MONTREAL - Hampstead residents who are opposed to a controversial proposed housing development in the town have launched a campaign ahead of a Nov. 24 referendum on the matter.
The referendum was triggered last month when residents managed to get more than 10 per cent of registered voters in the area near the proposed development to sign a register calling for a vote. More than 250 people signed the register, which needed only 212 signatures to force a referendum.
The development in question would demolish a current apartment building on Cote-Saint-Luc Rd. and build a 10-story, 90-unit apartment complex in a neighbourhood where the height of other buildings is only three stories.
Current residents of the apartment building that would be demolished said they will lose their affordable apartments and worry about finding comparable housing elsewhere. Owners of neighbouring buildings say they worry the new building will overshadow their properties and reduce their values.
But Hampstead Mayor Bill Steinberg says the new apartment complex will revitalize an area that is rundown and which is home to several vacant lots.
Opponents of the development launched their official referendum campaign website on Tuesday.
"We feel ours is an important test case that will set a precedent for tenants and landlords alike," Sharon Hyman, a resident who has been spearheading opposition to the new development, said in a statement. "We know that Montrealers all across the city are watching, we hear from them every day!
"We also know that developers and landlords are watching, and we take that responsibility very seriously."
