Monkland Invasion!

Normally, I stay away from getting too involved with local issues. I am not being conceited about "community" issues, as such. On the contrary local issues are often the microcosm of the larger "neighborhood." The community is invariably linked to the metropolis. And the culture of the metropolis is invariably linked to tendencies the mainstream world tends to embrace in terms of "globalization", "clashes of civilizations" "the flatness of the world" and other assorted cliches that run their rounds and then falter and cower in the face of the harsher realities that face the world. The Montreal Gazette's columnist, John Griffin (generally a reliable critic of the movie scene) has unbounded imagination in suggesting that the stretch of Sherbrooke Street, in Montreal, between, lets say the Decarie Express way and the west end of NDG, is going to smoothly transcend into a Plateau-like cool-funk place to be. It will simply not happen. Despite a scattering of "artiste" types prowling around and making initial forays into the neighborhood, and despite the presence of a handful of unique shops and even some bakeries, the fundamental character of the Plateau is different. It remains a place of congruence for a proto-boho set, poets, performers and late night loungers and laid back, street-walking, alternative-life seekers, and it cannot be copy-catted by that dull and unwelcoming segment on Sherbrooke. Having lived in NDG for over 25 years and having lounged around in the Mile–end and Plateau districts for the same period, I prefer to see them literally" a mountain apart" in character. And it should stay that way. Because NDG (or Deeg) as a younger crew like to refer to it, should be the community-spirited, liberal, progressive and multi-dimensional residential space it has always been. This is where kids grew-up, going to a few well-known schools, hung out and still do, post- college days and still keep their Deeg roots. The Plateau does not have that growing-up-together feel for its younger residents and that is OK. NDG has its own distinct character. With the occasional stretches of alternative shops and a scattering of good restaurants and boutiques, it remains a neighborhood place to grow up in. Just as the Pointe Claire Village should stay in its West Island closet, NDG should remain what it is and not aspire to mimic the Plateau.

This stretch of Sherbrooke,as extolled by Mr. Griffin, remains an essentially unhip, highway-like, un-neighborly strip. And will remain so, until the pavements are taken over by more of a coffee and bagels, soup and sandwiches clientele and there are more low-end clothes shops and boutiques like in Mont-Royal and a lot more happening lounges, where performance and even film-events start happening. And that will not happen. The Fringe Festival will never happen on that stretch, because it is just not fringy.

On the other hand look what happened to the Monkland beat! A perfect village-like, cool, laid-back walk-around strip, with friendly neighbors and low pollution and neighborhood cobblers, cafes, bakeries, pattiseries and even great taverns, it has become a sports-car showing-off, SUV-flaunting, mindless, kow-towing haven for out-of-NDG hordes. Because Westmount, Hampstead and the Cote-St-Luc area lack a Village-like street and atmosphere, tribes of SUV-riding, large-sunglass wearing, hair-streaked, continuously-on-cell phone type, essentially house-bound noveau-riche indolent housewife graduates from the Trash School of Driving took over the Monkland beat from 9am onwards. Driving around furiously, ingesting furious rounds of caffeine, taking sharp-corners, going through yellow lights and generally always parking illegally and hollering at each other while crossing streets, these aliens have destroyed that stretch of Monkland. Let Monkland be, let Sherbrooke grow steadily and long live the Plateau!