Sud-Ouest businesses, residents brace for new construction-related headaches
22 Oct 2019
Michel Robert is already dreading the prospect of returning home Monday afternoon amid the mayhem he fully expects will result from a new wave of construction and road closings.
“I don’t know how I’m going to get home from work,” the general contractor and St-Henri resident said Saturday afternoon while shopping for paint at a Sherwin-Williams outlet on St-Antoine St. “These closures are going to add at least 20 minutes to my drive, and that’s a best-case scenario.”
Robert is one of many Sud-Ouest borough residents and business owners scrambling to adjust following Wednesday’s surprise announcement by Montreal officials that an urgent repair job would be required at the southwestern edge of downtown to replace one of the city’s largest water mains. The latest headache comes as neighbourhoods such as St-Henri try to recover from the largest roadwork project in Quebec history — the multibillion-dollar reconstruction of the Turcot Interchange.
Multiple streets will be affected by the water main replacement work. St-Antoine is being reduced to one lane between Guy and Atwater, while northbound Georges-Vanier Blvd. will be closed between St-Jacques St. and St-Antoine. Southbound Georges-Vanier will be closed from Baile St. to St-Antoine, and De la Cathédrale St. will only have one lane open between St-Jacques and Notre-Dame St.
Chef Rex Patel, who owns Rasoi restaurant in St-Henri, said his patience is wearing thin after a seemingly endless string of major projects in the area.
“It’s extremely frustrating that we have to go through this again,” said Patel, who has been operating on Notre-Dame for six years. “The entire street was just redone over 18 months, which really felt like a century to someone like me who owns a business. These new road closures are the last thing I needed.”
Patel is still smarting from having had to close for about two weeks at Christmas time in 2018 because of major drainage problems, which he says may be connected to the roadwork on Notre-Dame.
“Last year was extremely difficult for me, businesswise,” he said. “I understand that the infrastructure has to be fixed, but the city must do more to compensate people for the harm they suffered. Businesses like mine are one of the reasons property values in Sud-Ouest have gone up in the last few years, so there should be some reciprocity.”
Patel’s frustration is shared by Elyse Desrochers, who sells smoking accessories down the road from the Lionel-Groulx métro station.
“It’s very disappointing,” said Desrochers, who often drives to work and fears her commute will be disrupted by the closings. “We were promised that there would be two fewer construction sites in the area this year. Instead, this happens.”
Jeannine Scott, who owns a café in Little Burgundy, said the unplanned construction is bound to make her life as a small-business owner more complicated.
“We’re dealing with rents going up, we’re dealing with food prices going up, and now we’re dealing with less traffic,” she said in an interview. “It’s not sustainable for a lot of businesses. The more expensive restaurants in the area can absorb it, because they’re a destination and people will come to the neighbourhood specifically for a meal. The smaller businesses, we rely on traffic that passes by.”
Residents may also be hit, with the new road closings potentially contributing to a feeling of isolation, according to Rebecca Bain, a musician and housing activist who lives in Sud-Ouest.
“With Green Ave. and Glen Rd. already closed, we have fewer access roads,” she said. “In a way, it feels like we’re cut off from the city.”
Still, Bain added she’s hopeful a silver lining will emerge.
“Maybe this roadwork will make some people stop using their car,” she said.
