The Public Service Alliance of Canada, Quebec Region (PSAC-Quebec) and the Syndicat des employés-ées du Vieux-Port de Montréal (SEVPM) are joining forces today to protest the gradual privatization of Montreal’s Old Port and launch a public campaign calling on the federal government to take action before it’s too late.
Over the past decade, the landscape of the Old Port has been quietly shifting. Private interests have moved in, public access to the river has dwindled, the skating rink is gone, the IMAX cinema now closes on weekends and job losses are mounting. With every job cut, one question becomes increasingly urgent: is Montreal’s Old Port being steered toward wholesale privatization?
“The future of Montreal’s Old Port is being decided right now, and those with the power to act need to know that we stand against the current course. Everything hinges on this moment,” said Tarik Kandou, employee of the Old Port of Montreal Corporation.
A public site and major employer
The Old Port covers 40.7 hectares and provides public access to the St. Lawrence River, attracting over six million annual visitors, 39% of whom are tourists. Located in the Ville-Marie borough, the site provides public access to 2.5 kilometres of St. Lawrence River shoreline, hosts a variety of commercial, cultural and scientific attractions, and is a key showcase for Montreal and Quebec.
It also employs more than 200 people working in maintenance, security, facilitation, front desk and ticket sales at the Montréal Science Centre.
Federally governed, controversially managed
Once defined by its river access, today the federally managed Old Port is better known for a number of controversial developments. A Master Plan for the site unveiled by the Canada Lands Company (CLC) in 2017 and shelved in 2024 stirs concerns today about safety, ongoing access to public spaces and the Old Port’s future.
Plan or no plan, the CLC’s strategic direction is already altering the face of the Old Port. The question of whether job cuts at the Old Port foreshadow a shift toward privatization and the closure of our window to the river, which has been a signature concept since the 1980s, feels more urgent than ever.
Call to action
PSAC-Quebec and the SEVPM are calling on MPs, borough councillors, the media and the public to lend their support in urging the federal government and the Canada Lands Company to reverse course. Join the letter-writing campaign.
On November 17, an alternative public consultation will give residents the chance to weigh in on the future of the Old Port—which, as both organizations have emphasized, belongs to the community, not to private interests. Registration link.