Federal government buildings are symbols of democracy.

All of the properties along Wellington Street opposite Parliament Hill in Ottawa are the focus of an international design competition. This is so wrong. Foreign architects should be banned from any project involving national, Crown-owned properties.
 1.)  House of Commons Debates   Ottawa   May 20, 1971.
Mr. Jack Cullen (Sarnia-Lambton, Ontario.) Liberal.
     "I want to deal primarily with one area to show the problem that would be faced by an immigration officer, and why the department commissioned a study of this particular matter. Although it is somewhat foreign to my own field, I want to talk about architects...Architects in Canada, as we know, plan and design private residences, office buildings, theatres, public buildings, factories and other structures, and organizes the services necessary for their construction. They consult with a client to determine size and space regulations, and provide information regarding costs, design, materials and equipment.
...Architects have other problems to meet, such as those caused by the changing seasons we have in Canada. How can an architect from the state of California, knowing nothing about winter conditions in Canada, claim he is in a position to plan the types of buildings that we need."
(From: Request for copy of a study regarding development of guidelines to establish Canadian Equivalence of Foreign Degrees and Diplomas.)

2.)  The government of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau expropriated all the of buildings across from Parliament Hill on Wellington, and along Sparks Street Mall in 1973, in order to save them; and to expand the Parliamentary Precinct:
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa    July 20, 1973.
Hon. Jean-Eudes Dube (Minister of Public Works) Liberal.
     "Mr. Speaker, for a number of years it has been recognized that Parliament faces a severe space problem creating a limitation of its effective operation. As Parliament has become, through its committees and in other ways, even more involed in all aspects of the nation's life, it has become much more a year round operation and space available has fallen behind its needs as they have developed in the modern era.
    "Moreover, concern has been expressed about the danger of visual encroachment on the beauty of the present parliamentary precinct, which is one of the great symbols of Canada. We must ensure that nearby developments do not adversely affect it and furthermore, we have an opportunity, I believe, to enhance the present precinct by enlarging and therefore completing it in a fitting manner.
     "To properly house the expanding requirements of Parliament for generations ahead in a way that would both compliment and preserve the existing beauty of the Parliament Buildings we must enlarge the present parliamentary grounds.
     "I wish therefore to announce Mr. Speaker, that I have today, on behalf of the government, filed a notice of intent to expropriate the land and buildings in the area bounded by Wellington Street, Elgin Street, Sparks Street and Bank Street. The purpose of this expropriation is as I have indicated to protect the environment of Parliament from any development which could adversely affect it...The property of the United States Embassy has been excluded from this expropriation but discussions are well advanced for its acquisition. (Emphasis mine.)
     "I should like to add a few words, Mr. Speaker, with respect to the existing properties and especially the Sparks Street Mall. It is the government's intention that until Parliament's needs have been fully defined there will be no disturbances whatsoever of the existing properties. This will be especially true of the commercial operations on Sparks Street....I want to assure everyone involved that on the Mall it will be business as usual."

3.) Senate Bill S-203 was introduced in November 2019 by Senator Serge Joyal. The Bill has already passed the Second Reading and will stop any demolition, alteration, facadism, infil developments etc. of historic buildings along Wellington and Rideau Streets known as the Parliamentary Precinct.

4.)  The design competition is international and the I.M. Pei Company of New York City and a Spanish firm have already signed onto the project. This is completely unacceptable, a foreign individual should not have the power to strip Canadian Maple Leaf Flags from government buildings (the Barbarians always stripped flags and nationalistic symbols from villages and towns they invaded and eventually destroyed.) Also, a foreigner should not have the power to build office towers that are taller than the Parliament Buildings' Peace Tower; demolish Classified Federal Heritage Buildings or Recognized Federal Heritage Buildings; remove the names of significant individuals from an ediface; and wrench Canada's Coat of Arms from the entrances.

5.)  Ottawa is the Capital City of Canada, and taxpayers from all across the country fund the National Capital Commission--- a Crown corporation that privatizes federal buildings and changes the landscape of the city. The City of Ottawa should not be so eager to acquiesce to the demands of Public Works and the NCC, by changing zoning laws and encouraging the construction of high rise buildings on the Sparks Street Mall --the Councillor for Somerset Ward wants to animate the Mall by permitting the construction of high-rise residential towers.
 Deputy Prime Minister Erik Nielsen designated the Experimental Farm, LeBreton Flats, the Natural Resources Canada complex on Booth; the Greenbelt and many other sites "National Interest Land Mass" properties, to protect them from redevelopment, and to stop the City from using the NCC as a land bank. The City has identified 13,800 acres of the Greenbelt that could be removed from the Greenbelt and used for housing. The LeBreton Flats, Tunney's Pasture, Confederation Heights and vacant land along Woodridge Crescent near Bayshore Mall are also being redeveloped.

6.)  The American Embassy is located on Sussex Drive, Canada's Mile of History, and Sussex Drive is a ceremonial route. The embassy looms over the surrounding landscape and is nicknamed "The Battleship" and "The Bunker." I believe that US President Bill Clinton designed the embassy because it resembles the William J. Clinton Library and Museum in Little Rock, Arkansas.

7.)  Canadian politicians have always encouraged the participation of home-grown architects in national projects:
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa  April 28, 1965.
The Hon. Mitchell Sharp (Minister of Trade and Commerce) Liberal.
     "Habitat '67 can best be described as a housing complex rather than an apartment building. It will be constructed on the Expo '67 site by the Canadian Corporation for the 1967 World Exhibition...Moshe Safdie and Associated Architects are the ...designers of the building...The design was not the result of an architectural competition."

8.)  The Department of Public Works does not seem to have any respect for historic buildings that are part of its inventory. The Art Deco" Paul Martin Sr. Federal Building" on Ouelette Street in Windsor, Ontario was given away for $1 dollar to the City of Windsor. Most of the southern part of the Sparks Street Mall was sold to the NCC and then privatized---the Thomas D'Arcy McGee Building is a Larco property and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation is renting their premises.

9.)  A foreign or Canadian architect may not respect the history or culture of my country. Larco Investments, owners of the Chateau Laurier Hotel and McGee Building on the Mall; the Dominion Building on One Front Street West in Toronto and the Hotel Vancouver, demolished an Arthur Erickson home in West Vancouver, where Warren Beatty and Julie Christie lived during the filming of "McCabe and Mrs. Miller". Another Erickson home in West Vancouver was a filming location for the recent "Twilight-New Moon" movie:

Graham House is gone.

The Edward Cullen House.

Dow's Lake Park, Ottawa.

The National Capital Commission was known as the Federal District Commission.
House of Commons Debates    Ottawa   March 3, 1938.
Mr. Thomas Langdon Church, Conservative.
     "If we look at the work done by the federal district commission we find, in the western section, it includes: Island Park, the Rideau Canal, Echo Drive; Dow's Lake Park; Confederation and Lake Flora Park; Val Tetreau Park and Central Park, Bronson Avenue and Somerset Street parks.

The Dow's Lake Park.

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House of Commons Debates    Ottawa   September 23, 1949.
Mr. James Garfield Gardiner (Minister of Agriculture). Liberal.
     "The other evening the hon. member for Winnipeg North asked a question with regard to the central experimental farm in Ottawa. I am informed that the size of the farm is 1,194.4 acres, made up in the following way:
---The old original farm, 468 acres.
---the Caldwell farm of 300 acres, purchased some time ago and added onto it.
---the Scott farm of 65 acres.
---the Booth farm of 361.4 acres, making a total of 1,194. 4 acres."
"There have been discussions from time to time of the advisability of retaining the farm in such close proximity to the city of Ottawa...the argument up to date has always been that it is a real asset to the city, to the eastern part of Canada and to a very considerable extent to the people of Canada as a whole.
When people, particularly from agricultural areas, come to the capital they can go out and see the latest experiments being carried on at a place close to the city. If it were ten or fifteen miles away many people would not go near it or would not be able to find the opportunity to go. Most people who come from the outlying sections of Canada look upon the farm as being one of the sights that they want to see while in Ottawa and I have no doubt that many of them carry away beneficial ideas in connection with agriculture that otherwise they would not get."
Federal Directory of Real Property website.
Ottawa Research and Development Centre.
Crown Owned.
Primary Purpose - Agricultural Research and Management.
Address - 960 Carling Avenue, Ottawa Centre, Ontario.
Land - 425.6000 ha. or 1,051 acres.
Building Count - 88.
Record Last Modified - December 20, 2018.


                                                 

The National Capital Commission does not want "the masses" to have green space.

House of Commons Debates    Ottawa    February 13, 1987.
Mr. Jean-Robert Gauthier (Chief Opposition Whip; Whip of the Liberal Party) Liberal.
     "Mr. Speaker, I have approximately six petitions from constituents and visitors to the national capital who wish to present a grievance. With respect to what is known as the Rideau Hall grounds, these people say that the decision to close Rideau Hall grounds, made by the National Capital Commission, Department of Public Works, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Office of the Governor General without prior notice;
 that the closure of this attractive and tranquil park affects thousands of visitors from across the country who held Canada's uniquely accessible Rideau Hall as a symbol of the trust, openness and democracy of which Canadians are justly proud; and that area residents from the entire national capital region who have used and enjoyed the grounds of Rideau Hall, recognizing the security concerns that prompted the closure decision, cannot accept a blanket closure of the 120-acre park to public access." (Note: The park now encompasses 79 acres; what happened to the other 41 acres between the years 1987 and 2020?)
When His Excellency the Right Hon. Ray Hnatyshyn became Governor General of Canada in 1990 he reopened the gates.
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The National Capital Commission refuses to consider preserving the LeBreton Flats as a National Urban Park, despite calls from politicians John Manley, John Baird and a New Democratic Party MP:
House of Commons Debates    Ottawa   October 22, 1969.
Mr. Barry Mather:
     "Is the Government of Canada giving favourable consideration to the establishment of a national park at the LeBreton Flats area in Ottawa?"
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Major's Hill Park expansion.

From "Dreams of Major's Hill Park" (1969-70.) Urbsite. The land was sold to the American Embassy.

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Mile Circle Park near Rockcliffe.
House of Commons Debates    Ottawa    April 9, 1986.
Mr. John Barry Turner (Ottawa-Carleton) Progressive Conservative.
     "Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to present another petition signed by 34 residents of the National Capital Region who are very much opposed to the National Capital Commission's proposal to turn the Mile Circle into an embassy row. They indicated that Mile Circle was designated in 1925 by the Ottawa Improvement Commission as a national park. (Note: More than 4,000 signatures were collected on petitions.)
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa      June 17, 1986.
Mr. Don Boudria (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, Ontario) Liberal.
     "Mr. Speaker, today at noon close to 200 people took part in a demonstration on Parliament Hill demanding that the Tory government leave the Mile Circle Park the way it is - a park for the people of Canada to enjoy. The park has been in existence for 71 years, and we do not want the Government to turn it into a building site for the US Embassy."
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Commissioner's Park at Dow's Lake. I'm sure that several companies are anxious to get their reptilian claws into this valuable real estate. King Willem Alexander and Queen Maxima never visited this sacred ground during their recent visit to Canada. The Dutch Royal Family always attended commemorations at the park---Queen Juliana, Prince Bernhard, Queen Beatrix and Princess Margriet.
The Tulip Festival is offering virtual tours of the event, which is probably a kiss of death to any live, real, interactive event in the future. Local politicians without any sense of vision, or accountability to our children and grandchildren are ruining a prime tourist location: Dow's Lake, the Farm and Little Italy. How do you even sleep at night, knowing that Carling Avenue (my street), Preston Avenue, Bayswater, Booth, land behind the Adult High School and many other sites will be bombarded with:
---noise pollution
---light pollution
---traffic congestion
---intensification-"In the next decade the near west of Ottawa will see tens of thousands of  new residents." Councillor Jeff Leiper.
---more high-rise condos
The city's tourism industry will be adversely affected, and thousands of animals will lose their habitat. You will not see any white flag of surrender in front of my door. This is my territory, my 'hood that you want to irrevocably change.

"My street" Carling Avenue, Ottawa during Canada Day celebrations, July 2019. It is a 4 lane highway. Not one car was nearby when I took this picture.

 THEY DO NOT CARE ABOUT US. I am surprised that the Experimental Farm was not encircled by chain link fences to banish the public from the property. WE, the people of Canada, own the Farms on Carling and 1740 Woodroffe.
-- Public Works and Canada Lands Company are planning to sell thousands of government buildings, in my opinion, because "public servants can now work from home".
--- we collectively own Gatineau Park, the Greenbelt, the Rideau Canal; LeBreton Flats; all of the federal museums; Mooney's Bay; Confederation Heights and Tunney's Pasture.
Museum paintings and artifacts will be sold off  because virtual tours are now available. The paintings will probably be sold off by the Crown Assets Disposal Corporation or at auction houses in London, England and New York , Sotheby's and Christies.
 During the 1960's my generation detested anything "phony" - imitation lawn grass; musicians who pretended to play musical instruments (my brothers threw my Monkee albums out the window and cars drove over them, because the Monkees had a backup band); a soft drink commercial proclaimed that Coca Cola was "the real thing."
Virtual reality is phony, fake, an imitation, artificial and plastic. A City of Ottawa document is claiming that "green space does not have to be green" in order to program us into accepting concrete plazas.
A parkette is a mini park less than 1 acre in size. You can take your parkettes, Ottawa politicians, the capital city of Canada will never embrace the notion of mini-parks and a proliferation of 50-storey condos that line both sides of Carling.

12 acres of the 50-60 acres that were donated to the Ottawa Hospital have been rezoned "mixed-use" to facilitate the construction of high rise apartments. The $4 million dollar Dow's Lake parking lot was also a gift and underground parking is being considered. The cafeteria annex designed by Hart Massey will be demolished, as well as the South Azimuth on the Observatory grounds. Maple Lane and Prince of Wales Drive will have to be widened to accommodate an increase in traffic. Former Councillor Katherine Hobbs, residents of Little Italy and the Civic Hospital Neighbourhood Association are trying to save Queen Juliana Park.
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                   "The Central Experimental Farm should remain an open area in perpetuity." A March 17, 1954 Privy Council Cabinet Conclusion approved by Prime Minister of Canada Louis St-Laurent.

Books, movies and songs that celebrate Canada's railway history.

Books
The National Dream (1970) and The Last Spike (1971) by Pierre Berton.
Steel of Empire: The Romantic History of the Canadian Pacific, the Northwestern Passage of Today (1935) by J.M. Gibbons.
A History of the Canadian Pacific (1923) by H.A. Innis.
The People's Railway: A History of Canadian National (1992) by Donald MacKay.
Movies
Son of Lassie - starring Peter Lawford.
Canadian Pacific - (1949) Randolph Scott, Jane Wyatt.
Songs that are on YouTube.
Canadian Railroad Trilogy by troubadour Gordon Lightfoot.
Movin in (from Montreal by Train) by Stompin' Tom Connors. The video was filmed in 1973 at the Parkdale, Toronto station.
Canadian Train Song by Deryl Dale.

Nova Scotia singer and song writer Hank Snow recorded 140 albums. YouTube photo.

Documentaries
Festival Express (1970) Starring Janis Joplin, Grateful Dead, Ian and Sylvia, the Band.

The CN pavilion, Expo in Montreal. Unknown individual, Senta Berger and Robert Wagner.
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My grandmother thought that American singer Boxcar Willie was a real freight hopper. During the Great Depression of the 1930's men and boys traveled on railway cars looking for work. Many individuals disembarked at Jasper, Ontario and walked or hitchhiked to my grandparents mansion. My grandmother always gave them odd jobs, including milking the cows, picking apples, harvesting hay or mowing the grass. My grandmother also gave the men cash and provided lavish meals. During the Depression my grandfather was a Bank of Nova Scotia manager and a gentleman farmer.

Clothing.

During the 1980's train conductor overalls were popular for babies and toddlers.

The friend who is standing on my right is wearing an engineer's cap. I was on a Canada Post loading dock, Higinbotham Building, Lethbridge Alberta. 1973.

Nationalize the CPR and re-nationalize the CNR.

Long before the Crown corporation was privatized it was abandoning routes and demolishing stations. The mandate of the Canadian National Railway was to unite this country and to provide a link to remote locations. And both of the companies were obligated by law to transport passengers and freight.
House of Commons Debates  Ottawa  June 7, 1973.
Mr. Reginald Belair (Cochrane-Superior).
     "Madame Speaker, last week mayors, citizens and myself strongly argued against the CNR's intention to cancel the  Northlander train from North Bay to Toronto. We have emphatically pointed out that the CNR should not victimize the citizens of northern Ontario by cutting off a transportation service that was affordable to seniors, students, the handicapped and those who have to travel to Toronto for specialized medical attention. The northern travel grant covers only one-half of their travel costs, which are prohibitive to most.
While bus transportation is available it is most uncomfortable during the 15 hours it takes to get to Toronto. The CNR's mandate is to ensure isolated regions of this country are linked to urban centres where specialized services are offered. The need to subsidize the Northlander run will always exist and senior governments have the moral obligation to continue this vital rail transport service for us."
House of Commons Debates  Ottawa  April 1, 1974.
Mr. Frank Oberle (Prince George-Peace River, Alberta.)
     "Government takeover of CPR is a possibility, Transport Minister Jean Marchand said in the Commons March 21...He spoke after NDP leader David Lewis urged nationalism of the "entire shebang" of the CPR. Mr. Marchand said "I did not say no immediately."...Let me go into this matter a little bit. It was proposed that the federal government buy all the rail beds that exist in Canada, whether they belong to the CNR, the CPR, the BCR or the Northern Alberta Railway."
House of Commons Debates Ottawa  March 21, 1974.
Mr. David Lewis, New Democratic Party.
     "When one considers the present national transportation policy based on the false concept of profit-making, we realize, to use the words of Pierre Berton, that the national dream has, in this country, become a national nightmare....We propose that Canadian Pacific Limited be brought under public ownership. When I say this, I am talking not only about the rail operation, I am talking about the whole shebang..."
Some hon. Members:
     "Hear, hear!"
Mr. Lewis:
     -the entire economic empire which they built as a result of Canadian grants. Everybody knows the history, and if they don't they should. Everybody knows about the millions of dollars, the hundreds of millions in grants and subsidies which the Canadian people have given CP, the millions of acres of land. As a result of these gifts from the Canadian people, CPR not only owns:
---an airline, a shipping line; a trucking line;
---a telecommunications network;
---a large company in Trail and other parts of British Columbia;
---Cominco; the Pine Point Mine in the Northwest Territories;
---other properties all over the country through another subsidiary;
---an oil company.
I urge that we bring the CPR under public ownership. If CPR remains a private corporation concerned with making more and more profit, then it will continue in the future, as it has in the past, to sabotage - and I do not use that word lightly, but quite deliberately-every attempt to achieve a national transportation policy that seeks to serve the interest of Canada and not the profits of the CPR."
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Canadian Pacific Limited Hotels in 1974.
Royal York- Toronto, Ontario.
Chateau Frontenac - Quebec City, Quebec.
Chateau Montebello - Quebec.
Palliser - Calgary, Alberta.
Chateau Lake Louise - Alberta.
Banff Springs - Alberta.
Empress - Victoria, British Columbia.
Hotel Vancouver - British Columbia.
Chateau Champlain - Montreal, Quebec.

Comments by Member of Parliament Bill Blaikie about the Canadian National Railway and the CPR.

House of Commons Debates  Ottawa   November 8, 1982.
Nationalize the CPR.
Mr. William Alexander (Bill) Blaikie (Winnipeg-Bird's Hill, Manitoba); New Democratic Party.
Mr. Blaikie:
     "The CPR, by recently laying off 1,100 workers at its shops in Winnipeg when there is plenty of rolling stock to repair, is certainly not demonstrating any faith in Canada and can hardly be said to be preparing to take advantage of a future economic recovery...It appears that the CPR does not really expect a recovery...Therefore I move, seconded by the Hon. Member for Winnipeg North (Mr. Orlikow) that the CPR for once to act like a decent corporate citizen and, failing that, that the CPR be nationalized so that finally we might have a railway system in this country which serves the public interest."
House of Commons Debates Ottawa  March 1, 2002.
     "Mr. Speaker, the behaviour of Canada's railways continues to concern both the railroaders and the general public. CN in particular has become a Canadian railway in name only, increasingly run by American managers only here for a short career move. Jobs are being funneled into the United States...the next casualty may well be Symington Yards in Winnipeg with CN proposing to move a portion of its marshaling to Wisconsin. When will the government act to stop this tragic gutting of a once proud Canadian institution, a gutting I might add that it started with this ridiculous, treacherous and traitorous privatization of the CNR?"
    

In perpetuity-the CNR and the CPR were obligated to provide services for Canadians forever.

That includes both passenger and freight transportation.
House of Commons Debates Ottawa December 2, 1969.
Mr. Howard Edward Winch - -New Democratic Party.
Mr. Winch (Vancouver East),
     "... I have at hand the details of what is now the section of the CPR on Vancouver Island, known as the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway. In order to get that railway from Esquimalt to Nanaimo, the government of British Columbia and the government of Canada turned over for nothing, not only hundreds of thousands of dollars---$750,000 to be exact---but also 1,600,000 acres of the finest land of Vancouver Island; and not only land. Let me read from the contract what the railway was given when it was granted these 1,600,000 acres. It was granted with the land "all resources on, thereon and thereunder."...Why, sir, were those things given? For what purpose were they given?
They were given so that in return we might have a transcontinental railway to carry freight and passengers in perpetuity. (emphasis mine.) I said in perpetuity. I say that any move by the CNR or the CPR to renege on the promise of maintaining a national transportation system means they are breaking their contract with the subsequent governments of Canada and the people of Canada."
House of Commons Debates Ottawa  November 18, 1977.
Suggestion to Crown on reversion of railway rights-of-way.
Mrs. Simma Holt (Vancouver-Kingsway). Liberal.
Mrs. Holt:
     "The CPR was to provide passenger service to this country in perpetuity."

House of Commons Debates  Ottawa   November 21, 1981.
Mr. Gordon Edward Taylor (Deputy Whip of the Progressive Conservative Party).PC.
Mr. Taylor (Bow River).
     "On October 23, 1981 the western wing of the Transport Commission ordered that the CNR and CPR, and I quote, "shall abandon the branch line from Rosedale to East Coulee" (8.8 miles.)Under what authority was this made?"...
     "Madame Speaker, there are millions of tons of coal in the East Coulee area and Allied Chemicals Canada has a plant on the route. I would like to point out to the Minister that in 1929 an act was passed by the Parliament of Canada under which Parliament confirmed an agreement between the CPR and the CNR, dated June, 1929, to operate this line "in perpetuity." This statute has never been repealed, it is still on the law books...Will the Minister review this situation and have the said order rescinded, because it is completely contrary to the statute on the law books of Canada."
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House of Commons Debates  Ottawa   March 25, 1982.
Mr. Gordon Edward Taylor Progressive Conservative.
Mr. Taylor:
     "The CPR entered into the Crow's Nest Pass Agreement with the federal government in 1897. As part of the agreement, the CPR agreed to maintain the Crow rate in perpetuity. Does that not mean forever? It did not just mean until 1982. The CPR received $3.6 million plus a number of other benefits in return for its promise to build a line into the rich coalfields of British Columbia.:

The Dominion Coalblocks near Fernie, BC. The 20,234.2800 ha. property is still Crown-owned (by the people of Canada) as of 2017. However, there were attempts to sell it off in 2013 and a few years ago. Natural Resources Canada "divested" the  Booth Street buildings and land in Ottawa; and they are debating the future of the Dominion Observatory campus across the street.

"There are many reasons why the CNR should remain a publicly-owned corporation."

"In fact, the CPR should be nationalized as well in order to have one national railway system in Canada." Mr. Lorne Edmund Nystrom, New Democratic Party, February 9, 1978.
House of Commons Debates  Ottawa   February 9, 1978. 
     "When the CPR was formed it was given $25 million in cash on an outright gift basis; it was given 25 million acres of land; it was given other private railways that became part of the CPR in our country, and it was given all kinds of various rights and gifts by the federal government of this country. The CPR has been able to expand into several other businesses...It is involved in land development through Marathon Realty; it is involved in the airline business through CP Air; it is involved in the resource industry through Cominco; it is involved in oil through CP Oil."
     "When we consider CN we see the reverse situation. Instead of being given all kinds of gifts and subsidies, we find that the CNR was really formed when five railways in this country went bankrupt:
the Intercolonial Railway
the National Transcontinental Railway
the Grand Trunk Railway
the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
the Canadian Northern Railway.
...I want to say at the outset that I am in favour of this bill, which will take much of the debt from the CNR and put it on an equal footing with the CPR...
Let me now say a few words about my fear regarding the privatization of the CNR.
From the statements I have heard from the president of the CNR, Minister of Transport (Mr.Lang) and other officials of the railway and government, one of the objectives is to gradually sell off the CN. They will start doing that by selling off the more profitable aspects of the railway, that is, by taking away some of its profitable branches. They have already set up Via Rail and are now talking about  reorganizing other branches such as the hotel end...I maintain this should not be done...

There are many reasons why the CNR should remain a publicly owned company. In fact, the CPR should be nationalized as well in order to have one national railway in Canada. A transportation system should provide a basic service to people. It should not be existence simply to provide a profit to its shareholders. If the railway system is publicly owned then decent transportation will be provided to the various regions of our country.
If that system is privately owned, its main concern will be the making of a profit. I do not believe in that, but it is the motivation of the free enterprise system.
Transportation should not be organized in that way. If it is, there will be a greater concentration of people in the huge urban centres such as southern Ontario, metropolitan Montreal and the lower mainland of British Columbia. At the same time there will be fewer people living in the farm regions, the small towns, the Atlantic provinces, the North and other areas which are distant from the urban centres.
I hope parts off the CNR are not sold off. If they are, the ones sold off will be the profitable ones and the ones retained will be lose which are losing money. If the CNR and CPR are amalgamated and operated as a Crown corporation then it could be used as a major planning device for our economy and would assist in diversifying our population. Most Canadians live in three or four of the larger populations centres. This creates all kinds of problems in terms of crime rates, the noise of the big city, transportation problems and the hustle and bustle. Most of our big cities are built on the best farmland...If the urban centres are expanded then more farm land is paved over. By taking away the grain and oilseeds industries, Canada will not be self-sufficient in the production of food."

Princess Diana in the Chateau Laurier Hotel, Ottawa, 1983.

American aviator and inventor Howard Hughes lived in Vancouver's Bayshore Hotel during the year 1972.

John Lennon and Yoko Ono recorded the song "Give Peace a Chance" at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel, Montreal, Quebec. (Montreal Gazette photo)
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           The English rock band Led Zeppelin was booked into the Churchill Arms Motel on Carling Avenue, Ottawa, 1970.

   

                                                               

A real Zeppelin hovered over the Chateau Laurier, 1930. (Ottawarewind.com.)

CNR Toronto - Alleged agreement to demolish Union Station.

House of Commons Debates    Ottawa   November 16, 1971.
Mr. John Gilbert (Broadview) New Democratic Party.
     "Has the CNR entered into any agreement with Metro Development Centre to sell Union Station in Toronto and, if so, does the federal government agree with the demolition of Union Station?"
Hon. Donald Jamieson, Liberal.
     "Mr. Speaker, the hon. member I believe is aware that it is a consortium that is planning what is commonly referred to as Metro Centre. It has the full support of the government. We have given a good deal of assistance to the main parties concerned to get it going. One of the objectives is a new terminal, and I believe this involves the destruction of Union Station, but I assume that the decision whether it is to be destroyed or not would be up to the municipal..."
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa  December 2, 1971.
Mr. John Gilbert (Broadview) New Democratic Party.
     "Mr. Speaker, why is it up to the municipality of the city of Toronto to determine the destruction of Union Station in Toronto? May I remind the hon. members that this Union Station land is comprised of approximately nine acres, is owned by the city of Toronto but is subject to a renewable lease of 21 years, in perpetuity, to the railway companies."

Union Station on Front Street, Toronto, Ontario. Wikipedia photo.

Timeline
1927 - The railway station is officially opened by the Prince of Wales, Prince Edward.
1969 - CNR and CP plan to redevelop the railway lands. From 1969 until 1975 individuals and groups fight to save the station, including the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario and future mayor of Toronto John Sewell, who created the "Save Union Station Committee."
1975 - Union Station is designated a Classified Federal Heritage Building by the Federal Government of Canada.
2000 - The City of Toronto purchases the building. The building is no longer protected by the "Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act" because of the following loophole:
"Only designated railway stations that are still owned by a railway company under federal jurisdiction are subject to the Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act."

PWGSC and NCC parks and green spaces.

House of Commons Debates   Ottawa    November 25, 1968.
Mr. Walter Dinsdale, (Brandon, Manitoba), Progressive Conservative.
     "I think the hon. member will agree that the national parkways, the experimental farm and many other specialized and beautiful park areas are supported by the people of Canada through public funds expended by the National Capital Commission whose estimates we are now discussing."
Mr. William Arnold Peters, (Timiskaming, Ontario.) New Democratic Party.
     "Our national capital should be developed in a way acceptable to Canadians who visit it from all parts of Canada. We rent, buy and expropriate property to build a national capital plan. But what happens in Ottawa, every time some joker gets an idea that he wants to build a high rise building in Ottawa, the City changes its zoning. In effect the city seems subject to the plans of two or three entrepreneurs."
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National Capital Region parks in 1983.
PWGSC.
---Major's Hill Park.
---Plouffe Park.
---Land, proposed American Embassy next to Major's Hill Park.
---Jacques Cartier Park.
---Rideau Falls parkland.
---Confederation Park.
---Garden of the Provinces Park.

NCC.
Arboretum located at the Farm.
Gatineau.
Greenbelt.
Rockcliffe Park.
Lot: St. Bernadette Park.
Brebeuf Park.
Mooney's Bay Park - should be returned to the NCC.
Hog's Back Park.
Vincent Massey Park.
Nepean Point Park.
Lacasse Park.
Kingsview Park.
Fontaine Park.
Linear Park.
Leamy Lake.
Richilieu.
(from: My January 2, 2019 blog.)
Parks that were not mentioned in the 1983 document:
Commissioner's Park, Dow's Lake, Ottawa.
Mile Circle near Rockcliffe.
LeBreton Common.

The privatization of the greatest Crown corporation in my country's history.

CNR-Possibility of sale to private enterprise-government position. Many Members of Parliament were vehemently opposed to any sell-off.
House of Commons Debates  Ottawa   January 25, 1977.
Mr. Edward Broadbent (Oshawa-Whitby, Ontario.) New Democratic Party.
     "Mr. Speaker...will the minister confirm to the House the government's intention to turn over the CNR to private enterprise."
     "Considering the fact that CNR came into being just after World War 1 because a number of private railways went broke and wanted the people of Canada to bail them out, and considering that even the profits that CNR allegedly is going to make in 1976 are dependent upon a $200 million subsidy from the people of Canada, will the minister assure the House that the government will not as a matter of policy sell off part of our great national railway system to the private sector after countless decades of subsidy coming from the people of Canada."
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Two years before the sale of the Crown corporation to mainly foreigners:
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa   March 19, 1993.
Mr. Dingwall (Official Opposition House Leader; Liberal Party House Leader) Liberal.
     "With respect to Canadian National (CN), (a) How many hectares of undeveloped land does it presently own.
(b)  How many hectares of developed land does it own. (c) What is the total market value of the land."
Hon. Jean Corbeil (Progressive Conservative).
     "The management of the CNR Company advises as follows: (a) and (b) CN as a whole has approximately 150,000 hectares of land. Most of this inventory is in rail operating use. At CN Real Estate, the real estate arm of Canadian National there are approximately 14,000 hectares of undeveloped land in the inventory at the present time, of which 8,700 hectares are abandoned rights-of-way, 5,000 hectares are other rural and miscellaneous lands and 308 hectares are developed sites. Assuming that developed land includes buildings, these buildings are measured in square feet, not acres or hectares. At the present time, CN Real Estate wholly owns approximately 726,000 square feet of office buildings, multi-use properties, retail and parking structures in major markets, and has an ownership interest in an additional 3,400,000 square feet of income producing properties.
c.) The total market value of all of the land holdings is approximately $900 million dollars."
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Why did a foreign prince own Canada's Eiffel Towers and Taj Mahal's.
Chateau Laurier - Ottawa, Ontario.
Royal York Hotel - Toronto, Ontario.
Jasper Park Lodge - Alberta.
Empress Hotel - Victoria, B.C.
Chateau Lake Louise - Alberta.
Banff Springs Hotel - Alberta.
Hotel Macdonald - Edmonton, Alberta.
Hotel Beausejour - Moncton, New Brunswick.
Queen Elizabeth Hotel - Montreal.
Chateau Frontenac - Quebec City, Quebec.
Palliser Hotel, Calgary.
Bessborough - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
Hotel Vancouver - B.C.
Le Manoir Richelieu - Quebec.
Why does the Bill Gates company CN Rail own 6,000 Canadian bridges, tracks, tunnels, marshaling yards, railway stations, land, air rights...
Why does the Crown corporation Via Rail have to pay CN and CP Rail millions of dollars a year to use tracks that were built and paid for by Canadian taxpayers.

The 1988 Privy Council Order-in-Council that transferred the CNR hotels to the CPR.

Bill Gates and CN Rail are selling reversionary property.

CN Rail and CP Rail properties were never granted to the railways in perpetuity. The land reverts to the Crown, to the people of Canada, when the company no longer uses the land for railway purposes.

A few years ago CN announced that real estate in Montreal and Calgary would be sold to a third party. That is not permitted:
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa  April 29, 1974.
Mr. Hamilton (Qu'Appelle-Moose Mountain), Progressive Conservative.
     "Has the Minister a legal opinion from the Department of Justice as to their ownership of the land underneath the rails? I put my question another way by saying that under the Charter of the CPR and under the Charter of the various railways that make up the CNR, this land belonged to the Crown and was granted to the railways for the sole purpose of transportation. When any railway gives up land and no longer uses it for the purpose for which that Charter was granted, all that land reverts to the Crown which was the grantee."
Mr. Stanley Basford (Minister of State for Urban Affairs), Liberal.
     "Mr. Chairman, Ministers are not supposed to give legal opinions. I will make some inquiries about the point...The expropriation section provides that the Minister of Public Works is authorized to acquire by way of expropriation land that is or was occupied as part of the railway undertaking by the company."

The 1984 Report of the Auditor General of Canada, Section 6.90.

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CN Rail divested reversionary property in 2018 that should have been returned to the Crown, to Canadians:

 2018 Annual Report, page 6/37.

---On April 6, 2018, the Company completed the sale of land located in Calgary, Alberta, excluding the rail fixtures, for cash proceeds of $39 million dollars.

---On April 9, 2018, the Company completed the transfer of its capital lease in the passenger rail facilities in Montreal, Quebec for cash proceeds of $115 million dollars.

---On September 3, 2018, the Company completed the sale of property located in Montreal, Quebec for cash proceeds of $40 million dollars.

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The Government of Canada wanted to pay CN $1 dollar to reclaim the Quebec Bridge which is located between Quebec City and Levis, Quebec:
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa     March 24, 2010.
Mr. Brian Jean:
     "Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to speak to Motion No. 423, regarding the acquisition of the Quebec Bridge from the Canadian National Railway. Motion No. 423 - "That, in the opinion of the House, the government should purchase the Pont de Quebec for one dollar and commit to quickly finishing the repair work so as to respect its importance as a historical monument and a vital transportation link for the Quebec City region."
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House of Commons Debates   Ottawa    April 30, 1974.
Mr. MacKay, Progressive Conservative.
     "In committee we had a lot of discussion about the status of hotels vis-a-vis the railway. How does the Minister envisage the situation  where a hotel might be situated quite close to a railway and perhaps have some railway facilities in it or adjoining it? Is this going to be considered as a railway property in the sense that the Minister has discussed?"
Mr. Basford: (Minister of State for Urban Affairs) Liberal.
     "Mr. Chairman, again it would depend...If it is a hotel owned by a railway and not connected with railway lands, then it would not be on railway lands. If it is a hotel over a railroad station it is obviously built over railway lands."
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The proposed demolition of Union Station, Ottawa.

The former Grand Trunk Railway Station.(Wikimedia Commons.)

House of Commons Debates Ottawa   May 3, 1965.
Mr. John A. MacLean (Queens) Progressive Conservative.
     "Is it the intention of the government of Canada to retain Union Station in Ottawa for some suitable purpose as well as for its historic value when it's use as a railway station has terminated?"
Hon. Lucien Cardin (Minister of Public Works) Liberal.
     "I am informed by the National Capital Commission as follows: The Parkin Plan for the redevelopment of Confederation Square which was approved in principle by the Government calls for the removal of the Union Station together with the buildings between Union Station and Sussex Street. The Plan proposes the widening of the Canal basin at this point and the construction of a convention hall."
House of Commons Debates Ottawa June 29, 1966.
Mr. Bell (Carleton) Progressive Conservative.
     1.)  On what date is it now expected that the new railway station in the national capital will be put into regular service?
     2.)  When is it expected that the railway tracks now leading to the existing Union Station in Ottawa will be lifted?
     3.)  What are the present plans with respect of the existing Union Station and when is it proposed that they shall be carried out?
     4.)  What is the proposal for the utilization of the railway right-of-way leading to the existing Union Station when and what is the time schedule for its commencement and completion?
Mr. John B. Stewart (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Works) Liberal.
     1.)  It is expected that the new railway station at Hurdman will commence regular service on July 1966.
     2.)  It is expected that the railway tracks leading to the existing Union Station in Ottawa will be lifted in the first week of August 1966.
     3.)  The plan is for demolition at an early date, but the definite date has not been fixed.
     4.)  The right of way leading to the Union Station will be utilized as a route for an N.C.C driveway linking up with Colonel By drive at Main Street.


    

The expansion of Canada's National Parks.

House of Commons Debates    Ottawa   February 15, 1916.
Mr. William James Roche (Superintendent - General of Indian Affairs; Minister of the Interior) Conservative.
     "Our national parks in the Rocky Mountains are: Jasper park; Rocky Mountain park; Waterton Lakes park; Buffalo park; Elk Island park; Yoho and Glacier park and Revelstoke."
House of Commons Debates    Ottawa      March 21, 1952.
Mr. Dinsdale - Progressive Conservative.
     "What are the names of the national parks in each of the provinces of Canada?"
Mr. Winters (Minister of Resources and Development.)
     "Prince Edward Island National Park. Nova Scotia - Cape Breton Highlands "; New Brunswick - Fundy "; Ontario - Georgian Bay Islands "; Point Pelee "; St. Lawrence Island "; Manitoba - Riding Mountain "; Saskatchewan-Prince Albert "; Alberta- Banff "; Elk Island "; Jasper "; Waterton Lakes ";
British Columbia - Glacier "; Kootenay "; Mount Revelstoke "; Yoho ".
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa   May 17, 1965
Hon. Arthur Laing (Minister of Northern Affairs and Natural Resources) Liberal.
     a.) Cape Breton Highlands, Nova Scotia.
     b.) Banff National Park - Alberta.
     c.) Elk Island " " - Alberta.
     d.) Fundy " " - New Brunswick.
     e.) Georgian Bay Islands - Ontario.
     f.) Glacier " " - British Columbia.
     g.) Jasper " " -  Alberta.
     h.) Kootenay " " - British Columbia.
     i.)  Mount Revelstoke " " - British Columbia.
     j.)  Point Pelee " " - Ontario.
     k.) Prince Albert " " - Saskatchewan.
     l.)  Prince Edward Island " ".
    m.) Riding Mountain " " - Manitoba.
    n. )  St. Lawrence " " - Ontario.
    o.)   Terra Nova " " - Newfoundland.
    p.)   Waterton Lakes " " - Alberta.
    q.)  Yoho " " - British Columbia.
House of Commons Debates  Ottawa    February 7, 1966.
Mr. Hopkins - Liberal.
     "Has consideration been given by the government to the establishment of a Rideau National Park or to the extension of the Thousand Islands National Park to include the Rideau?"
Hon. Arthur Laing,(Minister of Northern Affairs and National Resources). Liberal.
     "The government has received representations to investigate the establishment of a Rideau national park...Specific consideration has not been given to extending the St. Lawrence Islands national park to include the Rideau area."
House of Commons Debates     Ottawa     October 22, 1969.
Mr. Barry Mather (New Westminster, British Columbia) New Democratic Party.
     "Is the Government of Canada giving favourable consideration to the establishment of a national park at the LeBreton Flats area in Ottawa?"
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa    February 3, 1971.
Mr. W.C. Scott (Victoria-Haliburton).
     "Mr. Speaker, when the Minister is reviewing the parks in Ontario will he consider the Trent Canal as a national park?"
House of Commons Debates  Ottawa   February 12, 1975.
Mr. Hnatyshyn - Progressive Conservative.
     "Is the government committed to the establishment of a national park in the grasslands area in Southern Saskatchewan and, if so, on what date shall such a park be established?"


                                                               

Bill Gates and CN Rail should return historic properties to the citizens of Canada.

Especially if they are located in the National Parks. CN Rail acquired 6,000 bridges, railway tracks and buildings when the Crown corporation was privatized in 1995.
Bridges
Meikle River Bridge, Alberta.
Peace River Bridge, Alberta.
Uno, Manitoba.
Grand Trunk, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
James Street between Thunder Bay, Ontario and the Fort William First Nation.
Ardley Bridge, north of Delburn, Central Alberta:

Ardley CN Rail Bridge, Central Alberta.

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Andrew Carnegie was another railroad baron. The Carnegie Foundation built more than 100 Canadian public libraries.

The Carnegie Public Library, Smiths Falls, Ontario. I spent years in this building to escape from intolerable living conditions.

The birthplace of Lucy Maude Montgomery was sold to a farmer.

Lucy Maude Montgomery wrote "Anne of Green Gables." (photo is from tourismpei.com.)

House of Commons Debates  Ottawa   June 8, 1951.
Mr. Winfield McLure - Progressive Conservative.
     "What I was going to speak about, Mr. Chairman, was an historic site in the Cavendish-Rustico national park of Prince Edward Island. Every member of this committee knows...that associated with the national park is the home and birthplace of our great authoress, Lucy Maude Montgomery Macdonald, one of the greatest that Canada has ever produced. Her birthplace is quite near the national park. At one time it was in the possession of the federal parks; then by some kind of shuffle it gradually came under the government of the province...Then the provincial government offered this property for sale and it was not advertised a great deal.
Finally the birthplace of this great authoress was sold to a retired farmer, a fine gentleman...Today I had several letters from the people in that location asking me to bring the matter again to the Minister's attention."
The Government of Canada reclaimed the property and Green Gables is a Parks Canada National Historic Site.

Ottawa's Dominion Observatory.

The Dominion Observatory, a Classified Federal Heritage Building.

Natural Resources Canada properties.The interior of the Observatory House, Building Number 2 was totally gutted last year and modernized, and an extension was added. It would be worth at least $200,000 on the open market. The South Azimuth will be demolished because the Civic has to widen Maple Drive. 

The entire Observatory Campus, except for Building Number 2 will disappear:
1.)  Most of Canada's astro and geophysical buildings are gone.
House of Commons Debates    Ottawa        February 12, 1968.
Mr. Jack Davis (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources) Liberal.
     "Federal observatories for geophysical observations are located in the provinces of:
Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Quebec,
Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, British Columbia and
Northwest Territories.
Astronomical observatories are located in the provinces of Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. In addition, a meteoric observatory and recovery program is being prepared in Saskatchewan. In the province of Quebec fully owned seismic observatories are located in Poste de la Baleine, St. Fereol and Schefferville. In addition, seismic observatories at Montreal are supported by the Department of Energy, Mines and Resources and contribute to the federal network."
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2.)  Federal buildings lose all heritage protection when they are privatized. They can be sold to a foreign country, given away to a municipality (the Paul Martin Federal Building in Windsor, Ontario) or flattened.

3.)  Most of the Natural Resources Canada buildings on the north side of Carling Avenue have been taken over by Canada Lands Company. The Dominion Observatory campus is directly across the street, and is part of the NRCan portfolio.

4.) A River Ward politician is hoping that the the astrophysical buildings will be saved.The Mooney's Bay bridges and 16 mature trees in River Ward were never saved.

Mooney's Bay bridges, trees and grass. Gone. A National Capital Commission property rented to the City of Ottawa.

5.)  Astronomer Arthur Covington wrote a letter to Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in 1970 asking the Prime Minister to save the Observatory.

6.)  During the mid-1990's at least 55 of the 85 buildings on the Farm were slated for demolition.

7.)  The federal government is always "divesting" Crown property. Canada is one of the richest countries in the world. But Parks Canada wants to privatize $8 billion dollars worth of infrastructure in our National Parks, supposedly because they cannot afford to maintain the bridges, highways, etc.
 The Department of Foreign Affairs is saving money by sharing  embassies with Great Britain.
 Gordon Campbell sold Macdonald House in London, England for 1/2 a billion dollars to a developer from India, who promptly demolished the embassy to build condos.
 According to a report by Deputy Prime Minister Erik Nielsen, Agriculture Canada owned 1 Million acres of land in 1985. PWGSC has an ongoing, ever expanding list of properties for sale.
During the 1960's the government of Canada was creating, and not selling, National Parks, post offices, museums, Expo...
House of Commons Debates   Ottawa  November 2, 1964. 
Mr. Basford - Liberal
     "Has a site been selected for construction of the Queen Elizabeth 11 Observatory, and, if so, where is the site?"
Mr. Benidickson (Minister of Mines and Technical Surveys.) Liberal.
     "Mr. Speaker, it will be located on Mount Kobau in the southern Okanagan Valley in the province of British Columbia."

The Mooney's Bay controversy.

YouTube video - NCC Annual Public Meeting-Floor Audio, streamed live, June 27, 2016.
From 32 minutes and 43 seconds into the video:
     "Thank you for letting me speak, Mr. Chair and CEO, members of the board. Nice to meet you all tonight. I'm here to draw concern to your attention and it isn't that you're not more open than you used to be. But for those of you who live in Ottawa and listen to the news in Ottawa there has been a land development approval that was done by the NCC in the last month that has created a bit of a backlash. And the way you are re looking at the location of the Civic Hospital on the Experimental Farm, I would like you to account, not tonight, to account for the decision to approve the City of Ottawa's proposed development on Mooney's Bay Park, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site."
"There was no public consultation and the information has only come out in bits and pieces.
And I believe if you want to be an accountable organization when you have a decision that yields or garners a public backlash the way this particular decision has, and if you have been looking at the papers you know that it has, it is the duty of the organization to review the decision and to account and that is to explain how you fulfilled your responsibilities at this level. And you say its not an NCC responsibility, its a city responsibility. The city also hasn't reviewed or accounted for their decision.

Petition:savemooney'sbay.Change.org.
Sign the Petition - Save Mooney's Bay.
Save Mooney's Bay - Posts|Facebook.
Ottawa: Protect Mooney's Bay from Development.

80 protesters oppose change to Mooney's Bay Park.

Stanley Park in Vancouver, British Columbia is a National Park.

House of Commons Debates    Ottawa       1930/05/09.
Mr. Henry Herbert Stevens, Conservative:
     "I am one of those who are exceedingly anxious to do everything that is humanly possible to preserve our national parks for the people...Take Stanley Park at Vancouver. It is a large area for a city park, I think 900 acres. It is leased by the Dominion government to the city of Vancouver."
1986 - Potential transfer of title from the federal government to the City of Vancouver.
House of Commons Debates  Ottawa  February 4, 1986
Right Honourable John N. Turner (Leader of the Opposition-Liberal.)
     "Mr. Speaker, in April of this year Canada will join the citizens of Vancouver in celebrating the centennial of that great city. Along with Expo itself, a major focus of Vancouver's celebrations will be in Stanley Park, the largest urban park in the country.
    " From time immemorial Vancouverites have claimed the park as their own. Our native people have lived and hunted in the park, and generations of British Columbians have enjoyed its trees, its water, and the beautiful view of the snow-capped mountains. Perhaps no park in Canada evokes such civic pride and such a feeling of identification as Stanley Park. The park belongs to Vancouver in all but name. In fact, it belongs to the federal government.
     "As a symbolic gesture to the city I am asking the Prime Minister (Mr. Mulroney) to recognize the historic association of the people of Vancouver with Stanley Park and to dedicate the property over to the citizens of Vancouver in its centennial year."
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Prime Minister of Canada John Turner and my Dad George Shaw, who was a speechwriter for Members of Parliament (see my May 24, 2018 blog "The de Havilland Saga."); a United Press International reporter and a member of the National Press Club of Ottawa.

                                                                             


                                 

Do not privatize Canada's National Parks.

House of Commons Debates    Ottawa     March 19, 1998
Canada Parks Agency Act,
Mr. Rick Laliberte (Churchill River, Saskatchewan, NDP):
     "(The Canada Parks Agency Act) is a capitalist form of commercialization of our national parks and eventual privatization... where the hon. members take their children, pay at the toll gate to lift the Stornoway gates up, enter Walt Disney national park and come out and negotiate the price with the minister."
An hon. member:
     "The people will be the custodians, not private enterprise."
Mr. Nelson Riis (Kamloops, B.C. NDP).
     "...Members can probably tell that I do not support Bill C-29 at this point...This bill involves a great deal of Canada;
31 national parks, 786 historical sites, a number of historical canal systems, 661 sites that are managed by third parties that are ecologically or environmentally significant, 165 heritage railroad stations, 31 heritage river systems and others...If someone is a wealthy person or from a high income family and someone tells them that in order to use the parks they will have to pay $10 dollars to canoe down the river, $20 per night for firewood and $50 to park a tent for a day or two, it is no big deal. However, if we pass this legislation we are going to put access to Canada's national parks out of the reach of many, many Canadians...Increasingly we will be turning the parks into some kind of quasi-business operation. That is not what Canada is all about."
Mr. Howard Hilstrom (Selkirk-Interlake, Manitoba, Ref.)
     "Mr. Speaker, I am quite interested in the financial aspects of this bill. Is there a possibility of foreign interests getting involved in our parks system?"
Mr. Nelson Riis:
     "Obviously the answer is yes...We lack a national park policy that makes any sense just as we lack a national waterways policy or a national highway policy."
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The Rideau Canal is a national waterway. It is possible that the Rideau Canal could be sold to the Walt Disney Corporation. Steamboats would then navigate the waters:

The Disney Corporation was given the licence to market the RCMP image.
Winnie the Pooh was a black bear cub from White River, Ontario:

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The Canadian National Parks Act  S.C. 2000, c.32
Clause 4 (1)
The National Parks of Canada are hereby dedicated to the people of Canada for their benefit, education and enjoyment, subject to this Act and the regulations, and the parks shall be maintained and made use of so as to leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future Canadians.
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The following landscapes are designated as National Interest Land Mass properties, and they will never be redeveloped for mass residential, commercial and institutional purposes.And they will never be privatized. Small farms, and federal museums, libraries and research institutions are acceptable.
1.)  Central Experimental Farm, Ottawa.
2.)  Greenbelt Research Farm, 1740 Woodroffe Avenue.
3.)  Gatineau Park.
4.)  The Greenbelt - approximately 14,000 ha, in 1988.
5.)  Pts of Wellington in front of Chateau Laurier and Conference Centre and land to the E of the Conference Centre; also lands N of Wellington between the Rideau Canal locks & Major Hill Park. Also, the approach to the Alexandra Bridge & the new Art Gallery site.
6.)  Lady Grey Drive and the Ottawa River W of Sussex Drive (behind the Royal Canadian Mint.)
7.)  Rideau Canal lands from downtown to Hog's Back Rd.
8.)  8 Parcels of land E of Sussex (Mile of History) from Rideau Street to MacDonald Cartier Bridge.
9.)  Pt of the Mint property W of Sussex Drive.
10.) 4 parcels on Rideau River around City Hall. (The Ottawa City Hall is now the John George Diefenbaker Federal Building.)
11.)  2 Parcels W of Sussex Drive N of MacDonald Cartier Bridge, parking lot at Earnscliffe to waterlot.
12.)  LeBreton Flats.
(Google: "1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC".)