The notion of connecting the two halves of Cavendish Blvd. has been floating around for half a century. Now it may actually be starting, first with an environmental assessment.
Updates from February, 2022 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts
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Kate
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Kate
Some media Wednesday are talking to Ukrainian Montrealers about their fears for Ukraine.
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Kate
La Presse says that “sympathizers” of the Hells Angels are operating some recycling trucks for Ricova.
I tend to feel that if these guys are doing the specified job, and doing it properly – does it matter?
Tee Owe
I think that’s what they said at Altamont…..
Meezly
…and we know how well that turned out.
Kate
OK, but picking up recycling isn’t as dicey a scenario as providing security for a music festival.
Joey
@Kate Turns out that if all the money we collectively spend on recycling goes to mafia kickbacks, nothing gets recycled! So, yeah, it matters.
Kate
Is anything getting recycled?
Joey
Probably not, but the mob money is getting laundered, so at least someone’s profiting…
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Kate
The inspector general having cast opprobrium on the contract with Pomerleau to manage the construction of the big new bus garage on Bellechasse, the mayor says the city has nothing to apologize for. The Journal makes it clearer that the issue is that Pomerleau may have tailored a bid a llttle too much in its own favour.
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Kate
A woman undertook to walk along every street in Montreal and it took her five years. I was expecting she’d done a book or a photo blog or something, but there’s no mention of any product from the exercise.
mudar
I did find a photo blog https://purpleroads.weebly.com/ and there’s a photo of the map!
John B
I started trying to bike as much of Montreal as possible early in the 2020 shutdown. I’m almost 20% of the way there, but I don’t have anything beyond a digital map, and maybe a few photos. For me it’s more to be able to say I’ve done it, and discover interesting areas that I wouldn’t otherwise go to.
Although if I was walking I would take more photos!
Kate
mudar, thank you!
j2
8/3/2021 – After about two years forced hiatus from my walking project, thanks to Mr. Covid and incidentally getting hit by a truck and ending up in the ER on one of my walks, I’m back to criss-crossing the streets of Montreal.
Woah! Also I really enjoyed the blog!
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Kate
The mayor has announced plans for a forum on youth violence in response to the murders of several teenagers over the last year.
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Kate
The skating rink at Esplanade Tranquille was officially opened Monday by the mayor.
I don’t know why the Gazette says the area was named after an “influential library” (and even quotes the mayor saying so), because the Librairie Tranquille wasn’t a library, it was a bookstore.
Joey
Looks like it’s been fixed… more bad translation…
steph
@Gazette, can you really raze something that’s already at ground level?
Ian
That really was a great bookstore.
@steph I think somebody was referencing Joni Mitchell, call it poetic licenseSMD
Libraire ≠ library. Classic linguistic false friend. Also shows how important it is to have deep local knowledge behind the newspaper desk. The Gazette is losing its two top editors this week (Lucinda Chodan and Basel Boshra); I am curious who will replace them. Anybody here know?
steph
@Ian, with a licence like that I think they were probably refering to the Counting Crows song.
MarcG
It would have been nice to include a photo of what the rink and area actually look like. The story isn’t about the mayor.
Kate
MarcG, Daily Hive has a view from above and TVA shows it from skater level. You can see it behind the dignitaries in Metro’s story.
Ian, the Librairie Tranquille closed in 1975. I never heard it talked about, but then I grew up in an anglo family of Catholics who wouldn’t have been buying books in French and, if anything, would’ve been on the side of the clerics who wanted to shut it down.
DeWolf
There are a lot of photos of it here:
https://forum.agoramtl.com/t/esplanade-tranquille/246/250
It’s a really nice space and I’m looking forward to seeing how it will be used for concerts and other events in the summer. What isn’t mentioned in many of the articles about it is that the space underneath the skating rink is a big storage facility for festival materials. One of the concerns the festivals had about the development of the Quartier des spectacles is that the vacant lots and parking lots where the festivals used to keep all their stuff have all disappeared, and this is meant to help with the problem.
MarcG
@Kate: Thanks! To be clear I was criticizing the Gazoo, not you.
Mr.Chinaski
@Gazette, can you really raze something that’s already at ground level?
Well they tried once by burning the Parliament in Montreal so…
DeWolf
Because I’m a masochist I looked up the comments on the Gazette’s Facebook page. Lots of people upset about the loss of a parking lot.
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Kate
The city inspector-general says there are serious problems with some of the contracts written for the STM’s new garage at St‑Denis and Bellechasse, but that it’s too late to cancel them because the work has already been done.
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Kate
Bicycle Bob Silverman has died at age 87. Co-founder of Le Monde à Bicyclette, Silverman was a pioneer in campaigning for better cycling infrastructure in Montreal. Here’s a piece from 2017 on the city’s own site.
Update to add CTV story, CBC story, Radio-Canada story.
qatzelok
I played volleyball with Bob Silverman for years, and had many long chats with him between games.
What an inspirational person to talk to. And really committed to “community participation.”
Meezly
Rest in power, BB. Pedal power!
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Kate
Independent community groups are on a four-day strike demanding more funding from Quebec.
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Kate
A woman who went missing Thursday in the north end is still missing.
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Kate
A coalition of individuals and organizations has presented a petition against the REM de l’Est, although I don’t see any link to the actual petition in the item.
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Kate
Freezing rain is expected starting Tuesday evening.
Every winter brings some freezing rain, but I suspect a whole generation of Montrealers are traumatized by memories of the 1998 ice storm.
Speaking of collective weather memories, the Gazette looks back on 1971, not at the notorious storm of March 4 that year, but at the one right before it, and the ones before that. We’ve had a couple of storms this century that exceeded the fall that March 4, but they weren’t adding to an accumulation of 330 cm as in 1971.
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Kate
The mother of murdered Jannai Jopwell-Bailey says that her victim compensation has been delayed because one unnamed media outlet implied that her son was a gang member, which she vehemently denies. (This may be the article.)
(CTV’s piece has a good quote from Maria Mourani about how some teenage boys like to go on social media and pretend to be tough guys. The problem would be that there’s a thin line between pretending to be a gang member, and being taken for one.)
There’s an unexplained element here. Charla Dopwell has been “working with a company that provides compensation and therapy support to victims of crimes.” A company? There’s no public support? Is someone profiting from this?
David S.
They are probably referring to IVAC (Indemnisation des victimes d’actes criminels – http://www.ivac.qc.ca) which are part of the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST). They usually offer financial compensation to victimes of criminal acts, including payment to receive services.
Kate
But that isn’t a company.
Joey
Maria Mourani is a former MP, no? Ths is classic CTV journalism – crucial details left out, incomplete information likely sourced in inaccurate translation (how something like IVAC becomes a “company”), no real beggining or end, just 1/3 of a story and… move on. And yet this piece has *two* bylines…
Kate
Yes, but Mourani is also a criminologist. She has written two books about street gangs.
SMD
One line in a La Presse article, suggesting that a brutal killing could be gang-related, kept the family from receiving IVAC support. The La Presse reporter felt so bad (the killer worked for organized crime, the victim had no relation to it) that he recently got Patrick Lagacé to write a whole column about it, ending with a plea to IVAC to finally fulfill their mandate and support the family.
Kate
SMD, the link did not work, can you re-post it please? I can’t find the one you’re referencing.
SMD
Sorry, here it is in plant text: https://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/chroniques/2022-02-06/alessandro-vinci-n-etait-pas-un-bandit.php
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Kate
A new book is out on a prisoner support group that helps newly emerged individuals reintegrate into society.
It’s interesting to understand that people living in halfway houses are
banned from using the internet(see Joey’s comment below). If they’re expected to find jobs, independent places to live, apply for government aid, if they’re even meant to inform themselves about the news – for example if there’s an election and they want to vote – how else are they meant to do it in the 21st century? The internet is not a frivolous add‑on to modern life. It is modern life.Jonz
It seems like “rules” of this sort often originate from the opinions of one person and then get handed down institutionally from year to year without additional thought. You’re right; it seems like an obstacle that ought to get questioned!
Joey
To be clear, the article says that “many living in halfway houses are banned from having the technology that would allow them to attend virtually” – this is not the same as saying that people living in halfway houses are forbidden from using the Internet. It could mean that certain former prisoners are forbidden from using certain kinds of devices or accessing the Internet because of the nature of their crimes (e.g., phishing schemes, ‘luring’ minors, etc.) or it could mean that the halfway houses don’t include the laptops/phones/etc. that you would need to join a Zoom call.
I’m sure some modernization of halfway house conditions is in order, but I’m not sure blanket statements like “people living in halfway houses are banned from using the internet.” I know one person living in such a situation last fall; he had an iPhone with iMessage (e.g., non-SMS messaging) enabled, shopped online, etc. I think the expectation is that all communication could/would be monitored, but access to the Internet was not blocked…
Kate
That’s good to know, Joey. Thanks!
steph 10:35 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
Is this a prequel to the RoyalMount project?
Blork 11:11 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
I’m interested in how they plan to do this. It seems it would have to be entirely elevated, as it crosses over several rail lines and some industrial roads. It runs about a kilometre.
And I’m sure these folks won’t be happy to have their quiet neighbourhood turned into a throughway:
https://goo.gl/maps/mBbj2Ywk79nrAjtJ9
Kate 11:39 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
That’s why there’s been constant resistance over the years, Blork. Some people do not want their street turned into a highway.
Blork 12:03 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
I wonder if the fervour on some people’s part to do this work is fueled by the fact that the name both sides is “Cavendish,” even though there is no link between the two. The north side could easily have been called anything. Let’s say it was always called “Ave. Blork.” Would people be so determined to “build a link between Blvd. Cavendish and Ave. Blork” as they are to “connect the two sides of Blvd. Cavendish?”
If the Trump era, plus Covid, plus the trucker’s convoy, have taught me anything, it’s that much of the public is stupid beyond belief. The loudest among them have zero critical thinking skills, and are blank pages of gullibility awaiting the pen strokes of manipulators and grifters.
“Building a link to the 40 at Ave. Blork” sounds like an infrastructure project that requires money and effort.
“Connecting two sides of Cavendish” sounds like an overdue act of completion that must be done to restore balance to the universe. When wondering why Cavendish is “divided” you just know there are hundreds or even thousands of people who are outraged and thinking “LOOK WHAT THEY DID TO US!” and therefore connecting the two sides is a matter of JUSTICE and FREEDOM!
…as opposed to just connecting a boulevard to a highway over a rail yard, which just sounds like a bunch of noisy and expensive work.
Kevin 12:16 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
I think having a crossing at Royalmount/Pare to the north side of Cavendish is one of the necessary steps towards building anything on the Blue Bonnets site.
Tee Owe 12:49 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
I like Blork’s analysis – i support renaming Cavendish North to Ave Blork, great idea!
YUL514 14:21 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
I take it many of you don’t live in the area or surrounding Hampstead, Snowdon, NDG, etc… to know how bad the congestion is on Decarie and all the roads that lead to it from the west. Throw in all the new Condo towers around Decarie/Vezina, Triangle, CSL towers, future Blue Bonnets, Royalmount etc… and it’s a mess right now that will only get worse. This is 50 years overdue but will it actually happen?
Mark Côté 15:00 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
And in a few years we’ll have bad congestion on both Decarie and Cavendish!
Kate 15:35 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
YUL514, we have this idea that it is an urban good to build roads to decongest traffic.
I put it to you that it isnt necessarily so.
Kevin 17:05 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
Good design eliminates congestion. Good design means more than just new roads.
Northbound Decarie Blvd, needs to be redesigned from Sherbrooke to De La Savane, moving on-ramps and off-ramps to the highway, banning left and right-turns in certain areas, and clearly marking traffic lanes on bridges and eliminating nearby parking spaces. It’ll be complicated because it involves 4 jurisdictions, but it has to be done if someone wants to turn Blue Bonnets into a community with housing.
Joey 17:10 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
@Kevin, which ramps would you move? I don’t drive on Decarie as much as I used to, but my impression is that the off-ramp on the northbound 15 at Cote-St-Luc Road is jammed way more often than 10-15 years ago. Could be because the light cycles at Decarie/CSL are much longer than they used to be, could be just more traffic, could be both. From a bureaucracy perspective, my hunch is the real difficulty won’t be thr four boroughs so much as the ministry, which probably has practical control over every inch of Decarie (highway *and* boulevard).
Extending Cavendish ought to alleviate much of the eastbound traffic spilling on to Decarie (all those left turns to go north), but doesn’t every exercise like this just increase the number of cars on the road?
Tim S. 18:11 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
I get that more roads mean more cars and a Cavendish extension will be congested too, but it does make sense that there be more outlets from the NDG/Hampstead/CSL area.
As to design, I wonder how much congestion on the Decarie expressway is because of people getting on Jean Talon and doing the four lane crossover to get on the 40 west. If those are people coming from CSL/Hampstead, a new way to get on the 40 might reduce congestion for all.
Or I’m just being over optimistic because this might benefit me.
Ian 18:56 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
It’s worth noting that most of the major traffic bottlenecks along the 40 are caused by having to cross lanes of traffic, usually in a very short space. It’s also where a lot of the accidents are.
I understand the principle that increasing highway space increases traffic, but it would make sense to at least make what highways there are safer, or in retrospect, it would have been great if someone thought this out. For one, there aren’t many highways in North America where your exit might be on the left or right, depending. forcing you to cross 3-6 lanes at speed.
wmin 20:37 on 2022-02-23 Permalink
A Cavendish link would greatly facilitate bicycling between NDG and the north side of the island.
j2 01:07 on 2022-02-24 Permalink
Love the idea wmin, but you’re assuming they think of that before they make it a ghost cycle birthing ground. (Used to cycle to work on cote-de-liesse, this link would have been amazing.)
YUL514 09:47 on 2022-02-24 Permalink
Kate, if you are going to add tens of thousands of units to the area you need to expand infrastructure. I know the theory of build more roads and you’ll have more cars but that’s not a reason alone to ignore what is going on. Vezina, Plamondon, Van Horne, Isabella, all these streets are jammed during rush hour because residents need to access Decarie north. At the western sector of NDG you have a backlog of those accessing the 20 West. An extension would and has always been ideal.
Kevin 09:56 on 2022-02-24 Permalink
Joey,
Possibly all of them.
CSL is de facto a two lane exit.. maybe make that official, and come up with a better way for northbound Blvd users to access Decarie south.
I think an entrance north of Isabelle is needed —maybe reverse the positions of the entrance and exit?
All scenarios should be modelled and tested.
carswell 10:00 on 2022-02-24 Permalink
In case people missed it, this morning’s Daybreak interviewed Côte-St-Luc mayor Mitchell Brownstein about the project. It’s not currently posted on the program’s website but may be later. Some of the main points I recall:
Per Brownstein, the project was going to happen eventually. The reason it’s happening now is because the extension is crucial to the Hippodrome development and if that doesn’t happen soon (by 2027?), Montreal will lose the land.
Though there have been proposals for a tunnel and an overpass, the current plan calls for a trench with, from the sounds of it, lots of greenery. Since the Hippodrome project is supposed to encourage active and public transit and not encourage cars, the extension will accommodate pedestrians, cyclists and public transit and, controversially, only one lane of traffic in each direction.
The demerged municipalities concerned (CSL, Hamstead, TMR) want — and still hope to get — two lanes in each direction.
There was also mention of a tramway directly connecting CSL to the Namur metro station (via the Hippodrome development presumably).