MINUTES – PUBLIC – ARTS, CULTURE, LETTERS AND HERITAGE COMMISSION (CACLP)

Presentation – 2026 Work Plan

Ms. Sonia Blouin, Director of the SACL (Service des arts, de la culture et des lettres), presents the proposed 2026 work plan for the Commission. The stages of developing the work plans are detailed, and it is specified that the proposed plan is on an annual basis. Elected officials were consulted, and their comments are summarized. The files in the work plan are as follows:

1. Governance and funding of culture
2. Cultural infrastructure
3. Public art intervention framework
4. Cultural policy 2024-2034 "Rencontrer la culture"
5. Strengthening cultural citizenship

A period of questions and comments follows the presentation.

File 1: A member expresses concerns regarding the postponement of deadlines, and in particular a gap between previous discussions and the inclusion of more concrete actions in a 2027–2028 horizon. It is recalled that a work schedule was to be presented to the Commission. The administration specifies that this action had to be postponed and will be presented to the members at a later date. It is also mentioned that a presentation of the report on the PSOC review will be made to the Commission, and that this will be formally included in the work plan to ensure complete information for members. Furthermore, an intervention highlights that the issue of access to premises and halls, although identified as an important issue in previous studies and discussions, does not appear in the 2026 work plan. It is agreed that this element will be added as the fourth action within this file in the work plan.

File 2: The need to create a plan for cultural infrastructure is questioned. It is specified that the plan is necessary to give culture a structuring planning tool, in order to define the cultural needs of the territory in the long term and to support political and financial decisions. This plan is also an action identified in the Cultural Development Agreement, to which the ministère de la Culture et des Communications contributes. It is agreed to specify that the updating of the library deployment plan is part of the file. The wording of the purpose of this file will be modified to integrate the missing aspects raised by the members.

File 3: Members expressed concerns about the deadlines, the expected role of the Commission, and the definition of the targeted infrastructure. Although the process is administrative in nature and outside the mandate and scope of the work plan, the expertise of the Commission members is considered relevant to the reflections. The expected contribution of the Commission is mainly at the vision level.

CACLP-2026-01

The Arts, Culture, Letters and Heritage Commission recommends to the City Council:

• To adopt the 2026 work plan of the Arts, Culture, Letters and Heritage Commission.

Proposed by Marie Roy Seconded by Stéphanie Fortin Adopted