2023-04-24 09:00:00
The metropolis must toughen its tone against noise offenders, ruled justice by condemning the City to pay thousands of dollars to a cancer patient disturbed by a car wash open 24 hours a day.
Montreal should have enforced its nuisance regulations more strictly, according to the Court of Quebec. Couche-Tard, owner of the business, will also have to pay.
Jean-Daniel Bélec had been living in his apartment in Centre-Sud for 21 years, in 2019. That year, the nearby gas station, located at the corner of Avenue Papineau and Rue Ontario, changed its lava -self automatic.
“It was made open 24 hours a day. At 2 a.m., 3 a.m. or 4 a.m., when the doors opened and it dried, it was like there was a plane next to” his apartment, he said in early April in an interview with The Press. Mr. Bélec, 67, was then battling cancer.
I was stressed, I couldn’t sleep. I could not any more. I had to move.
Jean-Daniel Belec
The expert sent by the City of Montreal confirmed that the noise was excessive: 49 decibels in his room, while the night limit is set at 38 decibels, reports the judgment obtained by Mr. Bélec earlier in the winter.
Quickly after this expertise, the City of Montreal asked Couche-Tard to respect its regulations. The company hastened to take measures to reduce the drying time.
But the noise level remained unchanged, lamented Mr. Bélec. His analysis is supported by Judge Gilles Lareau. “Montreal accepts the temporary noise reduction measures carried out by Couche-Tard without even checking, using sound readings, whether they are effective,” lamented the magistrate of the Court of Quebec.
Despite numerous reminders to the City and Couche-Tard, the months passed without any further improvement in the situation. “They didn’t want to know anything,” lamented Mr. Bélec.
“Montreal failed in its obligation”
Montreal made a mistake by letting the noisy car wash continue to operate all night without cracking down, judge Lareau ruled.
A municipality can be held responsible when it tolerates a prejudicial situation of violation of its regulations.
Gilles Lareau, judge of the Court of Quebec.
“The temporary measure [d’atténuation], in this case, was obvious: Couche-Tard had to reduce the operating hours of its car wash by no longer operating it at night, from 11 p.m. he keeps on. By neglecting to impose this measure on Couche-Tard, under penalty of legal action, Montreal in fact allowed it to continue to contravene its noise by-laws, despite its knowledge of the harm this caused to Bélec. In this sense, Montreal failed in its duty of care. Couche-Tard, for its part, directly committed a fault by violating the rules.
In 2020, Jean-Daniel Bélec preferred to move to another central district of Montreal. ” It’s quiet. It’s day and night,” he said.
Montreal and Couche-Tard were ordered to pay him nearly $1,000 to cover his moving expenses, in addition to $5,000 for his “trouble and inconvenience.” “Bélec suffered 485 days of excessive noise which disturbed his nights, wrote Judge Lareau. His claim represents just over $10 per day, an amount which is very reasonable in the circumstances. »
Mr. Bélec also deplores that Couche-Tard and the City of Montreal refused to participate in the small claims mediation process, before arriving at a trial.
The City of Montreal declined to comment on the decision. Couche-Tard did not respond to an email from The Press. In 2021, a noise barrier was erected near the car wash.
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