In the economy of our cities, the theory of supply and demand is subject to serious distortions. In Montreal, some parts of Boulevard Saint-Laurent are slowly dying, among other reasons because many buildings are owned by absentee descendants of long-time owners whose sole interest is the market value of the properties—not their real commercial or residential use, nor their contributions to living character of a heritage ensemble like the “Lower Main.” The Victorian house on the Boulevard Saint-Laurent and Avenue des Pins, completed in the early 20th century, had been neglected for years, its decaying exterior even posing a hazard to pedestrians.

After listening to residents’ complaints, Alex Norris, then city councillor for Mile-End, decided to take action by using existing regulatory and legal levers such as a bylaw on the occupancy and maintenance of buildings, passed by the City of Montreal pursuant to provincial statutes, under which a municipality can control situations involving lack of maintenance and neglect of buildings on its land.

A progressive approach was taken: municipal civil servants were contacted first; attempts were then made to contact the building owner, which proved unsuccessful. Departments of the Borough of Plateau Mont-Royal then worked together with the City of Montreal legal department to force the negligent owner to assume his responsibilities. In an extremely rare move, the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough administration obtained an injunction obligating the owner of the century-old building to restore it within 300 days. The court order required the owner to perform work to restore 14 types of architectural detail, including specific kinds of brick and copper, so as to preserve the building’s heritage character. The property is now remarkably well renovated and about to welcome new tenants.

This case set an important precedent in the fight against demolition by neglect; the exemplary renovations made to the building prevented further urban blight along Boulevard Saint-Laurent.

More incentives are needed to ensure the proper use and maintenance of properties, which are key to heritage preservation. To create or activate such incentives, including in certain cases that can only be resolved by going to court, citizens are duty-bound to appeal to their elected officials and demand restoration of a building by a neglectful owner; this facilitates engagement at all levels.