Montreal public market merchants warn of crumbling infrastructure, urge city action | CBC
Every winter, the Jean-Talon Market puts up modular walls around its stalls — thin panels just a few inches thick that offer little protection from the elements.
“All the structure is getting old and rusty,” said Guy Desgroseilliers, a merchant at the market. “And the doors are all [torn] and need some love.”
He’s not the only one worried. The group that manages Montreal’s public markets surveyed about 60 merchants, and the results, it says, are concerning.
Nicolas Fabien-Ouellet, head of the Société des Marchés Publics de Montréal, said 88 per cent of respondents said they are dissatisfied with the infrastructure. He said one out of three merchants is thinking about reducing their offerings.
Fabien-Ouellet blames a lack of funding from the city.
Montreal owns the historic Atwater, Jean-Talon and Maisonneuve markets — providing fresh produce and other goods to residents while serving as community hubs and tourist attractions.
Fabien-Ouellet said repairs would cost more than $20 million and wants candidates in the upcoming municipal election to take notice.
“Two years ago, $27 million was promised by the city to solve the infrastructure issues,” he said. “But in two years, we haven’t seen work getting done.”
Atwater, Jean-Talon and Maisonneuve markets are owned by the city, but the director of all three says the infrastructure that helps them operate 12 months a year is in poor shape and now merchants are looking to the city to solve the issue.
In a statement to CBC, the city says a sum of $26.9 million is allocated in the 2026-35 10-year capital expenditure plan. A more detailed plan will be presented to the newly elected municipal officials for a decision after the election on Nov. 2, the statement adds.
The city is also providing a financial contribution of $250,000 per year over three years to the Société des marchés publics de Montréal to fund promotion and programming, the city says.
When contacted, Projet Montréal said it wants to invest a total of $40 million in all three markets, allowing for modernization and adaptation of the facilities for year-round use.
But when it comes to funding the expenditure, Ensemble Montréal won’t say whether it will give the plan the green light. At the same time, it is criticizing Projet for letting the buildings deteriorate.
Sandra O’Connor is flying the Ensemble banner in her bid for borough mayor in Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie.
“Once again how can we trust, even if they have an engagement to invest in the winterization in these beautiful and necessary places,” she said. “How can we trust that it will actually happen?”
For its part, Transition Montréal said in a statement that it wants to establish community and public markets, ensuring all residents have easy, walkable access to healthy, affordable food.
The plan prioritizes rapidly developing areas like Namur–Décarie, where residents currently face long distances to markets and risk being excluded by gentrification, the statement says, but it does not include a cost estimate.
Meanwhile, merchants are calling on the city to act quickly. They say the situation is an emergency and it may force many merchants to leave within two years.