Opening Comments by Mayor Peter J. Malouf - Regular Meeting of Tuesday, July 16, 2024

"Good evening to all, thank you for joining us, be it here in person or from the comfort of your hopefully air-conditioned home.

My opening remarks will be brief, and I will give you a quick update on the files we have been working on recently.

Sports and Community Complex

The news about our long-awaited sports and community complex is mixed; some good, some not so good. The not-so-good news is that, unfortunately, the Ministry of Education and Culture has informed us that our project has not been selected for a grant under the PAFIR-SPA program.

I would like to publicly thank our MNA Michelle Setlakwe, who collaborated significantly with myself and the administration to help us obtain the grant, by arranging a meeting for me with the Minister of sports and meeting with several of her colleagues on our behalf.

We were all very disappointed, however, on a positive note, we received approval of our borrowing by-law from the MAMH last week.

In other positive news for the project, the deadline for receipt of bids to pre-qualify contractors for the design build is tomorrow. We're looking forward to opening the bids and getting down to the nitty-gritty of the rest of the project. Pre-qualification is scheduled for August.

Heavy rains and flooding

Climate change continues and the effects of heavy rain continue to be felt. We continue our efforts to gather information, we are and have consulted specialists in sewage and rainwater management so that we can put actions in place.

However, there is no miracle quick fix solution. All cities are faced with the same challenges. Torrential rain and flooding are impacting all cities who are all dealing with the impact on their residents. It is important for residents to put in place measures to protect themselves. Many of you have said that you have all the adequate installations.

We still recommend that you make sure your gutters are disconnected from the French drains and that you have flap valves on all your connections. It's important to ensure that the valves are working properly and that there is no dirt preventing the valve from opening and closing.

These should be checked twice a year. We recommend having all your installations checked by reputable plumbers. We are currently working on a pamphlet with best practices to protect against flooding during heavy rains. The pamphlet will be distributed to all residences. We had hoped to issue the document earlier, but conflicting information from certain professionals delayed us. As a result of our recent meetings and consultations, we are now all aligned.

Cavendish

The Cavendish connection file continues to occupy us. I'm working hard with my colleagues from Saint-Laurent and Cote St-Luc to move the file forward with not only the City of Montreal, but also the provincial and federal governments.

We are also in contact with the railway companies, CP and CN, as they also play a role in the unblocking of truck traffic, and are key collaborators in the by the Cavendish connection. Some interesting options have been put forward that we feel may help unblock the file and traffic.

London red phone booth, town center

You may have noticed that the telephone booth in the center of town has been removed. We're not losing it - it's being removed to be refurbished and returned to its original state of cachet. Our red phone booth will be back in place once it has been repaired and returned to its original state of cachet.

Beaumont PPU

Consultations with merchants and major landowners took place this spring, the citizen participation evening was held in early summer, and the survey is now complete.

The comments received have been collated and a feedback document prepared; the document is available on our website.

I would like to thank all those who took part in one form or another in this successful and democratic consultation process.

Thank you for spending your evening with us. I wish you all a pleasant sunny, hot and safe summer."

Visit the Mayor's Messages and Columns page for more information.