As bars and clubs come back to life in the city, Montreal police (SPVM) says there was an increased presence of officers over the weekend and it will continue into next weekend.
Bars, restaurants, casinos and other entertainment venues were allowed to operate at full capacity starting Saturday as the province lifted nearly all public health protections related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dancing and karaoke were also allowed to resume for the first time in months and the vaccine passport was lifted in all places where it was previously mandated.
Montreal police says its officers were patrolling the Ville-Marie and Plateau-Mont-Royal boroughs over the weekend "to ensure a safe resumption of Montreal nightlife."
"The police are taking advantage of their visit to establish links with the tenants, discuss with them and listen to their comments. They are also asking for their collaboration in order to prevent the overflows that could accompany the complete reopening of their establishment," the force said in a news release.
The increased police patrols will be repeated on Thursday, Friday and Saturday by officers from various units.
The face mask mandate is still in effect in Quebec until mid-April and will continue past that time in certain places, like public transit.
The province has yet to announce a specific date when the masks measure will be lifted.
