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Montreal’s mayor has pledged to meet with restaurant owners who were fuming this week in the wake of being forced to dismantle their terrasses during Grand Prix weekend.
On Friday, fire prevention officers ordered four Peel St. establishments to clear their packed terrasses of clients on the first night of Grand Prix weekend for fire code breaches. Sandra Ferreira, director of operations at Ferreira Café, a popular seafood restaurant on Peel St. near de Maisonneuve Blvd., posted an emotional video on Instagram after she was ordered to suddenly evacuate her packed terrasse.
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While the city has suspended four prevention officers and is conducting an internal review of the affair, Mayor Valérie Plante said she will speak with the affected business owners directly.
“It’s important to note that I have spoken with them,” said Plante, who is also the borough mayor of Ville-Marie, where the restaurants are located. “And I will meet with them very shortly, because I want to put emphasis on the fact that there has to be a post mortem and an inquiry. In the meantime, we want to make sure that those businesses reopen their terrasses, and in (the correct manner), knowing there was different information about (conforming to fire safety measures).
“Entrepreneurs are crucial to the vitality of our city, and as a leader, I have always shown how responsive we are, respective some of the processes with transparence.”
The city’s opposition would like a special meeting of city council so councillors can ask fire inspectors about the sequence of events that led to the dismantling of the terraces.
“How is it Ferreira Café and its neighbours were able to obtain permits from the borough of Ville-Marie if their terrasses did not conform” to fire code regulations? Ensemble Montréal asked in a statement Monday. “Why did the (fire prevention service) conduct such an operation at 9 p.m. rather than during the days before the festivities?
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