Franco-Ontarians frustrated by Canada Post
Letter addressed to Belle Rivière not delivered to Belle River, Ont.
Last Updated: Thursday, January 28, 2010 | 3:09 PM ET
CBC News
The Belle River post office is located at 500 Notre Dame St. in Belle River. (CBC/Jim Lagogianes) The mayor of a southern Ontario town says Canada Post needs to consistently recognize his community's name in both official languages.
Belle River, near Windsor on Lake St. Clair, is one of several communities that make up the town of Lakeshore.
A local man, Luc Mailloux, recently complained to Lakeshore Mayor Tom Bain that a letter from a friend addressed to his Belle River residence but spelled "Belle Rivière" was not delivered to him and was returned to the sender.
Mailloux claimed the street address and postal code were both correct — only the spelling of the community was different.
"I don't think it's a joke, maybe it was a misunderstanding," said Bain. "Certainly Mr. Mailloux was quite upset over the issue, that he couldn't get his mail because it had a French address on it."
Bain said Canada Post told Mailloux that in order for his mail to be sent to Belle Rivière, the man would need written approval from town council saying it accepted the French spelling.
"Council unanimously passed a resolution to send off a letter to Canada Post, notifying that we certainly have no objection to mail coming in addressed Belle Rivière," Bain told CBC News.
No such policy, Canada Post says
A Canada Post spokesman denied that any such resolution from the town was necessary, and that the letter should have been delivered as long as the postal code was correct.
"Our addressing system is based on a combination of the postal code and the mailing address, and we see no reason why a letter addressed to Belle Rivière would not be delivered," said Canada Post spokesman Tom Creech.
Belle River, Ont., is part of the greater town of Lakeshore, which has a significant Franco-Ontarian population. (CBC/Jim Lagogianes) Creech said no statement from council was necessary, and Canada Post would like to speak with Mailloux to see the letter to figure out why it was returned.
The area has a large number of Franco-Ontarians, and of Lakeshore's 32,000 residents roughly one in five, or 19.6 per cent, speak French.
Bain said he didn't know of any other complaints and was surprised the French spelling was considered a problem.
"Knowing that in other areas, St. Joachim or Sainte-Joachim, or Pointe-aux-Roches — that's already established with our post office that if it comes in Pointe-aux-Roches, it's delivered to the [Stoney Point] residents."
"It doesn't matter how you pronounce it," said Belle River resident Bill Montague. "Some people say potato, some people say 'potahto.'"
