MONTREAL - Armed with messages in empty bottles, residents of Pointe-Saint-Charles marched on Friday morning to protest the closure of an SAQ outlet in their neighbourhood at the end of the month.
Coming at the end of a months-long "SAQ pas ton camp de la Pointe" campaign, the crowd walked from Charlevoix metro to the nearby office of local MNA Marguerite Blais. Another SAQ location was along the planned route of the march.
"The locals are disappointed and worried to see the SAQ leave their neighbourhood's commercial street," said Benoit Dorais, the mayor of the South-West borough. "They know that this puts their local revitalization efforts in peril."
Since the campaign to save then location started last spring over 8,000 signatures were collected.
Dorais shared the concern of local residents that the closure of the outlet, located just outside the Charlevoix metro exit, could endanger his plans to bring new life the neighbourhood's main commercial artery.
"Maintaining a monopoly is a privilege that comes with certain social responsibilities," said Dorais.
Another SAQ outlet on Monk Boulevard could be closed within a year.
The protest was organized by local community groups and the SAQ employees union.
An existing SAQ location at the Atwater Market, a 10-minute walk away, will remain open.
