New public square at Jean-Talon Market raises concerns over parking

Montreal's always-bustling Jean-Talon Market attracts local shoppers and tourists alike, but a new plan that would relocate some parking in the area is drawing concern from merchants.

Construction on a new public square, Place Casgrain, will begin next month as part of the city's larger plan to make the area more pedestrian friendly. 

To do it, however, 10 parking spots will be relocated from a public parking area between the SAQ and Première Moisson bakery to short-term, 15-minute parking spots on Casgrain Avenue.

While longtime merchant Lino Birri says it's a good idea to reduce the number of cars in the market, he fears losing those parking spots next to his shop on the Casgrain Avenue side of the market will hamper his ability to bring merchandise in to his shop and load delivery trucks.

He's been the co-owner of Birri, a shop that sells flowers, fruits and vegetables in the market, for the past 50 years.

"If I can't bring the merchandise in and I can't sell it, what other option do I have other than to sell the business to someone that wants to do something else with it?" Biri told CBC Montreal's Daybreak earlier this week.

"We cannot work this way with fresh fruit and vegetables."

Parking used by delivery trucks, customers

Coun. François Limoges, who represents part of the Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie borough, said the market is going through a major change, and forcing shoppers to share the area with vehicles is no longer possible.

As someone who drives to the market himself, Limoges told Radio-Canada he never has any trouble finding parking, and he doesn't think local merchants will lose any business as a result of the new plan.

He said 35 indoor parking spots were added to the area in the last year, and "there's more parking now than there was."

Limoges said the merchants' association was involved in the planning and approved the project. 

"We made all the efforts to make sure that all the shareholders of all the projects were in the loop," he said. "They are always in the loop so I really don't understand the crisis right now."

The market has a total of 410 parking spots, he noted, and there is street parking in the area. It is never full, he said, even on a Sunday afternoon.

Nonetheless, Birri said he filed a written complaint with the city about the new plan.

He estimates as many as 70 per cent of his customers use a vehicle to shop and cart away their purchases, and he fears fewer parking spots will limit their access to his store.

While underground parking is available at the market, it's packed on the weekends, he said, and customers rely on street parking instead.

Birri said he thinks that throughout the day, about 100 to 150 people use the 10 spots the city plans to remove.

We cannot work this way with fresh fruit and vegetables.- Jean-Talon Market merchant Lino Birri

Other merchants express concerned

Birri isn't the only one raising concerns.

Luidi Bono, the co-owner of plant shop Chez Michel, told Radio-Canada "customers who buy the most come by car."

Éric L'Écuyer, another merchant, said he feared his sales would drop once the parking spots are removed.

After more than 40 years at the market, he said he and his colleagues find it increasingly difficult to park their delivery trucks. 

City says 'more parking now' than before

Limoges told CBC News delivery vans will still be able to load and unload goods at the market during the week, and from seven to 11 a.m. on weekends. 

The small parking lot in front of the bakery wasn't a loading station for merchants, Limoges said, even if some were using it for that. Merchants are encouraged, he said, to instead use the various loading areas around the market.

"We won't make parking disappear.… We don't want to make it disappear. We're just making a small public space in front of the Première Moisson," he said.

The city is "very proud of the pedestrianization" plan, he said.

For his part, Jérémie Lévesque, a spokesperson for community group Les Ami(e)s du Marché Jean-Talon, welcomed the changes proposed by the city.

With customers coming to the market in droves on weekends, Levesque said it's "hard to believe that these businesses are not profitable."

"If our environment changes, we must stop fighting and adapt to it," he said.