Peter Black

June 5, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

The city has slated public consultations on June 12 for a fast-tracked 13-storey apartment building in Ste-Foy. 

In a May 29 announcement, Mayor Bruno Marchand said the city is using its newly acquired powers under Bill 31 to speed up approval of the project, called Laforest, at the intersection of Rue de la Forest and Chemin Saint-Louis.

The mayor said the law “allows the construction of residential projects to be authorized within considerably shorter time frames than those provided for in the law on development and urban planning.”

He said the city’s housing crisis, with a vacancy rate of less than one per cent, justifies greenlighting the 350-unit project, which might otherwise take more than a year for approval.

The complex is a project of Groupe Stratera Inc., which calls itself an avant-garde real estate developer. According to concept images, it would have two taller buildings of up to 13 storeys located behind two six-storey buildings fronting the street.

The project is located on a lot that currently has a shopping mall with a pizza restaurant, a pharmacy, a beauty salon, a bakery and a tire store. The city says preparatory construction will begin during the summer, with units available for occupancy in 2026.

The QCT has learned the pizzeria, drugstore and beauty salon will be included in the Laforest project. Valérie Routh, co-owner of Piazzetta Saint-Louis, said because the project will be done in two phases, her restaurant will be able to move out of its current location and into the new building, with street frontage, once it is completed.

She said she and the other tenants are currently negotiating new lease terms with the developer. 

As for the rental units, the mayor acknowledged there are no specific provisions at this point for a dedicated amount of social housing. He said in a Journal de Québec report that the Laforest project will free up more affordable housing when the new occupants move into the building.

That explanation did not satisfy Limoilou Coun. and Transition Québec Leader Jackie Smith. “It is unacceptable that we give a boost to this type of project without requiring the presence of social housing in return. There is money allocated to the Rent Supplement Program which is sitting in the coffers,” she said in a statement. 

A factor contributing to the city’s decision to employ the fast-track law is that “it is a low-carbon residential and commercial project which will be powered by geothermal energy,” the mayor said. It will also feature a public park square and a green roof.

The consultation, at which city officials will explain details of the project, will take place at the Centre de Glaces Intact Assurance on Ave. De Rochebelle at 6:30 p.m. on June 12.

City council needs to approve the fast-track designation of the project by a majority vote at its June 18 meeting. Further information on the Laforest project can be found on the city’s website.

  30 

This image shows the proposed Laforest project at the northwest corner of Rue de la Forest and Chemin Saint-Louis. 

Image from Groupe Stratera 

Peter Black

June 5, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

The Trudel Alliance property development company, already busy with huge projects to transform shopping malls in suburban areas, is now targeting a vast parking lot in Saint-Roch for redevelopment.

William Trudel confirmed last week that he and his brother and business partner Jonathan have big plans for what is known as Îlot Dorchester, a 100,000-square-foot lot bordered by Rues Saint-Vallier, Sainte-Hélène, Caron and Dorchester.

A May 31 report in Le Soleil provided details of the project, which would include a 20-storey hotel, hundreds of housing units and new commercial space. William Trudel would not confirm the details reported but did say his company has been consulting privately with concerned parties in the vicinity.

The Trudels bought the property for $6 million in 2022 after having managed the parking lot for another owner for several years previously. Over the years, several development projects have been proposed for the site but none moved beyond the planning stages.

The plan for a 20-storey hotel would require a change to the current zoning regulations, although a building of the same size, the Tour Fresk, was built in 2016 about a block away, on Rue de la Couronne. 

According to information Le Soleil gathered from people consulted about the project, it would include a large major brand grocery store to meet the needs of the Saint-Roch neighbourhood.

Plans for the Îlot Dorchester project would follow the strategy Trudel Alliance is employing in its other major redevelopments, incorporating a mix of housing with commercial space and public areas.

The company’s redevelopment of Place Fleur de Lys in Vanier is well underway, with projects also moving forward at Galeries Charlesbourg and Place Quatre-Bourgeois. 

Trudel spokesperson David Chabot told Le Soleil, “We do not want to comment on the current process out of respect for the citizens who have not yet been met. We are in voluntary consultation to measure the receptivity and interest of partners and citizens in relation to the proposed project.”

The QCT contacted City Hall to confirm the Ilot Dorchester project but did not receive a response by press time. 

                30 

This map shows the large parking lot in Saint-Roch known as Îlot Dorchester, slated to become a hotel, residential and commercial complex. 

Image from Google Maps

Peter Black

May 29, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter 

peterblack@qctonline.com 

A massive former Quebec government building near the St. Charles River had been slated to be demolished. Instead, next year, once extensive renovation work is completed on the abandoned former headquarters of the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), some 208 apartments will be added to the housing stock of the Vanier district.

The family-owned company Les Immeubles Simard acquired the five-storey structure in 2017, shortly after the CNESST announced plans to move its headquarters to a brand-new building in the D’Estimauville neighbourhood. 

The initial plan had been to demolish the building, opened in 1970, which had become a money pit for renovation work. According to media reports at the time, a $130 million project to upgrade and expand the structure had to be abandoned in 2016 due to cracks in its foundation. Some $20 million had already been spent.

The Simards had to wait five years for the CNESST to move into its new digs in 2022 to be able to start work on their project, which, company executive Jean-Michel Simard told the QCT, was initially imagined as an office building.

The pandemic changed that thinking, and the company, in partnership with construction giant Ogesco, shifted the focus to residential units, which involved transforming an office complex and rehabilitation centre into apartments.

Assured that there were no foundation issues for their project, work to gut the building and bring it up to code began in earnest a year ago, Simard said. Because of the configuration of the building, the units, ranging in size from 3 ½ to 5 ½, will be a different style, capitalizing on the high ceilings, long and narrow width and tall windows.

The marketing material on the website for Le Rivero, the project’s name, reflecting its proximity to the Saint-Charles River, describes the units as New York-style, “characterized by distinctive elements such as exposed concrete and large windows.”

Most of the units will feature what are called loggia, year-round enclosed balconies, heated in the winter and “open to the outside” in the summer. The rent ranges from $1,195 a month for the smaller units to a minimum of $2,295 a month for the larger ones.

The rental office for Le Rivero opened last week and Simard said the response has been very strong. “We’re looking at a market that wants something different,” noting that the apartments on offer have rents competitive with less distinctive units of the same size.  

Apartments completed in the first three phases of the project are slated for June 2025 occupancy, Simard said.

The complex includes amenities such as an indoor and outdoor swimming pool, an interior pickleball court, a landscaped courtyard and a lounge area. 

Simard said that besides the attractive features of the rental units, the big selling point is the building’s location on the St. Charles River and in a section of Vanier undergoing major redevelopment.

Simard said the company has other plans in the works for future phases of the development. 

          30

This image shows how the former CNESST headquarters in Vanier will be transformed into 208 rental units.  

Image from Graphsynergie

Large windows allow for the creation of year-round loggia rooms, available in many of the units in Le Rivero. 

Image by Étienne Dumas, 3D artist

Peter Black

May 22, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

Quebec City has a brand new police station, opened several years later and in a different location than originally planned, but delivered under budget and to rave reviews.

City officials gave an inaugural tour of the five-storey structure on May 14. Located in the Charlesbourg district on Boul. Louis XIV near the Autoroute Laurentienne, the new headquarters replaces the antiquated police station near Parc Victoria. That building is to be demolished and the park expanded.

Mayor Bruno Marchand, obviously pleased the project came in $2.3 million under its $112-million projected budget, said, “With this incomparable infrastructure, Quebec City now has one of the best facilities in the province. This is an undeniable advantage for continuing to make Quebec a city where citizens feel safe.”

He said, “Here, we have a concrete example that the city is capable of carrying out major projects that will benefit our community. It was high time to modernize the facilities in order to continue to offer quality services to citizens.”

Police Chief Denis Turcotte said, “The new centre will become the pride of all police and civilian personnel. Having the majority of our teams gathered in the same location will allow for better synergy which will undeniably have an impact on the efficiency of our operations, for the benefit of the population.”

The new police HQ, the area of one and a half football fields, features space for 750 workers, or about 70 per cent of personnel, 52 holding cells, 259 interior parking spaces and 629 exterior spaces. To help cops stay in shape, there is a spacious gym and training facilities. 

Various environmental measures in the building’s construction have created a 30 per cent energy saving.

For citizens, the new building offers, according to background information, “various amenities respecting the principles of universal accessibility. They will benefit from closed premises to ensure confidential complaints and self-service computers to submit an event report or a request for a criminal record check.”

Until the new facility is fully operational in the coming weeks, people will still need to go to the stations in Parc Victoria and on Route de l’Eglise in Ste-Foy to pay tickets or file a complaint.

Several years ago, the city purchased property on Rue des Rocailles, near Boul. Pierre Bertrand, at a cost of $2.6 million, for the new police station, but in 2019 the site was deemed to be too small to accommodate parking.

The new police headquarters in Charlesbourg is located on Boul. Louis XIV near the Autoroute Laurentienne.   

Image from Ville de Québec

The new police station contains an exhibit displaying items from the 181-year history of the force. Stéphanie Filteau is the curator. 

Photo from Ville de Québec

Peter Black

May 22, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

The women are in the kitchen having coffee. 

“She asked me where I got one of my jackets from. I said Canada. She asked me, ‘When did I get to Canada?’” The women laugh. One says, “She thought you meant the country.”

“An understandable mistake,” says the lady of the house, the concentration camp commandant’s house.

The scene comes a few minutes into the Oscar-winning movie The Zone of Interest, now available on Prime. If you haven’t seen it, or you did see it and missed the quick reference to “Canada,” there turns out to be a horrific story behind how “Kanada” became associated with one of the grim aspects of the Holocaust.

The “Kanada” to which the women referred was the name for the huge warehouses the Nazis built at the Auschwitz death camp in Poland to store, sort and distribute the possessions confiscated from the more than one million mostly Jewish prisoners who arrived at the camp destined to labour as slaves or to be executed.

It’s unclear how exactly the warehouses – Kanada 1 and Kanada 2 – came to be called Kanada, but according to Holocaust history sources, it was Jewish prisoners themselves who gave the buildings the name, which their Nazi captors adopted. Someone, presumably had the idea in mind that Canada was a place of great abundance. 

(We might interject here that despite the positive thoughts Jewish concentration camp prisoners may have had about Canada, at the time the Nazis were rounding up Jews for extermination, the Canadian government was systematically rejecting Jewish refugees from Europe.)

In the movie, Hedwig Höss, wife of Rudolph Höss, the long-serving commandant at the sprawling Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination centre, receives bundles of clothing delivered in a wheelbarrow by a Jewish prisoner. 

She tries on a fur coat and discovers a tube of lipstick in a pocket. She applies the lipstick, then quickly wipes it from her lips, realizing a Jewish woman was the last person to use it.

The volume of goods taken from new arrivals at the camp was staggering. Jews and other Nazi targets from cities and villages in Poland and elsewhere had no idea where they were headed when ordered to bring up to 100 pounds of possessions and then loaded on trains like animals, often travelling for days without food or water.

Upon arrival at the camp, guards took the prisoners’ goods, from clothing to books, musical instruments and jewelry, and stored them in a “Kanada” while their owners were either stripped and gassed immediately or forced into slave labour.

At their peak, in 1944, up to 2,000 prisoners, called Kanada Kommandos, were working at the Kanada warehousing operation. Most of the goods were shipped to Germany, but some ended up being worn by the commandant’s wife and her friends.

The Zone of Interest is a masterful cinematic expression of the “banality of evil,” political philosopher Hannah Arendt’s description of the methodical way in which the Nazis set about attempting to wipe out the Jews of the world.

The film is based on Martin Amis’ novel of the same name, drawn from the true-life account of the Höss family living an idyllic life in the Polish countryside, with industrial-scale incineration of human beings taking place on the other side of the garden wall.

We never see the grounds of the actual camp – its presence is suggested by the dull rumble of the crematoria and the sound of rifle shots. The only Jews seen are the family servants, including a girl whom Frau Höss admonishes, when she makes a small mistake, that her husband could have her ashes scattered. 

The film’s creator, Jonathan Glazer, opted to include the true story of a young Polish girl who would, secretly in the night, leave apples for the starving labourers at work sites near the camp.

Dare we say The Zone of Interest, winner of the Academy Award for best international feature film, would make an instructive film for screening during the long nights at the campus camp-outs in support of the liberation of Palestinians.

Real liberation of victims of true genocide occurred in January 1945 when a Ukrainian division of Soviet troops opened the gates of Auschwitz and began uncovering the extent of the Nazis’ “final solution.”

The retreating SS camp guards burned the Kanada warehouses to the ground, with whatever remaining goods in them going up in smoke.

            30 

Peter Black

May 22, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

The devil, as they say, is in the details, and it was details that bedevilled the prolonged negotiations between the federal government, CN Rail and the Quebec government that finally resulted in Ottawa retaking possession of the historic structure.

The deal, finally concluded in the last few weeks, centres on the federal government taking over control of the bridge and taking the significant measures required to ensure the historic span’s long-term future.

Two weeks ago, the federally appointed chief negotiator, Yvon Charest, told the QCT that the five major issues in the talks between Ottawa and CN had been resolved, and all that remained were minor issues. He said, “Both parties are motivated” to come to a deal.

Asked why the federal government deemed it so important to take control of the bridge, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, “Because it is a perfectly good bridge that has served for many years and can serve for decades more with proper maintenance and upkeep.”

Transport Minister Pablo Rodriquez, who said he often picked up the phone to talk directly to CN management about negotiations, said, “It was the right thing to do” to preserve the bridge for future generations.

Once the federal government takes possession officially in September, work will begin on priorities such as replacing steel components rusted beyond repair – some 2.7 million pounds of metal, according to Rodriguez.

About half of the $1 billion the federal government has committed to the bridge over 25 years will be devoted to repainting the bridge. Work had started a decade ago to repaint the bridge but came to a halt amid a dispute over the escalating cost.

On top of the federal investment in the bridge, CN, whose trains cross the bridge about 12 times a day, is committed to spending $6.1 million a year over 25 years; Rodriguez said that with indexation, the amount could reach $350 million.

Martin Guimont, CN vice-president for eastern Canada, said the company will invest amounts over and above the commitment in the deal and “looks forward to contributing to the economy of Quebec” with the bridge’s rejuvenation.

Under the deal, according to a background document, CN and the Quebec government “will retain responsibility for and ownership of the rail and road decks on the bridge structure, respectively, and will be responsible for all costs associated with these decks, as is currently the case.”

Quebec Infrastructure Minister Jonatan Julien provided no details on Quebec’s plans for the bridge with regards to adapting it to accommodate an expanded public transit component, such as a tramway.

All elected officials at the announcement were cautious about stating any specific impact an upgraded Quebec Bridge – the “first link” – might have on the Quebec government’s desire for a “third link” crossing the St. Lawrence. 

The Caisse de dépôt et placement report on the Quebec City region’s transit needs is expected in June.

Besides freight and passenger train traffic, an average of 33,000 vehicles cross the bridge daily. 

The Progressive Conservative government of Brian Mulroney ceded the Quebec Bridge to CN for $1 in June 1993.

    30 

Peter Black

May 22, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

Calling it a “great day for the Quebec City region,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed the federal government will buy the historic Quebec Bridge for a token $1 and pour some $1 billion into its rejuvenation over the next 25 years.

The May 15 announcement took place at the lookout behind the Quebec aquarium, with the 107-year-old, 543-metre-long “Wonder of the World” in the background. 

It was the exact same setting where three years ago federal ministers announced the Trudeau government’s intention to purchase the bridge from Canadian National, and hired retired insurance executive Yvon Charest to spearhead negotiations. 

Trudeau thanked Charest, who was out of the country and unable to attend the announcement, for his efforts. “Without his work, we would not be here today,” Trudeau said.

MP Joël Lightbound, in whose Louis-Hébert riding the bridge is located, introduced the officials at the ceremony, noting he has been “waiting for this day since the first day I was elected” in 2015. 

Trudeau also saluted Jean-Yves Duclos, the MP for the Québec riding and minister of public services and procurement, calling him the “pillar” of the long and complicated negotiations with CN and the Quebec government.

Duclos credited the signing of the deal 31 years after CN took over the bridge to “hope and hard work,” spanning the terms of eight ministers of transport. He said the revamping of the bridge will offer the region “new options” for transit. 

Duclos also saluted former Quebec City mayor Régis Labeaume, who, along with longtime Lévis Mayor Gilles Lehouillier, pushed for the resolution of the impasse that saw the painting of the bridge started more than 10 years ago and then halted. There was even a “Bill, Paint Your Bridge” campaign aimed at Microsoft founder and major CN shareholder Bill Gates.

Duclos also thanked citizen groups who have led campaigns for action to preserve the bridge. He thanked Trudeau “above all” for his commitment to the bridge negotiations and the betterment of the Quebec City region.

Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez, who also serves as Trudeau’s Quebec lieutenant, lent an extra note of levity to the event by making reference to the iconic Quebec TV series, Les Boys. He said it took “dureté de mental” (mental toughness) to get the job done, in particular the perseverance of Duclos, the expertise of Charest and the commitment of the prime minister.

Rodriguez joked it would be Duclos who paid the symbolic dollar for the bridge as minister of procurement.

Jonatan Julien, Quebec infrastructure minister and minister for the Capitale-Nationale Region said the bridge is “a heritage jewel” that is “in the DNA” of people in the region. He praised the persistence of the federal government since taking power in 2015, to see the bridge’s future ensured.

Quebec City Coun. Maude Mercier Larouche, whose district includes the bridge, said people of the area are very proud of the bridge, but it has “lacked a bit of love” and the rejuvenation of the structure will allow future generations to feel the same pride.

Mayor Bruno Marchand said, “There would be nothing happening here today without political will,” calling the announcement “an immense day for the people of Quebec.” 

He thanked the prime minister, whom he called Justin, saying the acquisition of the bridge would not have been possible without his support.

“We are entering a new era for mobility in the region,” Marchand said. 

30 

Jean-Yves Duclos, Quebec MP and minister of public services and procurement stands at the podium with (from left) Louis-Hebert MP Joël Lightbound, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Quebec City Mayor Bruno Marchand, Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez, Quebec City Coun. Maude Mercier Larouche and Quebec Infrastructure Minister Jonatan Julien, with the historic Quebec Bridge in the background. 

Photo by Peter Black

Peter Black

May 8, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

Quebec City Mayor Bruno Marchand is denouncing the provincial agency for motor vehicles as a “nuthouse” as the deadline fast approaches for his administration to decide whether to raise money for public transit through the Quebec vehicle registration fee.
Last December, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government granted all municipalities in the province the power to use car registration fees to raise money for public transit, a tool cities in the Montreal region have had since 2010.
Since 1992, a fee of $30 targeted for public transit has been tacked onto the cost of vehicle registration across the province.
At a May 1 news conference at City Hall, Marchand said he is not happy that the Société d’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) has refused to extend the May 31 deadline for municipalities to inform the agency they want to take advantage of the “registration tax.”
The tax would be imposed on new and renewed vehicle registrations as of 2025. According to media reports, some 30 municipalities in Quebec have informed the SAAQ they plan to take advantage of the revenue-generating opportunity.
The mayor said it is “inconceivable” for the SAAQ to keep insisting on the deadline with the overall city transport situation in limbo, pending the report from the Caisse de dépôt et placement infrastructure division on regional transit needs, expected in June. The CAQ government commissioned the study in reaction to the rising cost of the city’s proposed tramway project. 

Marchand decried the “the administrative formalities” behind the May 31 deadline to submit the tax request. “Does that take nine months to do? There is really someone moving numbers in an abacus and [saying] it will take nine months for us to be able to say what will be the amount that we would charge, if we charge?”
The mayor refused to speculate on what amount the city might wish to impose, saying it first needs to have the overall picture of public transit financing.
Marchand’s comments on the registration tax followed on the heels of Transition Quèbec Leader and Limoilou Coun. Jackie Smith’s decision to resign her seat on the board of the Réseau de Transport de Québec (RTC) to protest the city’s lack of action on the tax.
Smith is proposing $1,167, the value of an annual bus pass, be added to the car registration fee. “The government gave us leverage to increase funding for the RTC and we must use it to double the budget dedicated to public transport in Quebec City,” she said in a statement. “This decision would allow us to make free access universal, erase the deficit and develop our network, rather than increasing prices to barely maintain our services.”
Later, at the news conference, Marchand rejected Smith’s demand, saying it would be too heavy a burden on drivers already having a hard time making ends meet.
Smith said she made the decision to resign from the RTC board to stay true to her principles and her campaign vow to fight for free public transit. She said in a CBC Radio interview, “I have to be coherent. I have to defend the principal reason why I was elected. I felt morally I had the responsibility to resign.”
Marchand answered questions about the registration fee at a news conference convened to announce changes to the Equimobilité program aimed at low-income transit users (see article below). As of July 1, transit users eligible for Équimobilité will pay $50 for a monthly pass and $2 for a single ticket. The regular rate is $94.50 for a pass and $3.40 for a ticket.

    PHOTO BELOW 

Transition Québec Leader and Limoilou Coun. Jackie Smith resigned from the Réseau de Transport de Québec (RTC) governing board to protest the city’s lack of action on the taxation of car registrations.

Photo from Transition Québec

Peter Black

May 15, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

In a surprise turn of events last week, Mayor Bruno Marchand announced the city will take advantage of the Quebec government’s offer for municipalities to raise money for public transit through the vehicle registration fee.

Marchand had initially dismissed the idea, complaining the May 31 deadline to apply for the program, set by the Société d’Assurance Automobile du Québec (SAAQ) for cities across the province, did not take into account the study of regional transit needs from CDPQ-Infra, expected in June.

In a compromise move, the Marchand administration came to an agreement with SAAQ, which administers the registration fee, to meet the deadline while setting a “provisional” fee of $10, with the final figure to be decided before Sept. 15.

Marchand said the arrangement “will allow us to better assess the real needs that will be met by this levy. I thank the minister’s openness for this request which will allow us all to act as rigorous managers and wait to have an overall picture before moving forward. The city will need this tax, but it is our duty to define it better.”

Marchand said he is ready to pay whatever political price that may ensue from adding to the cost of vehicle registration. “It’s definitely risky. There is no positioning without risk,” the mayor said at a May 8 City Hall news conference. 

At the moment, only municipalities in the Montreal region are allowed to add to the registration fee to fund public transit, with the current amount $59. This sum is on top of the $30 dedicated to public transit paid by motorists across the province since 1992.

The tax raised an estimated $125 million for public transit in the metropolitan region of Montreal last year, according to the SAAQ.

  -30- 

Peter Black

Local Journalism Initiative reporter 

Peterblack@qctonline.com 

Quebec City’s ComediHa! entertainment enterprise is stepping into the void the demise of Montreal’s Just for Laughs festival created, by presenting a new comedy event in the big city in July.

ComediHa! founder and president Sylvain Parent-Bédard made the announcement May 8, saying the sortie into Montreal coincides with the 25th anniversary of his Quebec City-based company, which had been considering an event outside the capital to celebrate the milestone.

Parent-Bédard told the QCT his company was equipped to kickstart another comedy festival once the news broke in March that the long-running Just for Laughs festival had succumbed to financial trouble.

The festival venture took a cue from ComediHa!’s move to take over the Just For Laughs production of the musical Waitress, which would have been cancelled otherwise. The show will now go on in Quebec City in August and Montreal in June. 

Parent-Bédard said the support of sponsors will be needed to shore up the $10-million budget for the 10-day Montreal festival, to be called ComediHa! Salue Montréal. He said he also has unofficial promises of financial support from government sources.

He said there will be some English content in the programming, but the short time span to organize the shows may preclude extensive shows this year.

Parent-Bédard said this inaugural edition of the new festival won’t be on the same scale as the indoor Just for Laughs shows, but the free outdoor events would likely draw the same size crowds.

He said he takes some personal satisfaction in organizing a comedy festival in Montreal because he started his company when Just for Laughs rejected the idea of mounting a festival in the Quebec capital.

The full program for the Montreal festival is to be unveiled in the coming weeks. Shows will take place between July 18 and 28 in Place des Arts, at Espace St-Denis and at the Théâtre du Vieux-Terrebonne.

30 

Sylvain Parent-Bedard, president of ComediHa!, is planning a Montreal festival this summer to fill the void caused by the cancellation of the long-running Just For Laughs comedy extravaganza.

Photo from ComediHa!

Quebec City’s ComediHa! Festival is holding a special edition in Montreal from July 18-28. 

Photo by Cassandra Kerwin from QCT archives

Peter Black

May 8, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

To borrow from the title of her Oscar-winning song, the Videotron Centre seems to be “made for” the rehearsal and début of superstar pop singer Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft world tour.

Eilish, who won the Academy Award for “What Am I Made For,” from the blockbuster Barbie movie, is expected to arrive with her entourage in Quebec City on Sept. 27 to prepare for the inaugural concert two days later. 

Tickets, priced from $129 to $556, went on sale on May 4. Few seats remained when the QCT checked on the weekend.
Dominique Goulet, programming boss for the Videotron Centre, told the QCT the deal to host Eilish came about through the venue’s relationship with entertainment giant Live Nation, which in the past has arranged similar pre-tour warm-ups for Céline Dion, Paul McCartney, Peter Gabriel, Nickelback, Pearl Jam and Arcade Fire.

Goulet said the fact the Videotron Centre is a state-of-the-art facility with highly experienced technical teams and the fact it would be available for three days straight were some of the selling points.

She said it’s possible Eilish herself had some input into the choice of venue to begin the tour, considering that artists tend to be more “hands on” with tour planning than in past years.

Goulet said the concert set-up for the Eilish show will feature a central stage with a 360-degree view. 

The Quebec stop, Goulet said, would be the 22-year-old Californian’s first gig in Quebec City, and one of only three stops in Canada, besides Toronto and Vancouver. She played Montreal’s Osheaga festival last August, to rave reviews.

Goulet said the city may experience a mini tourism boom during Eilish’s visit, with about 30 per cent of the Videotron Centre’s 17,500 seats expected to be scooped up by out-of-town fans.

The star’s request for special arrangements during her Quebec stay include a vegan menu and a minimal environmental footprint, Goulet said.

Eilish, who writes songs and performs with her older brother Finneas O’Connell, first gained fame in 2015 with her début album Ocean Eyes. The siblings have since won nine Grammys and another Oscar in 2022 for the title song of the James Bond movie No Time to Die.
Eilish’s third studio album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, is slated to be released May 17.

Pop superstar Billie Eilish starts her world tour in Quebec City Sept. 29. 

Photo from Depositphotos

Peter Black

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

Eclectic might be an understatement to describe the set of six events at the Grand Theatre announced as part of Festival d’Été programming.

On July 13, for example, there’s an afternoon session with Geddy Lee, founder and bassist with the iconic Canadian band Rush, talking about his autobiography, My Effing Life. 

In the evening, rock talk switches to movie music, with Star Wars: A New Hope in concert, featuring the score of the epic 1977 George Lucas classic performed by Montreal’s FILMharmonique Orchestra. 

Though its repertoire does not include film music as its name suggests, The Cinematic Orchestra, a U.K.-based jazz band, is known for its “impressive and enigmatic live performances,” a FEQ press release stated. The group plays on the evening of July 7.

Also slated for Grand Theatre shows are Cajun favourite Zachary Richard (July 5), French-Swiss jazz trumpeter Éric Truffaz (July 4), and popular Quebec pianist Marianne Trudel opening for American jazz pianist Natalie Tenenbaum (July 12). 

FEQ content director Louis Bellavance said the festival decided to pursue some acts that are not well-suited to an outdoor setting, an idea that’s been brewing with FEQ for several years.

“Instead of letting go of some of these amazing artists we were interested in,” the partnership with the Grand Theatre presented a way to do it, Bellavance said.

“It’s not for everyone to go to an outdoor festival and be standing up on a hill. There’s something very comforting about being part of Festival d’Été, but being inside and buying your seat and knowing where you’re going to be,” he added. 

Bellevance said booking prog-rock legend Geddy Lee took considerable persuasion given he had already wrapped his book tour. He finally agreed, “because he wanted to connect with his Quebec fans.”

Tickets for individual shows are on sale through the FEQ website at prices ranging from $42.50 to $79.

      30

Geddy Lee of prog-rock legends Rush will discuss his autobiography at a FEQ event at the Grand Theatre on July 13.

Photo from FEQ

Peter Black,

May 1, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

With another season ended at the Mont Sainte-Anne ski resort, there are signs the Quebec government is preparing to act to find a new operator and upgrade the deteriorating attraction.

Jonatan Julien, the minister of infrastructure and minister responsible for the capital region, said a deal regarding the future of the ski hill, currently in the hands of Alberta-based Resorts of the Canadian Rockies (RCR), “is certainly possible” before the start of the next season.

Julien made the comments at an April 23 parliamentary committee meeting to discuss budget credits for the capital region. Responding to questioning by Liberal interim leader Marc Tanguay, Julien said the file “is progressing very well, quite honestly … We are having very, very important discussions.” He did not specify with whom.

Whatever deal the government may be working on, a tight deadline looms, according to Les Amis de Mont Sainte-Anne, the group that’s been pushing for new ownership to revamp the facility.

Group president Yvon Charest told the QCT, “If you don’t have a new manager for the mountain by July 1, it’s going to be impossible to make the infrastructure improvement in time for the Canada Winter Games that will be happening in February 2027.”

Charest said the Coalition Avenir Québec government needs to change its strategy of trying to negotiate with RCR, which has already rejected private offers to purchase the ski station. He said the government “does not want to play tough with RCR” because it is afraid the owner will walk away and stick Quebec with the ownership and onus to invest millions in new facilities.

Charest said there is an ideal option available with the interest expressed in Mont Sainte-Anne by Christian Mars, founder of the French-Swiss management company e-Liberty, which last year signed a 33-year lease to operate the Mont Grand-Fonds ski hill in the Charlevoix and plans to invest some $45 million to develop the site.

Mars, through his Compagnie des montagnes de ski du Québec, has offered to invest $100 million in Mont Sainte-Anne, topped up by another $20 million from local investors, Charest said.

In a recent interview with the Journal de Québec, Mars deplored the deteriorating condition of Mont Sainte-Anne. “It’s true that in Europe, a station in this state is closed immediately. We don’t let it run. It is not possible. There is a level of security that is not sufficient.”

The safety factor may give the Quebec government an opening to seek expropriation of Mont Sainte-Anne, Charest said, noting ski lifts on the mountain are more than 35 years old and operating well under capacity. Serious accidents on the lifts have occurred in recent years.

The public interest factor also needs to be considered, Charest said, with the upcoming Canada Winter Games in Quebec City in need of a downhill ski event venue up to current standards.

Mars said he met with Industry Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon at Mont Grand-Fonds in March. “He was able to see that we were doing what we are committed to. We are operators and we have shown that what we say, we do.”

Mars said, “The solution lies with the government. Our plan is known to the premier’s office, Mr. Fitzgibbon and Investissement Québec.”

Charest said RCR may have more incentive now to divest itself of Mont Sainte-Anne having recently lost control of the eastern part of the mountain in a court case brought by the Quebec government’s SEPAQ outdoors facilities agency. 

The loss of revenue from that on top of the bleak ski season just finished may add up to retaining the resort not being worth the cost to RCR, he explained. 

Charest said, “The way I see it is that it would be quite wise for the government.to move right now because of public interest, and I’m sure that if the government wants to do so you would have a happy community.”

      30

  Photo from e-Liberty

Prospective Mont Sainte-Anne operator Christian Mars shows off the gondola lift he’d like to see on Quebec slopes. 

Peter Black

May 1, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

The Parti Québecois has had six elected leaders since the sovereigntist party was created in October 1968. Its founder, René Lévesque, was never actually elected leader, but as the head of the larger group that merged with another group to form the PQ, he automatically assumed the leadership. 

One leader since then has been acclaimed – Lucien Bouchard, in 1995, after then-premier Jacques Parizeau resigned abruptly in the wake of the failed sovereignty referendum of the same year.

This group of leaders can be broken down generally into two categories: heart or head, emotion or reason. Some fit more neatly into one category or the other.

Take the founder, for example. Lévesque knew instinctively that the path to sovereignty lay with an emotional appeal to Quebecers fed up with a federation that showed little respect towards the francophone majority. Little concerned was he with the nuts and bolts of how sovereignty-association with Canada might work. When he was preparing to bolt the Liberal Party, his then friend and future political foe Robert Bourassa cautioned him, “You don’t seem to realize that political independence goes with monetary independence. Quebec cannot be sovereign and pay the bill with Canadian dollars.”

To which Lévesque replied, “Monetary system, economic system, all this is plumbing. One doesn’t worry about plumbing when one fights for the destiny of a people.” Heart.

By contrast, Jacques Parizeau, though a bit of a lefty radical in his youth, was a technocrat through and through. Prior to joining the PQ in 1969, he had been a senior civil servant instrumental in setting up much of the infrastructure underpinning the Quiet Revolution – the nationalization of Hydro-Québec and creation of the Caisse de depôt et placement being two examples.

His pompous demeanor and trademark three-piece banker suits were not exactly the package to connect with the little people. Still, he had the good timing to take over the PQ as the Meech Lake Accord was unraveling and about to rev up the masses with the potent brew of humiliation and resentment. 

A few thousand votes more on the Yes side in the 1995 referendum and Parizeau could well have been the perfect péquiste premier to negotiate Quebec’s exit from Canada. All head.

Then, amongst the group of five PQ leaders to win an election – Lévesque the only one to win two, 1976 and 1981 – there is Lucien Bouchard, who, history concedes, nearly single-handedly brought the Yes side to the brink of victory.

That Bouchard was all heart, a mesmerizing, emotional speaker who felt first hand the bitter failure and betrayal of Meech. Once winning the 1998 election, however, with the referendum heat cooled, he was the Quebec leader forced to bring in hotly contested austerity measures. 

The only other PQ leader to win an election was Pauline Marois, who cashed in on fatigue with the long reign of Liberal Jean Charest. She won a minority in 2012 but lost two years later to new Liberal leader Philippe Couillard. She wasn’t around long enough to determine how much heart she had – obviously not enough to stay in power, let alone win a referendum.

Other PQ elected leaders – Pierre-Marc Johnson, Bernard Landry, André Boisclair, Pierre Karl Péladeau (!) and Jean-François Lisée – sorry to say, are asterisks in the party’s saga, which, frankly, seemed to be nearing an end with the three seats won in the 2022 general election under new leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon (PSPP).

So what about PSPP? Heart or head? 

He is so high in the polls he is convinced he sees the promised land. But does that make his heart soar like a hawk? Hardly, based on the 1960s-style bitterness- and resentment-spewing speech he gave to a PQ gathering in Drummondville on April 14.

His Durham Report vision of a Canada deliberately plotting to “weaken and erase” the Quebec people, to “crush those who refuse to assimilate,” had commentators rethinking the glowing praise they have been heaping on the separatist golden boy since the party won a surprise victory in a Quebec City byelection last year..

Then, last week, in a National Assembly exchange with Premier François Legault, PSPP mimed slitting his wrists when the premier asked him if he would join the CAQ if the PQ leader’s proposed third referendum failed.

Heart or head? Hard to tell. But folks are sure getting to know more about the real PSPP.
    30

Peter Black 

April 24, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

The Festival d’Été de Québec has completed its lineup, filling in some blanks in the schedule with familiar acts on an all-Canadian night.

Legendary rockers Blue Rodeo are the marquee act on July 13 on the Loto-Québec stage in Parc de la francophonie, with veteran rocker Sass Jordan warming up the crowd.

The same night, across the park on the SiriusXM stage, Canadian country-rock band the Hello Darlins, open for multiple-platinum album pop-rock singer Amanda Marshall, the pride of Toronto. 

FEQ also announced an “Emo Punk” night on July 10 featuring American band All Time Low on the Loto-Quebec stage while Canadian quartet Silverstein perform on the SiriusXM stage. Other acts on the program are Toronto punk-rockers The Anti-Queens and Moneen, and singer-songwriter Cam Kahin.

FEQ opens on July 4 and runs until July 14, featuring hundreds of performers, including such big names as Post Malone, Nickelback, 50 Cent and the Jonas Brothers.

All general admission passes (bracelets) are sold out. The sole remaining passes available are hotel packages.

      30 

PHOTO BELOW 

Quebec rocker Sass Jordan opens for Blue Rodeo on July 13.

Photo from FEQ

Peter Black 

April 24, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

After an absence of three years, food and drink service is returning to the pavilion on the Plains of Abraham next to the Edwin-Bélanger Bandstand. 

The new operator of the concession will be La Maison Smith, a familiar player in the city’s restaurant community. The Plains location will be the family-run company’s 11th coffee shop in the city.

The cafe is expected to open on June 8, once renovations to the pavilion are completed. La Maison Smith will also provide a food truck and an “espresso bike” to reach less accessible areas.

Mathilde Plante St-Arnaud, one of the three co-owners of La Maison Smith, explained why the company bid for the Plains location: “For 10 years, we have carefully selected the sites where each coffee shop is established. The Plains of Abraham are emblematic and we see the opportunity to promote the city of Quebec by combining our offer with the exceptional site.”

Plante St-Arnaud said the existing pavilion’s interior will be renovated in line with La Maison Smith’s typical decor, but “we always immerse ourselves in the environment where we set up. We have a few weeks to put the interior of the pavilion in our image while respecting the character of the Plains.”

Katherine Laflamme, director of marketing and development for the National Battlefields Commission, said in an April 18 news release the partnership with La Maison Smith “will enhance the experience of visitors to the Plains of Abraham throughout the year. We are excited to provide a wide variety of high-quality food to people visiting the site to discover its history, have fun, play their favourite sport or simply enjoy the park.”

Some four million people visit the Plains park each year.

The Plains cafe will be open year-round, with the daily operating schedule adjusted to events in the park and the demands of the tourism season. There will be interior seating for 55 people and outdoor seating for 50. The cafe will serve alcoholic beverages as well as hot drinks. 

La Maison Smith opened its first coffee shop in Place Royale in 2013, in a building erected in 1653 and occupied for many years by businessman Charles Smith and his family.

Since then, it has added outlets in Old Quebec and around the city. It also recently took over restaurant space in the Centre des congrès de Québec. Its food truck has become a regular sight at major events. 

The company has a coffee roasting facility at its location in Limoilou. It has a workforce of some 270 employees.

Plante St-Arnaud said the company’s rapid success and expansion are due to putting “all our energies in the quality of the product and service. Roasting and training are two key elements. In addition, the choice of each location is decisive.” 

Plante St-Arnaud recently became a co-owner in the company where she has served as executive director since it was founded by Jerome Turgeon and Veronic Pelletier in 2013. 

She said, “It’s sometimes hard to believe for Jérôme and I that we have reached 11 coffee shops and a [food truck] in 10 years. But we keep pace with the demands thanks to an incredible team who support us, who grow with us and who are the foundation of the company.” 

   30 

PHOTOS BELOW 

Mathilde Plante St-Arnaud, co-owner of La Maison Smith; Johanne Laflamme of the National Battlefields Commission, and co-owners Jerome Turgeon and Veronic Pelletier stand before the pavilion near the Edwin-Bélanger Bandstand, the future location of the popular café. 

Photo courtesy of La Maison Smith/Noemie Rochette

A Maison Smith “espresso bike” will be pedaling coffee to visitors to the Plains. 

Photo courtesy of La Maison Smith 

Peter Black 

April 24, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

There will be a new bridge to Île d’Orléans as of 2028 at an estimated cost of $2.79 billion, according to a plan the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government released last week.

The new bridge would replace the existing one built in 1935 which, while officials assure it is still safe, does not conform to modern standards. The government awarded the contract to a consortium called Groupe Heritage Île d’Orléans, one of two bidders for the project.

Deputy premier and Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault, in making the April 16 announcement, noted one of the challenges of building the new span: “The new Île d’Orléans bridge is a unique project, in an extremely fragile environment. Every detail of the project is thought out in this sense. This is also why a cable-stayed bridge is built. This is the best solution to respect the environment and cultural heritage.”

The bridge will be just over two kilometres long and have one lane in each direction with wide shoulders, paths for pedestrians and bicycles on both sides, as well as lookouts.  

The new bridge is to be built about 120 metres to the west of the current structure, which will be demolished.

A new bridge for the island had been proposed in 2015 by the previous Liberal government. When the CAQ came to power in 2018, it adopted the notion, initially estimating the cost at about $500 million. 

Guilbault acknowledged the cost was high, due in part to delays in moving forward with the project, but said the government had no choice in the matter.

Jonatan Julien, the minister of infrastructure and minister responsible for the Quebec capital region, said in a press release, “Agricultural and tourist activities on the island will be boosted. They will contribute to the socioeconomic development of the MRC of L’Île-d’Orléans and the Capitale-Nationale.” 

While municipal officials on the island lauded the decision, there was negative reaction from other quarters. 

Lévis Mayor Gilles Lehouillier, a staunch proponent of a third link across the St. Lawrence River, told TVA after the announcement that it is  “unimaginable that we would submit a project like that to the population … without an overall vision” and without waiting for the conclusions of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) Infra which is studying the transportation needs of the region.”

He said, “The disappointment among the population does not diminish in the face of what is happening: for the tram, the cross-river link and the Île d’Orléans bridge. The disappointment of the population of Quebec City and Chaudière-Appalaches is enormous.”

Quebec City Mayor Bruno Marchand said in a Radio-Canada interview that he was surprised at the price of the bridge, but it’s “a classic case of what happens when you wait too long” to get a project underway. He said he agrees a new bridge to the island is needed, but hopes the money is still there for the city’s tramway project.

Perhaps the harshest criticism came from Quebec Conservative Party Leader Éric Duhaime, who has been advocating a third link to the South Shore passing across Île d’Orléans.

Duhaime said in a release that he thought it “insane” to spend “$2.7 billion for the Île-d’Orleans bridge, which was initially expected to cost around $500 million, in order to serve a population of 7,082 people.”

Duhaime said the CAQ government is “announcing very bad news, poorly planned, without vision, not broad enough, too expensive. Why the rush when the Caisse will submit its report on the third link within two months?”

The CAQ government commissioned the Caisse report in November in reaction to the new $10-billion estimate to build Quebec City’s tramway system. The Caisse was mandated to study the overall transit needs of the city, including a possible new bridge or tunnel between the two sides of the river. 

   30 

IMAGES BELOW 

This cross-section image of the proposed bridge shows two lanes for motorized traffic and paths on both sides for pedestrians and cyclists. 

Image from Quebec government.

The new bridge to Île d’Orléans will be two kilometres long and cost at least $2.8 billion. 

This view is looking towards Beauport and Montmorency Falls. 

Image from Quebec government. 

Peter Black LJI reporter

April 10, 2024

As much as some may loathe Quebec’s legislative approach to secularism,, there is something to be said about the determination it shows to separate the church from the state. 

In a place where evidence of the 400-year-long, all-encompassing grip of the Roman Catholic church still abounds in religious architecture and the like, laity has become as much a Quebec “value” as civil unions, militant unionism and language vigilance.

A recent manifestation of the sacredness of secularism in Quebec was the unholy reaction in the provincial media to Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre’s Easter video message, in French and English.

When your scribe first saw it, he initially thought it was an early April Fool’s joke generated by artificial intelligence. 

If you missed it, here it is:

“He is risen. Today Christians celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ. Through his sacrifice he paid the ultimate price for our sins and overcame the power of death itself so that we could rejoice in His promise of everlasting life. 

The man who would be prime minister goes on: “The joy of Easter unites all Canadians. It reminds us that although we face hardship we have the promise of a new beginning, of redemption and of the hope of eternal life as families come together to attend church services, paint Easter eggs and enjoy some much needed rest. May you be refreshed and restored in the spirit of Easter season.” 

Poilievre also posted on Facebook a picture of himself with a cross and a murky image of what must be JC in the background, with those words again: “He is risen.”

We get and accept that people believe what they believe as long as they don’t hurt anybody in the process – Hamas and the like being obvious exceptions. 

Religious freedom is a protected right in the Constitution and Charter of Rights and Freedoms and “God” – whose? – is still in the national anthem. 

There have been relatively few religious zealots amongst Canadian political leaders, with the notorious exception of “Bible Bill” Aberhart, the premier of Alberta in the 1930s. (Google him for a jaw-dropping bio).

Prime ministers have conspicuously kept their faith to themselves; indeed Mackenzie King’s borderline insane obsession with mysticism and seances remained a secret until after his death. 

The notion of Canada’s leader during the Second World War seeking advice beyond the grave from his mother and pet dog might not have been comforting to Canadians or other Allied leaders.

Pierre Trudeau, probably the only true intellectual to lead the country and possessed of a profoundly rational mind, was a devout Catholic, a fact he rarely revealed in public. 

A review of Citizen of the World: The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, John English’s biography of Trudeau, observes: “Even when Trudeau was viciously attacking Quebec priests and bishops, as he did often in the heady political debates of 1950s and ’60s Quebec, he was using the same language, thought categories and basic beliefs as his opponents. The church had shaped him far more than we ever knew, even though he was to later reject some of its basic moral teachings on sexuality.”

That last bit refers to Trudeau’s liberalization of laws on the books regarding divorce, abortion and homosexuality. “The state has no place in the bedrooms of the nation,” quoth he, and the corollary of that might be the church has no place in the cabinet rooms of the nation. 

Then there’s Poilievre who is clearly an unabashed disciple of Jesus Christ (“our Lord”) and embraces the Christian orthodoxy surrounding “eternal life.” He also obviously does not care what anyone thinks of his evangelical-style beliefs. We can assume he’s locked up the religious right come election time.

But, as Quebec commentators have wondered with some alarm, how would Poilieve separate his devotion to his “saviour”from his political agenda.

As Journal de Quebec/Montreal columnist Richard Martineau put it: “The word of God is not a buffet where we only choose the passages that suit us …  However, the Bible is clear: God condemns adultery, fornication, homosexuality and considers that the soul is present in every human being from conception.”

He and other observers wonder when and if Poilievre is handed the levers of power of the state, will he serve the people or his Lord?

          30

Peter Black

April 3, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative report

peterblack@qctonline.com 

With the report on the Quebec City region’s transit needs expected to be delivered in about two months, proponents of the so-called “third link” are speaking out.

In November, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government, alarmed at the rising cost of Quebec City’s tramway project, asked the Caisse de dêpot et placement infrastructure division to study the overall transit picture, including a crossing of the St. Lawrence River to supplement the Pierre-Laporte and Quebec bridges. 

Last week, according to media reports, Bernard Drainville, education minister and the MNA for Lévis, gave a speech in which he made it clear the CAQ plans to bring back a third link plan, only a year after abandoning its project to build one of the world’s longest automobile tunnels under the river.

Drainville was openly emotional when reacting to the announcement of the tunnel cancellation at the time.

In a March 25 speech to the Chambre de commerce et d’industrie du Grand Lévis, Drainville said, “We have never abandoned the idea of a new link. Even after the announcement, we continued to work internally to tell our government we can’t just abandon a project we’re committed to.”

Drainville added, “The commitment we have from the Caisse is that they will submit a project for a cross-shore link. That’s a given.”

The minister cautioned that whatever project the Caisse proposed “must respond to needs, and they [the Caisse] must also ensure that the project they are going to submit is technically feasible. That is the big challenge.”

Drainville, a former minister in the Parti Québécois government of Pauline Marois, did not go as far in making a nationalist argument for the third link as Lévis Mayor Gilles Lehouillier, a former Liberal MNA for the South Shore region.

Lehouillier, a longtime proponent of a third link, said in a statement issued March 28, “I am sending a signal to all those who want to build a country. If we want a capital that has an international stature, it will take something other than a single link between the two shores. If we want to adequately accommodate our people, so that they are not too stuck in traffic, that requires public transport.”

He said, “There are people from the CAQ who want a country. There are people from the Parti Québécois who want a country. There are people from Québec Solidaire who want a country. I am speaking to those who want a country: let’s give ourselves a national capital with mobility infrastructures that look good.”

The Lévis mayor’s “signal” reached PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, who admitted to reporters he is “in reflection” regarding his party’s position on a third link. The party opposed the tunnel project as presented by the CAQ.

St-Pierre Plamondon told reporters at the National Assembly, “There is one part where he [Lehouillier] is absolutely right: Quebec [City] deserves a transport infrastructure commensurate with the importance of this city for us in Quebec and the size of its population.”

He added, “Even more so, when we acquire the status of international capital, when we welcome hundreds of embassies arriving overnight and there is an economic boost, we must have the infrastructure to match that status.”

The PQ leader, who polls say would win a majority if an election were held today, said he would wait to see what the Caisse proposes and the CAQ government supports before taking a firm position on a tunnel or bridge.

Meanwhile, the Conservative Party of Quebec has released a poll it commissioned showing strong support for “a third link that includes public transport.”

The Leger poll, issued March 27, found that 70 per cent of respondents “are convinced that a new road link would help improve the flow of traffic between the two shores.”

The poll also found 62 per cent support for the Conservative Party’s proposal to build a bridge that spans Île d’Orléans.

Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime said in a news release, “Our proposal corresponds to what Quebec has always needed and desired. The time is no longer for grand speeches and popular consultations; the time has come for construction of the third link.” 

    30

The CAQ government abandoned the twin tunnel plan last year. 

Image from Quebec government

Peter Black

April 3, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com 

Quebec City’s wildly successful àVélo electric bicycle rental program is rolling into the suburbs.

The Réseau de transport de la capitale (RTC) last week announced a huge expansion of the service, adding 40 new stations, 520 bikes and 900 anchoring slots. 

The new stations are destined for strategic spots in neighbourhoods in Loretteville and Vanier, and in the Saint-Louis, Plateau, Saint-Rodrigue and Vieux-Moulin districts.

The RTC is also responding to complaints about a lack of àVélo stations at the popular new beach on Promenade Champlain. Two stations with a total 52 anchorages will be installed.

The 2024 additions will bring the RTC’s total àVélo network to 115 stations and 1,300 bicycles. The program is in its fourth year, with last season seeing a major surge in usage, particularly during the Festival d’Été. 

At the March 25 announcement of the bike rental expansion in Loretteville, Mayor Bruno Marchand said, “The success of the àVélo service no longer needs to be demonstrated. People across the city want to be able to access this easy, available and efficient service whenever they want it. It’s also about thinking about mobility in a different way. It was essential for our administration to deploy this new network so extensively so that more and more people can travel within our territory.”

Rental fees will rise by five per cent to help pay for the expansion. For example, an annual membership with a base of 30 minutes goes from $114 to $120. A 30-day membership with a 30-minute base rental goes from $31 to $33. There is also a daily rate for out-of-town visitors. Don’t forget to bring your own helmet. 

Executive committee member and RTC president Maude Mercier Larouche said in a news release, “The success of àVélo continues to increase year after year, and the benefits are major. In addition to having a direct impact on [greenhouse gases] and promoting modal transfer, àVélo offers flexibility, contributes to the population’s active lifestyle and reduces road congestion.” 

For details, visit rtcquebec.ca/en/rates-and-purchase/rates-and-passes/fare-schedule.

  30 

Image from RTC

The city is adding 40 more àVélo bike rental stations.

Peter Black

April 3, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

One might hope a little good would come from this total eclipse fever. Like maybe imposing a little cosmic context on humanity to the point of realizing how utterly insignificant Planet Earth is in the grand unknowable scheme of things.

Not to get too dark, but an eclipse is not likely to spark a global epiphany and bring an end to human cruelty, brutality and criminality in the name of race, creed or greed. Nothing seems to humble the arrogant and foolish species befouling this jewel of a rock in space. 

There is, on the other hand, a solar phenomenon that is not an eclipse that has the potential to, if not send humanity back to the Stone Age, cause damage to our precious technology-driven civilization on an apocalyptic scale.

We take you back 35 years, to March 13, 1989, a Monday. At 9:27 p.m., what is called “a coronal mass ejection” –  a bit of solar flatulence, if you will – wafted to the Earth. 

As described in a recent article on solar storm watchers in The New Yorker, “Within 90 seconds, transformers on the Quebec power grid malfunctioned, dozens of safety mechanisms failed, and the entire grid shut down, leaving almost a quarter of the population of Canada in the dark.”

The massive outage lasted nine hours and became known as the Great Quebec Blackout. Surprisingly, it was not the fault of the federal government. Rather, the culprit, according to scientists, was Quebec’s particular geomorphology, notably the hard rock of the Laurentian shield that does not absorb energy very well. When the solar storm hit, the energy was transferred to the Hydro-Québec power grid, which overloaded.

The 1989 solar storm was the least severe of four major events of the like recorded by scientists in recent history. The worst, in September 1859, is known as the Carrington event, in recognition of the British astronomer who happened to be observing the sun at the time and noted the flare.

That solar outburst had rather sci-fi consequences, with telegraph systems sending “fantastical and unreadable messages,” according to one U.S. newspaper report. 

Another storm struck in May 1921. During that event, according to the New Yorker story, “‘electric fluid’ leaping from a telegraph switchboard set on fire a railroad station in Brewster, New York, while stray voltage on railway signals and switching systems halted trains in Manhattan.”

A 2008 report examining the impact of a Carrington-sized storm on today’s modern infrastructure concluded, “Extensive damage to satellites would compromise everything from communications to national security, while extensive damage to the power grid would compromise everything: health care, transportation, agriculture, emergency response, water and sanitation, the financial industry, the continuity of government.”

Do we have your attention now, Earthlings?

Although solar storms are happening all the time with negligible impact, the reason there is suddenly heightened interest in the phenomenon is that 2025 will be the peak of what’s called the solar cycle. 

As a NASA website explains, “Every 11 years or so, the sun’s magnetic field completely flips. This means that the sun’s north and south poles switch places. Giant eruptions on the sun, such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections, also increase during the solar cycle. These eruptions send powerful bursts of energy and material into space.”

So how well are we prepared for a major solar storm, the so-called one-in-a-hundred-year blast?

Hydro-Québec, for its part, says it learned a lot from the massive outage of 1989 and a solar storm has not disrupted the utility’s grid since. It says it has taken various steps to reduce risk to the system, such as reducing the transmission load when solar storms are forecast. Still, what about the Big One?

As we gaze through our protective glasses with awe and wonder at the total eclipse, we might spare a thought for how we’d deal with the nasty side of our marvellous sun.

        30

Peter Black

March 24, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

To the delight of fans able to get passes, and the disappointment of those who were not (see article below/on page ?), the 2024 edition of Festival d’été de Québec (FEQ) features a lineup organizers call one of the most impressive ever.

Some of the big prizes headlining the July 4 to 14 event include the immensely popular pop-rapper Post Malone, whose FEQ gig is his only one in Canada this summer; Canadian mega-star rockers Nickelback, making their first FEQ appearance after a 2015 date was cancelled; country stars Zack Brown Band and Latin sensation J Balvin.

Other big names booked for the giant Plains of Abraham stage are punk-pop legends The Offspring, pop favourites The Jonas Brothers, rapper 50 Cent, electro star Alan Walker and “heritage” rockers Mötley Crüe.

FEQ programming director Louis Bellavance told the QCT that in the past the festival relied on two or three huge stars, but this year “all I see are big names, some heavy hitters.” 

The only woman to headline the big stage is Quebec neoclassical star Alexandra Streliski, who will create a carte blanche event with invited guests. Despite that, Bellevance said about half of the acts are women.

Quebec favourites Karkwa will also head up a carte blanche evening, with Les Hay Babies, Fleet Foxes and Tokyo Police Club on the bill.

The twin stages in Parc de la Francophonie are back, featuring some slightly less widely known names, such as Ava Max, Michel Rivard, Martha Wainwright, Les Soeurs Boulay, KITTIE, Kim Mitchell and Kansas.

Bellavance said he is particularly proud of the diversity of this year’s line-up, with something to appeal to most tastes. 

What is also impressive, he said, is that many of the “undercard” performers are headline acts in their own right, giving the example of Killer Mike opening for 50 Cent or Loud Luxury setting up Alan Walker on the electro night.

The festival will be returning to Place D’Youville this summer after a two-year absence. The Place D’Youville stage and the stage in front of the National Assembly will feature emerging artists. Both sites are free to access.

For the first time, FEQ will come to the Grand Théâtre this year. Tickets for Grand Théâtre shows will be sold separately from the regular festival. The lineup is to be announced later.

30 

Canadian rock legends Nickelback will make their FEQ debut this summer. 

Photo courtesy of FEQ

Pop-rap sensation Post Malone makes his only Canadian stop at FEQ this summer. Photo courtesy of FEQ

Peter Black

March 27, 2024

Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

Maybe in the age of Donald Trump, saying outrageous things does not necessarily mean the end of a politician’s career. 

Take the example of Jean Boulet, the Coalition Avenir Québec minister of immigration at the time, who proclaimed during a September 2022 election campaign debate: “80 per cent of immigrants go to Montreal, do not work, do not speak French or do not adhere to the values of Quebec society.”

Whether they poison the blood of true Quebecers, Boulet did not speculate.

The statement, of course, sparked the requisite amount of angry reaction, and Boulet offered up an apology of sorts for saying out loud what he was thinking. 

Then-Liberal leader Dominique Anglade, the multilingual, super-high-achieving daughter of immigrants, called for Premier François Legault to fire his seemingly anti-immigrant minister of immigration. 

Boulet was re-elected with an increased majority in his 92 per cent white and francophone Trois-Rivières riding, and Legault promptly named him labour minister in the new cabinet. 

From his new vantage point as minister responsible for the Quebec workforce, Boulet surely would have intimate knowledge – and a different opinion – of the role immigrants play in the job market.  

Though he didn’t have temporary foreign workers in mind when he unleashed his rant, Boulet is surely mindful of the importance they have in the seasonal Quebec economy. 

For example, we are seeing the impact of the CAQ government’s freak-out about unwanted immigrants play out in different ways. Quebec begged Ottawa to reimpose visa requirements on Mexican travellers in the hopes of keeping out undesirable asylum seekers. Ottawa quickly obliged, and now, because of the short notice to process visas, the immigrant worker-dependent Quebec fish processing industry is paralyzed by a lack of workers for plants. 

One operator in Gaspé has 12 workers approved of the 125 he wants to put to work. In Matane, a Danish-owned processing plant has closed completely for want of its Mexican workers, throwing some 50 locals out of a job as a consequence.

The trouble in the fishery business is just the first wave of the impact of the new Mexican visa requirement. With the planting season around the corner – believe it or not, with winter still stubbornly gripping the land – agricultural producers are about to hit the panic button.

About 4,500 Mexican workers have been hired to work in Quebec fields as of April, and less than half have had their applications processed to fly north in time. The Association des producteurs maraîchers du Québec, the Quebec market gardens association, is dreading a disaster where vegetable prices soar and producers face bankruptcy.

Such is the impact of a hasty political decision driven by the desire to prevent asylum seekers from flying to Canada, where many, if not most, once arrived here, promptly attempt to cross by land into the United States illegally.

The Mexican visa mess is a skirmish in the larger war with the federal government over absolute control over immigration into Quebec, a longstanding plank in the CAQ platform. 

There were the requisite howls from the usual quarters when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau officially refused Legault’s request at a recent meeting in Montreal.

Trudeau could hardly surrender to Quebec what the Constitution currently forbids. Immigration is a shared power. Sharing that power is something the federal government has already done, courtesy of a 1991 deal that gives Quebec, alone among the provinces, full control of “economic immigrants,” notably those who bring expertise and investment to the province.

Trudeau, of course, has plenty of wiggle room to grant Quebec more input into the amount and type of non-economic immigrants, including asylum-seekers, students and people entering for the purposes of family reunification, the latter being particularly sensitive.

Still, in Legault’s and Parti Québécois Leader Paul Saint-Pierre Plamondon’s dreams, what would full control of immigration look like? One suspects whatever restrictive, francophone-favouring measures that might ensue would eventually rid Quebec of the problem of too many immigrants wanting to come to this place.

And with immigration being the sole bulwark against a declining and aging Quebec population, who is going to do all the work Boulet says immigrants don’t do?

          30