Meadowbrook meeting tonight in MoWest

By Joel Goldenberg

The group Les Amis de Meadowbrook is holding a public meeting regarding possible development of the Lachine half of the Meadowbrook Golf Course, 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 10 at the Edinburgh School gymnasium, 500 Hudson in Montreal West.

The invitation sent out claims that “the current owner of Meadowbrook, Groupe Pacific Canada, has informed the government of Quebec that Montreal has agreed to allow construction on the Lachine portion of Meadowbrook this year.

“When asked directly whether this is true, the City of Montreal has been evasive. The City of Montreal has also been evasive when asked when — or even if  — it will consider the formal recommendation of its own agglomeration commission that Meadowbrook be preserved.” Côte St. Luc has rezoned its half of the site from residential to golf course.

But Suzanne Deschamps, vice-president of development and legal affairs for Group Pacific, said the invitation’s claim about the approach to Quebec is not accurate.

“Do I know people in Quebec? If I do, do I speak to them occasionally? Absolutely. But is there anything formal or have I informed anyone of something very specific — no. Not in the sense that the invitation seems to say.”

Deschamps told The Suburban that she is still working towards a environmentally-friendly project “that I believe will respect the wishes of most, if not everybody. This year, 2010, is the year of biodiversity, and that is an issue that one has to deal with, and when one is developing in a city, it is something one should be concerned about. We are trying to put in place and look at development in a very different way than most developers have looked at it in the past. That requires a lot more depth and study. I’m dealing with biologists, ecologists, in many things — it’s a complex project.”

Deschamps says she invites activists who want Meadowbrook to remain a greenspace to speak with her.

“To me, sustainable development and true sustainability not only in real estate development but in all economic activity starts with a conservation, and it’s only when you can sit down and truly talk that things can change. I would invite them to contact and talk to me.”