Public consultation on future of Pierrefonds-Ouest sector: OCPM notes major social acceptability problem

MONTRÉAL, Sept. 29, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - The Office de consultation publique de Montréal makes public today the consultation report on the future of the Pierrefonds-Ouest sector, in the borough of Pierrefonds-Roxboro.

The consultation aimed to present to citizens a vision for the future proposing to reconcile the conservation of natural environments and the development of new neighbourhoods in the formerly agricultural sector. The exercise, which will ultimately lead to the establishment of a Special Planning Program (SPP), sought during this phase to validate the vision, enhance orientations, highlight priorities, and express citizens' expectations.

Over 400 people attended the various meetings and forward-looking workshops, and a record number of opinions were collected. The commission received 272 written briefs, and heard 73 contributors during the nine public hearing sessions.

The present report notes a major problem in terms of social acceptability of the vision submitted by the City. The commission questions the apparent lack of transparency of the planning process carried out over the past ten years, and exposes the confusion clearly expressed by participants regarding the object of the consultation, which omits the Cap-Nature real estate project, to the great dissatisfaction of land owners, developers and citizens alike. The land owners and developers claim to have been involved for the past ten years in the drawing up of an SPP that has extended far beyond the upstream stage, while citizens deplore the fact that the only project proposed seems designed to allow real estate development without a consensus having been reached on the conservation issue.

"Although the Office firmly believes that it is preferable for upstream exercises to precede the preparation of an SPP, in light of the history of the development project for the Pierrefonds-Ouest sector and with a view to consistency, we must ask ourselves if a consultation pertaining to a draft version of the SPP would not have been more productive by allaying suspicion and allowing citizens to express their opinions on a specific project, and to make a positive contribution to the search for solutions," says OCPM President Dominique Ollivier.

The report made public today points out the lack of consensus and brings to light numerous unknowns in terms of probative data and important issues regarding transportation, the protection of threatened species, flooding, and the evolution of still pending environmental legislation.

With a view to better assessing the impact of the proposed vision, the commission recommends that data be quickly updated and that studies be completed on biodiversity protection, community benefits, economic viability of a new development, urban sprawl, mobility and transportation, and respect of international commitments pertaining to the environment.

In terms of the significant problem of social acceptability, the commission recommends that the planning exercise already underway for the Pierrefonds-Ouest sector continue in order to collectively determine the area's vocation. This time, the exercise should involve all stakeholders, including citizens and environmental organizations, and set forth different scenarios ranging from protecting the territory as a whole to various ratios of protection and real estate development.

All available information on the project, including the full text of the public consultation report, can be found on the Office Web site at ocpm.qc.ca/pierrefonds-ouest. As of today, the complete report is only available in French, but the English version will be available soon.

SOURCE Office de consultation publique de Montréal