The Senate conducted an inquiry when Veterans Affairs land near Mooney's Bay, Ottawa was sold to a housing developer. Senate Inquiry - Proposal to Sell Moffat Farm, May of 2002. Debate on the inquiry of the Honourable Senator Anne Cools, calling the attention of the Senate to:
a.)" the public's need for the Senate and the Parliament of Canada to take into their cognizance the current conflict between Ottawa residents with their City Council and the National Capital Commission proposal to rezone a riverfront parkland to build a 244-dwelling housing development on that riverfront parkland;
b.) to that national capital parkland known as the Moffat Farm, a riverfront parkland on the heritage waterway the Rideau River, at Mooney's Bay, near the entrance to the Hog's Back Locks, all of which form a part of the ancient and historic Rideau Canal and the Rideau Canal Waterway System, a parkland which for decades has been held by the National Capital Commission as a commissioned public trust for its protection for the public good and for the public use;
c.) to the meaning in law of a commission, being that a commission is a public body with a public purpose, authorized by letters patent, an act of Parliament, or other lawful warrant to execute and perform a public office, and further, that the National Capital Commission is no ordinary entity, or no simple arm's length crown corporation but is a commission which is a peculiar constitutional entity, intended to perform a public duty;
d.) to the current land use designation zoning of Moffat farm, which is zoned as parkland, as are other Ottawa national capital parks such as Vincent Massey Park and Hog's Back Park, parklands whose maintenance and sustenance are of great importance and concern to Ottawans;
e.) to the National Capital Commission's contracted agreements with private developers, including that one with DCR Phoenix regarding the sale for development of the parkland, Moffat Farm, to the same DCR Phoenix, a private developer currently acting as the National Capital Commission's agent before Ottawa City Council and the Ontario Municipal Board in proceedings about the National Capital Commission's proposed re-zoning of Moffat Farm from parkland to residential zoning as to permit the National Capital Commission's sale of this parkland to private developers;
f.) to Ottawa City Council's unanimous decision on March 27, 2002 rejecting and soundly defeating the NCC/DCR Phoenix's proposal for re-zoning and development of the Moffat Farm parkland, to the city governments strong objection to the proposed development, being the building of 244 expensive, luxurious high-end houses on the Moffat Farm parkland, a parkland known for its environmentally sensitive lands;
g.) to the responsible Ministry's and the National Capital Commission's own protocol that holds that the National Capital Commission should defer to municipal government on planning issues and land use;
h.) to another motion overwhelmingly adopted by Ottawa City Council on April 10, 2002, expressing the City's wish to purchase the Moffat Farm park, also asking the National Capital Commission to honour City Council's decision and also asking the National Capital Commission to withdraw its own appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board;
i.) to that same City Council motion of April 10, 2002, which said:
WHEREAS the Moffat Farm has been in public ownership for the past 50 years, since its expropriation, and has, until 1999, been designated a Capital Park by the National Capital Commission;
AND WHEREAS the National Capital Commission determined that this property is surplus to national needs and intends to sell it;
AND WHEREAS the Moffat Farm is outside the General Urban Area and designated as Waterfront Open Space in the Regional Official Plan, which is land in, or intended to be in public ownership and intended for public recreation and environmental conservation uses;
AND WHEREAS the Moffat Farm has 'no right of development' at this time, being designated Major Open Space, Waterway Corridor and Environmentally Sensitive Area, zoning that offers the highest possible protection;
AND WHEREAS, in the Ottawa Official Plan, the Moffat Farm is designated as a District/Community Park, a use identified in the 1973 Carleton Heights Secondary Plan as a means to address inadequate parkland for this area of the City;
AND WHEREAS since 1973, the population of this community has doubled and available parkland has already decreased;
AND WHEREAS the City of Ottawa has a policy to acquire, where possible, waterfront properties that form the Greenway System and preserve these lands for public open space use;
THEREFORE IT BE RESOLVED that the City of Ottawa offer to purchase the entire Moffat property from the NCC at a price which will be based on its current and future use as a District Park;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City request the local Members of Parliament (National Capital Caucus) to urge the NCC to respect Council's unanimous decision to withdraw its appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board."
j.) to the growing disenchantment and disappointment of Ottawans who perceive the National Capital Commission's corporate culture as running roughshod over Ottawans with wanton disregard for local communities of which the Moffat Farm is only one of several which include Lac Leamy, Sparks Street redevelopment and others, all of which have resulted in diminishing public respect for the National Capital Commission and its proposals in the national capital area;
l.) to the public need for Parliament's study and review of the National Capital Commission in its entirety, including its role, structure, organization, operations, authorizing statute, its parliamentary appropriations, finances and its relations with Canadian citizens, especially Canadian citizens living in the Ottawa area, its land dealings, and its agreements with private developers selected by the National Capital Commission as recipients, buyers, of treasured historic lands."
