Montreal, June 19, 2019 - In its recently published report on the development of a nature park in Turcot Court (once roadwork is completed), the Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM) rejects the installation of any sports infrastructure. This recommendation, which does not please Vélo Québec, is based on the potential impact of air pollution on the health of people in this part of the city, and on the fact that certain activities, including mountain biking, would not be compatible with the protection of natural environments. «It's a matter of actually riding around the area to see that this environment is anything but natural. The park has to be created from scratch. Why not be creative?» replies Francis Tétrault, program manager, mountain biking, at Vélo Québec.
During public consultations on the subject in fall 2018, Vélo Québec applauded the City of Montreal's vision for this idea to bring a little nature back to this particularly hostile location. Vélo Québec also promoted the idea of creating a lively, inhabited hub there, which would help create a new center for physical activity in an area of the city less well endowed with equipment and spaces of this type. «We proposed using the mounds created with the fill from the relocation of Highway 20 to create 7 km of mountain bike trails that would blend harmoniously into the park's fabric,» explains Francis Tétrault.
For the past three years, at the City's own request, Vélo Québec has been working to identify mountain bike-friendly sites in Montreal that would relieve the pressure currently exerted by unorganized mountain biking on Mount Royal. «The Turcot Court nature park was one of the last options, and the OCPM is saying no, which is in stark contrast to the City's attitude to date,» continues Francis Tétrault.
With its Politique sport et plein air urbain 2018-2028, the Ville de Montréal argued that it needed to find a place in Montreal to properly formalize and organize mountain biking. Vélo Québec is therefore asking the Montreal administration to follow through on its intention expressed in the Politique sport et plein air and quickly identify the future Turcot Court nature park as a place where mountain biking will be possible.
