Published November 22, 2023

Joel Goldenberg – The Suburban LJI Reporter

The City of Côte St. Luc is tolerating tempos, temporary car shelters erected during the winter, throughout the city with some exceptions, it was revealed on social media.

CSL and many other municipalities have resisted, or still don’t allow, tempos because they are not aesthetically pleasing.

Resident Orel Zipper asked on Facebook, “how do we get some action to unban tempos from those select streets [where it is] arbitrarily not allowed to put them up? Ridiculously unsafe, especially for older residents or those with mobility issues. More so for those with an inclined driveway. I have brought it up before, but if there’s anything one can do would be great to know.”

The city’s Facebook administrator responded that “for the 2023-2024 winter season, the city will tolerate tempos in areas where they are not zoned. Here’s what this means in practice:

“If you live in an area where tempos are allowed, it is business as usual,” the message adds. “If you paid the one-time fee, you can erect the tempo again this year. If you live in an area where tempos are allowed, and have never applied for a permit, you need to do so. Then you pay the one-time fee. Then you can erect your tempo.”

In areas where tempos have not been allowed up to now, “you can erect a tempo this season. No permit is required and no fee is required this season. You must follow all the installation rules and the tempo must be removed by April 15, 2024.”

As well, “tempos are never allowed at townhouses, apartment buildings, or condo buildings.”

The city posting added that CSL is “considering standardizing the tempo rules across the city as part of the Master Plan and Zoning Bylaw Revision.”

Councillor Dida Berku explained to The Suburban that “when we did the tempo bylaw, we did it by zone, and in certain zones, 12 residents signed a register, and we decided not to proceed with referendums zone by zone.

“Over the past few years, we’ve realized that the tempos have not proliferated like mushrooms, they’re very few and far between, and in those zones where we don’t have tempos, there are residents in very precarious situations, they have steep driveways or have medical conditions, so we tried to find a way to introduce it in the zones, where they’re not allowed, for a year, on a pilot project basis. At the end of the year, we’ll evaluate it.”

We also asked about the fact those who can put up tempos where they have not been allowed do not, right now, have to pay the one-time fee, while those who have yet to put up tempos where they are allowed do have to pay.

“It’s only a one-time payment anyway, so eventually if it does become a permanent situation, they will have to pay,” Berku explained. “In the end, everyone [who wants a tempo] will have to pay. For this year only, they don’t have to pay because it’s a pilot project, and we can’t introduce a fee for something that’s not in our fee schedule.”

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