From buses every 15 minutes to housing for the homeless, Futur Montréal launches official platform

Futur Montréal leader and mayoral candidate Jean-François Kacou unveiled his official platform, with promises for secure transportation, affordable housing and tackling homelessness, if he wins the mayoral race on Nov. 2.

At a press conference Thursday, Kacou released his plans to tackle homelessness by creating a pilot project to transform industrial space into transitional housing.

According to the plan, once the unused spaces are repurposed into fully-equipped housing, essential services like food and medical delivery services will be brought in. After that, relocation services would be provided for people living in homeless encampments into those units.

He also promised to build the “best bus network in the world,” guaranteeing service every 15 minutes, seven days a week, while also on investing in a safer cycling network.

“Mobility is not just about the bus and metro. It’s also about cycling,” Kacou said. “We will invest in the security and improvement of the existing network.”

Futur Montréal plans to freeze new bike lane projects along commercial streets to protect local businesses that rely on delivery, customers and parking, while also repairing existing lanes to make them more safer and reliable.

Drivers aren’t left out, as Kacou plans to invest in electric charging infrastructure across the city, starting with a pilot project to test streetlamp-based chargers in residential neighbourhoods.

The party will also introduce ÉnergieMTL, a new program to accelerates the deployment of renewable energy infrastructure in homes and businesses. The program will offer subsidies for single-family homes, support entrepreneurs in manufacturing and installation of green energy infrastructure.

“The cities around the world that embrace the shift of clean energy aren’t just reducing their emissions. They are becoming more resilient, more efficient, more prosperous…this is exactly what we want to do with ÉnergieMTL,” Kacou said.

Futur Montréal also promised to offer student housing zones and replace the 20-20-20 rule, requiring new housing development projects to set aside 20 per cent of the units for social, family and affordable housing. Instead, the party said it will impose a royalty fee on luxury housing projects and direct the revenue to an affordable housing fund.

“We are ready as a team … and we will keep pushing until Nov. 2,” said Kacou.

Montrealers head to the polls on Nov. 2.