Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce's first participatory budget a success

The 5 winning projects will be implemented

MONTRÉAL, Dec. 14, 2023 /CNW/ - The first edition of Côte-des-Neiges?Notre-Dame-de-Grâce's participatory budget, launched on March 15, 2023, wrapped up on December 3 with a public vote open to all residents ages 12 and older.

This inaugural edition, which had a budget of $500,000, will culminate in the implementation of 5 projects co-created by borough residents.

The 5 winning projects were as follows: 

• First place: Secure our bike paths ($30,000)
• Second place: Secure pedestrian walkways ($40,000)
• Third place: Collective urban agriculture ($200,000)
• Fourth place: Community refrigerators ($45,000)
• Fifth place: Accessible public washrooms ($150,000)

The list of projects that made the final selection can be viewed online at makingmtl.ca

"I'm extremely proud to present the winning projects from the first participatory budget in the history of Côte-des-Neiges?Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. Participatory democracy is central to our administration's priorities. When it comes to neighbourhood life and our day-to-day experience in the city, residents are well-placed to tell us what they need. For that reason, I'm incredibly pleased to announce the winning projects in the participatory budget, projects conceived by and for residents of CDN?NDG. These projects reflect what we all want for CDN?NDG: a greener, more inclusive borough, and above all a borough where residents enjoy a good quality of life. I would like to extend a warm word of thanks to the 1,600 people who voted online or at our institutions as part of the participatory budget, and to all the residents and community organizations that helped design these beautiful projects," said Borough Mayor Gracia Kasoki Katahwa.

For close to a year, the borough worked in collaboration with the firm Percolab to develop the participatory budget process. The first step was to gauge the needs of the population. Solutions then emerged in response to the needs expressed. The solutions were in turn transformed into projects, which various experts at the borough analyzed and costed out. The projects that needed to be improved were sent back to the drawing board as part of a final citizen workshop exercise. A total of 7 in-person workshops were held to gather ideas and merge or improve them. Lastly, the final vote was held between November 1 and December 3, 2023, both online and on paper, at our facilities.

Two committees were formed to ensure that the process was transparent, the first with experts from the borough, the second with external partners (Universités de Montréal, Concordia University and the Conseil jeunesse de CDN?NDG).

Residents turned out in force to make this first participatory budget a success:

• 3,200 visits to Réalisons Montréal / Making Montreal
• 140 ideas from residents transformed into 53 projects
• 305 in-person visits to workshops
• 15 finalist projects
• 1,600 voting residents

The winning projects will be implemented over the next 2 years.

The second edition of the borough's participatory budget is planned for 2024.

SOURCE Ville de Montréal - Arrondissement de Côte-des-Neiges - Notre-Dame-de-Grâce