After months-long battle, eviction of Ville-Marie underpass camp will proceed

The eviction of a homeless encampment under Montreal's Ville-Marie Expressway can no longer be postponed, the Quebec Court of Appeal has ruled.

On Thursday, Justice Guy Cournoyer declined to appeal the Quebec Superior Court judgement that gave the people living there until June 15 to relocate.

The group's lawyers had requested the eviction be suspended until July 15, but Cournoyer said the risks of delaying repair work to the overpass are too great.

"This work, some of which is of some urgency, is necessary for the safety of users and the use of the highway. Indeed, the current state of the highway constitutes a danger even for the residents of the camp," he wrote.

The battle began in November 2022, when a dozen or so people living in the camp were given 10 days to leave by Quebec's transport ministry.

The expressway's bridge deck and support columns need maintenance work that is expected to wrap up in 2025.

But the eviction was postponed for several months following public outcry, with repair work scheduled to begin on April 1.

Advocates argued that more time was needed to secure safe housing for the community members, especially during winter when shelter space is extremely limited.

In addition, some of the inhabitants had even fewer shelter options because of pets or addiction issues.

80 PER CENT OF CAMPERS COULD SOON BE SETTLED: CHAPMAN

Resilience Montreal shelter director David Chapman, who is working closely with the members of the encampment, says about 80 per cent of campers are in the process of securing housing. Some are waiting on paperwork, while others are scheduled to view potential homes. 

He says he's nervous that progress will be undone if they're forced to find new places to live in the interim, and community members were already spotted packing up over the weekend. 

"Already, they're desperately asking me, 'hey can you help us find another encampment we can move to?' Or, 'do you know any abondoned buildings?' 'Construction sites?,' 'Can you help us out?,'" he said.

"This is precisely the kind of situation we've been trying to avoid all along," he added.

Lawyers with the Mobile Legal Clinic became involved in the spring, and the courts agreed to further suspend the deadline multiple times.

Eventually, the case landed on Superior Court Justice Pierre Nollet's desk, who ruled the eviction order should be carried out June 15.

An appeal of the decision by the Mobile Legal Clinic postponed this date a final time -- but Justice Cournoyer's ruling on June 29 marks the end of the road.

Chapman said Saturday that a firm deadline has yet to be set.

However, the community was spotted packing up over the weekend in preparation for their departure.