In Le Plateau-Mont-Royal, you are invited to liven up your alley during the winter.

The borough is not the owner of these “white alley” projects: they are initiatives of local residents.

Here are some tips for your “white alley”:

Before

• Talk about your plans with your neighbours. Take their comments into consideration and be open to compromise. Being on good terms with your neighbours guarantees a friendly atmosphere.
• Be sure to inform your neighbours who live in front of or next to the planned facilities. Take their comments into account.
• Make allowance for all uses of the alley (car and pedestrian traffic, deliveries, etc.) before setting up your facilities.

During

• Make sure your facilities are safe.
• When building a slide, avoid having the slope fall toward a parking lot to avoid the risk of collision.
• If you are building a skating rink or slide, consider building a pedestrian pathway alongside.
• Signal the presence of the rink with a small sign (sometimes the ice is not visible under new snow or in the dark).
• Do not place benches in front of windows to maintain residents’ privacy.
• Remember to supervise your children when they play in the alley.
• Make it a priority to wear a helmet during skating activities.
• Avoid using hard pucks if there are no side boards on the rink.
• Do not build tunnels in the snow because of the risk of collapse.

After

• Remove the facilities at the end of the winter season.
• Organize a spring cleanup.
• Get the alley back in shape for spring.

By e-mail

Lively alleyways all year long

Our alleyways are urban spaces with the potential to make our neighbourhoods more dynamic on a year-round basis. We encourage residents to be creative and make the most of what winter has to offer!

Always in a spirit of good neighbourliness, please make sure that your snow structures are not a hindrance and are safe for everyone. 

Tips on starting your structure:

Before

• Tell your neighbours, in front or beside you, about any future structures, and take their comments into account. Good communication will ensure that everyone gets along.
• Take into consideration all the uses of the alleyway (car and pedestrian traffic, deliveries, etc.) before setting up your structure.

During

• Make sure that your installation is safe.
• When creating a slide, make sure it doesn’t lead to a parking lot to prevent the risk of collisions.
• If you create a skating rink or a slide, make it accessible from the side for pedestrians.
• Use a small poster to indicate the presence of a skating rink, as the ice may not be visible under a layer of snow, or in the dark.
• Out of respect for people’s privacy, avoid placing a bench in front of a window.
• Keep an eye on your children when they play in the alleyway.
• Encourage people to wear a helmet during on-ice activities.
• Avoid the use of hard rubber pucks if the skating rink has no boards.
• Advise people against building snow tunnels due to the risk of collapse.

After

• Remove the structures at the end of winter.
• Stage a spring cleanup drive.
• Get the alleyway ready for spring.

By e-mail

Would you like to liven up your alley this winter? Do you want to build something like a sledding hill or an ice rink? Here are a few tips for creating a safe white alley that coexists harmoniously with your neighbours: children, seniors and persons with reduced mobility, and motorists.

Please note that the borough does not manage these projects. These are citizen initiatives. Each person is responsible for carrying out his or her activities without causing harm to others in the neighbourhood. The borough reserves the right to remove any unsafe installations. 

Before

• Talk about your initiatives with the neighbours. Take their comments into consideration and be open to compromise. Being on good terms with everyone guarantees a friendly atmosphere.
• Consider all uses of the alley when developing your facilities: vehicular and pedestrian traffic, garages and parking, emergency exits from buildings and yards, deliveries, etc.
• Choose locations where there is no traffic and away from intersections.
•  Respect the neighbours’ property: cars, fences, land and any other equipment present around the alley.

During

• Keep emergency exits from buildings and yards clear at all times.
• Keep an eye on your children when they’re playing in the alley. 
• Be vigilant at all times.
• Make sure your facilities are safe.
• Make sure that your facility is adequately lit.
• Do not place benches facing windows, to maintain residents’ privacy.
• Respect the peace and quiet of the neighbourhood by not using your installation late in the evening or overnight.

Sledding hill and snow fort

• Create a passage alongside for pedestrians.
• Do not build tunnels in the snow because of the risk of collapse.
• Avoid having the slope of the hill descend toward a parking lot or alleyway entrance, to prevent the risk of collision.

Skating Rinks 

• Create a passage alongside for pedestrians.
• Mark or identify the ice area (cones, rope, signage)
• Make it a priority to wear a helmet during skating activities.
• If you play ice hockey, be aware of the danger to bystanders, neighbours and their property when using a puck.
• When clearing snow from the rink, make sure that the accumulated snow does not obstruct pedestrian or vehicle traffic.

After

• Remove the facilities at the end of the winter season.
• Organize a spring cleanup.
• Get the alley back in shape for spring.

Would you like to liven up your alley this winter and create some fun facilities like a snow slide or a skating rink?

In Verdun, all alleyways are normally cleared of snow, but you can request that an alleyway (or just a part of it) not be cleared of snow, to make it a white alley.

Before submitting your application

• Talk to your neighbours about it. Take their comments into consideration and be open to compromise. Being on good terms with everyone guarantees a friendly atmosphere.
• When planning your project, think about all the possible uses of the alley: vehicular and pedestrian traffic, garages and parking, emergency exits from buildings and yards, deliveries, etc.
• Choose locations where there is no car traffic and no intersection.
• Minimize impacts by respecting the neighbours’ property: cars, fences, land and any other equipment present around the alley. We will only intervene if municipal regulations are not respected.

During the winter

• Keep emergency exits from buildings and yards clear at all times.
• Keep an eye on your children when they’re playing in the alley.
• Be vigilant at all times.
• Make sure your installations are safe and well-lit.
• Avoid placing benches facing windows, to maintain your neighbours’ privacy.
• Avoid using your facilities in the late evening and overnight to maintain peace and quiet in the neighbourhood.

Sledding hills and snow forts

• Create a pedestrian passage alongside.
• Avoid building tunnels in the snow, because of the risk of collapse.
• Avoid having the slope of the hill descend toward a parking lot or alleyway entrance, to prevent the risk of collision.

Skating Rinks

• Create a pedestrian passage alongside.
• Mark or identify the ice area (cones, rope, signage).
• Make it a priority to wear a helmet during skating activities.
• If you play ice hockey, be aware of the danger to bystanders, neighbours and their property when using a puck.
• When clearing snow from the rink, make sure that the accumulated snow does not obstruct pedestrian or vehicle traffic.

At the end of the winter

• Remove the facilities at the end of the winter season.
• Organize a spring cleanup.
• Get the alley back in shape for spring.

Eligibility requirements

• For your request to be accepted, you need to get a petition signed by the people who live around the alley.
• Signatories must represent at least 5% of households with access to the alley. Only one person per household may sign.
• For a project to be authorized, there must be no private parking spaces accessible from the alley or the section of the alley.
• For a section of an alley to be left white, snow removal vehicles must be able to circulate in the rest of the alley.

Once you have all your neighbours’ signatures, send us the White Alley Petition Form by e-mail : [email protected].

Evaluation Process

We will analyze the request and send a notice to those who have access to the alley.

If you are against the project, you must submit the opposition document included in the notice. For the project to be dropped, at least 50% of the households with access to the alley must be opposed to it.

• PDF file Petition form - White Alley - Verdun (in French) [PDF 42 KB]

By phone

Installation of a skating rink in an alleyway not cleared of snow in VSP

Want to set up a skating rink in your alley that is not cleared of snow? The borough permits skating rinks in uncleared alleys under certain conditions. Be sure to follow the health regulations in effect.

How do I set up a rink?

Step one: Talk to your neighbours

First, it is important that your neighbours support the project, especially those whose homes directly border the proposed rink space. A majority of 50 per cent plus is required. Take their comments into consideration and be open to compromise. Good neighbourly relations are the best way to keep the atmosphere friendly.

Step two: Inform the borough

Has your rink project been accepted by the neighbourhood? Congratulations!

Residents in favour of the project are asked to send the consent form, completed and signed, to [email protected].

Step three: Instal the rink

You must comply with the conditions below:

• Keep pedestrian access paths safe at all times (60 cm on both sides)
• Install signs at the ends and edges of the rink to indicate that there is an unusual icy surface
• Remove any objects blocking the alleyway after using the skating rink
• Follow the public health department’s guidelines at all times

Step four: Dismantle the rink

It is your responsibility to restore the surface after you dismantle the rink.

Please note that Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension is currently amending its by-laws to authorize and simplify the creation of skating rinks in alleys that are not cleared of snow during the winter.

• PDF file VSP Formulaire patinoire dans les ruelles non déneigées (in French) [PDF 13 KB]