When walking through the streets of Montreal, it is possible to cross alleys between ordinary intersections. When you venture there, you find yourself in the middle of green areas, between vegetable gardens and flowering shrubs. “It's like a little piece of paradise,” Louisa tells La Converse. A permanent resident living in Quebec since 2020, this septuagenarian considers Montreal's green alleys to be a “breath of relief” in the midst of the urban cacophony.
Since 1995, green streets have been gradually developed in Montreal for various purposes: to increase biodiversity in the city in order to promote ecological transition, to create safer neighborhoods and to encourage inclusiveness by creating a meeting area for the neighborhood. This is a type of citizen initiative strongly encouraged by the City and its boroughs, which consists in transforming existing alleys into green spaces by adding elements such as flower boxes, for example, or numerous shrubs and trees. The City of Montreal is committed to greening these small alleys in an effort to cooperate with citizens. But who benefits from these green alleys?
Connect with nature
Paula Selcado is 22 years old and quite often frequents the green alley near her home. “I have lived in Hochelaga since I came to Quebec. There is one right next to my house. It is a very quiet and pleasant place. Sometimes I go there to study or to read. I always sit in the same place, in the shade,” she starts. A university student, she also takes advantage of the green streets of her neighborhood to study in peace and quiet. She emphasizes the importance of such a place in the center of a neighborhood that she considers to be busy. “A green space like that is necessary. Especially in the liveliest neighborhoods, where there is more back and forth. It gives residents an opportunity to have a place where they can escape from their daily lives, to relax in the city.” Smiling, she adds: “There are even children who will play there sometimes. It's safe enough for them to spend their time there.”
“For us, people who live in cities, it's also a way of connecting with nature.” Having left the Dominican Republic at the age of seven, Paula then only knew Montreal and its busy streets. Apart from the rare times she has the opportunity to leave the city to travel, she doesn't have much opportunity to isolate herself in nature. “Even though it's in the center of the city, it's still a green space. We take advantage of it as best we can. For me, it really is a getaway.”
Poisoned gift
Despite her affection for green alleys, Paula considers them a bit like a “poisonous gift.” “I am lucky. I live in a neighborhood where there are these spaces for us to take advantage of. But I am aware that not all Montrealers can take advantage of these places,” she admits. Indeed, despite the efforts made by the City of Montreal to sustainably develop biodiversity, green streets are not accessible in all boroughs. Twelve of the city's 19 boroughs have at least one, and the majority of them are concentrated in central neighborhoods: La Petite-Patrie, Rosemont, Mile End and Plateau, in particular.
According to Paula, this urban greening project is a solution for some, but given the unequal distribution of green spaces, it is also a factor of inequality for others. “The establishment of green alleys seems to have everything going for it. It provides a quiet and pleasant space for the neighborhood, and it makes the neighborhood safer. But what I have noticed is that there are only some in some corners of the city. The CEGEP and the high school that I attended were located in the Saint-Michel neighborhood, and I never saw, or even thought I would see, anything similar to a green alley.” Thinking about it a little more, she adds that “when you think about the green streets project, you don't imagine a family that immigrated and doesn't speak French or English well recently taking advantage of it; you don't think not to a green alley project in Petit-Maghreb or in Parc-Extension, she says. Unfortunately, green alleys are, in my opinion, a symptom of gentrification.”
The green alley as an escape and a place to socialize
While the project to develop green streets seems to be symptomatic of social inequality for Paula, others see it as a necessary development for the establishment of a healthy metropolis. This is the case of Louisa Ferrad, who has been living in Montreal for a little over three years now, for whom green streets are one of the last bridges that connect her to her life in Algeria.
“When I left my Algeria, I left my home, my mountain, my house,” Louisa begins. Having grown up in a village at the foot of a mountain, the 74-year-old new Montrealer says she has a fascination for the city's green streets. “The first time I came across a green alley was a few years ago. I had come to visit my daughter in Montreal and was thinking of moving here.” But her enthusiasm for a new life in North America abruptly declined when she realized the differences between living in the countryside in Algeria and living in a Montreal neighborhood. “Here, everything is calculated. There are traffic lights almost on every street corner; there are a lot of cars, cyclists, bikes, trucks, etc. Everything is paved, everything is still being renovated, everything is going fast. Apart from the parks, I am not lucky enough to have access to green spaces,” complains Louisa.
Despite this culture shock, the septuagenarian reconsidered her decision, driven by the desire to join her daughter, who has lived in Montreal for more than 10 years. In July 2020, she obtained her permanent residence. She is leaving her house and her mountain. “[Here], my daughter has a small courtyard behind her house; some vegetables and some herbs are planted there. That's good, but when I remember that in Algeria, I had lemon and fig trees as far as the eye could see behind our house, it pinches my heart, she continues. When I came back to Montreal, the alley where the neighborhood kids played had changed. Located in the Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie borough, it is now dotted with planters and shrubs. There is even a small fence to protect the flowers that have been planted there. Children can also play more safely, as there are even signs that indicate that the alley is frequented by young children! ”
Louisa is an elder, and she does not work. Illiterate, she is currently learning French, even if she is quite good at speaking and has no great difficulty communicating. The green alley was in a way of integrating into its new environment and its new neighborhood. “When I came here, I didn't know anyone except my daughter and her small family. Then, I started frequenting the alley behind our house. I made friends with one of the neighbours. She was Moroccan, she spoke to me in Arabic, which accelerated our relationship. Now everyone in the building knows me. I sometimes babysit my neighbor's kids, they bring me food from time to time, and we have barbecues and picnics all together. If the alley hadn't been built, I wouldn't have had a place to spend my free time. I wouldn't have had people to meet, I would just have been bored,” she concludes.
Green alleys and the housing crisis
For many residents of neighborhoods where there are green alleys, social and environmental issues as well as the safety and maintenance of the neighborhood are the main positive points of these developments. But they are also indicative of problems associated with rising rents.
Delicia Raza lives in the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough. For this 24-year-old citizen, green streets contribute significantly to the current housing crisis in Montreal. “A green alley, when well maintained, promotes the attractiveness of the neighborhood. It makes it safer, prettier; it therefore increases the price of the homes around it, she starts. In my neighborhood, you can see several green alleys that are super well laid out. And when I tell people that I live in Plateau-Mont-Royal, the reaction is often the same: “You live in a gentrified neighborhood,” she exclaims. According to her, green alleys increase the disparities between communities in Montreal. “I don't remember ever seeing green alleys in some neighborhoods, and I have the impression that life and the neighborhood in these neighborhoods are less vibrant compared to what we see elsewhere, such as on the Plateau for example. Green alleys contribute to the life of the community, and the fact that there are none in some places accentuates the marginalization of residents in these neighborhoods.”
The location of green alleys has therefore become a criterion for the quality of life of housing. When they are located near a property or a rental unit, they would be taken into consideration when it comes to the cost of living. “When I tell people the price I pay per month for a three and a half in Plateau-Mont-Royal, they are surprised. I was lucky, I am paying a relatively low amount compared to what a similar rent can cost in my neighborhood. Before coming across my accommodation, I could see that apartments located near green spaces tended to be more coveted, and therefore more expensive. And if there are neighborhoods with a lot more green spaces than others, living there is therefore more expensive. The less fortunate citizens are therefore isolated, and that is how disparity is created,” concludes Delicia.
Green streets: extending the idea to other neighborhoods
Manal Tachfine is an urban planning student at the University of Quebec in Montreal. Also the holder of a technique in the field, she says that “the green alley has several advantages compared to the ordinary alley that we already have in Montreal.” “Not only does it create dynamism, but it also helps fight the heat islands that accumulate as a result of paving the territory,” she adds. She says that, theoretically, the idea of green alleys is an excellent solution for a metropolis like Montreal, where urbanization is constantly growing.
She also mentions the pleasant side of these streets. “It's welcoming and warm, it allows neighbours to use them as meeting places. Instead of going to the park and moving around, you can bring that dynamism to yourself.”
In slightly more disadvantaged neighborhoods, it would be more profitable to develop more green alleys, the expert believes. “Remote neighborhoods like Saint-Léonard or Montréal-Nord have almost no or no green alleys, while, geographically speaking, there are more accessible alleys than in other neighborhoods.” She also talks about the communal nature of these spaces. “The alleys are extremely frequented by children — and therefore by citizens.” She also talks about the communal nature of these spaces. “Alleys are extremely frequented by children — and therefore by citizens., especially in these boroughs. For the well-being of these citizens, it would be good to promote the development of these green streets in the slightly more isolated neighborhoods in the center of the city,” she concludes.
Montreal, where geographic disparity continues to lead the way
In a city where life expectancy varies according to the neighborhood where you live, the question of geographic disparity is central. Since its establishment in the city in 1995, the Ruelles Vertes project has been intended to be restorative and innovative for a greener, safer and healthier Montreal. Despite this wish, people like Paula, Louisa, and Delicia all have different experiences and relationships with these unique alleys.
When we notice that these spaces are mainly concentrated in neighborhoods where the quality of life and safety are superior to others, it is logical that those who do not frequent these places question whether they are being excluded from such a community project. Recently, after the absence of green space was identified in the east of the Island of Montreal, a pilot project to establish green alleys was set up in the Rivière-des-Prairies—Pointe-aux-Trembles borough. Citizens quickly volunteered to develop these spaces.