Action Laval set to announce new contender four months from election date
With four months to go before voters in Laval head to the polls for a municipal election, the Action Laval opposition party dropped a bombshell late last week with the announcement that their mayoralty candidate, Sonia Baudelot, has decided to pull out of the race.
Action Laval president Archie Cifelli said the party’s executive-committee met with Baudelot and that both sides had reached a mutual agreement she should withdraw.
A statement by the party suggested that Baudelot felt it had become impossible for her to live up to her family responsibilities and run for mayor simultaneously.
New candidate TBA
“We wish her success in her other endeavours,” said Cifelli. “Our candidates are out there on the terrain meeting with the citizens.”
This week, Action Laval announced that Sophie Trottier, a provincial government civil servant who worked at the Office québécois de la langue française, is now Action Laval’s mayoralty candidate.
In Chomedey, where city councillor Aglaia Revelakis regularly wins the district for Action Laval with overwhelming voter support, Revelakis said in an interview that she remains determined to see that Action Laval become Laval’s next administration on election day.
“I just want all our supporters to know that Action Laval is very much still here and we’re running in the upcoming election,” she said.
Boyer tables report for city’s post-COVID recovery
Laval deputy-mayor and executive-committee vice-president Stéphane Boyer recently tabled the third of a series of reports on public consultations for the city’s post-COVID economic recovery. The latest report focuses on social solidarity.
During the consultation, Boyer, who was mandated by Mayor Marc Demers to oversee the consultation, met representatives of more than 50 community organizations, leading to recommendations based on their feedback.
“What struck me the most during these meetings was the extraordinary resilience shown by the volunteers and employees at these organizations who provide help to our most vulnerable fellow-citizens,” said Boyer.
The report focuses on four areas: improving accessibility to services, contributing to the development of the community, improving the expertise of organizations in Laval, and expanding community infrastructures.
The report contains 15 recommendations, some of which can be implemented in the short term, others in the medium and longer terms.
Among the recommendations is that the city should create a comprehensive platform for leisure activities registration, that it should provide financial assistance to low-income families for their children to take part in sports, and that the city should provide financial help to organizations to train volunteers.
Setting off fireworks in Laval is illegal
In as much as fireworks are openly available and can be purchased at many stores in Laval, the city is issuing a warning on the eve of Canada Day that setting off fireworks anywhere within the municipality’s limits is strictly forbidden, unless you have a permit from the Laval Fire Department.
The city maintains that using fireworks carries major risks, including injuries, for users as well as for spectators, while at the same time raising risks of setting buildings and other property on fire when fireworks are misused.
Additional information on legitimate fireworks use and on how to obtain a license can be found on the city’s website (www.laval.ca). The Laval Fire Department can also be reached by phone for emergencies by calling 9-1-1, or at 450 662-4450 for information on fire prevention.
City tightens security at Berge aux Quatre-Vents
The city is reminding residents who may sometimes be dropping by the Berge aux Quatre-Vents park and beach in Laval-Ouest that it is located in a quiet residential area and that certain rules should be followed out of respect for those who live nearby.
According to the city, this comes following a recent surge in the number of people spending time at the green space since the beginning of the summer. As a result, city officials say that security will be tighter than usual.
Here are some points (as set out in city by-law L-4510) concerning order, security and hours of operation in public parks:
- Swimming (as defined in art. 6.09);
- Drinking of alcoholic beverages (as defined in art. 6.05);
- Use of loudspeakers for playing music (as defined in art. 6.15);
- Lighting of campfires (as defined in art. 6.13).
The city notes that the use of marijuana remains illegal in all of Laval’s parks, and that the Berge aux Quatre-Vents is open only from 7 am to 10 pm as are all other public parks in Laval.
