Two golf courses in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu under pressure

Residents of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu are worried about the future of two golf courses that are the last large green spaces in their neighborhood. The significant population growth of recent years in the area creates a growing need for housing and new schools. But at what cost ?

About fifteen residents of this municipality of Haut-Richelieu, in Montérégie, whose population approached the symbolic threshold of 100,000 inhabitants last year, welcomed The duty Friday near the Les Légendes golf course, where several trees rub shoulders with a freshly mown lawn. The owners of the premises, the Morin family, approached the City last year to suggest creating a park on part of the site, while the rest of the land would become a new residential area, which would require a zoning change. The company did not respond to interview requests from the To have to Friday.

As for the Boisés de la Mairie, another adjacent golf course which has been partly owned by Les Immeubles P. Baillargeon since “the beginning of the 2010s”, the director of operations, Luc Rivard, indicates that he has “no projection” regarding the development of housing on this site. “Following the public consultation launched by the City, we will work with all the parties involved to ensure harmonious development,” added Mr. Rivard, whose company specializes in the promotion of real estate projects, by email. In the region.

worries

The public consultation in question relates to a possible Special Planning Program (PPU) concerning the development of the Bergère and Échevins sector, which includes, among other things, a residential area and the golf courses of this municipality in the Montérégie. A survey launched online Thursday by the City on this subject reports the needs for housing, primary and secondary schools in this sector as well as for the creation of a new road link “crossing this sector”.

However, “we do not want that in a few years, it will be concrete everywhere and that we will no longer have access to green spaces”, says Évelyne Beaudry, a teacher in the sector and member of Mères au front, a group that wants to “protect our children and life on Earth in the face of the climate emergency”, from Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu.

Like several other residents met by The dutyshe fears the potential creation of new heat islands that could encroach on the golf courses in the area, considered by many to be the last great green lungs of the urban area of ​​Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu.

“We are really worried”, adds the DD Geneviève Lalumière, who is a member of the Quebec Association of Physicians for the Environment. The lack of green spaces accessible to all is already glaring in the sector, which can have an impact on the physical and mental health of many, she underlines “If I could prescribe to my patients to go for a walk in wooded areas, it would be really beneficial for them. But I don’t know where I could send them walking in town, ”says Mme The light. She therefore believes that the City should favor densification to meet its housing and other infrastructure needs.

“There are cities that have repositioned themselves in their way of doing things and we are lagging behind” by adopting a logic of urban sprawl, also believes the vice-president of the Ecological Movement of Haut-Richelieu, Maxime Tremblay.

Joined by The duty, Mayor Andrée Bouchard does not, however, say she is aware of any project providing for “housing units” on the golf courses of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu. “Currently, we are not working on a real estate development project. We are working on the development of a living environment to meet the needs of the community,” notes the mayor, who wishes to “preserve as much green space as possible.”

In mid-July, city councilor François Roy, who is also a real estate broker, walked out of Mayor Andrée Bouchard’s team because he did not share her “vision” of the city’s development, particularly on his golf courses, where he fears that a real estate project will see the light of day. “The boat has already left the port and the golf courses will be developed,” he says in an interview. “You shouldn’t be naïve. »

Questioned on this subject, the mayor continues to affirm that housing is not planned on golf courses, while suggesting that a “balance” must be found between “the needs of citizens” and “the preservation of spaces green”. Last year, 0.8% of rental units in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu were available, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

“When you talk to me about housing units, I tell you that I am not at all aware of that. Some may know more than me. But it remains certain that the need for housing, it will have to be met, ”underlines Mme Bouchard.

A critical consultation

The survey launched by the City will continue at least until August 14, after which the City will analyze the results of it to detail its position on the development of this sector this fall. Since this is a model based on a PPU, no referendum approval will be necessary to allow the elected members of the municipal council to move forward with their vision of the development of the sector, which raises eyebrows for many residents. , but also an expert in municipal governance.

“It’s not at all illegal, but it’s true that a PPU deprives the population of the possibility of asking for referendum approval”, notes the professor of urban planning at the University of Quebec in Montreal Danielle Pilette . “The process does not seem ideal to me. »

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