Upcoming public consultation on cohabitation with unhoused Montrealers, St-Henri resident ‘tired of being lied to’

A months-long public consultation about cohabitation between unhoused and housed Montrealers is in progress.

St-Henri resident Michael MacKenzie is skeptical.

He lives near the Maison Benoit Labre, a day centre for unhoused people, that opened in the spring of 2024. For him, the negative repercussions on the community, children in particular, has taken its toll.

“[It’s happening] in my own household and I’m hearing this from neighbors as well, a real increased level of vigilance by their kids,” said MacKenzie, a professor of social work & pediatrics at McGill University, who is concerned about the long-term impacts. “That period of kids in middle childhood of really needing that time to be able to play outside in an unstructured, unsupervised way, they’re not even pushing for that because they’re not feeling safe.”

The neighbourhood has seen an 800 per cent increase in mischief per a report from the Montreal police in October.

“They’re being exposed to sexual acts… to rampant substance use, and violence in the community,” said MacKenzie. “The grounds of the center five meters from the schoolyard fence and the portion of the schoolyard is that is used from kindergarten through grade two.”

“The city made promises,” he said. “The province made promises at the end of August that the day site would be relocated… That has not happened.”

In need of a ‘common plan’

James Hughes, president & CEO of Old Brewery Mission says it comes down to a better working strategy between the city and the province.

“It’s become regular practice for the [ministries] to point their figure at the city saying you have responsibilities for public spaces,” he said. “Then the city is saying, but you’re responsible for health care, or you’re responsible for housing.”

No solution will be found “to these essential services” if the finger pointing continues because according to Hughes, “they’re both right” and “to prevent the trauma of homelessness,” it’s a “cosmic certainty that they need each other.”

Sud-Ouest borough mayor Benoit Dorais declined our request for an interview.

The office of Quebec’s minister of social services Lionel Carmant wrote in an email that: 

“Several concrete actions have been taken: In early fall, the Minister met with the committee and the school administration to discuss local issues. A cohabitation brigade was deployed in collaboration with the Société de développement social […] We are working closely with the City of Montreal to reduce the crowding on this site by implementing alternative solutions nearby.”

In July 2024, plans for a new emergency homeless shelter in Ahuntsic-Cartierville were abandoned after pushback from residents, including Rachel Rakhi.  

“We decided to launch our protest march and we had more than 100 people,” said Rakhi. “We had the 86 -year-old grandparents walking with us chanting slogans, solidarity with the parents, saving our children, saving our neighborhood.”

“Our children are our life [and] we will fight like a tigers to protect them and our neighborhood,” said Rakhi.

She encourages the affected residents of Saint-Henri to “please, do not give up.”

Public consultation: all opinions ‘essential’

There’s a misconception about people like MacKenzie and Rakhi, according to Philippe Bourke, president of the Montreal Office of Public Consultation.

“It’s often said that these people are selfish, that they don’t understand, but what they’re saying is legitimate,” he said. “They feel there’s a problem… we need to understand what’s fueling their worries and understand their reality.”

Bourke insisted that the consultation is not just for planning future facilities. “Once the shelter is set up, co-habitation is also about how things work…. so how can we better arrange the premises, make sure there is vigilance, surveillance and supervision,” he said.

It’s “essential,” according to Bourke, that everyone concerned comes to the Office of Public Consultation’s Q&A session on Jan 21st between 7 and 10 p.m. at Centre St. Pierre, “so we can make good recommendations.”

As for MacKenzie and his neighbours, “we’re tired of being lied to.”

“It feels much more like a ping-pong game, of passing responsibility back and forth between the ministry on the city, so I’m sure some of us will go, but many people are just really tired.”