Mordecai Richler gazebo still under construction 4 years later

It's been more than four years since the City of Montreal announced it would renovate the gazebo on the steps of MountRoyal, but thework isn't close to being finished.

The structure is supposed to serve asa monument dedicated to local writerMordecai Richler.

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Despite promises from Mayor Denis Coderre,delays have continued andsome people are growing impatient.

Instead of adding to the beauty of park, the fenced-off construction sitesurrounding thedilapidatedgazebodoes the opposite, many residents say.

The metal fencing is rusted, the roof's decaying shingles arecovered by a tarp,and what remains of the wooden platform is sprayed withgraffiti.

"When I walk by here, yeah, Ido think it's a bit of an eyesore," saidCarlyVandergriendt, who often passes through the areawhile jogging.

Another passerby,AnthonySomos,said he'd like to see the project completed as soon as possible.

"Naming somethingafterMordecaiRichlerI think is important," he said. "Get it done."

The gazebo project was originally announced in 2011, but it faced delaysand still doesn't appear close to being finished.

Last March, the city named theMile Endlibrary after the acclaimed yet controversial author, who died in 2001 at age 70.

Richler, who was born in Montreal in 1931, was known internationally for his literary talent and penned classics such asThe Apprenticeship of Duddy KravitzandBarney's Version,which were both set in Montreal and made into feature films.

Butin some quarters of Quebec, his critiques of the province's nationalist movement earned him scorn.

At the libraryannouncement,Coderre saidthe gazebo projectwould finally be finished.But that goal still appears far off.

Projet MontralCoun.Alex Norris said the project has become a fiasco.

"It's beyond me that we're still in this situation today, fouryears after voting to change the name of the gazebo," he said.

After the executive committee meeting today, Coderre told reporters the cityhad no choice but to delay the repairsbecause the structure had lead paint and needs to be decontaminated.

"It will be done," he said, adding that the project has a $500,000 budget.

"If we [dedicate]infrastructure to one of our greatest writers,the minimumof dignity is to make sure that we put it at that level, so we have to do it."

Corderre said the upgrades should be completed by nextmonth.