Beaconsfield

By Chelsey St-Pierre
The Suburban

In what has become an increasingly contentious battle over agglomeration costs, Beaconsfield mayor George Bourelle revealed that the demerged city’s disputed payments to Montreal have now reached a staggering $20 million, with no resolution in sight.

The conflict, which began in 2020, centres on what Bourelle describes as Montreal’s failure to honour a crucial 2008 agreement that was meant to ensure neutrality in cost-sharing evaluations among demerged cities.

“The amount has been going up each year, and we’re now at a cumulative $20 million since 2020,” Bourelle told The Suburban. “We consider this $20 million essentially a loan, as these are amounts that are being wrongly charged to our city.”

The mayor, who has held office since 2013, expresses frustration with Montreal’s approach to negotiations. “What we’ve seen from Montreal is a non-willingness to negotiate. They say we will have a ‘dialogue’ — well, a dialogue does not do anything. I have been mayor since 2013, and these dialogues never amount to anything — they never negotiate.”

At the heart of the dispute lies the 2008 agreement, which was signed by the provincial government and included a specific formula to ensure fairness in cost distribution. The agreement was designed to maintain neutrality with each evaluation roll, using 2007 as a baseline year, with adjustments only for new development.

The situation highlights what Bourelle describes as a fundamental flaw in the Agglomeration’s governance structure. “Montreal controls the agenda and budgets of the Agglomeration — they have the majority. The best example is the recent fluoridation decision — all demerged cities were against the process used by Montreal, but we were given no say from our minority position in voting.”

This power imbalance, according to Bourelle, has created an “undemocratic Agglomeration governance structure” where demerged cities have little recourse when facing disagreements. “We can kick, yell, and scream, but it does not change that they have complete control over the Agglomeration and can do whatever they want. All we get to do is pay.”

While legal action wasn’t the preferred path, Beaconsfield has completed all necessary legal processes to secure a court date. However, Bourelle maintains that the door remains open for negotiation: “If Montreal is willing to arrive at a win-win solution, we are certainly willing to sit down and resolve this.”

The implications of this dispute extend beyond Beaconsfield’s borders. According to Bourelle, the demerged cities are collectively leaving $100 million on the table.

As the situation continues to evolve, Bourelle emphasizes that the mounting costs affect not just Beaconsfield but potentially set a precedent for all demerged cities. “It would be to the advantage of everyone, including Montreal, to try to resolve this,” he says, though the path to resolution remains uncertain. n