A book for whom, exactly?
The goal of the exercise is to explain how we can make the ecological transition at the municipal level. City politicians are those who are closest to the people. I find it important to educate the population to really explain how a city works.
My goal was to make a popular book that would reach the widest possible audience; I didn’t want to write for convinced people who talk among themselves. By no longer being a politician, I have freedom of speech, I am no longer associated with a political party, no one will accuse me of partisanship.
The basics of ecological resilience
I can’t count the number of times people have challenged me because they didn’t understand why we were making a draining sidewalk projection, why we were removing the asphalt, why we were planting so many trees. A city isn’t just about shoveling snow, collecting trash and filling potholes…
I wanted to try to make this understood to as many people as possible so that it awakens in them a desire to participate in the ecological transition. It’s not true that it’s going to happen alone, it’s a collective effort. Institutions are not going to solve everything without the contribution of each individual, it’s impossible. The ambition of resilience is to make lasting changes, to change the habits of people who have been there for a long time.
Mobilize citizens
What mobilizes people is something that affects their daily lives. If it disrupts their lifestyle, they will be interested in it and want to have their say.
Citizen participation
You can’t impose, you have to listen a little more. Yes, it’s long! Yes, it’s complicated. But you cannot manage structuring projects in a community like you manage the marketing of a cell phone. Your project concerns 100% of your customers. Those who don’t want your cell phone, they’re not going to call you to tell you that they’re not going to buy it, but when you make a project, they call you to tell you that they don’t have one. do not want. That’s why you have to take your time to land it, you have no room for error. It’s normal, in this context, that it takes 10 years for a structuring project.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
The rue de Bellechasse cycle path, the development of which was carried out amidst some controversy
The case of the Bellechasse cycle path
The Bellechasse cycle path was announced well in advance. We sent a guide two years before the implementation of our cycling vision, to explain what was coming, why we would do this, what was going to be achieved. We had done two years of consultation and mobilization before that. We had made a local travel plan, we had used open data, it was total transparency. Everything was done impeccably and… there was still an outcry because 850 parking spaces were removed.
It was a disaster and everyone had their reason to protest.
There was even a lady who went to do the counting herself on the street and then challenged the analysis of the independent engineers.
And there was an article that compared the lady’s counting versus the work of professionals. And in the end, the ombudsman ruled in favor of these people even though all the work had been done properly… There, you say to yourself: OK, there is a problem. You can’t put as much communication effort and as much analysis into getting this to happen.
The worst thing is that the following year, a study showed that the occupancy rate of on-street parking had fallen despite the removal of 850 spaces… There had been a modal shift, people had abandoned their second car thanks to the cycle path. The predicted disaster did not occur. But there has been no article on this… There will always be people against your plans. You must not be discouraged, you must continue to explain.
East of Montreal
It seems that we arrived with the eastern Montreal project without really asking ourselves: what are the needs? What is the East? It’s big, it’s Montréal-Nord, Anjou, Rivière-des-Prairies, Pointe-aux-Trembles, Montréal-Est, Mercier, Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, part of Rosemont… The transportation needs are not the same collective, in real estate or commercial development. Talking about people from the East is a big shortcut.
The political game
As district mayor, I was very involved in the planning and implementation of projects, I wasn’t on the ground much and it wasn’t fun for a party, I know he didn’t like That. People told me: “Yes, what you do is fun, but you don’t participate in the proceedings, you’re not in the field, you don’t do any financing…” I was going against the grain. . I did useful work in a different way. Even though I was a politician, I always had a lot of difficulty with the political game. The city council, the debates, I hated that. It exhausted me, even though I had colleagues who loved it. I felt like I was wasting my time. I left [la politique] after 12 years, I didn’t want to start repeating myself, to no longer be innovative.
* The comments collected have been edited for brevity.
*The interview was conducted before the OCPM expenses scandal was revealed in the media.
Extract
“This inspires a final digression: where does the crazy idea come from that there is a strategy aimed at clearing snow from cycle paths as a priority, before sidewalks? Here too, the answer is mathematical. Let’s say you have 450 km of sidewalk to plow and only 50 km of bike paths. Even with only one device assigned to the bike lanes, if you start all operations at once, inevitably the bike lanes will be completed before. There are many fewer obstacles there, and the surface is much smoother and straighter than that of the sidewalks, making the task of snow plows all the easier. Another reason? Black asphalt is hotter than gray concrete. Snow and ice melt more quickly there, for physical reasons. There is no conspiracy led by the cyclists’ lobby (ha! ha!). »
Who is François William Croteau?
Born in 1972 in Montreal, François William Croteau was mayor of the borough of Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie from 2009 to 2021. Holder of a doctorate in urban studies and an MBA, he is the CEO of the Institute resilience and urban innovation. He is also an associate professor in the department of strategy, social and environmental responsibility at ESG-UQAM.
Adapt. Tomorrow: resilient cities
Quebec America
304 pages