Fallen tree keeps Rosemont park off limits to daycare weeks after ice storm

Nearly one month after the ice storm, some Montreal playgrounds are still littered with large fallen trees and branches, and residents are starting to wonder what's holding up the cleanup.

A small park at the corner of Belanger and Chateaubriand streets in Rosemont that's popular with people in the neighbourhood, in particular the local daycare, has been surrounded by yellow police tape since the storm.

“The children are very disappointed”, said the daycare’s owner Melissa Hamida Chelali.

A tree in the park fell on April 5, and despite repeated calls by daycare staff to the city's 311 line, no one has come to remove it.

“When I reached someone in the city, they told me we have a lot to get to," Chelal said. “He told me because it’s not particularly dangerous, it’s not a priority."

The opposition at city hall says the same situation is playing out at parks all over the city, and the fallen trees need to be cleaned up.

“It’s summertime, people want to take their kids to where they can play on the teeter totters," said Alan DeSousa, mayor of the Saint-Laurent borough and a member of Ensemble Montreal. “People want to play tennis, people want to use the facilities," he said.

The mayor of Montreal said the city is doing the best it can.

“It's actually taking more time than we thought,” said Valerie Plante. “The branches are huge, and I'm not going to go into details because it's about the machinery and I'm not an expert in this, but what we want is as soon as possible.”

Chelali said she understands the cleanup is a massive operation, but doesn't like that children are paying the price.