On May 9, 2024, les amis du parc Meadowbrook and Sauvons la Falaise were invited to participate with many other environmental groups and representatives of the City of Montreal and the academic community in a co-design workshop that focused on three green corridors being contemplated in Montreal:

– A link between Meadowbrook and the falaise Saint-Jacques

– Connectivity in the greater southwest, notably between the Lachine Canal and the St. Lawrence River

– The Ruisseaux corridor, linking the St. Lawrence River to Rivière-des-Prairies in east-end Montreal.

Organized by the Conseil régional de l’environnement de Montréal and UQAM’s Pôle sur la ville résiliente, the workshop identified the challenges of these projects, possible solutions and partners which could lend a hand.

With regard to the link between Meadowbrook and the Falaise, several possibilities were identified, ranging from a two-way bike lane on Brock Street South in Montreal West to facilitate access to the Bande verte via the de Maisonneuve Boulevard bike path (which could definitely use some greening!), to the continuation of a stretch of bike path on West Broadway in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce to join Hydro-Québec’s green corridor in Montreal West. Many of these suggestions appear to have been included in Montreal’s 2019 Bicycle Plan, but have not been implemented to date.

Participants also discussed the possibility of opening up the Saint-Pierre district by creating a bike path along Milton and Ronald avenues to reach the Bande verte. Unfortunately, a veritable spaghetti of railway tracks and power lines dubbed the “Bermuda Triangle” prevents any direct access by Lachine residents to the Meadowbrook site.

The main obstacles to connectivity and active mobility were found to be the presence of road and rail infrastructure, and the absence of bicycle paths in Montreal West. Participants also noted the dangers posed by the pedestrian and bicycle tunnel under the St. Pierre Exchange, which cyclists travelling to and fro cross at their own peril.

Also on the agenda was the conservation of the Falaise arc (the Falaise actually extends all the way to Dorval, and is visible along Highway 20), which in places consists of thin strips squeezed behind buildings.

A question of environmental justice

In examining the possible links between the falaise Saint-Jacques (in the center right of the map) and Meadowbrook (opposite, in the center left), we turned our attention to the map of the area’s vulnerabilities, particularly its vulnerability to flooding.

We were struck by the fact that lower-income neighbourhoods are often the most vulnerable (sections in red and orange on the map), with Saint-Pierre (VSP) – in the middle of our illustration- and Westhaven (WH) – a bit further up-being two examples.

To find out if your area is vulnerable to flooding, look up the Atlas des vulnérabilités web site at https://atlas-vulnerabilite.ulaval.ca/

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

With the support of several Montréal environmental groups, Les Amis has submitted a brief to the consultation being held until June 21 on the Namur-Hippodrome project presented by the City of Montréal in April 2024.

The groups reacted to the presence of the St-Pierre River on the old hippodrome. Les Amis and its partners have been defending the River for many years and have seen promises come and go: ponds on the Bande Verte were supposed to recall the river and the lac à la Loutre it formed at the base of the falaise Saint-Jacques but in the end we were told that the height of the water table did not allow this. And let’s not forget the canalization of the St-Pierre on Meadowbrook in 2022, following an unfortunate court order.

The restoration of the St-Pierre River on the hippodrome would enable the rehabilitation of the whole St. Pierre watershed. Studies have shown that this would lighten the load of the Rockfield Basin and the Westover-St-Luc and St-Pierre collectors which are already at capacity. Although this water is not waste water, it nonetheless finds its way to the water treatment plant and adds to the cost of treatment before finally ending up in the St. Lawrence. Rehabilitating the watershed could supply water to the ponds promised for the Turcot Park and possibly help in the return of the river on Meadowbrook.

To read the brief, click HERE.

You can also participate in the consultation by supporting our brief. Visit Réalisons Montréal (https://www.realisonsmtl.ca/namurhippodrome) to find out how.

A 1 mm long daphnia as observed by David Fletcher in the ditch on the Hippodrome (Photo David Fletcher)

David Fletcher of the Green Coalition in the ditch that the St. Pierre River flows into on the Hippodrome (Photo Louise Legault)

A bee garden created by Poliflora at the Hippodrome: enough to forget the Décarie Expressway (Photo Louise Legault)

In the foreground, left to right: Louise Legault, Jo Ann Goldwater, Deanne Delaney, M.N.A. Désirée McGraw; in the background, Pierre Bourbonnière, Al Hayek. (Photo by Alexandre Kordlouie.)

View and listen to the 1 minute video clip at the National Assembly- click here.

Several members of Les Amis du parc Meadowbrook were recently recognized by the Quebec National Assembly for the community organization’s 35 years of hard work to protect Meadowbrook golf course as green space. The group’s ultimate goal is to create a Meadowbrook urban nature park, accessible to all and to be connected through a greenway to a network of parks, including the falaise Saint-Jacques.

Désirée McGraw, M.N.A. for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, invited several members of the group to Quebec City, and she read a declaration in the National Assembly, thanking them for their courage and determination over the years. Following the reading of the declaration, the delegation members watched the question period and were invited to discuss the future of Meadowbrook in the M.N.A.’s office.

In 1989, the property’s original owner proposed building more than 2000 housing units on the property, and a group of citizens quickly organized opposition to the project. In 2006, the property, which lies partly in the borough of Lachine and partly in the City of Côte-St. Luc, was sold to development company Groupe Pacific for $3 million.

Over the years, supporters of Les Amis have successfully opposed several different development projects for the golf course. They have rallied on the steps of city hall, created a master plan for a park, written letters to the editors of local newspapers and presented briefs to city planning hearings. Finally, in 2015, the city’s updated urban plan resulted in changes and the property was zoned recreational green space.

The most recent issue involving Meadowbrook was a fight to prevent the burial of the historic Saint Pierre River where it crosses the golf course.

As McGraw told the group’s current volunteers, “Your courage and determination remind me of that famous quote by anthropologist Margaret Mead: ‘Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.’”

Regarding the Declaration of recognition, we thank M.N.A. McGraw and her team for a memorable day at the National Assembly.

As well, we want to especially thank all those individuals and groups who have contributed to our mission in so many ways over the past 35 years.  We appreciate your passion and vision that have allowed the group to keep going to achieve our end goal!

Note:  ​You can find out more about the history of Les Amis in the “Our Story” link, found on the green banner at the top of our website.

National Assembly Certificate honouring the work of Les Amis