Canada/Projet de fusion dans Les Basques : près de 200 personnes réunies

On Tuesday, nearly 200 people attended the first of two information evenings on a possible municipal merger between Notre-Dame-des-Neiges and Trois-Pistoles.

A second information meeting will be held Wednesday evening in Trois-Pistoles.

Elected officials took advantage of this meeting to unveil the potential impacts of a merger between the two municipal entities. In the event of a merger, the new town, with a population of just over 4,300, would adopt the name Les Trois-Pistoles.

According to a financial simulation carried out by elected officials and representatives of the Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l'Habitation, the merger would reduce expenses by almost 5%. The merger would also avoid duplication of reporting to other levels of government. It could also eliminate a number of intermunicipal agreements.

Elected officials also confirmed that an association between the two municipalities would not entail any reduction in services or personnel.

For Trois-Pistoles mayor Philippe Guilbert, the merger would help free up some financial leeway for the new entity.

It's increasingly difficult for small municipalities like ours to take on all the administrative burdens that other levels of government are adding," says Philippe Guilbert.

Residents of Notre-Dame-des-Neiges and Trois-Pistoles will be able to give their opinion on the amalgamation process during a consultation that will run until the end of June. Comments can be collected in person at either municipal office, or via a form available on the Ville de Trois-Pistoles website.

The mayor of Notre-Dame-des-Neiges, Jean-Marie Dugas, points out that the results of this survey will have a major impact on the way things are done.

We will undoubtedly take into consideration the opinions of our residents.

A quote from Jean-Marie Dugas, Mayor of Notre-Dame-des-Neiges

In the event of a positive response from the population of the two municipalities, the elected officials will have to make an official request for amalgamation to the Quebec government. If this is the case, and if Minister Andrée Laforest approves the merger, the November municipal election will be postponed to allow the elected officials to continue the process.

An election in 2026 would appoint a new seven-person municipal council. Three councillors would come from Trois-Pistoles and three from Notre-Dame-des-Neiges. The delimitation of the new electoral districts would be ratified in the following months.

Source: ici.radio-canada.ca/