Shop your region | The Press

(Bromont) Have you ever felt this call of nature, of a different life far from major centres? In 2020-2021, interregional migration increased in Quebec, to the detriment of certain cities, including Montreal, Laval and Gatineau. Many city dwellers have moved to the regions. How did they choose their land of welcome? The Press asked the question.

Veronique Larocque
The Press

On this mild April morning, the Bromont Pittstop is particularly lively. The place, half bike shop, half café, welcomes a dozen young entrepreneurs with one thing in common: they are all thinking of settling in the Brome-Missisquoi region.

Installed in a circle in the dining room, the participants briefly present their project in turn. Among them, Alexis Carignan and Camille Bérard are looking for a land where to grow a nourishing forest of fruit trees. Andréa Normandin wants to discuss her web platform with osteopaths and massage therapists. Natasha Canin has two projects, one of which is to open a bar in a heritage site to serve Quebec cider. She would like to find a deconsecrated chapel in which to settle.

“What are you looking for today?” asks David Gobeille-Kaufman to a participant who gets confused in his presentation. Co-founder of the non-profit organization Mangrove, the entrepreneur accompanies the group all day long to help each of them make the most of the encounters they will have during this exploratory stay organized by the Fresh Forces initiative, the Place aux jeunes en region organization and the Brome-Missisquoi MRC.

The menu is loaded: five stops in different towns in the region to get to know about twenty socio-economic players likely to help participants make their dreams come true.

By taking a bus ride from Bromont to Bedford via Cowansville and Dunham, participants also have the opportunity to discover the beauty of the landscapes.

“I have wanted to move to the region for a long time, explains to The Press Andréa Normandin, during a hike to Mont Oak, the second stop of the day. I lived in Western Canada. When I came back to Quebec, it was sure that I was not coming back to town. […] I wanted to relive this experience of being close to nature in a small community. »

For more than a year, she has been looking for the municipality that will best meet this need…by testing different locations. She lived for a few months in Sutton and now lives temporarily with a couple of friends in Austin, near Magog. “Too much choice is worse than not enough,” she analyzes, noting that with telework, it is now possible to live anywhere, or almost, in Quebec.

In the group, Andréa Normandin is not the only one to “shop around” her region. Alexis Carignan and his wife Camille Bérard are hesitating between different RCMs in Estrie, while Natasha Canin has been looking for a chapel in a dynamic community for two years.

Immersion

The exploratory stays offered to people aged 18 to 35 by Place aux jeunes in the region throughout the province exist precisely to allow participants to immerse themselves in the places where they could live. “We are here to accompany them, answer their questions, put them in contact with local people. We are really facilitators,” explains Léonie Gamache, Place aux jeunes regional agent in Brome-Missisquoi, whose support role continues even after the move.

Today, however, the stay is a little different. It is centered on entrepreneurship thanks to the collaboration of Forces frais, an initiative propelled in particular by Mangrove, which supports entrepreneurs of all ages wishing to settle in one of the regions of Quebec.

Days like the one organized in Brome-Missisquoi allow a better link between entrepreneurs and their host country, according to him.

In familiar territory… or not

Before settling in a region, do neo-rurals know it well? “Not necessarily,” replies Laurie Guimond, professor in the geography department at UQAM. “There are people who will fall in love with a house, for example. It could be located in Saint-Lin–Laurentides or Tingwick, it wouldn’t matter. […] But they are not the most numerous. Often, it’s a slightly more mature project,” she explains.

Among the new inhabitants of the regions, there are “vacationers who transform their second home into a main residence”, indicates the professor. “It can also be tourists. »

This is the case for many Bromont residents, says Marie Allaire, director of tourism development for the municipality. Skiing or cycling enthusiasts who decide to settle in Bromont, she meets them every day. “What brings them here first are the tourist activities. It’s also what holds them back afterwards,” she says.

Gaspésie, favorite region

Further east, this observation is also observed. With its beaches and mountains, the Gaspésie is a dream come true. From July 2020 to July 2021, nearly 3000 people have chosen to make this territory their reality. For the past five years, the region has recorded a positive migratory balance each year, according to data from the Institut de la statistique du Québec.

The Vivre en Gaspésie team, a regional strategy whose mandate is to attract and integrate new residents, receives emails every day from people who wish to settle in the region. “The vast majority of people who contact us begin their message with: ‘I fell in love’,” says Danik O’Connor, director of Vivre en Gaspésie.

A favorite for a specific municipality? No. For Gaspésie as a whole, in approximately 90% of cases.

Véronique Simard-Bouvier and her spouse Ian Bruneau are part of the lot. “We absolutely fell in love with the region,” says the one who has lived there for a year.

When they made the decision to leave the South Shore of Montreal, they knew they wanted to live in Gaspésie, but they didn’t know where.

“The Gaspésie is big. We have five RCMs. People don’t necessarily know them,” says Danik O’Connor.

His team is used to guiding potential neo-rurals. “We have a series of questions to ask them to get a picture of their situation. How old are they ? With family or not? What are their interests in life? What is their work experience? “, he lists.

“As soon as there is a defined territory, we put them in contact with the people in the field: Place aux jeunes in the region or the reception services for new arrivals. In Gaspésie, there are about fifteen people who work full-time in support. […] It is very valuable. They go so far as to help them find houses, daycare centres,” explains Danik O’Connor.

What element weighs the most in the balance when it comes time to choose a municipality? “Even today, employment is often an important factor in knowing where to go,” he replies.

Work is also what prompted Véronique Simard-Bouvier and Ian Bruneau to settle in Cap-Chat. The couple was looking for a campground for sale, on the edge of the water, somewhere in Gaspésie. Since May 2021, they have been the owners of the campsite Au bord de la mer.

Back in town

A few weeks after the exploratory stay in Bromont, The Press heard from some participants. Did they opt for this region as a land of welcome? Not yet. However, they thoroughly enjoyed their experience. “It confirmed the local interest in our project,” rejoiced Alexis Carignan.