Will Montreal's 375th celebrations cement Denis Coderre's legacy or be his undoing?

Mayor Denis Coderre has made celebratingMontreal's375thbirthdaya priority during his time in office, pouring millions into projects slatedto be completed in time fornext year's anniversary,and his re-election campaign.

The city has set aside funds for everything from lights for theJacques CartierBridge to a new downtown skating rink.Coderre has even lobbied to have Pope Francis visit Montreal on its birthday.

In all, the city set aside $329 million last yearfor capital works projects for the anniversary.

Additional funds aregoing towardprojects overseen by theSocietyfor the Celebration ofMontral's 375thAnniversary, which is supported by the city, the province and a host of private corporations.

The ambitiousness and scope of Coderre'splans has echoes of another high-profile Montreal mayor, Jean Drapeau, who was hailed as a visionary for overseeing the development of the Metro system and the international success ofExpo 67.

His mishandling of construction projects related to the 1976Olympic Games, however, left the city with adebt load of over $1.5 billion.

In Coderre's case, some of the projectshavebeen the subject of controversy, like the $3.4-million plan forgranite tree stumps to encourage "discovery stops" on Mount Royal.That proposal has since been scaled back.

Eyebrows were also raised by costoverruns to theFleuve-Montagne walkway.The plannedwalkway from Mount Royal to the Pointe--CallireMuseum is$13.1million over budget, and is now slated to set the city back by $55.3 million.

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Others projectshave been subject to delays and confusion.

This past week, the city was forced to suspendits $28-million plan for Viger Square becauseit still needed approval from Quebec's Transport Ministry.

The early stages of preparation were initiallysupposed to be completed by the end of October,but thetarget dateis now sometime before the arrival of winter, a city spokesperson said.

Valrie Plante, a councillor with the OppositionProjet Montral,said the city's failure to securefinal approval from the ministry before going ahead is an example of poor planning.

"They want to go fast, for the photo-op and the announcement," she said Thursday.

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Another project, the overhaul ofPlaceJacques-Cartier in Old Montreal, wasscrapped entirely.

Restaurants had raised concern about the project, saying itraisedsafety and hygiene issues.

In the end,only one firmplaced a bid for the contract to carry out the work, and its proposal was well above the city's $5-million estimate, so the city cancelled the call fortenders.

• Montreal abandons plan to makeover Place Jacques-Cartier by next year

A sample ofthe other major projects the city is helping to fund:

• $147 million to turn the Bonaventure Expressway into an urban boulevard.
• $20 million forCit Mmoire, a large-scale projection of the city's past projected ontothe walls of Old Montreal.
• $67 million for Esplanade Clark, an add-on to the Quartierdes spectacles, including restaurants, a pavilion and skating rink.
• $98 million for the first phase of an overhaul of Ste-Catherine Street between Atwater and Bleurystreets.
• $80 million for renovations to St-Joseph's Oratory.

Thereare alsomore than 100 smaller projects at the neighbourhood level, totaling $4.2 million.

They run the gamut,from a country festival inMercierHochelaga-Maisonneuve to a pop-up film studio in Verdun that will allow the public to create short filmswith historic decor.

This all comes as Coderre prepares for the upcoming municipal election, in November 2017, following a summer of anniversaryrelated events.

In June,Coderredefended the city's plans,saying "we want to reshape this city and be proud, and [that's] what the city deserves."

• Montreal's neighbourhoods get into spirit of 375th birthday

It remains to be seen whether the celebrations will end up being a help or a hindrance tohis re-election bid.

If the anniversary projects are success, they have the potential to recast the city in a positive light. Many of them promise to make Montreal a more liveable city, adding green space and pedestrian-friendly arteries.

But an ambitious construction program comes with risks. As Drapeau learned, spending can quickly spin out of control, saddling public coffers with decades-worth of debt.

Moreover, if the 375th celebrations turn into a boondoggle, they could sink Coderre's chances of securing himself a second term in 2017.

At the moment, though, Coderre has room to manoeuvre on the political front, given the largest opposition party at city hall, Projet Montral, is currently without leader.

The party kicked off its leadership race earlier this month, billing itself as "the alternative to Denis Coderre."

So far, however, only Franois Limoges, a Projet Montral councillor, has entered the race.

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