Plateau draws lines on terrasses, artists
The Plateau has just adopted a new rule saying bar terrasses have to be accessible to people in wheelchairs.
It’s also adopted a plan to keep artists in the eastern part of the Mile End – the old industrial area radiating off Saint-Viateur east of the Main – by stopping condo conversions in the area.
There was a plan a few years ago to cut Saint-Viateur through de Gaspé. Chris DeWolf wrote about it on Spacing in early 2008 with the expectation it would happen in 2009. I seem to recall the city wanted to link Saint-Viateur a further block to Saint-Denis, but I have a feeling this would create the kind of traffic flow the current Plateau administration wouldn’t want to encourage.
Robert J 05:29 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
Ok cool, but is somebody going to put up the money to take care of the aging industrial structures properly? I’d hate to see them neglected and razed 10 years down the line.
William 07:10 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
I’m just surprised to learn that anybody was even considering dividing the titles of those buildings and making them into lofts. I think they would be terrible to live in, but, des goûts, des couleurs !
Bill Binns 09:52 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
I wonder how many restaurants will just close their terrasses rather than spend the money to retrofit them (if retrofitting them is even possible). I’m sure the activists that fought for this will be just as happy either way.
Ian 10:11 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
Considering how hard it is for a bar to get a terrasse license in the Plateau I’m sure owners will do whatever is necessary to maintain what’s effectively a license to print money in the summertime.
Louis 10:36 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
@Bill: You raise a good question, but saying “I’m sure the activists that fought for this will be just as happy either way” is totally unnecessary and misleading. In French, we call this procès d’intentions, I don’t know the English term, but you can’t suppose people to think something in order to discredit them, while having no proof whatsoever.
Kate 10:54 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
I recall reading that the problem is you have to devote space to building a ramp, which has to be placed in such a way that people won’t trip over it. Do a lot of the disabled want to go out for drinks or is this being done mostly to show a willingness to act?
paul 11:28 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
I wonder what the (potential) % of bar clientele is that this law is catering to?
Private businesses and buildings are not required to be accessible by the building code, I wonder how they can justify it in this circumstance.
walkerp 16:42 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
I’m glad to hear about that law limiting the size that the offices up in Mile-End can be converted to, though I’m sure the owners are not! Yes, it will slow potential growth, but it will help maintain the character of the Plateau and create rental opportunities for small organizations, enterprises and artists. I’ve been inside the building in question and structurally it is in good shape, at least to the eye. There are some very cool, affordable spaces in there for the right kind of organization.
jeather 19:39 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
Perhaps the disabled would want to go out if they could. Accessibility doesn’t mean helping out once asked, it means building it in so people who need it don’t have to ask for help every single time.
Kate 20:00 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
I actually do hope there’s a demand for it, and that it isn’t just an exercise in political correctness.
Chris 21:53 on 2012/03/06 Permalink
paul, maybe it’s not required for private buildings, but we’re talking about terrasses on public sidewalks/roads, so the City gets to decide if/how that land is used.
Ian 10:04 on 2012/03/07 Permalink
@Chris – not all terrasses are on roads or sidewalks, this has more to do with the category of laws relating to health & safety that commercial businesses must follow to comply with the conditions of their licensing.
jeather 12:38 on 2012/03/07 Permalink
“Political correctness” is a weird term to use, as it usually has to do with people who are sad they can no longer use offensive terminology and not with building accessibility.
But people with disabilities are part of society and should have the same access to society as people who are not currently disabled. So if you build something new — a building or a terrasse (which was not there in March) — or massively change a building then you have to make it accessible, inasmuch as possible, to everyone in society. This means ramps, even if they take up more space than stairs do. Lots of things are expensive for companies to do, which is why we mandate them.
Kate 13:57 on 2012/03/12 Permalink
Possibly, but there’s also a question of the greatest good for the greatest number. Nobody wants to say it, but that’s why putting elevators in our metro stations has stalled. It costs a lot of money to retrofit elevators into existing stations, and a lot of people want other improvements to public transit first. And nobody wants to ask how many people we’ll actually see on Plateau terrasses this summer in wheelchairs. Like I say, I’d be happy to think this isn’t an exercise in being good, that there’s a real demand and that someone will get some pleasure from it. But I wonder.