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Highway extension angers residents
The way Philippe Côté sees it, the Quebec government's plan to extend the Ville-Marie expressway through the Centre-Sud (ie. the gay village) and Hochelaga-Maisonneuve districts will pretty much decide the fate of those neighbourhoods well into the next century. And yet, he says, "No one seems to have any idea of what happens after the expressway is completed. When we ask what things will look like in 10 years or even five years, we're treated like some kind of cult." Côté, a member of the community organization Table en aménagement du Centre-Sud, envisions numerous problems if the project moves forward--everything from residential displacements to increased pollution to the permanent severance of these neighbourhoods from the waterfront area, currently owned by the Port of Montreal. "We believe the port is under-used, and could be turned into parkland," Côté says. Côté is hoping to get some answers from the provincial transport ministry at a public information session with them next Monday, September 20, at 7 p.m. Location: 2380 Ste-Catherine E. All are welcome. --Philip Preville |