"The Greenbelt will remain in the public domain."

 2067 Greenbelt Vision Statement - "The Greenbelt will forever protect natural systems, agriculture and opportunities for outdoor recreation and will inspire Canadians and contribute to the sustainability and quality of life of Canadians in Canada's Capital Region." (Page 53/196.)

Prime Minister Mackenzie King and Jacques Greber envisioned the Greenbelt as a 50,000 acre living memorial to Canadian soldiers who were killed fighting in foreign wars. A 1945 Privy Council Order-in-Council prevents the sale or giveaway of this property: PC No. 6721 - "The Committee of the Privy Council have before them a report, dated 25th October 1945 from the Minister of Public Works, stating:

"...That under the authority of Order in Council PC 5635 of August 16th, 1945, an area comprising some 900 square miles, more or less, adjoining the City has been defined as the National Capital District and it has been decided to re-engage Mr. Greber to make a study of that area with a view of preparing plans for a suitable long-term development of such area as a National War Memorial." (The Greber Report of 1950, page 15/395.) (The cities of Ottawa, Ontario and Hull, Quebec are part of the 900 square mile National War Memorial-savecfbrockcliffe.)

Properties

• Commissioners Park at Carling Avenue and Preston Street
• Green's Creek Conservation Area
• Hornets Nest soccer fields
• Pine View Golf Course
• Mer Bleue Conservation Area
• Hylands Golf Club
• The Log Farm
• Bruce Pit 
• Conroy Pit
• Lime Kiln (Trail) 
• Stoney Swamp Conservation Area
• Wesley Clover Park - The former Nepean National Equestrian Park and the former Ottawa Municipal Campground.
• The 19th Tee Driving Range
• Airport land
• The Connaught National Army Cadet Summer Training Centre
• Shirley's Bay
• Agriculture Canada laboratories
• Farms
• Recreational centres

A front-page article in the Ottawa Citizen, October 8, 1974. "Danson says 'no' to housing on Farm, Greenbelt." A former head of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation wanted the NCC to sell 6,000 acres of the Greenbelt for 3 billion dollars. In a 2007 speech the builder proposed that the National Capital Commission sell off about 6,000 acres to create a belt inside the belt for medium-density housing. Land for a secondary or alternative Greenbelt would be purchased by the taxpayers.

Scenic parkways.

"Federal, scenic highways and parks in the National Capital Region are dedicated to the memory of Canadian soldiers who died fighting in foreign wars. They will be owned by the citizens of Canada in perpetuity." (The Greber Report of 1950, page 228/395.)

"De-pave the Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway". An article in the Ottawa Citizen, February 25, 2014. "The impending removal from the parkway of hundreds of buses per day leads to the question of whether it makes sense to devote a huge portion of the city's prime riverfront real estate to a commuter roadway." 

The Conservative government of Ontario is planning to privatize many services at the brand-new hospital on the Experimental Farm. Maple Drive and Prince of Wales Drive are being reserved for emergency vehicles. Will the Queen Elizabeth Driveway and NCC Parkway be off-limits to private vehicles? Are they being de-paved and sold to real estate corporations? Will the Rideau Canal Parkway (QEDrive) be fenced off and reserved for hospital patients, employees and visitors?-savecfbrockcliffe. 

 Major cultural landscapes in Ottawa:

• Parliament Hill
• Major's Hill Park
• Rideau Hall
• Rockcliffe Park
• Queen Elizabeth Driveway 
• the Central Experimental Farm. "All dating from the 19th century, together they have played a key role in shaping people's image of the federal realm." (From: page 43/109, "Definition and Assessment of Cultural Landscapes of Heritage Value on NCC Lands." by Julian Smith and Associates, Contentworks, December 2004.)

Why the National Capital Commission should not ban vehicles on the Queen Elizabeth Driveway in my opinion-savecfbrockcliffe. The information below is from "Definition and Assessment of Cultural Landscapes of Heritage Value on NCC Lands" by Julian Smith and Associates, Contentworks, December 2004:

Description of Place

"The Queen Elizabeth Driveway is a principal organizing element in the urban design of Ottawa and is closely associated with Ottawa's Capital identity. In its original and current forms, it is also an important example of parkway urban design principles espoused by Frederick Law Olmsted and his followers at the turn of the 20th century. Its landscape design represents the contribution of several people, including:

• Robert Surtees and Alexander Stuart of the Ottawa Improvement Commission
• William Saunders, Director of the Central Experimental Farm
• Frederick Todd, a prominent landscape architect whose 1904 plan for the Ottawa Improvement Commission was gradually adopted as the Driveway was developed
• Herbert S. Holt, who recommended in 1915 that Todd's plan be implemented.

The values of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway Cultural Landscape are connected to two principal cultural ideas. The first is capital place-making. The second is urban beautification. The boundaries of the ideas coincide, strengthening the capacity of the landscape to express them and the NCC to manage them."

"The key physical component of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway cultural landscape is a 5.6-km scenic parkway, paralleling the Rideau Canal between the National Arts Centre and the Preston Street. The Driveway originally extended from Sapper's Bridge (near Wellington Street) to the entrance gates of the Central Experimental Farm, via a causeway across Dow's Lake. While the section north of Laurier Street was effectively dismantled for vehicular traffic in the 1960's with the construction of the National Arts Centre, the entire length of the route covered by the original driveway is passable by pedestrians and cyclists. For this reason, it should be included within the cultural landscape boundaries."

"Queen Elizabeth Driveway should also include its extension on AAFC land beyond Preston Street, through the Central Experimental Farm to the traffic circle. This section was developed after the causeway across Dow's Lake disappeared. The cultural landscape should also include all properties located immediately adjacent to the Driveway's current edge, even though these places (with the exception of the Cartier Square Drill Hall) are not under the custodianship of the NCC or any other federal bodies."

"Parkways were intended to be broad, park-like spaces containing a road connecting parks, or in the case of Ottawa, major federal institutions set within landscaped grounds. In doing so, the parkway served as an extension of its landscaped ends, not as the container for a road. In the 1910's and 20's, residences erected along the Driveway conformed to the picturesque aesthetic of the Driveway in terms of their scale, setbacks, plantings and style. The owners of these homes shared the ideals of the Ottawa Improvement Commission which, at the time, was a largely civic enterprise. Without the compliance of residents in the scheme, the western edge of the Driveway would have greatly diminished the park-like design of the whole."

"The Queen Elizabeth Driveway Cultural Landscape encompasses several NCC properties containing key character defining elements. These include:

• NCC land on either side of the road including Commissioners Park and Brown's Inlet.
• NCC land along the perimeter of Dow's Lake.

Cultural Landscape Value The value of Queen Elizabeth Drive lies in its association with:

• The creation of Ottawa's Capital identity.
• Parkway urban design principles as they evolved from the early- to the mid-20th century.
• Ottawa urban beautification projects.
• The value of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway also lies in its continuing contribution to:
• Urban design in Ottawa
• Capital identity, including its use as the location of activities such as the Tulip Festival and Winterlude. 

Several federal parkways in the National Capital Region in 1988:

• Ottawa River Parkway, Wellington Street to Carling Avenue - 254 ha
• Island Park Drive/Champlain Bridge - 15 ha
• Airport - 120 ha
• Eastern Parkway, Hemlock Road to Hwy 417 - 72 ha
• Eastern Driveway and Rockcliffe Parkway from Sussex Drive to Greenbelt - 255 ha
• Ottawa River shoreline proposed Voyageur Parkway - 84 ha
• Leamy Lake Park and part of the Philemon Wright Corridor - 285 ha (Google: 1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC.)

Proposed National Interest Land Mass properties:

• Experimental Farm Drive Corridor, Queensway to Experimental Farm - 76.0 ha
• Western Parkway Corridor, Carling Avenue to Queensway - 40.0 ha
• Alta Vista Corridor, Kitchener Avenue to Smyth Road - 69.0 ha
• Hull South Parkway, Lucerne Blvd to Gatineau Park - 275 ha
• Part of Philemon Wright Corridor - 103 ha

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House of Commons Ottawa June 1, 1970 Mr. Skoberg (New Democratic Party): "Is the Government of Canada, through the National Capital Commission, giving favorable consideration to the development of a plan which would eliminate automobiles from the down-town area of Ottawa?"

House of Commons Ottawa May 15, 1970 MP D. Gordon Blair (Grenville-Carleton): "I would like to direct a question to the Acting Prime Minister and I regret that I was not able to give him notice. Is the government aware of a statement or statements to the press by the Chairman of the National Capital Commission to the effect that he might close the national capital parkways in this region for a week for the strange purpose of proving their importance in carrying traffic? The second part of my question is whether the Acting Prime Minister can assure the House that the government will not permit the people of this area to be inconvenienced by the disruption that this extraordinary and senseless experiment would cause?"

Hon. G.J. McIlraith (Solicitor General of Canada) (Acting Prime Minister): "The statement has caused concern. I am very doubtful that the commission has any such authority under the National Capital Act passed by this Parliament."

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YouTube videos: "Ottawa Snow Drive and Walk" featuring the NCC Scenic Driveway, heritage buildings and the Fletcher Wildlife Garden.

"Snow Music "Color/Dance" with music by George Winston. The Queen Elizabeth Drive and the Agricultural Museum  are shown.

Land and waterways that will be owned by the citizens of Canada forever.

 "Land forming part of the National Interest Land Mass will be retained by the NCC on behalf of the government in perpetuity."

• Ottawa River Parkway, Wellington Street to Carling Avenue - 254 ha. The Ottawa River Parkway is known (for now) as the Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway.
• Gatineau Park
• The Greenbelt - 14,000 ha approximately
• Lebreton Flats
• Victoria Island
• Shoreline behind Parliament Hill
• Chambers Building, Elgin & Queen
• Confederation Square
• Pts of Wellington in front of Chateau Laurier and the Conference Centre and land to the E of the Conference Centre; also, lands N of Wellington between the Rideau Canal lock and the Chateau & Major Hill Park. Also the approach to the Alexandra Bridge and the new Art Gallery site. 
• Lady Grey Drive and the Ottawa River W of Sussex Drive
• Daly Bldg. corner of Rideau and Sussex
• 8 parcels of land E of Sussex (Mile of History) from Rideau Street to MacDonald Cartier Bridge
• Pt of the Mint property W of Sussex Drive
• 2 parcels W of Sussex Drive N of MacDonald Cartier Bridge, Parking lot at Earnscliffe to water lot. 
• 4 Parcels on the Rideau River around City Hall
• 4 Parcels E of Sussex Dr. between Stanley Avenue & Rideau Gate
• PM's residence
• 7 Rideau Gate (Guest House)
• G.G.'s residence, Rideau Hall
• Champlain Bridge, Island Park Drive
• Rideau Canal lands from downtown to Hog's Back Rd
• Rideau River land Green Island to Revelstoke Dr
• Airport Parkway 
• Eastern Parkway Hemlock Rd to Hwy 417
• Eastern Driveway and Rockcliffe Park from Sussex Drive to Greenbelt
• Lower Duck Island Ottawa River (Google: 1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC-land holdings)

The Farm on Carling Avenue.

1974 - The Chairman of the National Capital Commission wanted 700 acres of the Farm for housing. Agriculture Minister Eugene Whelan told Mr. Fullerton the land would be transferred "over my dead body."

A 1974 Ottawa Journal article.

1987-1988 - 91 acres of the Farm were sold to the Municipality of Ottawa. "On July 8th, 1987, Regional Council approved the purchase of approximately 91 acres of vacant land on the west side of Merivale Road north of Baseline Road, formerly part of the Central Experimental Farm." 

Federal Minister of Agriculture John Wise was totally opposed to the disposition of the land:

House of Commons Ottawa May 13, 1988 MP David Daubney (Ottawa West): "Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Agriculture. He will agree that the Central Experimental Farm partly located in my riding is the flagship of Agriculture Canada's excellent research effort and contributes greatly to the unique beauty and character of the nation's capital. Will he confirm for the House that the Government has no intention of disposing of any of the Experimental Farm proper, and in particular that part bordered by Merivale and Fisher Avenues in the City of Ottawa?"

Hon. John Wise (Minister of Agriculture): "Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the Hon. Member's continuing interest in the future of the Experimental Farm here in Ottawa. I want to indicate to him that Agriculture Canada, my Department, has no plans or thoughts whatsoever concerning disposing of any portion of that property at any time. There is no question about that."

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1998 - The National Capital Commission paid $1 dollar for the western annex of the Experimental Farm at 1740 Woodroffe, 4,500 acres during the 1950's. ""Behind closed doors, with no one allowed to watch and listen, members of the NCC ponder making deals with Nortel, battling El Nino and buying the Experimental Farm for $1 dollar." by Tom Spears, the Citizen, August 24, 1998.

Is the Central Experimental Farm part of the Greenbelt?

 The annex at 1740 Woodroffe Avenue and Commissioners Park are still part of the National Interest Land Mass.

House of Commons Ottawa May 25, 2010  Mr. Marcel Proulx (Hull-Aylmer, Liberal): "...The national capital region has something that sets it apart from other national capitals: green space in its core. This space is the result of a planning process that dates back many years to the time of the Greber plan...But our green space is facing increased pressure and being sized up for other purposes...We are the trustees and custodians of our region's heritage, and it is our duty to protect the greenbelt."

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The National Capital Commission cannot remove the designations National Interest Land Mass and National Historic Site of Canada from the 1,000 acre Farm on Carling Avenue. A municipal hospital, LRT, private corporations, high rise residential towers and parking garages cannot intrude upon this federal property. That is owned by all the citizens of Canada.

"The Central Experimental Farm is designated in its entirety as part of the National Interest Land Mass. These lands are essential for the long-term symbolism, functions, physical structure and natural and cultural landscapes of the Capital. 

National Interest Land Mass - The NILM consists of "National shrines, the river and canal banks, the Gatineau Park and the Greenbelt in the National Capital Region...considered essential to the realization of the Vision of the Capital...There are 37 individual parcels of property in this category currently owned by the NCC totaling some 44,200 ha in area"

"Land forming part of the NILM will be retained by the NCC on behalf of the government in perpetuity, for purposes which lie at the core of the NCC's mandate, and will be managed by the NCC with little or no further management by the Treasury Board Secretariat." (Google: 1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC-Land Holdings.)

The Greenbelt Research Farm is an endangered landscape.

1.) A former head of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, William Teron, said "a million people" could live in the 50,000 acre Ottawa Greenbelt.

2.) The Greenbelt is not protected. "Between them, the NCC and the City of Ottawa can do whatever they want with this land. We believe this green space must be protected from developers." House of Commons Ottawa May 25, 2010: Member of Parliament Marcel Proulx (Hull-Aylmer, Liberal.)

3.) Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Minister of Public Works Erik Nielsen designated the Greenbelt a "National Interest Land Mass" in 1988 to preserve the land. But the NCC has the power to remove the NILM designation. (The NCC removed the Experimental Farm from the NILM, several acres are no longer a National Historic Site of Canada, and the Arboretum and Ornamental Gardens will be encroached upon.)

4.) The City wants 13,700 acres of the Greenbelt, and that includes the Farm at 1740 Woodroffe Avenue, Commissioners Park and land adjoining the Rideau Canal and the scenic parkways. Environment Minister Jim Prentice and Environment Minister John Baird refused to transfer the properties.

5.) Suggestions were made to turn the Experimental Farm, Greenbelt, Gatineau Park, etc. into national urban parks. Jacques Greber never wanted provincial and municipal governments involved in maintaining or owning federal greenspaces because "90% of their political funding is from developers."

6.)The National Interest - Why many federal properties are off-limits to provincial and municipal governments-savecfbrockcliffe--From: The 1975-1976 National Capital Commission Annual Report:

"Up until recent years, the NCC and its predecessors were in effect the only long-range planners for the National Capital Region. But as Ottawa, Hull and their surrounding communities grew, other jurisdictions began to assume their own and proper responsibilities for planning. Naturally, administrative conflicts have resulted."

"Under the National Capital Act, the Commission is responsible for protecting and promoting the national interest in the Capital. The objectives and purposes of the Commission are set out in the Act: "To prepare plans for and assist in the development, conservation and improvement of the National Capital Region in order that the nature and character of the seat of government of Canada may be in accordance with its national significance."

"It has been argued by some that only municipal authorities have the responsibility for promulgating and implementing region-wide planning in the National Capital Region. The Commission holds that this view is unconstitutional. Provincial and municipal authorities have responsibility for local concerns in their respective jurisdictions in the region. But their responsibilities cannot be construed as representing the national interest. Neither can they be substituted for national concerns and interests. If Parliament had not wanted to see a national character for the Capital, it would not have created an agency for that purpose, and there has been such an agency since 1899."

7.) The 4,500 acre Greenbelt Research Farm was the western annex of the Central Experimental Farm:

The National Capital Commission paid $1 dollar for the Research Farm. More than 500 Agriculture Canada employees lost their jobs.

December 2017.

Federal politicians who wanted to save Ottawa's Greenbelt:

• Liberal MP David McGuinty
• Liberal MP Marcel Proulx
• Senator Mike Duffy
• Liberal MP Mauril Belanger
• Liberal MP Marlene Catterall  
• Conservative Environment Minister Jim Prentice
• Conservative Environment Minister John Baird  
• Mr. Walter David Baker: Grenville-Carleton (Deputy House Leader of the Official Opposition; Progressive Conservative Party Deputy House Leader) House of Commons Ottawa October 7, 1974.
• The Hon. Barnett Danson (Minister of State for Urban Affairs) House of Commons Ottawa October 7, 1974.
• Mrs. Beryl Gaffney (Nepean; Liberal) House of Commons Ottawa June 23, 1992.
• Mr. Jean-Robert Gauthier (Ottawa-Vanier; Liberal) November 3, 1981.
• Mr. Royal Galipeau (Ottawa-Orleans; CPC) June 7, 2012'
• Mr. Brian Jean (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities; CPC) April 1, 2008.
• Hon. Gordon O'Connor (Conservative) September 16, 2009.
• Mr. Don Boudria (Glengarry, Prescott and Russell; Liberal) August 11, 1987.

Photos that were taken in Alberta.

I am in a Canmore lodge.

 

Lola, Peace River.

Peace River Falls.

"Ottawa developer's big vision for Manor Park gets committee nod." by Kate Porter, CBC News March 24, 2022.

 

3,900 houses and apartment units will be constructed.

The Mile Circle in Ottawa.

1986 - In the House of Commons, MP's Jean-Paul Gauthier and Barry Turner express their opposition to the sale of Mile Circle to the American embassy. 

June 19, 2021:"Mile Circle and Aviation Museum Area Lands to be Preserved from Development" Rockcliffe Park News. "The following response was received to a request seeking confirmation that Mile Circle and lands to the east of Birch Street and lands around the Aviation Museum and the Rockcliffe Park Airport whose designations have been changed to allow for development will be preserved as green space."

February 11, 2023: "NCC plan for George -Etienne park includes Mile Circle." Manor Park Chronicle. "A 'medium scale facility' could be built on Mile Circle...A 13-kilometre stretch of the park has been identified as falling within the scope of the plan." 

Photographs that I took of Princess Diana at the Terry Fox Canadian Youth Centre in Manor Park on June 22, 1983. The Terry Fox property was privatized and sold to a real estate company called Manor Park Estates. The company is building thousands of homes and high-rise apartments in Manor Park.

The National Capital Commission can be prevented from giving away the Experimental Farm.

Senate of Canada Ottawa May 8, 2002 Senator Noel Kinsella---A Recall Mechanism: "Honourable Senators, I would like to make a few remarks with reference to this matter now before the Senate...This matter relates to the National Capital Act, which created the National Capital Commission. It seems to me we require a provision for a recall mechanism. Section 10 (20) of the (National Capital) act, which gives the power to the National Capital Commission to sell lands held in trust, could be amended by Parliament or a parliamentary committee upon the receipt for example of 1,000 signatures of citizens from any part of Canada."

The Reimagine Ottawa petition had 10, 632 signatures as of July 7, 2023. Save the Farm, call for an inquiry. Change.org Petition.

House of Commons Ottawa March 24, 1986 MP Jean-Robert Gauthier (Chief Opposition Whip; Whip of the Liberal Party) Ottawa-Vanier: Mr. Gauthier: "Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Deputy Prime Minister. Will he tell the House of Commons if it is federal policy to sell federally owned parkland?"

Mr. Jean-Robert Gauthier-Ottawa-Vanier: Request for government directive prohibiting sale of national parklands: "...NCC Chairman Jean Pigott recently said she wants to sell part of an Ottawa riverfront park known as Mile Circle to the United States of America for an embassy compound. Is the Government in favour of selling our natural parklands?"

The Fletcher Wildlife Garden, Arboretum, Ornamental Gardens, Macoun Memorial Garden, Historic Hedge Collection, Experimental Farm Woods and Queen Juliana Park are all federally-owned parklands. savecfbrockcliffe.

"The Experimental Farm forms a central park within a residential area of the City of Ottawa." (Greber Report of 1950, page 167/395.)

The Holt Commission of 1915 "Extensive parks and playgrounds were recommended including the acquirement of lands in the Laurentian Hills for a National Park, and the development of Dow's Lake and its adjacent land as a recreational centre was strongly urged." (Greber Report, page 199/395 and the article includes a photo.)

Todd Report of 1903  "A Capital City belongs to a certain extent to the whole country and should not be placed in such a position that any one man or company of men can have it in their power to seriously mar its beauty, and thus throw discredit on the nation. As a Capital City, the parks and open spaces should be numerous, and ample boulevards and parkways should skirt the different waterways as well as connect the principal parks and different public buildings." (Greber Report page 192/395.)

Designate the Lebreton Flats a National Park, do not convert Major's Hill into a Chateau Laurier annex and under no conditions consider Confederation Park the home for a stadium.