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