Canada’s Supreme Court will not hear an appeal of a Quebec Superior Court ruling that said the city can ban certain types of restaurants from parts of its territory.
In 2015, Côte des Neiges–Notre Dame de Grâce council passed a by-law that provided for zoning changes to limit the zones where new fast-food restaurants could be established in the borough.
The applicants fighting the by-law, including the Restaurants Canada industry association, McDonald's and other chains, contested its validity and argued the provisions were vague, but the Superior Court disagreed. The legislation initiated by then Snowdon councillor Marvin Rotrand and passed by the Russell Copeman administration allowed such restaurants in certain areas but not in others.
Montreal’s most populous borough wanted to limit the spread of fast-food restaurants on its territory, and the by-law was passed during a period when many discussions took place about the types of restaurants that could be acceptable, including pushes for nutrition information on restaurant menus and where restaurants could operate drive-throughs, all with table promoting healthier eating and reducing reliance on cars.
The legislation, which included nine better-health directed elements, including provisions about bicycles and summer markets, defined fast food restaurants as those with no table service and using disposable utensils. It did not address the quality of food. Businesses offering no table service and whose packaging and utensils are mostly disposable can only open in Plaza Côte des Neiges, on Décarie between Queen Mary and Vézina, and on St. Jacques from West Broadway to Benny. Existing businesses were unaffected.
As reported in The Suburban in 2016, the borough stated clearly that it was in a legal position to do so. The urban planning director at the time, Sylvia-Anne Duplantie, said the bylaw was carefully worded to define the types of prohibited businesses. “We don't necessarily talk of nutritional value of food but plates and utensils: it's a new way of defining restaurants.”
The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal and held that the provisions in issue constituted a zoning operation because there were significant differences between a fast-food restaurant and other types of restaurants and that the city did not have to show that fast-food restaurants and other types of restaurants had, from a practical standpoint, a different impact on the use and occupation of land.
CDN/NDG can decide where new fast-food restos set up - The Suburban Newspaper
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