(Saint-Jérôme) The renovation of a halfway house for ex-federal detainees in the heart of downtown Saint-Jérôme, in the Laurentians, has raised the ire of the population and elected officials. The City offered other land to Correctional Service Canada, without success.
“It’s like a wart, a federal wart,” denounces Marc Bourcier, mayor of Saint-Jérôme, in front of the emblematic building located at the entrance to the city center. “It’s very valuable, but it’s a terrible image that we give [à la ville] », he continues.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
Marc Bourcier, mayor of Saint-Jérôme
There is no social acceptability. Everyone is against the reconstruction of this center, for all kinds of reasons.
Marc Bourcier, mayor of Saint-Jérôme
Until March 2019, the Laferrière Community Correctional Center welcomed around thirty former federal prison inmates in the process of social reintegration. These people first served a penitentiary sentence of more than two years.
The Center has since closed its doors in order to “make improvements to the site,” said Kevin Antonucci, media relations advisor for Correctional Service Canada, by email.
The renovation project, which includes the decontamination of the building, its deconstruction and its reconstruction “in accordance with current standards”, was estimated at 7.5 million, according to Mr. Antonucci. A new building housing the same clientele should reopen in 2025.
“Our Times Square”
The building under construction is located at the junction of Labelle and Saint-Georges streets, a strategic crossroads in Saint-Jérôme, according to Mr. Bourcier. “It’s a bit like our Times Square,” he adds.
“We have 350,000 people who pass here every year, people come to see shows at the Gilles-Vigneault theater, looking for a restaurant and cultural experience,” underlines the mayor. The city center is also undergoing a beauty treatment, he adds.
Not to mention the thousands of pupils and students who frequent the premises because of the campus of the Université du Québec en Outaouais and the Saint-Jérôme CEGEP, located just a stone’s throw away.
Former teacher and PQ MP, Marc Bourcier was elected mayor of the city in 2021. He has made the relocation of the Center his hobby horse. He is not against having a federal halfway house in Saint-Jérôme, he specifies, but he wants it to be established outside the city center.
In its place, the municipality plans to create a public place, such as a park or a cultural center.
Other lands on the table
To promote this project, the elected official claims to have offered Correctional Service Canada to study several sites elsewhere in the city.
It was at zero cost. The City was ready to give them another, larger plot of land, with the same surrounding conditions favorable to social reintegration, with public transportation, close to services and jobs.
Marc Bourcier, mayor of Saint-Jérôme
Talks broke down with federal agency officials. “They came to see us in Saint-Jérôme, there were four of them, and they came to tell us that it wasn’t working, for all kinds of obscure reasons,” says Mr. Bourcier.
Asked about the reasons that led it to rule out the relocation project, the federal agency did not respond to questions from The Press. “Meetings with representatives of the City of Saint-Jérôme were held regularly as part of project planning,” indicated Mr. Antonucci.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
The Laferrière Community Correctional Center is located at a strategic crossroads in Saint-Jérôme.
In its approach, the City of Saint-Jérôme obtained the support of the Union of Municipalities of Quebec, the Council of Prefects and elected officials of the Laurentides region, the local Chamber of Commerce and the Bloc member for Rivière- from the North, Rhéal Fortin. The City even contacted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau directly, without success.
Citizen mobilization
There are more disadvantages than benefits to having such a resource in the city center, estimates Raymond Cottonec, general director of another transition house in Saint-Jérôme, the CRC Curé-Labelle. This is located in an industrial sector of the city.
The main disadvantage: ex-prisoners cannot remain anonymous. “If something happens, [ces personnes] will immediately be targeted, deplores the director. It can become a real circus. »
However, he does not believe that the presence of ex-inmates is a threat to nearby citizens.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
Raymond Cottonec, general director of CRC Curé-Labelle
If they are well supervised, the risk is no greater than having an inconvenient neighbor. I think it’s more disturbing to have a restaurant or bar next to your house than a halfway house.
Raymond Cottonec, general director of CRC Curé-Labelle
However, the reopening of the Center is causing concern, particularly among community organizations located nearby.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
Paule Blain-Clotteau, general director of the Maison des parents du Québec
“We have families who come regularly and children who are there every day,” says Paule Blain-Clotteau, general director of the Maison des parents du Québec, located opposite the Center. ” They can not [rouvrir ici], it’s really in a bad place! »
Citizen Line Chaloux, very involved in the community, even launched a petition against the project. “I consider that there should be a public consultation,” she says. It is certain that these are people who are full of good will in their reintegration, but it remains an emotional burden for the population who live in the city center. »