Canada/Consolidation: the best scenario for three Kamouraska municipalities
The Commission municipale du Québec concludes that amalgamation is the best scenario for the municipalities of La Pocatière, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière and Saint-Onésime-d'Ixworth, and that the status quo should be rejected. The report was made public on August 5.
We're happy that the conclusion has been reached. I'm happy to see that the authorities recognize the same thing I do, that the merger is necessary for the three municipalities," says Cathy Fontaine, mayor of Saint-Onésime-d'Ixworth.
The report is very strong, very favorable. These are things we've been explaining to residents for the past two and a half years: pooling our human and financial resources, because there's a lot of duplication in each municipality," adds her counterpart in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Jean-François Pelletier.
For his part, in a written statement, La Pocatière mayor Vincent Bérubé praises the work of the Commission municipale du Québec and the support of all councils in this long process. The consolidation of our territories will enable us to better meet the needs of our residents and foster a dynamic of collaboration between our municipalities," he adds.
Improved municipal services, better management and human resources issues were the main reasons given for consolidation.
A majority of participants in favor
A total of 35 people took part in the consultation, either in writing or in person. Of these, 89% were in favor of consolidation. Four Saint-Onésime-d'Ixworth residents, or 11% of participants, spoke out against the consolidation process.
According to the Commission, this number does not constitute a significant opposition movement to the proposed amalgamation.
On February 3, 2025, a petition containing 300 signatures was submitted to the Saint-Onésime municipal council for the holding of a referendum on the amalgamation project. The Commission concludes that it cannot deduce from this that the signatories of the petition are against the amalgamation, but rather in favour of a democratic exercise.
Cathy Fontaine points out that she doesn't sense much opposition in her municipality.
Of course, the project's detractors are much louder than those in favor. It's an exercise that was carried out democratically. A lot of people wrote in. Everyone had a say," she points out.
We really did it for the future of our village. The future is to grow, to be bigger, to be stronger, so that we can all continue to work together.
A quote from Cathy Fontaine, Mayor of Saint-Onésime-d'Ixworth
For his part, Jean-François Pelletier is keen to reassure the citizens of Saint-Onésime-d'Ixworth, who fear the merger.
e think they'll benefit more than the average. We'll all be working together for the new town. [...] There's no hedging on one side or the other. We're going to manage the potential where it's going to be," he assures us.
The next steps
For his part, Vincent Bérubé, mayor of La Pocatière, confirms in writing that the three municipalities have received a letter from the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.a letter from the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforêt, stating that she draws the same conclusions as those presented in the Commission's report.
The Minister is to send her recommendation to the Cabinet, which will adopt a decree. We don't yet have a date. After that, it will be officially published in the Gazette officielle du Québec, at which point we'll be the new town of La Pocatière," explains Cathy Fontaine.
Representatives of the three municipalities met with officials from the Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l'Habitation (MAMH) on Thursday afternoon to discuss the next steps.
The new city will be governed by a provisional council made up of all the council members of the former municipalities.
For the time being, the Commission municipale du Québec maintains that the date of the new municipality's first general election will be November 2, 2025.
Jean-François Pelletier, Cathy Fontaine and Vincent Bérubé all intend to stand for election to the new city council.
Source: ici.radio-canada.ca/
