Group calls for removal of CP rail yards in Cote St. Luc

[UrbMtl]

Autoroute 13 et 20 parc industriel de Lachine. Gare de triage du CN . Tres belle endroit ouaip.

 

J'ai fait quelques recherches pour voir quelle partie appartient au CP.

En voyant ta certitude, je devais surement inverser les deux.

 

Finalement, non. La gare de triage du CP est bien celle qui longe sur la zone résidentielle de CSL.

Je ne comprends pas pourquoi tu t'acharnes à dire que la zone est "enclavée". Par la 20 et la 13 en plus... c'est un peu exagéré.

 

http://www.cotesaintluc.org/files/u1/about/docs/map_2012_cote_saint_luc.pdf

[andre md]

Cote St_Luc elle meme est enclavé a l'est par la voie ferrée.

De plus question d'acces au transport en commun c'est mal desservi.

 

Tres long parcours a faire en autobus pour se rendres dans le secteur.

[UrbMtl]

Oh parce que tu parlais de l'arrondissement en entier et non des terrains dont il est question dans ce fil?

 

Helala j'aurais dû me douter que cette conversation n'aurait pas d'issue...

[Monsieur_MA]

Le développement pourrait être aussi industriel ou commercial.

Côte-Saint-Luc pourrait toutefois prolonger ses rues vers l'ouest pour y aménager du résidentiel.

À condition, bien-sûr que le CP veuille s'en départir.

[WestAust]

C'est bien beau de dire qu'ils devraient vendre le terrain et aller ou, et faire des belles images de ce qu'il pourrait arriver, la vraie question est où pourraient-ils déplacer la gare de triage? Sans compter que le fait qu'elle soit à coté de celle du CN rend les intercommunications et transfers surement plus rapide et facile! Dans ce cas, devraient-on également déménager celle du CN? Si oui, on reviens encore à la question du ou?

 

Où dans la région montréalaise existe-t-il assez grand de terrain près des voies ferrées existantes pour bâtir un complexe du genre, assez central pour qu'une majorité du traffic ferroviaire n'aie pas à faire 50/100km de plus pour y acceder et repartir? Où les infrastructures routières vont permettre aux marchandises provenant des secteurs industriels de venir rejoindre les trains en tout tant et sans être dans des bouchons en permanence? Et où la population locale, bape, ministere de l'environnement... ne sera pas contre? La réponse est probablement nulle part!

[fmtristan]

Avec le développement d’un terminal à conteneurs sur les terrains portuaires de Contrecœur, une opportunité s'offre pour le CP. Par contre, seulement les rail du CN s'y rendent. De plus, un détour important est nécessaire pour les camionneurs pour aller sur la rive nord.

[andre md]

L'avantage de ce secteur pour le ferroviaire c'est que c'est pres des parcs indutriels de l'ouest et entourer de 3 axes routier majeur 13 , 20 et 40 de plus le port est sur l'ile de montreal. Autre point majeur pas besoin d'investir pour construire une nouvelle gare de triage tout est bati deja pourquoi depenser pour construire de nouvelles installation au juste pour aller ailleurs.??? Montreal est central et donne acces a la rive-nord et rive sud. Advenant une nouvelle gare de triage en banlieue les convoie devront quand meme traverser l'ile de montreal de toute facons .

 

C'est bien beau de dire qu'ils devraient vendre le terrain et aller ou, et faire des belles images de ce qu'il pourrait arriver, la vraie question est où pourraient-ils déplacer la gare de triage? Sans compter que le fait qu'elle soit à coté de celle du CN rend les intercommunications et transfers surement plus rapide et facile! Dans ce cas, devraient-on également déménager celle du CN? Si oui, on reviens encore à la question du ou?

 

Où dans la région montréalaise existe-t-il assez grand de terrain près des voies ferrées existantes pour bâtir un complexe du genre, assez central pour qu'une majorité du traffic ferroviaire n'aie pas à faire 50/100km de plus pour y acceder et repartir? Où les infrastructures routières vont permettre aux marchandises provenant des secteurs industriels de venir rejoindre les trains en tout tant et sans être dans des bouchons en permanence? Et où la population locale, bape, ministere de l'environnement... ne sera pas contre? La réponse est probablement nulle part!

Modifié 22 juin 2016 par andre md

[andre md]

Oh parce que tu parlais de l'arrondissement en entier et non des terrains dont il est question dans ce fil?

 

Helala j'aurais dû me douter que cette conversation n'aurait pas d'issue...

 

Je parle de ce secteur ou sont la gare de triage mais aussi du secteur cote st-luc lui meme enclavé. Et meme si on construit a l'ouest sur les terrains du CP cote St-Luc va rester quand meme enclavé.

[nephersir7]

Current, former CSL mayors at odds over new lobby group

 

The launching of a non-profit organization lobbying for the transfer of Canadian Pacific’s St. Luc Yards off the island of Montreal sparked a verbal clash between Côte St. Luc mayor Mitchell Brownstein and former Côte St. Luc mayor Robert Libman.

 

The Coalition for the Relocation of the St. Luc Rail Yards was announced by Libman, an architect and urban planner, last week. Libman said the group includes some engineers and lawyers.

 

The yards, mostly in Côte St. Luc, are where a Cavendish Blvd. extension would partially pass through. Residents have complained about noise from the yards and expressed concerns about its proximity to homes, especially after the Lac Mégantic rail disaster.

 

Libman said the coalition’s work will include “organizing petitions, setting up a social media campaign, preparing reports on the feasibility of the project and pressuring the different levels of government to address the [relocation] issue and investigate all possibilities.”

 

Libman’s statement contends that the railyard occupies 22 million square feet of “extremely valuable land,” and that its continued presence in its location is “stifling the urban planning and economic development potential of the city centre.”

 

Libman added that the McGill University School of Urban Planning “will participate in a design exercise this fall and the coalition will eventually present an urban planning vision.”

 

But Brownstein criticized the formation of the group, saying he is already in communication with the Vice President of Operations Eastern Division of CP concerning the relocation issue.

“CP is open to the idea of moving the yards to another location where they have already purchased land,” Brownstein stated in an e-mail to The Suburban. “We have discussed possible development projects that would be of interest to CP and I have shared these ideas with our MP Anthony Housefather and MNA David Birnbaum, and I am meeting with the chair of the executive committee of Montreal as well as mayors from the neighbouring municipalities that would be affected to discuss all possibilities. This issue is being discussed at the same time as the Cavendish Extension and other projects such as the 15/40 [shopping complex].”

 

Brownstein added that “working in the manner [Libman] suggests instead of with the city could have a negative impact on the sensitive negotiations. His motivations appear purely political as he is not even aware of the discussions regarding this matter, nor has he made any effort to collaborate with the city. As an architect representing developers, his involvement is most inappropriate and a potential conflict of interest.” Brownstein added, “if Mr. Libman was serious about this matter he would be working with the current Côte St. Luc administration and would have contacted me prior to making this announcement.”

 

Libman told The Suburban that he is stunned by Brownstein’s reaction, and charged that it shows a “lack of leadership” and defensiveness.

 

“Wouldn’t the typical reaction be to welcome citizen mobilization on an important issue like that... especially from citizens with expertise?” Libman said. “I’m also surprised to hear he’s been in contact with CP about relocating the yards. I never heard anything about that.”

 

Asked why he did not contact the city before last week’s announcement, Libman said he wanted the group to gain traction first on the matter.

 

“This is the first step in a process of creating some citizen momentum, mobilization and debate about this issue to perhaps move it forward. This could be a win-win all around.”

 

Libman also called Brownstein’s comment about a potential conflict of interest “absolutely ludicrous.

 

“I have not a nickel to gain from any of this,” Libman told The Suburban. “There’s only my belief that [the continued presence of the yards] makes no sense for people living in Côte St. Luc.”

 

http://www.thesuburban.com/news/city_news/current-former-csl-mayors-at-odds-over-new-lobby-group/article_9fe696d6-1162-502e-8242-71f0bf5e73ef.html

[_mtler_]

City of Côte-St-Luc eyes CP rail yards for development

 

http://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/city-of-cote-st-luc-eyes-cp-rail-yards-for-development

 

 

The Canadian Pacific rail yards take up about one-third of Côte St-Luc — land that the city would like to re-purpose.

 

Mayor Mitchell Brownstein says owning that land “would be a great boon for the city,” which “desperately needs” the land for housing and business development.

 

The railway company has owned the land well over 100 years, and Brownstein said CP could make a profit by selling.

 

“I do believe that it’s a reality that could happen in the next five to 10 years with the proper plan,” the mayor said in an interview with the Montreal Gazette, adding developments similar to the future Quinze40 shopping complex in Town of Mount Royal and a residential redevelopment of the former Blue Bonnets racetrack on Décarie Blvd. in the Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough could increase the value of the rail yard land.

 

Brownstein, who has been in office since April, said during that time he has met with CP to discuss moving the train yard off island to Les Cèdres near Vaudreuil, and that the company wouldn’t be opposed to the idea as long as a reasonable development project were proposed. Brownstein said CP could make a financial gain by selling the land and relocating.

 

But the Coalition for the Relocation of the St-Luc Rail Yards — a non-profit organization led by a former mayor of Côte-St-Luc and former MNA for D’Arcy-McGee, Robert Libman — says city hall isn’t doing enough, “and this is why citizens felt the need to create something to make it happen.”

 

“(The rail yards) are located at the geographic epicentre of the island of Montreal,” said Libman, an architect and real estate lobbyist. “It’s somewhat of an obstacle to economic development.”

 

If train operations were moved off the island, Libman said, Côte-St-Luc would find itself with 2.04 million square metres (though the city estimated it at 1.6 million square metres) of land in a prime location, which he valued at least $1 billion. Libman, who now runs Libcorp, an urban-planning consulting firm, said he has no intention of becoming personally involved in developing the land.

 

“The even number I used was based on the relative value of residential land in that area, which about $50 a square foot,” he said in an interview.

 

The city said it couldn’t confirm the land’s potential value. Potential developers would buy the land directly from CP.

 

“Côte-St-Luc has right now the second-highest tax rate on the island,” Libman said. “And one way to expand Côte-St-Luc’s tax base would be to allow the rail yards to leave.”

 

Libman’s coalition has asked a class of graduate students at McGill University’s School of Urban Planning to come up with a redevelopment plan and feasibility study for moving the yards, including possible decontamination. In the meantime, the coalition sent a letter to CP Rail in mid-July to present its vision. CP hasn’t responded yet, Libman said.

 

The CP rail yard in Côte-St-Luc is one of largest in Canada, linking Eastern Canada to the West and the United States. A variety of products, including wood, chemicals, plastic, metals, minerals, consumer products and oil pass through the yards, which also border St-Laurent, Lachine and the CN-owned Taschereau yards.

 

Since the Lac-Mégantic disaster of 2013, which saw 47 people killed after a runaway oil train jumped the tracks and blew up in the centre of town, several cities have expressed concern about hazardous materials being shipped through their territories by rail.

 

Libman’s group call the rail yards in Côte-St-Luc “a threat to safety and security” because of the dangerous elements that are handled there.

 

Mauricio Guitta lives on Wentworth Ave. close to the freight cars. He considers the move a welcome proposal.

 

“My friend … he (lives) right in front of the trains. The whole house shakes and the lights shake and everything,” he said.

 

Still, not everyone in the neighbourhood agrees.

 

Yao Liu said he’d never heard of the idea and would rather keep the yards because they block off traffic and provide security to the family-friendly area.

 

“We don’t have a lot of traffic on our side,” he said. “Even in summertime when I open the windows, I hear nothing.”

 

The city’s communications manager, Darryl Levine, said the city would work with developers by re-zoning parts of the new district for both residential and commercial buildings. He added that Côte-St-Luc hopes property taxes from new business and homeowners would make up for losing revenue from CP’s property taxes CP.

 

As well, Levine said, the rail yards have for years stalled progress on a plan to connect Cavendish Blvd. from Côte St-Luc to St-Laurent.

 

“You have to build an overpass to go over all the tracks that are in the CP rail yard and you may also have to build an underpass beneath some of them and that’s hugely expensive,” Levine said. “It’s an important missing link in the road network.”

 

This summer, the city of Montreal put a reserve on a parcel of land adjacent to the yards necessary to build the missing link of Cavendish Blvd. and allay traffic woes in the area.

 

Yet the city would encourage potential developers to create a neighbourhood built around people rather than around cars, Levine said.

 

***

 

CP Rail would not confirm or deny holding relocation talks with Brownstein, but emailed The Montreal Gazette a pamphlet of its relocation policy, which describes the moving of rail lines out of a city as a “complex and serious issue,” requiring an extensive review to “determine the impact to customer service and the full cost to all stakeholders, which will be significant.”

 

Three Canadian prairie cities that are among the fastest growing metro centres in the country are similarly eyeing such spaces for development.

 

Regina is working on plans to redevelop the site of a former CP rail yard located in the heart of the city. Saskatoon is considering the possibility of relocating its rail yard. And the Manitoba provincial government even hired former Quebec premier Jean Charest to head a task force to analyze rail yard relocation efforts in Winnipeg.

 

 

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Modifié 18 août 2016 par _mtler_