Income disparities growing in Montreal

While Montreal's smoked meat, bagels and cinq-à-septs haven't changed over the years, other things have. One major change is the differences of income among the city's residents. Researchers from the University of Toronto-based Neighbourhood Change Research Partnership (NCRP) have found that income disparities among Montreal-area neighbourhoods have increased over the past 30 years. "Knowing the extent of of the growing socio-spatial divide and the specific trends at a metropolitan area level allows social agencies and public policy makers to better understand existing social needs and better understand causes," says Professor David Hulchanski, principal investigator of the Neighbourhood Change project. "Governments at all levels can take remedial action should they choose to do so." Interestingly, these differences in income among Montrealers haven't changed as dramatically as they have among residents of Toronto and Vancouver, say researchers Damaris Rose and Amy Twigge-Molecey of INRS University. "We hope the research will stimulate critical debate about how policy actors at all levels of government can effect changes that can create a more socially-just metropolitan city," says Rose. "At a minimum, this means a city where all residents, regardless of their income, their neighbourhood, and their personal mobility, can benefit from high quality public, community and commercial services, facilities and amenities." The researchers tracked how well neighbourhoods were doing in terms of their residents' average incomes compared to those of Greater Montreal as a whole.