Council initiatives are sustained actions that build on community assets while responding to needs in the neigbourhood. In 2008, the main initiative in full swing is the Benny Farm community development project.

An important part of the mandate of the NDG Community Council is support for groups of local residents who want to make a difference in their community. This support can take the form of staff time, or use of the Council's space or other resources. If you are interested in starting your own NDG based group, or if you belong to a group that you think could benefit from some form of support from the Council, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Resource Center

The goal of the NDG Community Council’s Resource Center is to provide information and/or refer people to other sources of information in order to enable residents and organizations to act on issues that have an impact on the quality of their lives.

Tenants' Rights and Information

The Council has been a resource for NDG tenants who wish to know more about their rights. We accomplish this in two ways: by facilitating workshops and information sessions for interested groups, and, by answering individual tenants requests for information at our office. We are also supporting a new group, the NDG Tenants' Association , a group of tenants who come together to work to improve the conditions in their buildings and take actions to protect tenants' rights for all.

Benny Farm Project

A community development project was launched in March of 2008 as a partnership between the NDG Community Council and a committee of representatives from projects at Benny.  The community development project aims to build a strong citizen network among the residents of Benny Farm while helping the projects work together on issues of common concern.

Local Democracy and Urban Planning Committee

A committee that brings together NDG citizens who are concerned with local issues. The committee meets approximately once a month to discuss local political and social issues in the NDG community.

Tax Clinic

For more than 15 years the NDG Community Council has been coordinating free tax clinics during the months of March and April for individuals on low income. Clinic volunteers are trained by the provincial and federal governments.

Welcome to NDG

a project created in partnership between the Comité d’action 6-12, the Table de Concertation Jeunesse NDG, the NDG Community Council and the CSDM. Financed by the Ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés Culturelles and the Ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport.

Christmas Dinner

A volunteer-run Christmas Day event of food and fellowship! This thirty year old tradition serves over 600 festive meals to the community as a means to promote cultural exchange and good times, with live entertainment, games and gifts for the kids.

Resource Center

The Council provids NDG residents and community workers with information through :

• Responding  to telephone and walk-in questions from callers at the office five days a week by staff and trained volunteers. Most frequent  areas of request are: community activities; health and social services, and tenant information.

• Providing information and referral at the NDG Food Depot during services hours and weekly at the Walkley Community Centre

• Producing and distributing regularly updated information listings of community resources and government servicesw.

• Organizing and facilitating workshops for organizations on available resources

Tenants Rights Information

One of the buildings visited during the Summer Outreach Project 2008

• Too many NDG residents, especially newcomers to this country, are not aware of public and community resources that can help in relation to housing. That is why we hold workshops on  tenants’ rights for members of various organizations in NDG such as Women on the Rise and the NDG Food Depot.

• If your organization would like to host a workshop, please get in touch with Leslie at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . We also answer questions at the council office about everything from rent increases to using the services of the  city inspectors.In 2007 we gave 4 workshops with a total of 24 participants on such topics as rent increases, how to use the Rental Board and the city inspectors and community housing. We also answered 568 housing  questions at the Council and the Info-Depot.

NDG Tenants' Association

Here’s what the NDG tenant’s association has been up to lately:

Régie de Logement? Régie de Lentement!

On February 9th 2010 members of the NDG Tenants’ Association participated in an action organized by the Regroupment des comités logement et associations des locataires du Québec (RCLALQ) highlighting the problem of long wait times for tenants at the Rental Board.  Chanting slogans such as “justice delayed, justice denied” the protestors denounced the current situation at the Rental Board to the public and the media. The climax of the event was the unveiling of the Rental Board’s “new” sign, which protestors had cleverly modified to read “Régie de Lentement”. Presently, tenants who file a case at the Rental Board about important (although not life-threatening) problems in their dwellings wait an average of 16 months for a hearing, while landlords seeking to evict their tenants for non-payment of rent are heard within 6 weeks.  The RCLALQ is proposing that all urgent cases where there is a threat to health and safety be heard within 72 hours and that all other cases, whether they be for non-payment or repairs, be treated on a first-come- first-served basis within 3 months.  This issue is important to members of the NDG tenants association because we’ve all either had the experience of waiting an absurdly long time to have a case heard at the Rental Board or know someone who has.

We won’t give up! Seven NDG Tenants Association members participated in a follow up action also organized by the RCLALQ on March 30th, 2010. This action, held at the downtown offices of the rental board, featured the testimony of a tenant who has been waiting too long for justice in the case of terrible conditions in her apartment.

To help keep rents lower for everyone, we need a lease registry!

NDG tenants association members have been hard at work over the past few months collecting signatures on a petition demanding that the government create a national lease registry. As it is now, is is against the law to raise the rent exhorbitantly when a tenant moves out, but because of the difficulty in enforcing this law, it is a common practice. For this reason, the tenants association is participating in the RCLALQ’s campaign for an obligatory, province-wide lease registry. This would end this abusive practice by allowing tenants to simply look up the rent that the previous tenant was paying. We have organized three petition signings around NDG so far and members have been gathering signatures from their friends and neighbours. To sign the petition online visit: http://www.rclalq.qc.ca/index.php?z=18

Strategizing over a delicious brunch!

The NDG tenants association meets regularly at the NDG Community Council (5964 av Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, #204) over Saturday morning potluck brunches. These are the times we share knowledge and ideas, support each other in our work improving conditions in our buildings and plan future actions. Newcomers are always welcome! To find out when the next brunch is, contact Leslie at (514) 484-1471 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

• In summer (2008) we distributed information in a new way. Leslie and Zhen, one of our summer staff members, went door to door in buildings that have been identified as being in bad condition to inform tenants of  their rights and recourses. This was a great way to get information to those who may not have known how to seek it. If you live in a building with a negligent landlord and you think you and your fellow tenants could benefit  from a visit, or if you know of buildings in NDG that are in disrepair, please contact Leslie at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Benny Farm Project

Benny Farm is a mixture of both social and private housing and represents a vital number of lower-cost housing units in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. A community development project was launched in March of 2008 as a partnership between the NDG Community Council and a committee of representatives from projects at Benny.  The community development project aims to build a strong citizen network among the residents of Benny Farm while helping the projects work together on issues of common concern. Benny is home to well over 550 households made up of a variety of people including young families, single-parent families, senior citizens and people living with disabilities. The community development initiative strives to build a strong community fabric among the diverse and dynamic Benny Farm population.

By addressing issues such as safety, food security, literacy and conflict mediation, the community development initiative meets the immediate needs of the Benny residents while laying the groundwork for a sustained network to ensure ongoing community development on site. For more information, please contact Michelle Ohnona at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The housing projects at Benny Farm include :

• Chez soi, non-profit housing for autonomous seniors
• Project Chance, subsidized housing for single mothers who are returning to post secondary education
• Maison Transitionelle O3 (On Our Own), subsidized and supported housing for young families at risk
• Coops  Zoo and Benny Farm
• Tango, subsidized and supported housing for people with disabilities
• Habitation Communautaire NDG's Affordable Homeownership project
• The veteran housing  remains on site
• Private condominiums are built and others are in the process of being built

Local Democracy and Urban Planning Committee

The Local Democracy  and Urban Planning committee brings together NDG citizens who are concerned with local issues. Together, we share knowledge and experiences in order to empower ourselves to participate in local decision making structures. Committee members regularly attend borough council meetings where we raise questions on a variety of issues that matter to us, ranging from housing to green space to municipal services. We  also develop briefs and participate in public consultations at the borough and city level . If you are interested in learning more about how to make your voice heard in local decision-making structures, get in touch with Leslie at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

TAX Clinic

The annual tax clinic organized by the NDG Community Council allows lower-income people to receive assistance in completing and submitting their income tax information. Because of the correlation between reported income and social assistance programs, the tax clinic plays a vital role in helping people gain access to the financial and social benefits to which they are entitled. The tax clinic is offered in partnership with Programme bénévoles, a federal-provincial government initiative that provides the trained volunteers that help make this tax clinic possible. We have experienced a sharp increase in demand for the service in recent years. In 2008 upwards of 170 individuals were served over the course of the four-day clinic. 

The service is provided on a first come, first served basis and priority is given to NDG Food Depot users and NDG residents. For reservation or more information please contact Gina at 514 484 1471. Space is limited, so reserve your spot starting in mid-January.

Welcome to NDG

“Bienvenue à NDG” is a project created in partnership between the Comité d’action 6-12, the Table de Concertation Jeunesse NDG, the NDG Community Council and the CSDM, financed by the MICC and the MELS.
The objective of the project is to facilitate the integration of immigrant families into the NDG neighbourhood. “Bienvenue à NDG” helps to the newcomers to access the community services and to participate in the social life at NDG. In order to do this, the project is developing the follow strategies:

• Create bonds with immigrants and its families
• Reinforce the relations between the community, schools and immigrant families
To reach newcomers, “Bienvenue à NDG” is going to:
• Have information kiosks at schools and summer camps in NDG. With these activities the project provides information to immigrant families about services and activities in NDG. At the same time, we’ll be able to identify challenges facing organizations involved with integration of newcomers
• Organise and support social events and information activities with the families in NDG. These activities help us to come through the isolation of the families and facilitate the community participation

Info : Miguel Cristancho 514 484 1471 ou/or 514 561 5850, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Christmas dinner

Organized exclusively by an army of volunteers, this Christmas Day event of food and fellowship has been running for more than thirty years. Seventy-four turkeys were cooked, carved and smothered in gravy in order to serve 672 meals with all the trimmings. This year the “Bienvenue à NDG” project complemented the event by encouraging immigrant families to participate and providing live entertainment and special activities and gifts for children. Over fifty families newly arrived from Latin America, China and Russia were introduced to this holiday tradition.