East of the Village | “Customers no longer come, they are afraid”

The feeling of insecurity has worsened since the beginning of the summer in the east of the Village, according to several traders. Tenants even fear having to close their terrace, for lack of customers.

Martin Barrette is exhausted. Get over the fights that break out at any time of the day and night. Syringes strewn on the ground. Repeated vandalism.

“Customers no longer come, they are afraid. We went from a full bar every Friday and Saturday to serving four or five people, ”drops the manager of the cabaret Expose.

A drizzle falls on Saturday evening on rue Sainte-Catherine, near the Papineau station. Several traders deplore the growing feeling of insecurity in the sector. Tenants are even considering closing their terraces.

The situation has never been so bad, notes Martin Barrette. “Since the beginning of the summer, it hasn’t looked good,” he laments.

A few minutes earlier, he was telling police officers that one of his employees had recently almost been stabbed in the alley behind his establishment. “We managed to control [l’assaillant]. The guy had a pair of scissors, ”he says, annoyed.

Difficult cohabitation

Nearby, the Cocktail bar also deplores a marked drop in customers. Its owner, Luc Généreux, plans to close his terrace, which costs him more than it brings in.

Substance abuse and homelessness issues are not new to the Downtown Eastside. Since the pandemic, several reports have reported on a difficult cohabitation between merchants and the homeless population. In January, the Archambault store located at the corner of Berri and Sainte-Catherine streets announced that it was closing its doors due to “the evolution of the urban fabric” around Place Émilie-Gamelin.

For Luc Généreux, the City of Montreal is failing to ensure a welcoming and safe environment not only for customers, but also for merchants and their staff. And if the administration of Valérie Plante has created a crisis unit against insecurity, on the ground, the results are slow to materialize.

His employees are afraid to return home in the middle of the night after work, he claims.

“In our area, between rue Champlain and avenue Papineau, it’s even worse. I’ve been here for 15 years and it’s worse than ever,” concludes Luc Généreux.

Cases of vandalism

A smell of roast chicken fills the Portuguese canteen Emilia, which was recently vandalized. The gaping hole in the window of the restaurant, located rue Sainte-Catherine, is still there.

According to surveillance videos, an impaired man smashed the window with a bottle overnight from Wednesday to Thursday. “We have already made a report to the police. It’s a lot of hassle, ”laments the supervisor of the establishment, Jade Rainha.

This is far from the first incident of its kind: a person was stabbed in the alley behind the restaurant a few months earlier. Since then, employees no longer take out the trash alone.

A little further, the window of Emily Yu’s restaurant was also vandalized. Cost of repairs: $1500. And that’s not to mention the problems that now make up his daily life.

She points to a group of restless homeless people outside. “There are always people sleeping on the terrace at night. The next morning, the tables are overturned,” she says.

Sitting in a cafe, David Hamelin is a local regular. No, he never felt in danger here. But what strikes him the most is the misery. “It’s so concentrated in the sector. I think there may be a lack of resources,” he said.

“The police do nothing”

All the traders interviewed deplored the inaction of the police, who do not do enough to ensure security.

“We are not allowed to put music on a terrace. They do everything with impunity. They take drugs, drink alcohol. The police walk past them and do nothing,” says Luc Généreux indignantly.

She may tell them to disperse, “they come back five minutes later,” says Martin Barrette.

“We are going bankrupt. There, it’s the terraces that we’re closing, but soon, it’s business which are going to close, ”he drops.