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With the year 2009 drawing to a close, Villeray/St-Michel/Park Extension Borough Mayor Anie Samson was asked by Nouvelles Park Extension News to compile an inventory of her administration’s accomplishments over the past year.
While she starts off the list with the borough’s making food security a priority while creating a special fund for use by food banks, other major accomplishments were the borough’s being given a new multisport skating rink complete with ice making equipment in St-Michel, and the recent transformation of the aging Jacques Rougeau Arena in Villeray into a new multifunctional sports centre.
Food bank fund
The food bank fund was made possible through fees collected by the borough every time Samson, who is empowered to perform civil marriages, married a couple. She’s been doing so since 2005. The skating rink was donated by the Montreal Canadiens as part of the hockey club’s 100th anniversary celebrations.
Among her accomplishments, Samson said she is also proud of the creation of the Petit Maghreb neighbourhood on Jean Talon Street East between Pie IX and St-Michel boulevards. The commercial district is modeled on the same idea as Chinatown and Little Italy. “It should be emphasized that this initiative aims, among other things, to give a distinctive identity to this part of the borough and to make it more attractive to the population as an urban and commercial space,” she said.
Other accomplishments
On her list, Samson highlighted the recent transformation of the former Jacques Rougeau Arena in Villeray into a multipurpose indoor sports facility — the first time the City of Montreal has attempted this kind of project; also steps that have been taken to develop a pedestrian crossing between Jarry Park and Park Extension; as well, the development with the participation of Eco-Quartier of the first “green alleyway” in the borough; and the acceleration of snow removal on sidewalks. Goals she has set for her administration over the coming year include solving a persistent traffic problem in the troublesome Hutchison/Ogilvy/Jean Talon area and giving the borough its own Maison de la Culture.
Given that 2009 was an election year, it’s been a busy 12 months for Samson and her colleagues on the borough council. The Nov. 1 borough election had promised to turn into a veritable display of fireworks. Samson had stated towards the start of the campaign that she was going to make full use of the fact that Councillor Mary Deros, her former colleague in Vision Montreal, had abandoned the party two or so years before to join Mayor Gérald Tremblay’s Union Montreal.
Deros vs. Samson
As the sole Vision Montreal members of the borough council over the past few years until former councillor Soraya Martinez decided to abandon Union Montreal, Deros and Samson had always worked closely and were conspicuous allies. Deros’s sudden decision in late 2007 to join the Tremblay team opened up a rift with Samson, which to all appearance has not healed yet. “We fought for years together against the administration of Mr. Tremblay, so Mary will have to defend the record of Mr. Tremblay with the citizens,” Samson had told NPEN before the election. “We’re going to be dealing with real issues and Mary will have to defend her record.”
St. Roch overpass
Scarcely a week before the election, Samson made good on her promise to cause Deros as much political embarrassment as possible. Samson staged a press conference beneath the abandoned St. Roch Street pedestrian overpass and accused Deros of being a member of an administration which demonstrated its indifference to the interests of Park Exers by leaving the useless and condemned overpass in place.
“This overpass is symbolic of the inaction of the City of Montreal,” Samson said. “Why? When the city found out that the overpass was very dangerous for our pedestrians, what did they do? They cut off the stairs. They left the structure there, which is very dangerous. There are pieces falling off and holes. But instead of fixing their problem, by admitting it’s dangerous and taking it away or demolishing it, they take away the stairs and leave the rest there.”