Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Leader of Ensemble Montréal and candidate for Mayor of the metropolis, announced on Tuesday her firm commitment to begin the process of extending Cavendish Boulevard from Saint-Laurent to Côte-Saint-Luc, thereby connecting it to the former Hippodrome site.
Starting in 2026, an Ensemble Montréal administration will submit the project to Québec’s Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE).
As a reminder, since 2017, the Hippodrome lands have belonged to the City of Montréal following a transfer from the Government of Québec. The goal was to build new housing on the site, under the condition that the extension of Cavendish Boulevard be included in the Agglomeration’s Transportation Plan as well as its Public Investment Program (PDI).
However, in 2024, the Projet Montréal administration broke that commitment, choosing instead to focus on the northern Cavendish–Jean-Talon connection. In the long term, this alternative route will not effectively open up the Namur–Hippodrome sector or improve mobility corridors for future residents, businesses, and Montrealers. That is why Ensemble Montréal intends to redirect the project toward a full connection to Saint-Laurent.
Quotes
“We have 20,000 housing units planned for the Hippodrome site, and we need to stop burying our heads in the sand. If we want future residents — and those in surrounding neighborhoods — to avoid isolation and be able to move freely through the city, we must begin the process now. This is something Projet Montréal promised back in 2017, only to break that commitment in 2024.”
— Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Leader of Ensemble Montréal and candidate for Mayor of Montréal“The Cavendish extension has been requested since the 1980s. I’m proud that we are finally committing to make this long-awaited project a reality.”
— Stéphanie Valenzuela, Co-Chair of Ensemble Montréal’s campaign and candidate for Mayor of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
