Mordecai Richler finally gets a gazebo — at a cottage in the Laurentians
Visitors welcome while waiting for renovations to be completed on Mount Royal park version, Montreal man says
Karl Marcuse has just put the finishing touches on a gazebo he built at his cottage in the Laurentians.
And he's named it after Mordecai Richler, the famous author who died in 2001.
Marcuse, a retired carpenter, built the entire structure in two years from recycled wood at a cost of only $100 — a fraction of the cost of the one still under construction in Montreal's Mount Royal park, which is expected to cost well over $500,000.
"In a joke to my wife, I mentioned that we should name it Mordecai," Marcuse said in an interview.
Marcuse said he would have no problem volunteering to help the city finish the project, but that he doubts he would be able to do so due to red tape and municipal contracts.
The city says a combination of unforeseen events, such as de-leading the structure, have led to construction delays and skyrocketing costs.
Catherine Maurice, spokesperson for Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, wrote in an email to CBC on Monday that there is "no new information on that file."
In August of this year, Coderre announced that renovations were expected to be completed by year's end.
So, for any Montrealers who have been frustrated by the lack of a Mordecai Richler gazebo free and open to the public, Marcuse would like to ease their consternation.
"If people would like to travel to the Laurentians [and visit my gazebo], they are more than welcome," he said.
Zachary Kamel is a student in the graduate diploma journalism program at Concordia University and is interning at CBC Montreal.