Photo: Christine Muschi The Canadian Press The mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante, says she wanted to start the year 2024 by emphasizing the three priorities of her administration, namely the housing crisis, economic development and services to citizens, including cleanliness and management. Construction sites.
Jeanne Corriveau
February 1, 2024
- Montreal
Valérie Plante carried out a reshuffle of her executive committee on Thursday. With this exercise, the mayor wants to accelerate the construction of housing. Elected officials join this select club, including the mayor of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Gracia Kasoki Katahwa.
Valérie Plante says she wanted to start the year 2024 by emphasizing the three priorities of her administration, namely the housing crisis, economic development and services to citizens, including cleanliness and site management.
The mayor of Plateau-Mont-Royal, Luc Rabouin, who was named last fall as president of the executive committee following the resignation of Dominique Ollivier, will continue to hold these positions. It also maintains economic development and will manage the “facilitator unit” set up by the administration to accelerate the granting of permits issued by the districts.
The reshuffle maintains in their functions, in addition to Luc Rabouin, Benoit Dorais in housing, Ericka Alneus in culture, Marie-Andrée Mauger in the environment and ecological transition, Sophie Mauzerolle in transport and mobility, Alain Vaillancourt for public security, Émilie Thuillier for infrastructure and Maja Vodanovic for water. Josefina Blanco will be responsible for diversity and social inclusion. Magda Popeanu will take charge of organizational performance, citizen participation and democracy. For her part, Caroline Bourgeois inherits sports, Space for Life, the French language and the East of Montreal.
Robert Beaudry will retain his functions as head of town planning and the Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM), but will be entrusted with the issue of homelessness. The elected official from the Saint-Jacques district, in Ville-Marie, knows this issue well since before entering politics, he had led the PAS de la rue organization. “It will be able to mobilize all partners and apply concrete solutions to a very complex issue,” commented Valérie Plante.
The reshuffle will accommodate Gracia Kasoki Katahwa who will take charge of human resources and the fight against racism. For her part, the mayor of Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension, Laurence Lavigne Lalonde, will return to the executive committee and take charge of the large parks, Mont-Royal and Parc Jean-Drapeau.
For her part, Councilor Despina Sourias will become associate councilor for housing and will ensure the health and protection of the rental housing stock.
Éric Alan Caldwell is leaving the executive committee, because the mayor wants him to devote himself to the presidency of the board of directors of the Société de transport de Montréal (STM) given the issues related to the financing of the public transport and ongoing projects, including the extension of the blue line. “The last year has been trying for transportation companies,” said the mayor.
Finally, the mayor of Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie will assume the role of majority leader, thus taking over from Alex Norris.
Opposition leader Aref Salem was not impressed by the reshuffle. “The administration has experienced several failures, if we think of the OCPM, the exponential increase in taxes and housing. The changes do not meet the expectations of Montrealers. We expected that there would really be a profound change, but today, as we have seen, apart from two or three people, the change is really not there,” he said. noted. The housing issue, which is going through a major crisis, remains in the hands of Benoit Dorais, he lamented.