No referendum on tempos in Roxboro

There will be no referendum on a bylaw allowing the use of tempos in the Roxboro sector of Pierrefonds/Roxboro, according to borough lawyer Susanne Corbeil's assistant Mrs. Lemaire, since the amount of signatures deposited by Roxboro residents wishing for one yesterday fell short of the required 456.



"There were 301 signatures," Lemaire told The Chronicle this morning.



According to borough spokesperson Johanne Paladini, had the required amount been met, borough council could have decided to hold a referendum on the issue.



The issue of allowing tempos in Roxboro has long been a bone of contention among Roxboro residents, who found their former city merged with Pierrefonds into a single borough in 2006 after being unable to muster enough voters at a demerger referendum to become an independent municipality again.



Yesterday's registration process was a final way for Roxboro residents to voice their discontent in enough numbers to have a referendum on the issue. In a previous official borough poll, 52 per cent of the area's eligible voting population had voted "no" on allowing tempos, but the borough eventually ignored the results, with councillor Christian Dubois telling The Chronicle the referendum was not "legally binding."



At yesterday's registration, however, several Roxboro residents were unhappy with what they deemed improper efforts by the borough to get signatures out.



"I was unable to vote," said Roxboro resident Lorraine Bougie, explaining she relies on a walker to make her way, and the distance between town hall and its parking lot was simply too great for her to get there.



Bougie, who went with her sister, waited in the car while the latter went to add in her name. Her sister judged the distance too great for her to walk, she said.



"A lot of elderly people live in Roxboro," Bougie said, wondering why registration for a local concern should have to be done at the Pierrefonds town hall, which she said was too far. "Why not go straight to Roxboro?" She questioned.



The town hall building in question has two parking lots, one of which is also right next to Pierrefonds' library. The latter lot has two parking spots close to a path leading to the library that are reserved for the physically disabled. Four other such reserved spots are closer to the town hall building.



Whereas Bougie claimed her sister asked for help and was refused, a security guard on the premises said someone did indeed claim her disabled sister was in the car, but did not ask for help.



"If she had asked," added borough spokesperson Johanne Paladini, the borough would have gladly allowed her to park her car right at the edge of the walkway, next to the entrance to the hall, thus greatly diminishing the distance she would have had to walk. "Although we don't have a wheelchair," Paladini said.



Another concern of Bougie's was that the only way she received notification was through an anonymous letter placed in her mail box two days ago. "We weren't officially asked by mayor Worth's office," she maintained.





Several of those present at the registration claimed they found out about the process through pure luck.



"This should be put to a vote," said John Clark, a Roxboro resident since 1961, as he walked out of the registration office with his wife after signing his name. "(Tempos) don't look good," he said, "and I think there is some danger element to them."



Asked how he learnt about the registration, Clark unfolded an 8.5 by 11 sheet of paper with no official logo or signature asking Roxboro residents to go out and ensure their voices are heard. He added he did not receive any official communication from the borough.



However, Paladini reminded the borough had published public notices both in The Chronicle's sister newspaper Cités-Nouvelles as well as another local English weekly.



"People have a responsibility," Paladini added. "If they have an interest in their municipalities, they should read the local newspapers," she said.



Nevertheless, none among the handful waiting in line to sign their names who were interviewed said they had found out about the registration through official means.



"I found out about it through an e-mail that some friends in the city sent me," said another Roxboro resident, Karim Jeraj, who is also against the installation of tempos. "It totally defiles a beautiful natural environment," he said.