Integrate protection of the former Rosemère golf course into the PMAD

Comment for Orientation 3 - A Greater Montreal with an enhanced natural, cultural, landscape and heritage environment.

1. I am asking the CMM to protect at least 88.5% of the former Rosemère golf course site and convert it into a restored green space for the following reasons:

• Protecting and restoring the former golf course site to a minimum of 88.5% will bring the CMM closer to its target of protecting 30% of the territory.
• The population of the Lower Laurentians is growing significantly, but the amount of green space available to the population remains limited.
• Specifically in Rosemère, the densification planned in connection with the redevelopment of Place Rosemère will lead to a significant increase in population, which will increase the need for green spaces for the health and well-being of the community. Located in the heart of the city, the site of the former golf course is the ideal place to meet this need.
• The site of Rosemère's former golf course provides important ecosystem services to the town and its residents. For example, it absorbs and stores a significant quantity of CO2, and promotes climate resilience by acting as a cool island and absorbing heavy rainfall. In fact, the northern part of the former golf site was a veritable lake following the torrential rains of August 9, 2024.
• More than 800 species have been listed to date on identification platforms such as INaturalist for the old golf course site. Many of these are species at risk, such as the monarch butterfly.

2. The draft revised PMAD states that “it is important to broaden the scope of interventions to protect residual natural environments, by considering environments that, while not bearing the characteristics of natural environments, play important roles in terms of ecosystem services: green spaces, spaces dedicated to reconversion. These contribute to the population's resilience and quality of life, or have the potential to do so."

The former golf courses, including Rosemère, are part of this vision of land protection. However, the legal tools in place don't seem explicit enough to allow towns to confidently respond to this need. I am therefore asking the CMM to urge the Quebec government to update section 245 of the Act respecting land use planning and development (LAU) to incorporate the concept of “restoration”. This will give municipalities the legal tools they need to protect and restore green spaces.