MONT-TREMBLANT -- The Surete du Quebec is taking over local policing in Mont-Tremblant, effective immediately.
The decision by Quebec Public Security Minister Genevieve Guilbault comes after a prolonged and bitter period of tension between town officials, including Mayor Luc Brisebois, and the police force.
The town council last week formally requested the province ask the SQ to take over as provided by law for towns with a population of 50,000 or less. Mont-Tremblant has about 10,000 residents.
Town officials have wanted to make the switch since 2017 but have also been in a protracted labour dispute with the police union, which says the town has been micro-managing the officers’ every move.
Lately, Mayor Brisebois has said the tension got so bad that he feared for the safety of some town officials.
The province has been considering the request by the town for more than a year. In December 2019 the town sent a letter to Quebec demanding action, saying the move to an SQ detachment would standardize policing with 18 other local municipalities in the area. The letter also said joining the SQ would save the municipality $2 million a year.
The police union had asked the Quebec Labour Court to invalidate the town council’s decision to ask the SQ to take over.
In a statement, the public security minister said the authorization for the SQ to take over “has followed a thorough process that is provided for in the law and each required step was followed. The SQ, the Union des municipalites du Quebec, la Federation Quebecoise des municipalites and the Association des policières et policiers provinciaux du Québec have all declared themselves in favour of the move.”
