"We Must Reform the Longueuil Urban Agglomeration - or Separate from It"

QUEBEC CITY, Oct. 5, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - At the National Assembly of Quebec this morning, the mayors of the cities of Brossard, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville and Saint-Lambert called on Martin Coiteux, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, to follow up on the reconstituted municipalities' repeated demands to review the governance of the Longueuil urban agglomeration and adopt the conclusions of the HEC Montréal Centre for Productivity and Prosperity's report on the results of "merger-demergers."

Ten years on, the Longueuil urban agglomeration has been disastrous for the fiscal health of the reconstituted municipalities. As demonstrated by Robert Gagné, a professor in HEC Montréal's Department of Applied Economics, and the municipal administrations, per-capita expenditures have soared dramatically since the urban agglomeration's formation. The analysis makes it clear that the residents of Boucherville, Brossard, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville and Saint-Lambert are at a disadvantage when their municipal expenses are compared to those of neighbouring cities working within an MRC.

"During this crucial time in Brossard's development, we have to deal with significant financial pressures caused by the Longueuil urban agglomeration," stated the Mayor of Brossard, Mr. Paul Leduc.

The problems with the Longueuil urban agglomeration are not just financial in nature. There is also a lack of transparency with respect to decisions made by the Longueuil administration and sharing of information with the linked municipalities.

"We want transparency to be a key element in the reform of the Longueuil urban agglomeration. That is the only way to be sure that public assets are being managed soundly," said Mr. Martin Murray, Mayor of Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville.

"Taxpayers' capacity to pay must be respected, and in considering what measures to take in order to reform the Longueuil urban agglomeration, the Minister should be guided by the need to ensure equitable treatment for all," remarked Mr. Alain Dépatie, Mayor of Saint-Lambert.

Launch of "On paie trop pour Longueuil" Campaign 

The mayors have announced the launch of a campaign that will raise awareness of issues relating to the governance of the Longueuil urban agglomeration in the coming weeks. The "On paie trop pour Longueuil" initiative aims to inform South Shore residents of the problems and disastrous results of mergers-demergers.

With a number of bills addressing various aspects of municipal affairs currently being prepared, the mayors would like the Minister to propose legislative amendments that take the demands of the three reconstituted municipalities into account.

"The Minister must reform the Longueuil urban agglomeration; otherwise, we will urge our residents to separate from it by means of a referendum," concluded the mayors of Brossard, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville and Saint-Lambert.

SOURCE Ville de Brossard

Alain Gauthier, Ville de Brossard, 450-923-6311; Suzanne Le Blanc, Ville de Saint-Bruno, 450-645-2903; Catherine Langevin, Ville de Saint-Lambert, 450-466-3077