Residents of Rivière-des-Prairies have been fed up with seeing orange cones, parking restrictions and other construction signs near their homes for at least a month, when construction work would be rare, if not non-existent.
“There are everywhere, almost on every street corner, but no one is working,” denounces Martin Gingras, who has lived in this residential area of eastern Montreal for years. “We are losing a dozen parking spaces,” he laments.
Orange cones and other traffic signs seem abandoned in several places scattered around Rita-Levi-Montalcini and René Descartes avenues, Le Journal saw last week.
A dozen citizens met in the neighborhood claim to have seen almost no construction workers for weeks. Seeing no construction, motorists bypass the blocked streets and detours. The day after the Journal’s calls, however, residents claimed to have finally seen workers working on one of the construction sites.
Parking bans
In several places, it is forbidden to park between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
“We search, we search and we don’t know where to park. In the end, everyone parks the same,” explains Tony Mediati, who comes to visit his mother in the area two or three times a week.
Around a standpipe replaced a month ago, the workers left a blocked sidewalk and an unpaved street square, noted a resident of rue René-Descartes.
“They come and they leave. They work in slow motion and don’t come back to finish,” notes Wilson, who lives on the same street, a few blocks away.
The construction site “follows its course”
Signs point to $410,000 partial sidewalk resurfacing and replacement work in August and September.
The contractor responsible for the project, Pavages Métropolitain Inc. confirms that 16 street sections are targeted. Reached by telephone, the director, Stéphane Lavoie, assures that “the construction site is in progress” and that workers are going there, but “not necessarily” every day, depending on the work.
The City of Montreal confirms that several projects under the direction of the Rivière-des-Prairies-Pointe-aux-Trembles borough are underway, such as sidewalks, speed bumps and fire hydrants, for example.
“The borough worked closely with the contractor to reduce the impact of the obstacles,” reads an email. Residents will have to be patient, however, as most of the work will be completed by mid-November, rather than September, as indicated on the signs.