Chateauguay : Negotiations to realign two boulevards

The City of Chateauguay has just mandated a firm of lawyers to evaluate the different stakes linked to the realignment of Industrial and St. Francis boulevards. Patricia Blackburn  Translation Dan Rosenburg A $10 000 contract has been awarded to the DHC Avocats Inc. Firm to evaluate all the possibilities of negotiation or expropriation with the owners of the lots involved in the project. ‘’Either we shrink St. Francis or we shrink Industrial,’’ explained Mayor Pierre-Paul Routhier during the Council meeting of September 16. ‘’In both cases there are some negotiations developed enough that must be held with the owners of the businesses situated on the lots targeted, and there are pretty high expenses involved.’’ This contract is the first of a few others that could be added to the course of the process. ‘’It’s something that will cost us between $20,000 and $25,000,’’ the Mayor concluded, ‘’because we will perhaps have to hire some attorneys as evaluators to evaluate the real-estate and commercial value of some of the lots involved.’’ The idea of realigning these two thoroughfares has already been in the City’s plans for a few years, since the projects of the reconstruction of Industrial Blvd. and the development of the TOD district have been started. Industrial Blvd. is currently staggered by a few metres compared to St. Francis, which on occasion causes congestion on St. Jean-Baptiste Blvd., the artery which hooks up with the other two boulevards.