Residents and visitors alike would be hard-pressed to walk, drive or bike in Montreal without seeing an iconic orange cone (or a hundred of them) dotting the cityscape on any given day.
However, one cone has attracted more attention and notoriety than others.
Those walking along Sherbrooke Street west in front of the historic Ritz Carlton Hotel this week had their curiosity piqued when passersby noticed a small orange cone paved in the street.
“Even though I’m their city councilor and they asked me when it will be removed, I can’t answer them,” the borough’s independent city councilor J. Serge Sasseville said on Twitter.
Un cône orange par dessus lequel du bitume a été fraichement posé sur le trottoir devant le @RitzCarlton de Montréal dans le District Peter-McGill de @CentrevilleMTL. Bien que je sois leur Conseiller de la Ville et qu’on me demande quand il sera enlevé, je ne peux leur réponder pic.twitter.com/dLOYqOLW17
— J.Serge Sasseville (il/lui-he/him) (@SergeSasseville) January 20, 2023
The city told CTV News that new street lighting is being installed in front of the Ritz Carlton and that the installation has been delayed.
“The cone was used as a temporary protection to cover the base of the street light, which is already installed underground,” said city spokeswoman Camille Begin. “For lack of more suitable materials currently on order for this purpose. It will be removed when the lamp is installed. Asphalt has been poured around the cone to make the pavement safer.”
It is not clear whether the placement of the cone next to a bright red fire hydrant was done for an artistic purpose or just a coincidence.
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