Survey on the Priorities of Pierrefonds-Roxboro Résidents - No Problem with Social Acceptability for Cap Nature

MONTRÉAL, Oct. 25, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - A survey of 602 Pierrefonds-Roxboro residents commissioned by the property developers for the Cap-Nature real estate project reveals that 62% of borough residents are still unaware of the Cap Nature project. Among those familiar with it (38%), most say they are in favour of the project. These findings stand in sharp contrast with the report published by the Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM) on September 29, which stated that the Cap Nature project raised a significant issue with social acceptability. Moreover, the survey shows that Cap Nature meets the key issues identified by Pierrefonds-Roxboro residents for their cities and the priorities of families in this West Island area.

As the Cap Nature project's developers were aware that the public consultation was first and foremost a platform for the project's opponents, often from outside Pierrefonds-Roxboro, who monopolized the debate on the sector's vocation instead of validating and improving the vision proposed by the City of Montréal and the borough, they sought to find out how the Pierrefonds-Roxboro borough's residents—whose absence at the consultation was glaring—view the project. In this regard, the developers share the findings of the OCPM, whose report shows very limited local participation, as only 29% of participants at the consultation (61 out of 262 hearing participants) were actually from the borough.

To hear the voices of Pierrefonds-Roxboro citizens more clearly and more representatively, the Cap Nature project's developers commissioned Synopsis, a research firm headed by Youri Rivest, to conduct a phone survey of Pierrefonds-Roxboro residents and hear their thoughts on what they consider key issues for their city, the project, and its value for families. Conducted on September 21−26 (before the consultation report was published), the survey reveals a reality far different than that conveyed by the OCPM. While the consultative body concluded there was a significant problem with social acceptability, Synopsis found that:

• 62% of residents had never heard of the project
• 21% are favourable to it
• 12% are against it
• 5% are undecided

After the project was described to them, the percentage of those favourable to it more than tripled:

• 72% are favourable to it
• 24% are against it
• 4% are undecided

Based on this data, it is hard to conclude that the project suffers from a "significant problem with social acceptability" among Pierrefonds-Roxboro residents, as the OCPM has claimed.

Further, the survey results show that Cap Nature aligns with the key issues identified by borough residents and provides practical answers to families' priorities. Thus, more than 8 out of 10 residents consider the following issues important to their city: improved traffic flow, responsible and eco-friendly urban development, access to green spaces, economic development, access to active transportation, access to schools and sports fields, and access to affordable housing.

A number of these issues reflect the priorities of Pierrefonds-Roxboro residents in making the borough even more attractive to families. Conversely, only 2% of survey respondents rated access to a national park as a priority.

Though given very little consideration in the OCPM report, Cap Nature still shows indisputable benefits when it comes to the true expectations of borough residents. These benefits include, in particular, preserving almost half of the current properties zoned for residential construction, eco-friendly urban development with  30% earmarked for affordable and social housing, the creation of eight daycare centres and three primary schools, greater importance to middle-class families, as well as the addition of new public transit and active transportation options to optimize traffic flow.

The entire project, which involves both public- and private-sector participation in the Cap Nature Pierrefonds West project, will generate about $2 billion in economic activity over the next 20 years. It will also lead to the creation of sustainable jobs, first in the borough thanks to new neighbourhood businesses and offices for professionals located in multifunctional hubs and, more generally, in the entire Greater Montréal region.

"Cap Nature is an exemplary project, one that meets the expectations of Pierrefonds residents, which have always been factored in over its 12 years of development, jointly with the City of Montréal and the Pierrefonds-Roxboro borough at the project's launch, as well as government bodies," says Adam Daifqallah, the spokesperson for Cap Nature. "This survey shows that Cap Nature better reflects the priorities of the residents and families who wish to settle down in Pierrefonds-Roxboro than suggested by the OCPM's findings, which are based on a non-representative sample of professional opponents who dogmatically oppose any development project, no matter how sustainable and respectful it may be."

For more information on Cap Nature Pierrefonds West, visit www.cap-nature.ca

About the survey: the Synopsis survey was conducted by telephone on September 21−26, 2017, with a sample of 602 residents of the Pierrefonds-Roxboro borough that is representative of the borough's population in terms of age, gender, type of property and language spoken.

SOURCE Cap-Nature de Pierrefonds-Ouest