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Vets park for free in Ste. Anne
Veterans with a poppy on their licence platescan now park for free anywhere in Ste. Anne
The Gazette
Friday, October 10, 2008
Frank Ptterson has had a poppy plate for two years. (Gazette photo)
Veterans of the Canadian armed forces just got a free pass in Ste. Anne de Bellevue.
A parking pass, that is – everywhere in the municipality.
And only if they have the red poppy licence plate on their vehicles.
Ste. Anne councillors recently adopted a resolution allowing drivers who qualify for the special licence plates adorned with a bright red poppy in honour of Canada’s veterans, to park free-of-charge in all town parking spots that have parking meters.
“We should have done it when the poppy licence plates first came out a few years ago,” Ste. Anne de Bellevue Mayor Bill Tierney said earlier this week. “But we just never got around to it.”
Tierney said the matter came to a head in November 2007, when Premier Jean Charest came to Ste. Anne de Bellevue to announce that the section of Highway 20 between the Ontario border and the Turcot interchange would be renamed as Remembrance Highway.
“A lot of veterans came to our town that day for that occasion and some of them got parking tickets, even those who had the poppy plates,” Tierney said.
There are 190 parking meter spots in the town.
“That should never have happened. And so that it doesn’t happen again, we adopted the resolution at our Sept. 29 council meeting.
“We want veterans to identify with Ste. Anne,” he said, noting that the town has been home to the Ste. Anne Hospital for Veterans since 1917.
“This is just a bit of recognition, to say we remember and are still grateful to them. And we’re sorry it took so long.”
Richard Guy, president of the Canadian Legion’s Churchill branch 91, predicted a run on demand for the plates which veterans can get by filling out a form through their Legion branch and paying a $10 fee.
“We are very pleased with the city council decision,” Guy said, adding that the town also gave the Legion a $500 donation.
“As far as I am aware, anyone who served in the Canadian forces is entitled to that licence plate,” he said, adding that the Churchill branch legion in Ste. Anne has 340 members.
Simon Derosiers, spokesman for the the Societé d’Assurance d’Automobile du Québec, said 3,311 poppy plates have been issued so far in the province.