Lawyer Lynne Casgrain enters Westmount mayoral race, citing concerns over city development

Lynne Casgrain, a lawyer and former ombudsman at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), has announced she is running for mayor of Westmount.

Casgrain is supported by two former mayors of the affluent city: Peter Trent, mayor from 1991 to 2001 and 2009 to 2017, and Karin Marks, who held the office from 2002 to 2009.

In a recent interview, Casgrain said she was encouraged to run by Trent and added that she had grown concerned about decisions made by the current administration regarding city services, infrastructure and development in Westmount.

“I’m not a politician. I have nothing to prove. How do you say no to public service? I had a very hard time. And so, I had to say yes. I mean, this is what I do,” Casgrain said.

She noted that her 20 years as ombudsman at the MUHC have prepared her for the role.

“I think I have a lot to bring. I love people. I love talking to people, and I have no problem talking to people who are scared, who are angry, who are upset, who feel they have not been heard, because that’s what you do as an ombudsman.”

The lawyer said she was surprised by Westmount’s decision to make garbage collection biweekly. She has also taken issue with the state of Claremont Avenue during its reconstruction.

But Casgrain’s biggest concern is the controversial southeast Westmount redevelopment plan, which would see several high-rises built along Sainte-Catherine Street and Dorchester Boulevard.

“I’m happy to be revitalizing that area, however, not at the expense of what is there already, because there are houses south of Dorchester, and there’s a magnificent library that is a heritage for Westmount, the Atwater library.

“And if you’re going to revitalize this, big buildings that are just apartments aren’t going to do it. You need commerce there. You need merchants,” Casgrain argued.

But what frustrates her most, Casgrain said, is what she sees as a lack of public consultation and transparency from the administration regarding the redevelopment plan.

“The present council says they consulted the population — except we never really had plans before any of the consultation took place,” she said.

“And we didn’t have the second report about the proposed changes on the website until the next day. What kind of consultation is that, if you don’t get the information before you can speak on it — before you can even think about it? That is emblematic.”

If elected, Casgrain said she would focus on listening to constituents’ concerns and implementing a more inclusive governing style. She also hopes to reinstate citizen committees to bring residents into the decision-making process.

“I think I would like to go for the consensus. I would like to rally people. I understand that not everybody is always 100 per cent happy with everything you say or do,” Casgrain said.

“But I would love to work with the council, and I would love to work with the citizens, and I would love to work the administrators in City Hall. I mean, that is exciting, when you get all these people together and create something.”

Asked whether the current political climate — described as toxic at times and blamed for pushing some female elected officials out of office — gave her pause, Casgrain said it did not.

Public service runs in Casgrain’s family. Her mother, Claire Kirkland-Casgrain, was Quebec’s first woman elected to the National Assembly, the first female cabinet member, and the first woman to be named a judge.

“She’s an inspiration. But she’s my mother. I think she’d be pleased to see me doing this. You think about that when you do this — would my mother approve? The answer, in this case, is yes. I think she’d say, ‘Girl, go.’"

Casgrain also has the support of her husband, renowned constitutional lawyer Julius Grey. The couple share three kids.

“My husband supports me in all these things. He has fought at every level of government for the little guy. And I want to hear the little guy in Westmount. I mean, people think of Westmount as the big guy, but no, we are citizens, and they want to be heard,” Casgrain said.

Moreover, she acknowledged that she has much to learn about municipal politics and how things work in Westmount, but said she will use the next few months to gain that knowledge.

“In today’s Westmount, most of our elected officials have become estranged from the very citizens they are supposed to serve. Lynne will turn things around,” Trent said in a press release.

The municipal election in Westmount is scheduled for Nov. 2.