Property owners fear expropriation to make way for light rail project

Seventyland plots in Montreal and Brossard are being placed on reserve to make way for the light rail project proposed by Quebec's pension fund, according to a government decree obtained by Radio-Canada.

The properties belong to 45 owners, and almost 90 per cent of them face expropriation.

Placing land on reserve means the owner can't undertake any work or renovations to the property, aside fromminor repairs.

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At the end of April, Quebec's pension fundCaisse de dpt et placement du Qubecannouncedit would invest $3 billion in a commuter light rail line thatwould use a combination of existing and newly built tracks andstations.

The electric, fully automated 67-kilometre rail line is toconnect 24 stationsstretching from Montreal'sSouth Shore toTrudeauairport in Dorval and beyond, to both theWest Island and Laval.

Radio-Canada obtained a copy of a government decree whichshows that propertiesin both Montreal and Brossardare affected.

'My family has always lived here'

Sylvie Gagnon has livedin the house her grandfather built in Griffintownsince 2014, when she inherited it from her family.

She says she was shocked after a bailiff came to her door to tell her the property had been placed on reserve.

"Obviously, right away, we cried," she said.

"My mother grew up here. My family has alwayslived here."

Gagnon saidshe immediately called the Justice Ministry to find outexactly what was going on.

"[The lawyer] explained that the train might be built right through my property ... I also have a risk of being expropriated," she said.

No expropriations, yet

The Caisse has a four-year periodto request that land be placed on reserve withTransportsQubec.

Caisse spokesperson Jean-Vincent Lacroix saidnothing is yet set in stone.

"The main objective of all our team is to minimize the impact," he said.

"So right now, there's a potential, but we're going tosee how the work goes."

TransportsQubec says land owners will be given a choice when it comes to expropriation.

"In the case of an expropriation procedure, the owner always has the choice to accept the negotiated offer or refuse it," said a ministry spokeswoman,Sarah Bensadoun.

"In the case of a refusal, the owner can ask the courts to decide. However, that is not the case at this point in time, as no expropriation procedures were initiated. Only land reserves."