Photo Marie Cicchini
	Many bus schedules are missing in bus shelters like these on Monkland and Cavendish in NDG since the beginning of winter.

The Aug. 16 borough council meeting was shorter than usual after summer vacation, but some major items were discussed, such as the snow removal contract, the CHU Ste. Justine, the Empress cultural building and missing schedules in NDG bus shelters.

The meeting was over by 9:30 p.m. but the councillors still had plenty of time to discuss important issues after question period.

Dr. Fabrice Brunet, CEO of CHU Ste. Justine, reported that the hospital has spent $1,000,000 on noise reduction and that nearby residents Christian Lalonde and René Després accepted an invitation to visit the roof of the hospital to examine the new equipment. “We will do our best to reduce the noise,” said Dr. Brunet after a minor exemption was finally granted for the new mechanical room atop the building.

Helen Fotopulos said the issue of the noise was finally addressed through a comité de bon voisinage and good will from the hospital, which will help find appropriate solutions to noise levels. She also introduced an amendment to a motion tabled by the official opposition, so that historic listings status will be given to the Empress theatre and four other buildings to ensure their protection by the city of Montreal.

The $11 million snow removal contract for 2010 to 2013 was awarded to Maribi Inc. and CMS Entrepreneurs, selected among seven bidders. For $150,000 more, a private company will be responsible for snow removal and applying grit on sidewalks in NDG only, which means that all of the borough’s 14 pieces of equipment will have less than 50% of the territory to cover.

In her update on the construction on Cote des Neiges Rd., Fotopulos said half the work is now completed. The project is slightly behind schedule due to hitting some bedrock that slowed down the work. Utility services have to be connected on the east side of the road on that stretch before the next phase begins at the end of August.

Public question period

All but one citizen were regulars at the public question period. Rita del Grande asked why many schedules are missing in NDG bus shelters since the beginning of winter and talked about “absentee busses” on the 103 line. STM vice-president Marvin Rotrand said that real-time information systems will be rolled out ultimately thanks to cellphones. A bus may have broken down or been caught in traffic, but he will have the STM look at del Grande’s complaint in any case.

Elena Khanina talked about a petition signed by about 50 people asking to resolve problems with littering, overcrowding and poor overall conditions at Mackenzie King Park. Marvin Rotrand disagreed, saying the borough has invested close to a million dollars in the park and city inspectors reported no problems. He said the city will do its best to ensure better cohabitation of all the different groups.
Some were concerned about towing in the winter when parking is scarce. Michael Shafter suggested opening free parking on the mountain, with extra bus service during snow clearance and storms to get to the parking lots on Mount Royal. Councillor Rotrand agreed to think about it. Peter McQueen said snow banks will pile up no matter where you put your car. Ultimately, "being in reasonably good shape, shovelling out cars and helping neighbours is part of living in Montréal in the winter,” he said.

Lisa Cahn objected to promoting graffiti as a form of art and trying to change the attitude of youth. She worries that people could be reluctant to call 311 to report vandals in the middle of the night when police response is slow.

Councillor Susan Clarke said that the first concern should be personal safety at night but that graffiti should be reported anytime it’s done on somebody’s property without permission, because the police dispatching service is doing good work.

[Marie Cicchini]