After months of consultations and reports, the City of Montreal has finally tabled its nightlife policy.
Included in Wednesday’s announcement is a new accreditation process for the hosting of all-night events. The City is also putting $5.5 million into nightlife over the next three years – with $2.5 million of that to subsidize soundproofing, which will now be made available to concert halls with a capacity of 3,000 people and under.
But there was barely any mention of agent of change—a novel approach to nightlife regulation that puts the onus on new entrants to a neighborhood, be it a venue or residential building, to adapt to prevailing noise levels.
Ericka Alneus, the member of the Executive Committee responsible for nightlife, said she’ll work with the City’s lawyers to write the spirit of that principle into borough bylaws. But Ensemble Montreal’s Julien Henault-Ratelle said it’s far from the commitment he was expecting to see.
