Montrealers aren't hanging out downtown as much as they used to: survey

A new study suggests Montrealers are going downtown less often. In Notre-Dame-de-Grâce's Girouard Park, people CTV News spoke to say they either go downtown regularly or not at all.

“It's getting a bit better, but it's not what it used to be,” said resident Philip Grauer.

Jennifer Gann said she makes the trip “very rarely.”

“I'm retired and this is my neighbourhood. Everything I need is here," she said.

Herman Gill says he goes downtown a few times every month. “Sometimes with my friends to go in some malls, and to, you know, to have some fun with friends, that's all,” he said.

According to a SOM-La Presse survey, four out of 10 Montrealers are going downtown less often than they were before the pandemic. SOM Vice-President Vincent Bouchard says this is a huge number.

“The decrease in the trend is the combination of working from home and the fact that even if you're in Montreal, getting downtown is not always easy,” he said.

Bouchard adds Montrealers over the age of 55 are the most likely to abandon the city centre because “some of them may have retired or not doing as much activities as before the pandemic.”

There is no shortage of “for rent” signs on empty storefronts as many restaurants and bars say they are still struggling to recover.

Ziggy’s Pub owner says business had picked up but regulars aren’t returning.

“I'd say about 60 per cent of my customers, they can't park anywhere. They started going to the West Island and DIX30 because, I mean, you get parking for free," said Ziggy Eichenbaum.

While Montrealers might be going downtown less, more tourists are there than before the pandemic, said Glenn Castanheira, Montreal Centre-Ville's executive director.

“It's just a reminder that we need to keep at it. We need to keep working on it to make sure that downtown Montreal is Montreal's downtown first and then an international destination,” said Castanheira.

He says it's always been a challenge to attract locals to visit, especially when a majority of Montrealers polled say they come downtown less than once a week.