A stretch of Monkland Avenue that includes the Ye Olde Orchard Pub in Montreal’s Notre-Dame-de-Grâce neighbourhood was unexpectedly shut down by the borough over structural non-compliance issues in a building. Other businesses like Rockaberry, Fleurs Sauvages and the Taverne are also closed. Tenants living in units above the businesses were evacuated. Joe Pilotte, the vice-president of operations at Ye Olde Orchard, said the business was informed Thursday morning that the Montreal fire department (SIM) would be evacuating the building. He said they have not yet heard from the landlords. “It’s all either been city or fire department, and we know that it has been barricaded, and we’re no longer allowed in the building until it’s fixed. Is that a day? Is that a week? Is that a month? We don’t know,” he said. Pilotte said business is already difficult in winter and the closure coincides with the pub’s 30th anniversary, which makes the timing even harder. “We worry about our staff. We worry about our regulars that come in all the time. We are definitely something that is ingrained in the neighbourhood, and we like being that local pub that’s always open,” he said. “But at the same time, we need to keep in perspective the fact that there are tenants above us who have lost their home with as little notice. So it’s really hard to get down on ourselves right now when we’re trying to just stay positive in the community.” The city told CTV News that the borough issued a “preventative evacuation” to ensure public safety within 48 hours of receiving a complaint from a tenant. It added an assessment is underway to determine when it will be safe to return to the buildings. Éric Lafrance, a spokesperson for the Montreal fire department (SIM), confirmed the evacuation and said it had been ordered by inspectors from the borough of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. “The presence of firefighters there was simply to inform them of what could happen if there were ever a fire in that building — what the situation would be. That’s why firefighters were called to the scene, essentially to prepare their reports in case they had to respond in the future and to understand the condition of the building,” he said.
