The city wants to know whether and how these costs might be shared by other levels of government.
Mayor Demers also noted that it will be difficult to detect the presence of cannabis in individuals using it, although a principle of zero tolerance will prevail as regards the operation of motor vehicles. For this reason, the city wants Quebec to define in its legislation just what zero tolerance will mean when applied.
Barrette visits Cité de la Santé to open new endoscopy facilities
Martin C. Barry
With the unmistakable but unconfirmed certainty that a provincial election will be taking place in October, Quebec Liberal Health Minister Gaétan Barrette paid a visit to Cité de la Santé in Laval on Jan. 16 for the inauguration of two new endoscopy diagnosis rooms made possible with funding from Quebec.
And while he was there, Barrette told the media attending the event that he will be running in the election for another term as the Liberal candidate for MNA in the riding of La Pinière in Brossard on Montreal’s South Shore.
Polo to run again
At the same time, Laval-des-Rapides Liberal MNA Saul Polo confirmed he also expects to be in the running once again, although he was waiting last week for party leader and Premier Philippe Couillard along with the riding association to approve his nomination.
With the addition of a network of “superclinics” in Laval by Barrette’s ministry, effectively taking a burden off Cité de la Santé’s emergency department, the minister said CISSS de Laval has become one of the most efficient and performing in the network of provincial health care agencies across Quebec.
According to Barrette, Cité de la Santé’s emergency department stood out positively recently after having registered the shortest period of patient overcrowding.
New clinic system praised
“There is a direct correlation between the emergency here at Cité de la Santé being less congested over the past holidays compared to all the other hospitals in the greater region of Montreal,” Polo said in an interview with the Laval News.
“The reason is these clinics are having a direct impact, so people are becoming more and more aware that they can go to any of these clinics instead of to the emergency Cité de la Santé,” he added. “We don’t live in a perfect world, but I think in terms of health care we’re offering better and better services and more accessibility as well.”
More endoscopies
The new endoscopy facilities will allow Cité de la Santé to carry out 7,440 additional diagnoses of ailments in the digestive tract annually.
“When we know that colorectal cancer is the second most deadly cancer in Quebec, you can understand the importance of early detection of this disease, which at the same time reduces as much as possible the waiting times of patients for this type of examination,” said the health minister.
“The needs in the region of Laval in terms of health are increasing steadily, notably because of its demographic growth,” added Francine Charbonneau, the MNA for Mille-Îles and Minister Responsible for the Laval Region.
Earlier detection of cancers
“It is thus crucial to adapt the capacity of the services offered with respect to this increased demand,” she continued. “I am therefore very pleased with the implementation of this project which will allow even more cancers than before to be detected as quickly as possible, contributing at the same time to saving numerous lives.”
On the question of his running in the October election, Polo said that “ultimately the prime minister has to approve my candidacy with the support of the riding association first. But my intention is to submit my candidacy for another run at it.”
Some election speculation
Whatever the outcome of the election, it’s anyone’s guess what party and what candidate the voters in Laval-des-Rapides will end up choosing. The riding is notorious for its voting pattern instability, wavering closely between the Parti Québécois and the Liberals almost from election to election.
However, what is more certain is that the citizens of Laval-des-Rapides appear to be strategic in their choice of who to support, making the riding a “bellwether” of the overall trend. They are known to have supported the winning party in every general election since 1981 when the riding of Laval-des-Rapides was created.
Ottawa provides $2.7 million for new Armand Frappier Museum
Martin C. Barry
Federal Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly was at the Laval Cosmodome on Jan. 22 where she announced to an audience including Laval’s mayor and local MPs and MNAs that Ottawa is allocating $2.7 million to support the relocation of the Armand Frappier Museum of biosciences to a new site near the Cosmodome where a new museum building will be built.
A winning combination
“The completion of this promising project will create a unique synergy between the Armand-Frappier Museum and the Cosmodome,” said Joly. “By combining their respective strengths, these two institutions will help the public learn and engage with the vast world of science. I hope that this collaboration will inspire other organizations to adopt similar innovative approaches to help facilitate increased access to culture.”
“The relocation of the Armand-Frappier Museum will result in room for more visitors and will help promote the Laval region at the provincial level,” said Vimy Liberal MP Eva Nassif. “This is an initiative that will bring benefits for citizens and visitors alike.”
Laval takes the lead, says Demers
“Laval is taking on a leadership role in cultural development for its strategic vision for 2035, which aims to transform the city into an urban centre,” said Mayor Marc Demers. “By promoting the development of a science centre right downtown, we are helping to enrich the provision of museums as well as science knowledge to residents of Laval and the entire region. This will add to the other large and active institutions already established on our territory.”
“Stakeholders in the Armand-Frappier Museum are delighted with this funding, which will allow the municipality to complete the required financial package to equip the Museum with new facilities,” said Armand Frappier Museum executive-director Guylaine Archambault.
From Museum to BioCentre
“We have been working enthusiastically for some time now to define this great project, which will see the museum converted into the Armand Frappier BioCentre,” she added. “We are convinced that these new facilities will provide an enhanced experience for our visitors, with the opportunity to explore the infinitely large at the Cosmodome, and the infinitely small at the BioCentre, all the while maintaining the human-scale educational approach that characterizes our institution.”
The mission of the Armand-Frappier Museum, which has until now been located in a house on des Prairies Blvd. on the site of the original Institut Armand-Frappier, is to facilitate the understanding of scientific issues related to life sciences and human health by offering educational activities to the general public. The Centre offers exhibitions, laboratory activities, guided tours, workshops, and science camps, as well as many other activities to its clients.
Projected 2020 completion
The project, slated to be completed in 2020, will involve the construction of a 1,224-square metre building next to the Cosmodome, as well the acquisition and installation of advanced and specialized museum equipment. The new building will house laboratories, exhibition halls, and a multi-purpose room. The lobby, ticket office, gift shop, and cloakroom spaces will be shared with the Cosmodome. The work will take place from January 2017 to May 2020.
The museum is named after Armand Frappier, who was a physician, microbiologist and expert on tuberculosis from Quebec. In 1938, Frappier founded the Institut de microbiologie et d’hygiène de Montréal, following the model of the Pasteur Institute in Paris and Connaught Laboratories of Toronto. Frappier, who died in 1991, served as the institute’s director for 38 years. It was renamed Institut Armand-Frappier in 1975.
He was instrumental in the fight against tuberculosis in Canada.
Caisse Desjardins de Chomedey and Club Lions de Laval offer financial assistance to Agape.
Seeing the many underprivileged families Agape has helped throughout the year and during Christmas, these two organizations have chosen to donate the proceeds of their annual fund raising golf tournament to Agape. A cheque for $5000 was given to Agape on Tuesday, January 11th, 2018.
70th birthday of Quebec flag
(TLN)
On Jan. 21, Laval mayor Marc Demers, accompanied by Mille-Îles MNA and Liberal cabinet minister Francine Charbonneau, as well as Jean Desautels, president of the Société nationale du Québec, marked the 70th anniversary of Quebec’s fleur-de-lys flag.
Celebrating the past
Guests at Laval city hall were invited to sign the municipality’s Golden Book and the flag of Quebec was hoisted while music played.
“Our flag celebrates our past, while commemorating our future,” said Mayor Demers. “At the same time, it invites us to be open towards all those who chose Quebec as their home. I am pleased to have participated in this historic ceremony.”
Pride in Quebec’s flag
“We can be proud of our flag, whose design and colors tell the story of our roots in French culture from which our people sprang,” said Desautels. “It is for this reason that we gathered today to remind us of the nationalism which unites us.”
“It was a pleasure to have been invited to this event, for which I salute the City of Laval,” said Charbonneau. “Today, all together, we are privileged to mark the 70 years of the flag of Quebec.”
