scaled back the plan<\/a>. It cancelled nearly 200 meters at the end of April and began installing the rest between Wilson and Claremont Aves., including some cross streets east of D\u00e9carie Blvd., in mid-May. They became operational following a grace period. <\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/montrealgazette.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/NDG-parking-meters.svg\")
<\/p>\n
Couture said she has struggled to find free parking in the time since, pointing out there\u2019s often construction in the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen they were discussing doing permit parking on the side streets, and I\u2019m like, \u2018but are you really trying to close all the businesses down?’\u201d she said. \u201cTheir thought process that (meters are) going to be better for \u2026 this main artery is, to me, mind-blowing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sonia Park, who owns flower shop Art et Fleurs, said the meters complicate her ability to carry out deliveries and that many clients have complained about them already. <\/p>\n
But an upside is that they might discourage people from parking outside her shop all day. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat kind of thing is better,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Franck Ollivier, the owner of Ophtalmo V\u00e9t\u00e9rinaire, has made his position clear through brightly coloured signs in the windows of his clinic and the flower boxes outside: \u201cMontrealers are not cash cows,\u201d \u201cCity of Montreal = Cash grab,\u201d \u201cWhere is the dialogue?\u201d<\/p>\n
Like Couture, Ollivier said that if he\u2019d known about the meters in advance, he might not have renewed his lease back in December. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey didn\u2019t tell us anything,\u201d he said in a phone interview from Europe.<\/p>\n
The clinic \u2014\u00a0which specializes in ophthalmology \u2014 draws clients from as far as the United States and Toronto, who travel by car with their ailing pets, Ollivier explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are stressed; they park wherever they can,\u201d he said, adding that he has paid their fines in the past when they parked in the bus lane across the street.<\/p>\n
Most of the clinic\u2019s employees are from outside N.D.G. as well and can\u2019t afford to pay for parking during their entire shifts, Ollivier said. <\/p>\n
He described the parking meters as the subject of his latest fight with the city over restrictions of some form or another. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think we are going to move,\u201d he said, expressing frustration over what he described as a lack of communication from the city when he pressed for more information. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019m putting all those signs in front of the clinic \u2014 because I think we are done.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked about the criticism from merchants, Snowdon city councillor Sonny Moroz said the past several months were spent meeting with residents and merchants because the borough knew the project would \u201cgenerate strong opinions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThose conversations directly shaped the final project,\u201d he said in a statement. \u201cWe recognize that not everyone agrees with the final outcome, and we respect that.\u201d <\/p>\n
Moroz added that the borough remains committed to working with those who have concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe in consultation, collaboration and finding practical compromises,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Over at Micro Espresso caf\u00e9, an employee said she often hears frustrated customers talking about the meters. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe definitely hear people talking about it in the neighbourhood more than we\u2019ve noticed any difference in customer traffic,\u201d Daphne Giannias said. \u201cI think a caf\u00e9 is different. I know the veterinarian is upset \u2014 if you\u2019re bringing your pet somewhere, that\u2019s a different story than just coming here on foot for a coffee.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Woman](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/0710-city-meters_304203017.jpg\")
\u201cN.D.G. was like a cool old stronghold that didn\u2019t have the meters,\u201d says Vanessa Gordon of Encore Books and Records, calling the installation of parking meters on that section of Sherbrooke St. a cash grab. She is seen on July 9 outside the shop. John Mahoney \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n
Employees at Encore Books and Records were among those concerned about the change, particularly because people often park out front and pop in quickly to sell their books to the store. <\/p>\n
But it\u2019s too soon to say if business will be affected, Vanessa Gordon said. <\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are still selling their books all the time,\u201d she said. \u201cSo they\u2019re probably just still pulling up, being surprised by the meters, probably paying them, which sucks.\u201d <\/p>\n
Like Ollivier, Gordon described the installation of the meters as a cash grab. <\/p>\n
\u201cN.D.G. was like a cool old stronghold that didn\u2019t have the meters,\u201d she said. \u201cBut nothing is sacred, so now there\u2019s meters everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
kthomas@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A few weeks after about 250 parking meters were installed along parts of Sherbrooke St. in Notre-Dame-de-Gr\u00e2ce, merchants…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":806885,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[49,48,295,66],"class_list":["post-806884","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/806884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=806884"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/806884\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/806885"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=806884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=806884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=806884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Woman](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/0710-city-meters_304203021.jpg\")
D\u00f6ghaus co-owner Evelyn Couture, shown on July 9, says she has struggled to find free parking since meters were installed, pointing out there\u2019s often construction in the area. John Mahoney \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n