JOSHUA ALLAN
The 1510 West

This fall’s mayoral election in Dorval is shaping up to be a two-way race as a veteran lawyer critical of the way the city is managed is challenging incumbent Marc Doret for the top job.

“I want to restore democracy at city hall,” said Umberto Macri. “It is currently run as an autocracy or dictatorship where one man and a few people do whatever they want without sufficient public consultation.”

Marci, who has spent 34 years as a civil, corporate and criminal lawyer, had harsh words for the Doret administration.

“I’ve been living in Dorval since 2015,” he said. “It’s my home. And I don’t like the way my home is being remodelled and managed.”

He vowed to bring change to the city at the highest level.

But Doret appeared unfazed by the criticism.

“I don’t really focus on what the opposition is doing,” he said. “I’m not going to debate what our opposition thinks we haven’t done. I think what we’ve done speaks for itself.”

Where the two candidates seem to agree is the need to address the issue of flooding caused by heavy rain events.

Dorval saw significant flooding from extreme rainfall in the past two summers, causing many basements in residential areas to flood during downpours August 2024 and this past July.

“Given the situation, it cannot be that every time there is a heavy rainfall that the homes of the citizens get flooded,” Marci said. “Something has to be done with the reconstruction of the infrastructures.”

Meanwhile, Doret said he will improve flood resilience over the next term, calling it “the single biggest area that we’re going (to focus on).”

Like Macri, Doret said this will include relief measures for homeowners affected by the storms.

Marci said flood victims should receive financial compensation through subsidies both from the city and from the Quebec government.

“If what belongs to the city has caused damage to the citizens, then those issues must be carefully looked at.”

Doret said his campaign will unveil details of how residents affected by flooding will be supported, how the city will invest in infrastructure, as well as plans for leisure and cultural projects in the north end of the city.

In the coming weeks, Doret will also outline plans for a property on Dahlia Avenue, a 40,000-square-foot annex building at the site of the former Congrégation de Notre Dame, which the city acquired in 2022 for $8 million.

The property, which includes the Quatre Vents manor built in 1873, was constructed in 1965 and served as residence for the nuns of the congregation and contains a large commercial kitchen, a dining room, two floors of meeting rooms and two floors of bedrooms. Among the options the city considered in 2024 was to demolish the four-storey structure, but pushback from residents advocating for its preservation prompted the city to put all redevelopment plans on hold.

Doret said that his team has come up with a vision that he believes will garner public support. “I can’t wait to share it once the election starts,” he added.

Marci is not waiting to share how he feels need to change.

City council meetings habitually devolve into a “circus or a shitshow” when these residents voice their views to the council, he said.

“The mayor and the city councillors must treat the citizens with respect and understanding and not contempt or disdain if they do not agree,” he said.

Macri will run a full slate of candidates. One member of his team who has already been announced is incumbent District 2 councillor Pascal Brault. Brault is one of two councillors elected in 2021 who are not members of Doret’s party, Équipe Action Dorval.

Macri said his team is made up of “very qualified and concerned citizens” willing and able to help him restructure the governance of the city. The party’s name and candidates will be unveiled in the coming weeks.

Doret stands by record

Doret is proud of his record Doret had announced his intention to run for re-election back in June.

He was elected mayor in 2021, winning almost 64 per cent of the vote, after serving as a councillor for 12 years.

“I love this city,” he told The 1510 West when asked about his decision to run for a second term as mayor. “I grew up with my family here and want to continue to contribute and continue the good things we’ve done in the past into the future.”

His proudest achievements this past term include the city’s financial performance.

“We’ve been very fiscally responsible,” he said. “People talk to me about the fact that their tax bill is the same as it was 15 years ago. I don’t think there are too many other cities in this province that can make that claim.”

Indeed, property taxes in Dorval over the last four years were raised only twice – the average homeowner paid $58 more (+2%) in property taxes in 2024 and $26 (+0.9%) more in 2025. In total, the average homeowner in Dorval spent $2,974 in property taxes this year, far below fellow West Island cities like Pointe Claire, Kirkland and Beaconsfield, where the average homeowner paid $4,297, $5,330 and $7,261, respectively.

During his term, the town opened the much-anticipated $9.5-million outdoor refrigerated skating rink on Dawson Avenue, as well as invested in upgrades for several parks and public pools.

He also took pride in projects that help the community’s most vulnerable. These include the opening of a warming station near the train station to give unhoused residents a safe place to warm up in the winter months, and the ongoing construction of a four-storey affordable housing apartment buidling at 750 Dawson Ave.

“I stand on that record,” he said.

The election is set for Nov. 2.