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WESTMOUNT INDEPENDENT Weekly. Vol. 7 No. 3b We are Westmount March 12, 20 13 Too many stop signs, 30 km/h zones Strange parking Traffic plan tabled for citizen reaction before adoption By Laureen Sweeney km/h speed limit throughout Westmount except for streets around parks and Westmount has become a hodge-podge schools and on some arterials, as well as of inconsistent, confusing and outdated the removal of outmoded or non-con - traffic regulations that pose important forming calming devices. safety deficiencies, according to the long- Other highlights include the creation of awaited master traffic plan tabled by city diagonal pedestrian crossings, raised council March 4. cross-walks, additional bike routes, on- Most traffic signals and calming de - street parking management options and vices do not conform to current best prac - on-street delivery zones for Greene and tices, ministry of Transport (MTQ) Victoria to prevent double parking. standards or even the city’s own by-laws, The report advises the city to move states the report from Genivar consultants quickly on pre-emptive measures to man - commissioned by the city some 18 months age parking near the MUHC super-hospi - ago. tal, though details are noticeably absent. Among them are unwarranted mid- “This needs to be done before the opening block stop signs and high-profile speed of the hospital complex (in 2015) to avoid bumps used as calming devices, as well as creating any habits by fu - This photo was e-mailed to the newspaper by a passer-by on March 3. The incident took place at the the proliferation of all-way stop signs and ture users of the com - continued on p. 3 30 km/h speed zones. corner of Claremont and Lorraine. For story, see p. 6. Photo courtesy of Flora Lee-Wagner The report recommends a uniform 40 De liv er pool on time: City N°3 in Quebec* tells Pomerleau, Genivar By Laureen Sweeney activities. The pool opening issue was addressed The date for this summer’s opening of at the start of the council meeting by the city’s new pool remained clouded in Mayor Peter Trent saying the city was try - B.514.934.1818 “confusion and uncertainty” to members ing to confirm rumours that contractor of the swimming community late last Pomerleau was “not sure” the contracted C.514.912.1482 week after they had pressed city council delivery date of May 31 could be met. “A [email protected] March 4 about a rumoured delay. certain number” of lifeguards would be www.baudinet.ca This could leave residents without a hired, however. pool for a second summer, jeopardize life - “We, the city, want Pomerleau to hold Partner | Certified real estate agent guard jobs and, they suggested, cause ir - to the original schedule,” he said. “We’re COURTIER IMMOBILIER AGRÉÉ reparable harm to the Dolphins swim looking at the legal side.” FRANCHISÉ INDÉPENDANT ET AUTONOME [email protected] *Individual for RLP team, and even hobble pool fundraising Councillor Patrick continued on p. 5 Sotheby’s International Realty Québec LK | Real Estate Agency The Saint has been can-onized! St. Ambroise Pale Ale now available in a 473ml can. Look for it wherever fine beer is sold! 2 – WESTMOUNT INDEPENDENT – March 12, 2013 Façade removed from ADVISING ART COLLECTORS FOR OVER 60 YEARS former St. Catherine St. garage building By Martin C. Barry was weaknesses with the anchoring of the stone veneer,” she continued. “So the The stone façade of a three-storey build - stone veneer was removed and piled up ing on St. Catherine St. classified by West - and stored at the ground-floor level of the mount as a Category 1 (heritage) building building.” has been removed and placed in storage as She said a netting that can now be seen a precaution against pieces falling off. covering the building’s façade was proba - The building at 4032 St. Catherine St. bly put up to prevent the mortar, which served as an automotive sales and service was under the removed stone, from falling centre for decades, until early December to the ground. 2011 when a Subaru dealership, which While certain elements of the building, had been there many years, moved out. including a columned front entrance, sug - In 2010, the building caught the atten - gest it has a storied past, Poirier said there tion of the Régie du Bâtiment du Québec is only so much the city can do to make (RBQ), which is mandated to evaluate the sure certain buildings are preserved when structural soundness of buildings across they have heritage value. the province. “The city can intervene for safety con - The RBQ had asked the building’s cerns, but we can’t force an owner to re- owner to produce an engineer’s report, build,” she said. “Obviously we are trying which recommended that the upper to preserve buildings. But when there is a storeys no longer be used for their origi - dangerous situation, we cannot refuse the nal purpose as a garage, although the owner the right to dismantle the façade.” lower floors could continue to be occupied She said a requirement the city im - by other types of businesses. posed is that the owner must be able to re - “The city issued a permit for the re - assemble and put the façade back when a moval of the stone veneer last June,” decision is eventually made to rehabilitate Joanne Poirier, director of the city of West - the building. mount’s Urban Planning depart - ment, told the Independent . “They removed it, and it has been stored in the garage on the ground floor.” According to Poirier, the build - ing, whose construction dates back to the early 20th century, has a prob - lem with its load-bearing capacity. “It was a structural problem that the RBQ identified, so they asked that Marcel Barbeau | Rétine libertaire | 1964 no more cars be parked in that building because of the load,” she said. Photo: Westmount Independent “In addition to that, the building The building at 4032 St. Catherine St. March 11. A green Exhibition and Sale has been deteriorating and there construction material covers its facade. of Important works of Art March 29, 2013 An invitation to consign or sell for resale Maximize value and eliminate risk with a fi nancial guarantee* Contact [email protected] *Certain conditions apply. 1200 Sherbrooke St. West, Montreal, Quebec H3A 1H6 www.klinkhoff.com | 514.288.7306 Galerie Walter Klinkhoff @klinkhoff_com Linkedin WESTMOUNT INDEPENDENT – March 12, 2013 – 3 Traffic blueprint proposed cont’d. from p. 1 didn’t want to hold it back,” pending “a provided a traffic vision. down traffic, up went another. “Well, that’s great deal more work” on the cycling and “This is Genivar’s recommendation to not traffic planning.” plex,” it explains. MUHC plans. us,” Trent replied. “We need to appropri - The report’s findings were to be posted Also missing are recommendations re - All traffic measures should be under - ate this ourselves. But to do that we in English and French on the city’s web - lated to the de Maisonneuve bike path, taken, where topography permits, to allow wanted to get back to you all,” so it would site. Copies are also available for consulta - which the report states does not conform for “universal accessibility” two words be a process and not a plan created from tion at city hall and the Westmount Public to standards, as well as other cycling used extensively throughout the report. the top down. He pointed out that citizens Library. routes. While some changes can be imple - had identified their priorities to help set Two separate reports related to the mented in the short-term at relatively lit - the objectives. super-hospital and bike paths have to be tle cost, others are proposed for Problems would not be solved For traffic plan “Highlights undertaken, Mayor Peter Trent told the policy-setting as a road map for the future overnight, he said. Over the years when at a glance,” see p. 6. council meeting. when streets are rebuilt or “according to someone requested a stop sign to slow City council is expected to adopt the available funds.” Genivar report in a final version later this The report called Westmount Traffic Great Homes in Westmount spring after citizens have had “a couple of and Active Transportation Master Plan months” to comment, he said. It is needed consists of 100 pages of analysis and rec - in time for inclusion of the some recom - ommendations accompanied by an illus - mendations in the city’s 2014 budget. trated Westmount Traffic Calming Guide Paul Marriott of Grosvenor Ave. said he and other guidelines comprising another was surprised to hear the traffic plan was 50 pages. still open for comment. Trent replied “We It was developed to alleviate residents’ main concerns to re - duce speed, and through-traffic on local [residential] streets and was one Upper Belmont All the style of a traditional Sun-Filled 6+1 Bedroom Detached Cottage in of the city council’s Westmount Home but Totally Updated in 2012. Desirable Mid-Level Westmount. This House has four priorities on 4+1 BR Sun-Filled Cottage on Quiet Family Everything. Gorgeous Gourmet Kitchen and Great taking office in 2009, Friendly Street. Garage. Close to parks and schools. Entertaining Space. Renovated from A to Z-Central explained Councillor $1,420,000 A/C plus garage and parking. $2,395,000 Theodora Samiotis in tabling the docu - ment. EXECUTIVE RENTALS During its prepa - Judy Litvack Real Estate Broker AVAILABLE APRIL 1st ration, many citizen requests for traffic Westmount changes have been 4+1 BR, 3 1/2 BA , A/C+ 2 car garage.

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