A little after a week since the first Rendez-vous économique of Châteauguay was launched on May 1, Mayor Nathalie Simon said she was satisfied with the outcome.
“The people who participated in the rendez-vous took the invitation seriously. They demonstrated significant interest in the municipality, and manifested their desire to improve the quality of life here”, the Mayor pointed out during an interview with Châteauguay Express.ca.
For her, the numerous points raised by the participants were very much identical to what residents expressed at the 2020 Châteauguay Summit in September 2010. “This proves that we’re on the same wave length”, Mayor Simon added.
Among the main ideas raised, the Mayor explained that the City has already started developing some projects. “I’m thinking about the relocation of the municipal garage to the Guy Scott area; this has already started and work will be undertaken in order to convert it into a public site”, said the Mayor. “That will give downtown Châteauguay a new look and will generate positive results both for companies and individuals.”
Aside from downtown, the Mayor confirmed that the City’s priorities will be, among others, the development of a touristic recreational centre, the Châteauguay River, as well as the industrial park. “A niche for the industrial park must be developed at all costs so that it can attract new businesses”, Mayor Simon explained.
To achieve this, she said that the City will soon create an industrial/economic committee with the mandate to transform the industrial park into an attractive site for new business owners. The Mayor confirmed that already many key players in the industrial park have agreed to take part in the committee.
“First of all, the committee will do a commercial inventory to find out what companies we need and which ones we already have. Then the City will implement the necessary measures to facilitate the arrival of new companies and to avoid companies from leaving the area”, the Mayor said.
Finally, Nathalie Simon insisted on the fact that “residents want to feel like they’re living in an urban setting. They want to do business with small business owners around the corner. They want their coffee shop, their good restaurant. These should be offered to them and these must be assessed in terms of actual needs.”
“My feeling is that the people here love their city, but aren’t proud of it. We’re going to do everything we can to change that”, said the Mayor in closing.
