The decision to build a new Civic hospital on the Farm.

The Dominion Observatory, Ottawa. Photo from Wikipedia.

Catherine McKenney is the Ottawa City Councillor for Somerset Ward where the nearby Natural Resources Canada Complex is located. "I am happy as long as the location is accessible by transit and does not support undue traffic impacts on existing neighbourhoods.((From:"Farm site for Civic" Centretown News December 15, 2016.)

Why corporate development should be banned on the Experimental Farm
1.)  The people of Canada have already lost several acres of Farm land.
2.)  The CEF is a National Historic Site of Canada and the National Capital Commission wanted to see all of the buildings and landscapes preserved, see the document below.
3.)  At least 18 Agriculture Canada experimental farms have already been privatized and sold off, I listed the names and locations on my blog post "Surplus Agriculture Canada Experimental Farms".  And the government of Canada closed the Greenbelt Research Farm, 2,965 acres in Nepean. The National Capital Commission recently decided to rent 24 acres of the landscape to a film company.
4.)  Little Italy, Dow's Lake and the CEF are prime tourist locations, more than 500,000 people visit the Tulip Festival every year. Noise from the new mega hospital will have a major impact on these vistas---noise from ORNGE helicopters, cars, trucks...I would not be surprised if the organizers of the Tulip Festival change the location. It is outrageous to build more high rises and a mega hospital in this area. Take a look at the Orleans Health Hub that Infrastructure Ontario is planning to build.
 During the year 1965 my schoolmates and I visited the CEF during a field trip, and the Dominion Observatory telescope was still functioning. The trip was unforgettable. I did not see any residential housing near the Griffith Observatory when I visited my sister and toured Los Angeles a few years ago. And Griffith Park spreads over 4,300 acres. The Griffith Observatory was featured in the James Dean/Natalie Wood movie "Rebel Without a Cause", a Steve Martin movie "Bowfinger" and "La La Land" with Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling.
5.)  50 acres of public land will be lost.

Sunset Strip Hollywood.

6.)  The Dominion Observatory Campus may be designated a United Nations World Heritage Site.
7.)  The Central Experimental Farm is an urban oasis, a country in the city, a Crown Jewel.
8.)  The National Capital Commission warned that a hospital would affect the cultural heritage of the Farm and the Rideau Canal. (From: An Ottawa Citizen newspaper article by the Editorial Board, December 4, 2016.)
9.)  The site for the hospital is close to the Dominion Arboretum, Ornamental Gardens and Main Dairy Barn.
 If I were an Ottawa City Councillor I would knock on doors and talk to people whose quality of life will be affected by political decisions. I would leave copies of traffic studies and  talk to tourism agencies and heritage preservation groups and restaurant owners. One of the pillars of democracy is sovereignty of the people. How many people want to see a Distillery District on the Natural Resources Canada land, or tall buildings on 933 Gladstone?
Jane Jacobs was the author of the book "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" and she wrote: "This book is an attack on current city planning and rebuilding". Jane Jacobs believed that buildings should be no more than 5 storeys high.

The National Capital Commission wanted to preserve the Sir John Carling Building, the Dominion Observatory Campus and all of the Experimental Farm land. This document is called "The Interim Report on the results of public consultations on the future of the Central Experimental Farm" May 1998.