OCPM Consultation Report: Mountain Belt Road Project Greeted with Great Interest

Montréal, September 4, 2008 – The Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM) announces today the publication of its report on the development project for the belt road and traversing roads in the historic and natural borough of mont-Royal. The consultation exercise was led by OCPM ad hoc commissioner Jocelyne Beaudet. Some 60 citizens participated in the process involving public meetings and two site visits.

The concept of the belt road originated in 1990, with the drawing up of the first Mount Royal Enhancement Plan, adopted in 1992. Since that time, the project’s development has involved a complex process including pre-feasibility studies and agreements with the institutions concerned. Its present course is the result of over ten years’ discussion and negotiation with owners of properties adjoining the road, or where it crosses. “It is an important component of the 2008 Mount Royal Master Protection and Enhancement Plan. The construction of the road coincides with various measures aimed at improving degraded sectors and requalifying others, protecting the more sensitive zones, and enhancing the mountain’s heritage,” says Office president Louise Roy.

Accessible to pedestrians and cyclists, the planned belt road would form a ten-kilometre loop, linking the Mount Royal and Outremont summits. It would allow users to circle the mountain, travelling across Parc du Mont-Royal, Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges and Université de Montréal property. Two traversing roads are also planned. The first would connect the north and south sides of the mountain, from Outremont Summit to Parc du Mont-Royal, while the second, an east-west path running across Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery, would serve as a discovery way to key elements of Québec’s funerary heritage.

In the public consultation, the commission noted that participants greeted the project, awaited for 18 years, with a great deal of interest. They believe that the road must respect the mountain’s ecological and landscape values, reflect the natural character of the surroundings, and provide safe conditions for pedestrians and other users. To meet those expectations, and in view of the distinctive nature of each segment, the commission recommends that the City allow multiple uses only in sections that can withstand them. The activities, maintenance, and rules of use must be adapted to each segment’s individual conditions.

In keeping with its definition, the belt road must provide an uninterrupted circuit, but it may also connect with other heritage discovery paths, using existing routes or new extensions to the current network. The commission believes that it is important to follow up on the participants’ request to link the three summits during the reconfiguration of the Côte-des-Neiges—Remembrance interchange. It also believes that the belt road should be accessible from one of the Édouard-Montpetit Boulevard metro stations.

Lastly, Ms. Roy added, “The road is part of the historic and natural borough of Mont-Royal, an area protected by decree. It is therefore important to be vigilant, to ensure, at the very least, that measures already included in Mount Royal protection and enhancement plans and tools, and the commitments made by institutional owners under the Mount Royal Heritage Pact, are respected.”

The documentation related to this consultation, including the report, is available in electronic format on the Web site of the Office de consultation publique de Montréal (www.ocpm.qc.ca) and, in print form, at the OCPM offices during regular business hours.

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Luc Doray
Tel.: 514 872-3568
Cell.: 514 977-8365