Montreal Borough Bans New Houses of Worship

In front of a packed council chamber on Monday, 4 out of 5 Outremont Borough Council members voted in favor of a controversial new zoning bylaw that would prohibit new places of worship from opening anywhere in the borough other than a designated, isolated section of the community near Van Horne Ave.

CTVNEWS.ca reports that opponents of the bylaw contend that the law is discriminatory and that it is essentially banishing religious worshippers to an isolated ghetto, away from the commercial heart of the community.

Mindy Pollack, who represents the Projet Montreal party on the council, was the lone dissenter, arguing that religious communities should be allowed to establish themselves wherever they wish.

The vote followed overflow public hearings on the matter, during which large numbers of Hasidic Jews voiced their opposition to the bylaw, while vowing to fight on against it.

A proponent of the bylaw, Ginette Chartre, said, “We are not a religious community now and this is our, like I told you, it’s our community life these streets.”

Julius Grey, a constitutional lawyer, delivered a letter of intent to the council on Monday stating that if the law passes it will be challenged in court.