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The Merger DelusionHow Swallowing Its Suburbs Made an Even Bigger Mess of Montreal |
eBook Available
The story of the fight against the forced merger of Montreal municipalities and the world's first metropolitan de-merger.
Powerless under the country's constitution, Canadian municipal governments often find themselves in conflict with their provincial masters. In 2002, the Province of Quebec forcibly merged all cities on the Island of Montreal into a single municipality - a decision that was partially reversed in 2006. The first book-length study of the series of mergers imposed by the Parti Québécois government, The Merger Delusion is a sharp and insightful critique by a key player in anti-merger politics.
Peter Trent, mayor of the City of Westmount, Quebec, foresaw the numerous financial and institutional problems posed by amalgamating municipalities into megacities. Here, he presents a stirring and detailed account of the battle he led against the provincial government, the City of Montreal, the Board of Trade, and many of his former colleagues. Describing how he took the struggle all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, Trent demonstrates the ways in which de-mergers resonated with voters and eventually helped the Quebec Liberal Party win the 2003 provincial election.
As the cost and pitfalls of forced mergers become clearer in hindsight, The Merger Delusion recounts a compelling case study with broad implications for cities across the globe.
Peter Trent, mayor of the City of Westmount, Quebec, foresaw the numerous financial and institutional problems posed by amalgamating municipalities into megacities. Here, he presents a stirring and detailed account of the battle he led against the provincial government, the City of Montreal, the Board of Trade, and many of his former colleagues. Describing how he took the struggle all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, Trent demonstrates the ways in which de-mergers resonated with voters and eventually helped the Quebec Liberal Party win the 2003 provincial election.
As the cost and pitfalls of forced mergers become clearer in hindsight, The Merger Delusion recounts a compelling case study with broad implications for cities across the globe.
Details
700 Pages, 6 x 9
ISBN 9780773539327
October 2012
Formats: Cloth, eBook
"...it is a masterpiece of sober analysis of what ails Montreal Island. It combines trenchant criticism with thought-provoking solutions." Henry Aubin, The Montreal Gazette
"It shows why the geography of municipal politics is important, and how its study can be engrossing." Metropolitics
“The story of the Montreal mergers and demergers is unlike any other and has so much to tell us about the nature of Quebec government and politics. Peter Trent has written an excellent history - intelligent, often funny. His positions are clearly argued and he provides honest self-evaluation. This is fascinating book." Andrew Sancton, author of Merger Mania
“Le lecteur y trouvera une mise en récit souvent captivante des événements qui ont secoué la scène municipale mon¬tréalaise durant les décennies 1990-2000, par un auteur qui y a occupé une position centrale. Pour l’historien de Montréal, c’est un récit qui permet également d’observer la remarquable constance de l’argumentaire suburbain depuis un siècle.” Urban History Review / Revue d’histoire urbaine
"It offers a remarkable and convincing account of the interplay between civic and provincial politics, which Trent brings alive with photographs and perceptive thumbnail sketches of the protagonists. Quebeckers, and especially Montrealers, should appreciate Merger Delusion for the retrospective light that it throws on a key period in the politics of that province. Urbanists, and not just those in Canada, should welcome it as an informed insider’s account of public choice theory at the barricades. It shows why the geography of municipal politics is important, and how its study can be engrossing." Canadian Geographer
"It shows why the geography of municipal politics is important, and how its study can be engrossing." Metropolitics
“The story of the Montreal mergers and demergers is unlike any other and has so much to tell us about the nature of Quebec government and politics. Peter Trent has written an excellent history - intelligent, often funny. His positions are clearly argued and he provides honest self-evaluation. This is fascinating book." Andrew Sancton, author of Merger Mania
“Le lecteur y trouvera une mise en récit souvent captivante des événements qui ont secoué la scène municipale mon¬tréalaise durant les décennies 1990-2000, par un auteur qui y a occupé une position centrale. Pour l’historien de Montréal, c’est un récit qui permet également d’observer la remarquable constance de l’argumentaire suburbain depuis un siècle.” Urban History Review / Revue d’histoire urbaine
"It offers a remarkable and convincing account of the interplay between civic and provincial politics, which Trent brings alive with photographs and perceptive thumbnail sketches of the protagonists. Quebeckers, and especially Montrealers, should appreciate Merger Delusion for the retrospective light that it throws on a key period in the politics of that province. Urbanists, and not just those in Canada, should welcome it as an informed insider’s account of public choice theory at the barricades. It shows why the geography of municipal politics is important, and how its study can be engrossing." Canadian Geographer
Peter F. Trent is mayor of the City of Westmount, Quebec.
Preface by Jean-Claude Marsan ix
Foreword by Stephen A. Jarislowsky xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Dramatis Personae xv
Illustrations xvii
INTRODUCTION
1 Synopsis: The Cult of Giantism 3
2 Language: Quebec’s Necessary Obsession 31
3 Westmount Then and Now 54
THE STORY
4 Political Eunuchs and Fiscal Footmen (1663-1993) 85
5 Metropolitan Montreal: Suffocated by Structures
(1994-1995) 110
6 Merger Plans, the MUC, and a Metropolitan Miscarriage
(1996) 134
7 A Quebec Divided: Partition and Downloading (1997) 157
8 The Seduction of Simplicity: Turn the MUC into a City (1998) 181
9 Montreal’s Disease: Suburban Parasites or Chronic
Maladministration? (1999) 204
10 Quebec’s Remedy: A Huge New Government or a Huge New City?
(1999) 234
11 Walking into a Trap (2000) 264
12 Hope and Betrayal: Bernard Proposes, Bouchard Disposes
(2000) 295
13 If You Can’t Ride Two Horses, You Shouldn’t Be in the Circus
(2001) 322
14 Forced to Play the Language Card (2001) 349
15 A Fight to the Finish (2001) 374
16 The Poitras Report and a Liberal Victory (2002-2003) 399
17 A Megacity Legitimized by the Indifferent and the Absent
(2003-2004) 424
18 Rebirth for Some, Complexity for All (2004-2009) 449
19 Scandals, a Swollen Payroll, and an Uncelebrated Tenth Birthday
(2009-2011) 473
Conclusion: Making Good: Rebuilding Montreal’s Local and
Regional Government 496
Appendix: The Montreal Megacity by Numbers: Performance
versus Promise 522
Notes 539
Bibliography 639
Index 649
Foreword by Stephen A. Jarislowsky xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Dramatis Personae xv
Illustrations xvii
INTRODUCTION
1 Synopsis: The Cult of Giantism 3
2 Language: Quebec’s Necessary Obsession 31
3 Westmount Then and Now 54
THE STORY
4 Political Eunuchs and Fiscal Footmen (1663-1993) 85
5 Metropolitan Montreal: Suffocated by Structures
(1994-1995) 110
6 Merger Plans, the MUC, and a Metropolitan Miscarriage
(1996) 134
7 A Quebec Divided: Partition and Downloading (1997) 157
8 The Seduction of Simplicity: Turn the MUC into a City (1998) 181
9 Montreal’s Disease: Suburban Parasites or Chronic
Maladministration? (1999) 204
10 Quebec’s Remedy: A Huge New Government or a Huge New City?
(1999) 234
11 Walking into a Trap (2000) 264
12 Hope and Betrayal: Bernard Proposes, Bouchard Disposes
(2000) 295
13 If You Can’t Ride Two Horses, You Shouldn’t Be in the Circus
(2001) 322
14 Forced to Play the Language Card (2001) 349
15 A Fight to the Finish (2001) 374
16 The Poitras Report and a Liberal Victory (2002-2003) 399
17 A Megacity Legitimized by the Indifferent and the Absent
(2003-2004) 424
18 Rebirth for Some, Complexity for All (2004-2009) 449
19 Scandals, a Swollen Payroll, and an Uncelebrated Tenth Birthday
(2009-2011) 473
Conclusion: Making Good: Rebuilding Montreal’s Local and
Regional Government 496
Appendix: The Montreal Megacity by Numbers: Performance
versus Promise 522
Notes 539
Bibliography 639
Index 649
Finalist
Shaughnessy Cohen Award for Political Writing
The Writers' Trust of Canada (2012)
Shaughnessy Cohen Award for Political Writing
The Writers' Trust of Canada (2012)
