Dog park project divides Mile End residents

A dog park project divides Mile End residents. Dog owners believe that a park on Clark Street, called Sans Nom Park, would be ideal for a dog exercise area. Residents of the neighborhood are however opposed to this green space being sacrificed for such a project.

At the Plateau–Mont-Royal borough council on November 7, Dominique Trudel, with a petition of more than 600 names in hand, spoke to elected officials to present the project. “There are no dog exercise areas in Mile End, the nearest being two kilometers away,” said the dog owner. “Since COVID, the number of dogs in the neighborhood has increased dramatically. These dogs need space to socialize and exercise. »

According to him, Sans Nom park would be perfect for this use. It is a former storage site located next to Lhasa-De Sela Park and part of which is under the Van Horne Viaduct. In 2016, this mineralized space was greened to become a park. Dog owners already frequent it regularly.

Apprehended nuisances

Other neighborhood residents disagree. “If they made the choice to have sled dogs in Mile End, it is their choice. I don’t think it’s up to families to lose their green space so that they have a place to run their sled dogs,” argued Luc Martin, member of the Clark Street Residents’ Committee, during the borough council meeting.

Over the past few months, this citizens’ committee has obtained the cooperation of the borough and the police to put an end to the incivility in Sans Nom Park, which attracted revelers in the evening. These citizens are now afraid of losing this green space and suffering from the nuisance caused by the barking of dogs at all hours of the day.

Mile End Borough Councilor Marie Sterlin makes no secret of it: Sans Nom Park would lend itself well to a dog park. “It would be the perfect place for a dog park. […] This is a possibility that is being studied with a lot of openness on our part, ”she explains to the To have to. “I am against the ‘Not in my backyard’. In dense neighborhoods, there are constraints that must be accepted. I am reassured by the fact that those who carry this file are extremely responsible and concerned about living together with the rest of the people. »

According to her, this file is reminiscent of that of a canine exercise area in Baldwin Park in the east of Plateau-Mont-Royal. Before its development in 2014, the project had aroused strong opposition from residents of the area, opposition which has subsided over time, said the elected official. “You have to trust the civility of people,” she said, while saying she understood the apprehensions of opponents.

Share public space

According to the elected official, it is the whole question of sharing public space that must be taken into consideration. No other place in the area lends itself to this type of development, she adds. “One in four households — and that’s probably more with the pandemic — has a dog in town. So, what arrangements do we make for these dogs? she asks. For now, the borough has not set a deadline for carrying out the project.

Alain Petel, of the Clark Street Residents’ Committee, which opposes the project, deplores the fact that citizens were not consulted on the project. “In our talks with elected officials, there was always talk of a large table with the various departments, residents and elected officials to see what future we could give to this park, with a view to a multi-purpose park,” he said.

Mr. Petel points out that the Plateau-Mont-Royal goes against the trend observed in several cities, including Quebec, Charny, Beloeil, and Lévis, which are closing canine exercise areas near residences due to nuisances.

Dominique Trudel, he hopes that the discussions around the project will reduce tensions in the neighborhood. “I don’t think any dog ​​exercise area project has been done in Montreal without the immediate neighbors “bad tripping” a little,” he admits. Landlocked and partly under a viaduct, the Sans Nom park is not the friendliest space for families and relaxation activities, he argues.

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