April 25, 2018 6:17 am

Lachine Canal pedestrian path portion to be blocked by construction all summer

By Dan Spector Photojournalist Global News

WATCH: Part of the pedestrian pathway along the Lachine Canal will be closed all summer. Global's Dan Spector finds out why.

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It’s hard not to notice the long, tall fence lining the canal on St-Joseph Boulevard in Lachine.

“It’s definitely frustrating that there’s the big, long fence,” said local resident Alana Cosgrove.

Between 18th Avenue and 21st Avenue, the fence is blocking people from using a pedestrian walkway by the canal.

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Parks Canada manages the canal, and they told Lachine to put the fence up as a precautionary measure. The ageing canal wall is crumbling and tilting and the government didn’t want to risk anyone getting hurt.

What bothers people in the area, however, is that the fence is supposed to block off the section of the walkway until October.

“It should be this summer, with the families, and the gatherings, you know?” said Francine Romanelli, who lives in the area.

The section of the canal will be off limits to small boats too. There are plenty of other nearby walkways for people to use, but people, including the borough mayor, think the fence is an eyesore.

“It’s in front of our city hall and it looks terrible, but you know what? We’re super happy,” said Lachine Mayor Maja Vodanovic.

She’s happy because the federal government is fixing it at all.

“We didn’t have that money. It’s millions of dollars to fix walls, so we’re really happy to have Parks Canada as a partner in this,” she told Global News.

Parks Canada is doing major work on the canal from Lachine all the way to the South West. Vodanovic is just happy they’re getting to that part.

“Yes, it’s going to be October but hey, better October than never,” she said.

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Lachine Canal