Chinatown community upset over city plan to install public toilet in park

Sun Yat Sen Park in the heart of Chinatown is a meaningful place for those in the community.

So when construction for a city project set up shop here, they say they weren’t too happy.

“Seniors, local residents all sit here during summertime, have a good time – doing tai chi exercises, playing chess – but now half of the park is closed, so they can’t do anything,” said the Chinese Association of Montreal (CAM) president Wilson Wong.

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The city of Montreal has planned to install free to the public, self-cleaning toilets.

There will be 12 of them located in different parts of the city, including one in Place Émilie-Gamelin, that’s almost completed.

However, Chinatown community leaders say they don’t think the park is a good spot for a bathroom.

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“Installing a public toilet in this Sun Yet Sen Park is considered almost like an insult to the Chinese population,” said Bryant Chang, CAM vice-president. “Sun Yat Sen is the founding father of modern China.”

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In a statement to Global News, a city spokesperson said, “The borough of Ville-Marie meets regularly with representatives of Chinatown regarding the urban development of the area and will continue to do so in order to enhance the neighbourhood.”

“The installation of public toilets is one of the topics that had been discussed with some representatives, but meetings with other groups are planned in the near future.”

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But Bill Wong, the secretary of the Sun Yat Sen Park Foundation, says they were never told.

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“I think it’s most important that we have to be consulted,” he said. “There’s a lot of options open in the area to put a public washroom. If there’s a need, I think we could find a good spot, other than this spot.”

The groups say now that the park has already been dug up, it’s too late to stop the bathroom from being installed. They just hope the work will be done quickly and on time.

The city says it should take another couple of weeks.