Montreal has long enjoyed a reputation as an affordable rent haven that has supported the artists that live, work, and make the city vibrant. But with rents skyrocketing and with most artists earning a lot less than the Montreal average, one listener asks: "How are artists affording to live in Montreal anymore?” We’ll also hear how parties in the municipal election are proposing to support local artists.

Candidates in Montreal’s mayoral race are making some ambitious promises to solve homelessness, including more social and transitional housing and new policies on encampments. But cities across Canada have struggled in recent years to respond to the growing number of people who find themselves living on the streets. So what will it take to change things? Reporters Kwabena Oduro and Ben Shingler spoke with people at one Montreal encampment and join host Ainslie MacLellan to talk about solutions.

MR. JEAN MARC RICHARD HAS WON A CASH PRIZE OF $833,337! In 1999, a letter with this claim from Time Magazine lands in a Montreal man’s mailbox. But according to the fine print, he's not actually a winner. Jean Marc Richard, feeling determined to get his promised payout, launches a court battle with one of North America’s biggest publishers. This week, This is Montreal shares an episode of the new CBC podcast See You in Court. Host Falen Johnson and journalist Craig Desson rip open the case of Richard v Time to uncover one man’s quest for an elusive cash prize that somehow escalates into a Supreme Court battle over misleading advertising, setting a standard for Canadian consumer rights that is still in use today. For more episodes of See You in Court, visit their main feed: https://link.mgln.ai/syic-drop

The fatal police shooting of 15-year-old Nooran Rezayi in Longueuil has left a family and a community demanding answers. Reporter Matthew Lapierre explains what we know so far. We also hear why some worry an investigation by Quebec’s police oversight body the Bureau des Enquêtes Indépendantes (BEI) might not be enough to truly get to the bottom of what happened.

With Valérie Plante not running again, Montrealers will be choosing a new mayor when they go to the polls on November 2. On top of that, the city is dealing with some major issues: from housing and homelessness, to infrastructure and transportation. Journalists Ben Shingler and Sudha Krishnan look at how the campaign is shaping up, and why municipal politics may deserve more of our attention.

Whether straight, zig-zagging or curved, outdoor staircases are a fixture of many Montreal duplexes and triplexes. But how did a wintry city like ours end up with so many stairs to shovel? We’ll debunk some rumours step by step and hear how the evolution of the outdoor staircase is wrapped up in ideas about class, aesthetics and even morality.

In 2018, Quebec brought in restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids, a class of pesticides that had been shown to be harmful to bees. Now Vermont is becoming the latest U.S. state to take similar steps. In this episode from Vermont Public Radio Podcast Brave Little State, reporter Sabine Poux heads into the field with This is Montreal’s Ainslie MacLellan to find out what impact the restrictions have had on this side of the border.

As the school year begins, Quebec schools are still dealing with the aftermath of budget restrictions imposed by the province. Some parents worry that, even if specialized education positions are spared, they could still go unfilled. We hear from parents, a special education technician and a school psychologist who say meeting the needs of all students is an investment in our future.

Ribbed like a pumpkin, but with a spiderweb exterior like a cantaloupe, the Montreal melon was a wildly popular fruit in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but it all but disappeared by the 1950s. In this archive episode, we'll hear why some people are going to great lengths to try to restore the Montreal melon to its former glory.

From Verdun to Rosemont to NDG, wild turkeys have been popping up all over Montreal in recent years. In this archive episode from June 2024, we'll hear about the curiosity turkeys have spurred amongst Montrealers and get some advice for how to avoid accidentally running afoul of our urban bird neighbours.