‘No condos in my neighbourhood’: Montreal housing advocates kick off week of protests

“Too many condos. We want social housing.”

That was the message from Montreal housing advocates as they kicked off a week of protests decrying the lack of affordable housing in the metropolis. Members of the Front d’action populaire en réaménagement urbain (FRAPRU) gathered in Montreal’s East End – in Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve – to call for solutions to the housing crisis.

FRAPRU looks to the Legault government for answers saying that the number of social housing units would need to be doubled over 15 years — meaning 10,000 new units would need to be built each year to help combat the issue.

Carl Lafrenière of the organization says this figure is doable.

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“That’s the only way that we’re going to stop this crisis,” said Lafrenière on their projections. “It’s clear that if nothing happens and if nothing changes, it’s going to be worse and worse.”

Lafrenière says this week of protests kicks off exactly six weeks until the province’s July 1st Moving Day — which he expects to be a harsh and difficult day for many.

Protesters were set up on a piece of land slated to become a large condo project in the neighborhood, arguing new housing units are simply adding pressure on a fragile situation and driving up rental prices.

One of the main goals, Lafrenière says is to implement public programs to develop low-cost housing, cooperatives, and non-profit housing projects that meet tenants’ needs. He claims there is a direct correlation to the ‘doubling of people’ living outside and with the housing crisis.

“The Legault government needs to recognize the fact that housing is a right and it’s not just private housing,” he said. “[It’s] really a right for everyone to have a safe space to live in and build.”

Last year, the day after Moving Day, there were 1,667 renters without housing or looking for housing, accompanied by a rehousing assistance service, according to FRAPRU’s report.

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In an emailed statement to CityNews, Quebec’s housing ministry says the government has invested nearly $7 billion in housing, “notably to build social and affordable housing and help low-income tenants.”

“We’re innovating and expanding the ways we build social and affordable housing. We currently have more than 24,000 units in various stages of construction across Quebec. There have never been so many,” the statement reads.

“We need to make sure that the housing that we build with the government money is going to be affordable right after the building phase,” Lafrenière says. “Non-affordable housing is going to have a big impact on the housing market here in Montreal, but especially in the East.”

–With files from La Presse Canadienne