A one-block stretch of St. Dominique St. in the Plateau will be permanently closed to traffic as of next month, announced Projet Montreal's Luc Ferrandez, the borough's mayor, Tuesday.
The block, from Laurier Ave. to St. Joseph Blvd. will become a farmer's market on the street on Thursdays beginning June 17.
Next year, the plan is to dig up the street to extend Lahaie Park.
The measures are part of a plan put forth by Projet Montreal administration to improve parks in the borough.
It will spend nearly a million dollars this summer to add tables, benches and improve about a dozen parks. Roads in or near other parks will be closed in coming years.
"A park should be a place where you forget about cars and you forget about traffic and parking, or even bicycles. You should walk in a park," said Ferrandez.
The St. Dominique closure is the first of several intensive traffic-calming measures Ferrandez says he plans to implement, including restricting cars at the dead-end Christophe-Colomb Ave. entrance to Laurier Park, which is set to be put in place this summer.
"We are making interventions on more than 15 streets. Some of them will be closed -- like around schools, a few will be closed -- some will be narrowed. In terms of parks, we are closing the roads in these two parks," said Ferrandez.
