Place Vertu

Senior dies after accident at Place Vertu

Local Journalism Initiative / The Suburban / August 13, 2025 / George Spanakis, Joel Goldenberg, pedestrians, Place Vertu

By Joel Goldenberg
The Suburban

One senior died and another one was seriously injured after being pinned against a car by a motorist in an accident that took place at around 3:15 p.m. Thursday April 17 in the parking lot of Place Vertu in St. Laurent, near the entrance leading to the Uniprix pharmacy and Canadian Tire.

This was the second major incident to happen in one day at the borough — hours earlier, overnight, a man was stabbed to death in a building in the area of Beaudet and Décarie Blvd. A 40-year-old man was arrested in that incident.

When The Suburban arrived at Place Vertu in the early evening, the SPVM investigation was still underway with police tape surrounding a large area of the parking lot. The two cars involved in the accident were still in the lot, including one that was severely damaged. The motorist involved was still being interviewed by police inside the mall.

SPVM spokesperson Marianne Allaire Morin, who was on site, told The Suburban that police received a 911 call at about 3:15 p.m.

“What we know is that a driver was backing up when he collided with the two pedestrians, and they were seriously injured and brought to hospital in critical condition,” she added.

The 97-year-old women was out of danger but seriously injured.

The 89-year-old man, prominent member of the Montreal Greek community and a mechanic by profession George Spanakis, was in critical condition and was first said to be out of danger, but he passed away April 19, police announced April 21. His daughter Maria Spanakis spoke out after some cruel posters on social media alleged that the victims were driving. She wrote on Facebook that “I am fiercely protective of my dad and it angers me that people are jumping to conclusions and showing anger and judgment about a whole lotta stuff -like the facts they do not have….Where did truthfulness, integrity and human compassion go?”

She told CTV News that “I just felt it was devoid and empty and only sensationalizing the event without any humanity associated to it. We have to remind ourselves there are human beings who are grieving and suffering at the other end of those mean-spirited comments.”

The driver, who is 80 years old, was not charged and police consider the incident purely an accident. He was not treated for shock, nor was he injured. n

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St. Laurent inundated with flooding complaints

Local Journalism Initiative / The Suburban / August 16, 2024 / flooding, Harry Babaroutsis, Place Vertu, St. Laurent, Thimens

By Joel Goldenberg
The Suburban

The borough of St. Laurent received numerous complaints about flooding during the July 10 downpour, and that topic dominated the August council meeting question period, which went on for nearly two hours, during which residents called for action.

The borough was exceptionally affected by the rain, which originated with Hurricane Beryl. Videos and photos emerged of massive flooding in the area of Thimens and Place Vertu — at the time, The Suburban spoke to the owner of a 130-unit building on Thimens whose garage was flooded and where power was lost for a time. Mayor Alan DeSousa said he saw videos and photos of the area near Autoroute 40, and compared it to the Black Sea.

One of those speaking at the council meeting was Norman Street resident Harry Babaroutsis. “I got flooded with three feet of water,” he told The Suburban. “I have to change my heating system. I cut my walls downstairs, I lost a lot of stuff. I’m a photographer and I lost some cameras. My snowblower got flooded.” Babaroutsis estimates his losses at about $55,000.

DeSousa told residents climate change has prompted more heavy rains over the years, and that solutions are being sought, in terns of what the borough and the City of Montreal can do, and what residents can do as well. He was out of town July 10, and has visited residents in recent days.

The Mayor told The Suburban that “the city was not spared July 10. There were streets that had been redone with new infrastructure, like my street, Saint-Germain 10 years ago, and I even had water in my basement.

Flooding also took place in 2005 and 2006.DeSousa said inspectors visited industries in 2007 to inspect their water retention systems, “and we found they had been disconnected. I have no clue why [that happened].”

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