Quote of the week:

“A useless position is a useless position.” —Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe, on the position of Governor-General, on Monday. Duceppe and the BQ whip nevertheless attended Michaëlle Jean’s swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday out of “respect for institutions,” he said.

Viger transforms

Demolition has finally begun at Viger Square, the three-block-long concrete-walled space between St-Denis and St-André and Viger and St-Antoine. As ugly as it was, it was home to a transient population of homeless and male prostitutes, until the city and police cracked down following a murder in August 2002.

But the transformation has some people asking potentially uncomfortable questions about the ever-changing nature of this increasingly wealthy neighbourhood. Bernard St-Jacques, of the homeless advocacy organization Réseau d’aide aux personnes seules et itinérantes de Montréal (RAPSIM), wonders if they will be welcome back in the new and improved square.

“If it’s accompanied by other actions to help integrate the homeless, and it’s not just cleaning up, then we wouldn’t be against it,” he says. “But when it becomes just revitalizing and institutionalizing that, it becomes more problematic.”

Local councillor Robert Laramée, however, says that all will be welcome. “We want to make it more secure—for everyone,” he says. He specifically mentions the homeless, who are at the greatest risk, he says, referring to the 2002 murder. » Patrick Lejtenyi

Green flicks wanted

As Montreal gears up for one monster of a UN conference this November, local green groups are hoping aspiring filmmakers weigh in on the ever-pressing problem of climate change.

The Caméra Verte short film competition will run just prior to the UN Climate Change Conference, in Montreal from Nov. 28–Dec. 9. The competition’s organizers, who include the Coalition Québec-vert-Kyoto and the Rendez-vous citoyen Kyoto 2005, want both professionals and amateurs to submit movies between 30 seconds and five minutes long addressing the theme of climate change.

“We want to open up the discussion of climate change, its problems and solutions, and let artists talk about it in their own way,” says competition coordinator Sébastien Malo. He says professionals are allowed to enter as long as their submissions aren’t done for commercial purposes.

So far, the guidelines for entries remain broad. “We expect a lot of documentaries, some experimental films, maybe some animation and discussion films,” says Malo. The deadline for submission is Nov. 14, with screenings on Nov. 25 and 26.

For more info, visit www.cameraverte.org. » Patrick Lejtenyi

Energy out of water

Widely celebrated environmentalist John Todd doesn’t promise that his aquatic bioremediation system—a sewage treatment system which involves floating plant islands that purify polluted waters—could live up to its hype in Montreal. He’ll be in Montreal next week to tell you why.

“In Montreal, the river has such great force that any passing water molecule isn’t there for very long, but in the Great Lakes there’s a whole waterfront project starting as soon as this month,” says Todd.

Instead, he recommends we harness the St. Lawrence with Gorlov turbines. “It’s a fish-friendly underwater turbine that could supply the electrical needs of the city,” he says.

Todd predicts cities will be less reliant on distant megaplants in the future. “I think the 21st century will be recognized as the time when power will be disaggregated,” he says. “Electricity will be supplied from your roof and water will be purified at or near source.”

He thinks self-reliant cities and homes will start being common “within a decade.”

Kids, guns and fashion

Colombia’s ongoing triangle of violence—between the government, the right-wing paramilitaries and left-wing guerillas—hasn’t spared children in its wrath. Many of them are often recruited to fight or act as baggage carriers for their elders, and emerge, if ever, with little practical life skills. But a fashion show this weekend may change that, at least for a handful of them.

The Noche Internacional will bring Quebec and Latin American fashion designers in a fab evening of haute couture and high-mindedness. All monies raised will go to sponsoring former Colombian child combatants for internships abroad, says the event’s organizer Marcela Barragan.

“These children are being rehabilitated,” she says. “They’re willing to work and to learn.”

Featured will be a retrospective of Quebec designer Jean-Claude Poitras, as well as others from la belle province, including Hida, Furol and Réjean Pépin. Latin American designers will also be showing off their take on traditional costumes.

The whole shindig takes place Saturday, Oct. 1 at the Suite 701 bar/lounge at the Place d’Armes Hotel (701 Côte de la Place d’Armes, 6 p.m.–11 p.m., $75). » Patrick Lejtenyi

REAR-VIEW MIRROR

16 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK
Sept. 29–Oct. 5, 1989

On the cover: Nigerian author Chinua Achebe, discussing the difficulties facing African writers. They “are passing through a period of great pressure on the writer to become an ideologue, and I want to resist that. I believe that orthodoxy of any kind is inimical to art, and that is why the writer must be free.”

• Police outreach efforts to ethnic communities and immigrants are “basically just a public relations session,” says a director of an immigrant orientation centre. The article, mysteriously headlined “Coffee and doughnuts,” cites numerous examples of police-visible-minority tension.

• Despite the fact that they “might appear a trifle outdated” in the era of glasnost, etc., Andrew Jones writes that the Alexandrov Red Army Chorus and Ensemble are “doing just fine dedicating their graceful ballet and stirring anthems to peace.”

• “How you live your life so often seems a tale of how we live with this awful perception of ourselves as inadequate, as failure,” says author Russell Banks, discussing his novel Affliction.

Angel >> Declining demand for gasoline After about 18 months of skyrocketing gas prices, consumers, at last, are getting wise to the fact that conservation may be the way to go. Canadian energy analysts have already seen or are predicting declines in gas consumption and a greater propensity to buy more fuel-efficient cars. Sales of SUVs in Canada are down 15 per cent compared to last year (in the States, sales are down 12 per cent). Analysts are also predicting continued flat sales for SUVs in 2006, with attitudes permanently shifting away from gas-guzzlers.
Insect >> More Big O fiascos The good news is, the Olympic Stadium, Montreal’s single greatest folly of all time, will be paid off in toto next year. But the bad news is, there are still screw-ups. The latest to come to light was the $20-million the PQ government gave to a New York realty company to renovate the stadium’s tower into office space. The idea was that the stadium would eventually collect up to $1-million a year in rent from its new tenants. This was in 2001. Nothing has happened since, except that $8-million’s been spent on structural expenses. The big issue, apparently, is the tower’s windows, or lack of same. Negotiations, say all parties, are ongoing.