The broken abacus of 2024 | The Press

People who are hungry. Others who die in the street. Governments in dark red, both in Quebec and Ottawa. The year which is ending has been a year of records, and not the happiest. Allow me to dust off my abacus to look back at 2024 in some numbers.

2 900 000

The rising cost of living continued to hit hard. Brutally, even. The province’s food banks received an average of 2.9 million requests for assistance each month in 2024, we learned in the “Hunger Report” published in October. That’s 13% more than last year… and 55% more than in 2021. In other words, they receive a million more requests per month than three years ago! Two figures struck me: 20% of people who use food banks are employed, and 72% of the community organizations surveyed ran out of food during the year. It’s scary.

30

Too many families are hungry, but even worse: more and more people find themselves on the streets. We have seen camps set up in the parks of Montreal and other Quebec cities, a shaky solution to the harsh winter temperatures. What was supposed to happen happened: a homeless person died of hypothermia in mid-December, in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. Another death, after the 72 counted in 2023 by the Coroner’s Office, and all those who have not yet been counted in 2024. The demand is so strong that shelters and shelters must refuse people every evening . The City of Montreal came up with an urgent solution, a few days before Christmas: it will transform the Lucien-Saulnier building, next to city hall, into a heat stop for 30 people. Without the slightest help or funding from Quebec. For great ills there are great remedies…

25 000 $

There have been big investments in roaming in 2024, even if the needs seem endless. But what also stood out is that adding all these shelters and other resources is not a smooth process. Cohabitation is often trying. In Milton-Parc, in the south of Plateau-Mont-Royal, two groups of residents are so disgusted that they have filed collective action requests against the City and Quebec, among others. They can no longer stand homeless people who “urinate, defecate, have sexual relations, consume alcoholic beverages and illicit substances, litter the ground with their waste, syringes, cans, clothes and abandoned food”. Amount requested: $25,000 per inconvenienced resident. A theoretical bill of several tens of millions… in the very hypothetical case where the court authorizes these actions. I’m not even talking to you about the setbacks at Maison Benoît Labre, in Le Sud-Ouest.

62 billion

Chrystia Freeland didn’t just cause a political crisis by resigning. The former federal finance minister also left Canadians with a gigantic deficit of $62 billion. Very far from the (already incredible) target of 40 billion that it had set for itself. Spending is out of control in Ottawa and there is not the slightest hint of a plan to return to balanced budgets. The situation is not much better in Quebec, mind you. The Legault government is heading towards a deficit of 11 billion, and it is making cuts everywhere to try to improve its balance sheet next year. Construction of schools on pause, French courses cancelled, elimination of nursing positions, widespread hiring freeze: the CAQ chainsaw is at work. But have no fear: these are NOT austerity measures. Understood ?

2033

This is the second endless series of public transport in the province, after that of the blue line of the Montreal metro: the Quebec tramway! Many times announced, often mocked, the project will finally move forward, under the leadership of CDPQ Infra, we learned in December. If everything goes as planned, the 19 km network will be ready… in 2033. Seven years later than planned. Estimated bill: 7.6 billion. Despite everything, this is excellent news for Quebec, which deserves a public transportation system worthy of its status as capital. But… I’ll believe it when I see it! The probable arrival of Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives in Ottawa could derail the tram before it even leaves the station.

Zero decibel

The noise-blocking neighbor has won: the La Tulipe cabaret has no longer produced a single decibel since last September. The Plateau-Mont-Royal institution closed its doors after years of a ruinous legal battle. A fight led by a single man, who found it abnormal for a theater to emit sounds, even though he had installed himself next to it with full knowledge of the facts. The Quebec Court of Appeal confirmed that he was within his rights, since Montreal municipal regulations on noise systematically lean in favor of the plaintiffs. Faced with the outcry caused by this closure, the Plateau district urgently modified its regulations. A request made to him by the middle of nightlife for many years. The list of bars and performance halls that have fallen into the war on noise is growing dangerously in Montreal. Who will be next?

Two

This is the number of deaths caused by the arson attack in Old Montreal last October. A second drama of its kind in two years. This time, the victims were Léonor Geraudie and Vérane Reynaud Geraudie, a 43-year-old mother and her 7-year-old daughter. The two French tourists were sleeping in their hotel room when the restaurant located on the ground floor was targeted by a Molotov cocktail. This heinous attack had the effect of a collective electric shock: were we really in Montreal? Yes. The event highlighted the savagery of the wave of extortion launched by three criminal groups against traders. The Montreal City Police Service (SPVM) has redoubled its efforts to track down the arsonists. He made several arrests during the fall. Finally. There seems to be a certain lull, which Montrealers hope to last as long as possible.

700

A final, more enjoyable one, for the road. For several months, the Montreal administration seems to want to accelerate the pace in terms of housing. The City is increasing measures such as the acquisition of existing rental properties. Its goal: to “sustain” this affordable park, rather than letting it sell to speculators who would increase rents. In this vein, Montreal announced in mid-December its intention to acquire a complex of 700 apartments in Côte-des-Neiges, for 104 million. The City used its right of pre-emption to get its hands on this asset. Management of the buildings will be entrusted to the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal (OMHM), which will undoubtedly have to carry out major renovation work. But in all cases, hundreds of families will find themselves protected from eviction.

So, we wish ourselves a better one in 2025?