Montreal Is Getting Another Beach For Swimming In The River

Montreal is getting another beach. On Sunday, Mayor Valérie Plante announced a commitment to open the shore of the Promenade-Bellerive, a riverside park in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, to swimming.

On its website, the city says the park "is the only physical and visual access point to the Saint Lawrence River" in the borough.

"Montreal is an island. And we want to take advantage of that," the mayor wrote on Facebook.

"The goal is to make our shorelines ever more accessible, keep our shorelines healthy, and celebrate our insularity."

She said a years-long water quality testing process has proven the site is safe for swimming.

At a press conference, the mayor and local city councillors said the beach would include supervised swimming hours.

The mayor aims to open the beach to swimming in 2022.

Residents of Montreal's east end have long pushed for more access to the river. Port activity and train tracks largely cut off neighbourhoods east of the Jacques Cartier Bridge from the Saint Lawrence.

Plante pointed out that her administration has already delivered Verdun Beach and increased access to the Vague à Guy, a popular surfing spot in LaSalle.