The district that refused to grow | La Presse

For the third time in three years, Pierrefonds-Roxboro residents aborted a six-storey building project last spring. It would have replaced a commercial building that had been abandoned for a decade, on the corner of Gouin and 4^e Avenue, just opposite the station which will host the light metro of the Réseau express métropolitain (REM).

“Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, people are opposed to any construction in their area,” said borough mayor Jim Beis in an interview with The Press“We are talking about a main artery that is already commercial at the moment and we are talking about five or six floors. It is not huge.”

However, 146 citizens of the sector signed a register demanding a referendum on the authorization of the project, causing it to fail. Martha Bond, a resident of the borough, denounced during the last meeting of the borough council a potential “overdensification” of the sector, which could in her opinion lead to parking and traffic problems. “A six-storey building behind a single-family home, for us, is overdensification,” added citizen Philippe Vincent. Many of his neighbours are “very worried about the buildings proposed in the sector”.

In an interview, the developer said he was bitterly disappointed. “We started working with the City four years ago. Four years of back and forth, with plans,” said Labid Aljundi. “With all the delays and frustrations we’ve had, there’s no desire on our part to continue the project.” The six floors were already a compromise with the City: Mr. Aljundi had initially proposed a ten-storey building.

“People don’t want density”

Before Mr. Aljundi’s building project, two others had derailed near one of the two future REM stations in the borough.

In 2022, a project for four buildings, each with eight floors, near the future Pierrefonds-Roxboro station was aborted due to citizen opposition. Led by the developer Brivia, it would have created 414 housing units.

“It’s a gigantic project that gives the impression that it aims to cram as many people as possible into a given space,” denounced Pierre Paquette on the borough’s consultation platform. “No need for more condos in this area,” added Helena Sysoeva.

In 2023, a project of 111 housing units near the future Sunnybrooke station took the scupper after the signing of a referendum register by 26 citizens. In an interview with The Press A year ago, developer Maxime Laporte indicated that the project was “completely abandoned.” He also denounced the fact that a proposal in line with the objectives advocated by the City of Montreal was being “told no.”

“People don’t want density near their homes. Forget it. It’s not just in Pierrefonds, it’s the same everywhere. People simply don’t want it,” analyzed Stéphane Quesnel, from the urban planning, permits and inspection division of Pierrefonds-Roxboro.

These three projects are the only ones of any size proposed in recent years in the immediate vicinity of REM stations, according to Mayor Beis. All have been rejected.

The lack of housing buildings is nevertheless glaring in the borough, Mr. Beis pointed out. Seniors who want to leave their bungalow often have to uproot themselves from their environment because Pierrefonds-Roxboro lacks apartments and condos.

” It’s a shame “

What Mr Beis fears most is the effect these setbacks could have on property developers like Mr Aljundi and Mr Laporte.

“When people say ‘not in my backyard’ and would rather have vacant buildings than meaningful projects […]it’s a shame, he continued. We’re not talking about dozens of floors, we’re trying to keep it at heights that make sense.”

A reform of the Planning and Urban Development Act passed in the National Assembly last year did give municipalities powers to limit the ability to demand referendums. It would not be applicable in these cases, because the land at stake requires a zoning change, according to the analyses provided to Mr. Beis.

He refuses, however, to throw stones at his citizens or call them selfish. He himself “lives in a hyper-residential area” and does not know if he would oppose a six- or eight-story project that would spring up next to his house. “I don’t think so, but I don’t know,” he said.

Jean-Philippe Meloche, professor at the School of Urban Planning at the University of Montreal, says it is much too early to make an overall assessment of the REM’s impact on the neighbourhoods it passes through.

“To think that before the REM even comes into service we will be able to see the success or failure of densification is too quick,” he explained in a telephone interview. “If I take the example of the metro in Laval, we are only just beginning to see how it is transforming urban space on the surface, even though it was only put into service in 2008.”

Furthermore, it is not surprising to see certain large-scale projects provoke an outcry, continued the professor. “There will always be a lot of resistance, because the gains from densification are captured by people who will come and live there and the costs are absorbed by those who already live there. Since we are in a democratic process, those who will benefit from it do not have the right to vote,” stressed Mr. Meloche.

With André Dubuc, The Press