The uncertain future of 529 Richmond Road.

 529 Richmond Road includes Rochester Field, Maplelawn Manor and the walled garden. "NCC looks to revive 'controversial' Rochester Field development through land bank. The federal government has added the site at 529 Richmond Road to the Canada Public Land Bank" by Catherine Morrison, Ottawa Citizen, November 19, 2024.

   The Maplelawn Manor is a Classified Federal Heritage Building. That means nothing. Plans were underway to demolish the former train station on Rideau Street before Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau intervened. Prime Minister Trudeau and astronomer Arthur Covington prevented the demolition of the Dominion Observatory in 1970. Now the Dominion Observatory is again threatened with destruction, by a medical centre---private vehicles will be banned from Maple Drive on the Experimental Farm. And a city of Ottawa councillor is hoping that the landmark will be saved. 

1989 - Maplelawn was designated a national historic site by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada because of: "The quality of the house, but more particularly because its gardens are the best preserved of the few known surviving examples of early 19th century walled gardens in Canada."

1994 - The City of Ottawa protected the house and gardens through the Ontario Heritage Act.

Directory of Federal Real Property

Structure Number: 145030

Custodian: National Capital Commission

Property Number: 01524---Rochester House and Gardens

Interest: Crown Owned

Condition: Fair

Construction Year: 1831

Floor Area: 406.51 sq. m.

Occupancy: Fully Occupied

Address: 529 Richmond Road

Municipality: Ottawa

Province/Territory: Ontario

Federal Electoral District: Ottawa Centre

Census Classification: Rural

Rochester Field, 529 Richmond Road, Ottawa

The park is being redeveloped.

On November 19, 2024, 529 Richmond Road was added to the Canada Public Land Bank. "Canada is facing a housing crisis that is impacting lives and communities across the country. We need to build more homes, faster, to get Canadians into homes that meet their needs at prices they can afford." (Government of Canada lists federal lands for housing and new tools for builders.)

Amy's Corner by Amy Kempster Champlain Speaker, March 2004, Volume 23, Number 6:

"The land closest to our community is west and north of Maplelawn on Richmond Road. If the NCC wins the appeal (with the Ontario Municipal Board) they could then ask for a zoning amendment. Their appeal states that this parcel is not deemed to form part of the 'National Interest Land Mass'".

In his campaign literature our councillor suggested he would ask the city to obtain the Maplelawn field (Rochester Field) for a park. So perhaps he knew it was in danger of disposal."

Friends of Rochester Field

Westboro Community Association "Say goodbye to Rochester Field"

Official Plan and Zoning Amendment, Rochester Field, January 12, 2018:

1.) The City of Ottawa zoned the land as Parks and Open Space.

2.) The land encompassed 3.8 hectares or 9 acres.

3.) The field connects Richmond Road with the Parkway along the Ottawa River and is one of the remaining pieces of undeveloped land along Richmond Road. The land has been used by the community informally as a park and as a short-cut to the Dominion Transitway station for many years. (The Official Plan document is much longer,)

Commentary by the Ward Councillor Councillor Leiper provided the following comments: "For over a century, Rochester Field has been a jewel in Westboro. If a plan being rushed forward through City zoning by the National Capital Commission (NCC) proceeds, we'll lose the best parts of it forever. It's time to take a second look.

Rochester Field is a large NCC parcel that straddles the land from the Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway to Richmond Road. It is a barely maintained space. Through the years cow paths have been worn along natural desire lines as dog-walkers and people walking to the Dominion transit station have used the field, while the rest of it has lain largely fallow as habitat for various flora and fauna. It is a network connection in our City's greenspace between Byron Linear Park (soon to be revitalized), and the Sir John A. Macdonald Park.

"It is a large, natural park space in Kitchissippi Ward where greenspace is at a premium. Intensification in this part of the city has been rapid. Small homes on large lots are now being replaced with large homes on small lots as infill continues. We are losing permeable, green surface and trees to both infill and the proliferation of towers. Targets for intensification are being met in our ward as nowhere else in the city, and the effect on greenspace is increasingly obvious.

"The opportunity we have is to preserve a large piece of greenspace for the enjoyment of future generations of residents. When the City previously proposed not to allow development on the site, it was working in residents' interest over NCC objections. The development now being proposed is part of an agreement forged during a dispute over whether and what conditions the City could run the Confederation Line through the NCC's land in this corridor.

"In a memorandum of understanding that allows LRT to proceed the parties agreed to: settle the outstanding Ontario Municipal Board appeal by the NCC as it relates to Rochester Field by designating two-thirds of the northeast section of Rochester Field as 'General Urban' land use designation. The NCC acknowledges in this settlement that the remaining one third of the land area of the site on the western side will be retained as parkland with a 'Major Open Space' land use designation.

"Council was told specifically that the deal would retain a green corridor from Richmond Road to the SJAM.

"In 2015, the City and the NCC began to implement that agreement, but that process was put on hold while the NCC consulted about its larger park plan for the corridor. In the intervening months, that has become a plan that would cluster development along Richmond Road---six-to-eight story buildings that would hide the park behind mixed-use developments that will cut off forever the green corridor that we were promised. In the plan moving forward quickly through the approvals process, the greenspace won't be in the northeast at all. Residents are wondering whether and how the City could allow this to happen.

"It's time to press pause on the process. There is some legitimacy to the NCC's arguments that it needs certainty with respect to where it can build its proposed park. The LRT agreement includes $30 million in contribution to that, and the works that will be bundled in with the rail network to the benefit of taxpayers. It is in everyone's interest that the NCC receive the certainty it needs.

"But the long-term impacts of approving this plan, which clusters development in diametrically opposite the space where it was to have gone in the original deal, are too consequential to bludgeon through the City's processes.

"There are alternatives that would mitigate the impact of development in this parcel, if development is to occur at all. Residents, the NCC and the City are all owed the time to explore those. Council is bound to honour its commitments in return for the city-building benefits of moving ahead with light rail. But its commitments were clearly spelled out in black and white: We are under neither legal or moral obligation to approve zoning which meets neither the spirit nor letter of our pledge." (From: Official Plan and Zoning Amendments-Rochester Field, January 12, 2018. Pages 12 and 13 of 28 pages.)

City of Ottawa---Richmond Road/Westboro Secondary Plan, Amendment-June 24, 2009.

• Retain all usable public greenspace; (page 1/7)
• Increase recreational facilities. (page 2/7)
• Confirming all of the Rochester Field Maplelawn parcel and the Atlantis-Selby lands as major components of the greenspace network strategy. (page 4/7)
• Confirm the entire Rochester Field parcel as open space.(page 5/7)
• Heritage Buildings---City Council shall encourage the preservation and adaptive reuse of heritage buildings within the planning area, in keeping with the City of Ottawa's heritage policies. (page 7/7)  (I have included information from the Secondary Plan, that only pertains to Maplelawn and Rochester Field.)

 

"These are our buildings." Sold in 2007.

• Vancouver - 401 Burrard Street and the Sinclair Centre.
• Edmonton - Canada Place
• Toronto - Joseph Shepard
• Montreal - 4225 Dorchester West and 305 Rene Levesque West
• Ottawa - Thomas D'Arcy McGee Building on Sparks Street and Skyline Complex 

A YouTube video - "PSAC National President John Gordon, delivers speech." Comments by NDP MP Peggy Nash: "Our job representing Canadians on the Government Operations and Estimates Committee is to ensure that spending from the federal government is in the best interests of Canadians. We are the democratic custodians and stewards of the tax dollars paid by Canadians.

 So you would think, that with a sale like this, hundreds of millions of dollars of Crown assets, that we would be informed as to the details of such a huge sale that is going to affect the well-being of Canadians... Our parents and grandparents have worked very hard over the years and our tax dollars have paid for these buildings, for the assets of the people of Canada. These are our buildings."

Family members protest sale of Sinclair Centre, Globe and Mail, August 21, 2007. 

Janet Sinclair, daughter of the Hon. James Sinclair after whom the building is named. (Photo is from pressreader.com and Vancouver Sun.)

Government buildings that were recently sold or given away.

 House of Commons Ottawa February 9, 2001 MP Pat Martin (Winnipeg Centre, NDP): "The federal government owns 68,000 buildings."

A 2023 comment from the Department of Public Works (reposting) "Much of the government-owned Ottawa-Gatineau portfolio is obsolete. There is room for the private development sector to create new space." 

RCMP Headquarters.

Parks Canada cannot protect the Rideau Canal from inappropriate development.

Now Parks Canada wants to turn the Ottawa Greenbelt into a National Urban Park. A 2019-11-04 Parks Canada letter to UNESCO--- about projects that negatively impact the Rideau Canal:

• Given the number of planning and development applications and limited staff and resources, Parks Canada has limited capability to participate in the review and comment on municipal plans and selected waterfront land development activities. As well, resource constraints do not allow for full follow-up or monitoring of development to ensure that comments and agreements have been addressed and applied.
• Some municipal official plans do not yet fully recognize and protect the Canal's heritage values as there are no common waterfront land management objectives among Canal corridor municipalities. (Parks Canada does not have the staff or money to monitor a World Heritage Site and adjacent land.)

UNESCO had concerns about the following projects. Reposting

• Rideau Marina redevelopment (Kingston)
• Third Bridge Crossing (Kingston)
• Former Davis Tannery Brownfield Site Redevelopment (Kingston)
• Rideau Canal Crossing Pedestrian Bridge (Ottawa)
• Highway 417 bridge rehabilitation (Ottawa)
• Chateau Laurier proposed extension (Ottawa)
• The new Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus (For information Google: State of Conservation Report, Rideau Canal, May 2018.)

The Portsmouth Olympic Harbour greenspace.

 Before the 1976 Montreal Olympics, taxpayers of Ontario paid for this land. But there were conditions--- "The City of Kingston agreed to take over responsibility for maintenance at the end of the Olympics, and said it would be open to the public." Now the property has been sold to condo developers.

The Greenbelt will never be a national urban park.

 An Ottawa Citizen article by Ken Rubin, December 9, 2024: "The National Capital Commission has been in active discussions with Parks Canada for months about creating a national urban park in Ottawa." This deal between the NCC and Parks Canada should be rejected for many reasons:

1.) "Parks Canada to look at divesting highways, bridges, dams---cash strapped agency examining whether to divest non-heritage assets worth $8.3 Billion." CBC News, August 26, 2017. Rideau Canal infrastructure is on the sell-off list--- 52 dams, 47 locks and many bridges.

2.) National Parks in British Columbia may be transferred to the province:

3.) The Greenbelt is protected by federal legislation: MP Pierre Lemieux: "...Bill C-37 introduces the definition of 'National Interest Land Mass'."

4.) National Interest Land Mass properties cannot be sold to foreign entities. However, Canada's urban and national recreation centres are fair game: 

House of Commons Ottawa March 19, 1998 MP Rick Laliberte (Churchill River) NDP: "Our parks are a sacred sanctuary, they are part of our national identity. The Canadian Parks Agency is a capitalist form of commercialization of our national parks and eventual privatization...Where the hon. members take their children, enter the Walt Disney national park and come out and negotiate the fee."

House of Commons Ottawa March 19, 1998 MP Nelson Riis (Kamloops, BC.) 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 (for example the Rideau Canal), 661 sites that are managed by third parties that are ecologically and environmentally significant, 165 heritage railway stations and 32 river systems."

MP Howard Hilstrom (Selkirk-Interlake, Manitoba) Reform: "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?"

MP Nelson Riis: "Obviously the answer is yes. We lack a national parks policy, just as we lack a national waterways policy or a national highway policy."

Canada's Capital Greenbelt Master Plan, National Capital Commission, November 2013,page 38/196 "The 20,600 hectare Greenbelt belongs to the People of Canada. Compared to other Greenbelts that tend to have more privately owned than public land, the opportunities are vast to build upon the progress of the last 60 years that led to Canada's Greenbelt of today."

5.)An urban or metropolitan park is a municipal park. The City of Ottawa Corporation wants one quarter of the Greenbelt for residential and commercial purposes: "It is estimated that of the 20,800 ha in the Greenbelt, at least one quarter, 5,560 ha, might be eligible for development if the Greenbelt designation is removed. This estimate assumes that lands currently designated for agriculture and other rural activities that are currently wedged between two adjacent urban areas would be redesignated for urban uses." (City of Ottawa White Paper on Development in the Greenbelt, May 27, 2008.)

House of Commons Ottawa October 26, 2009 Evidence Al Speyers, Alliance to Save Our Greenbelt: "Jacques Greber had no confidence in lower levels of government. He felt that the only way to have a greenbelt and to keep it was that the most senior level of government in Canada would have to establish it, keep it, maintain it and preserve it. Cities are essentially vehicles for development."

6.) The Rouge National Urban Park Act raises many red flags---

• Several different organizations own the Rouge. The citizens of Canada are sole owners of the Greenbelt.
• The Rouge has many wind turbines and highways.
• Promoters want the Ottawa Greenbelt modeled after the Rouge. All the measures that protect the Ottawa land may be removed---the Privy Council Orders-in-Council; National Interest Land Mass designation; Part 1V and Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act. The property cannot be sold, subdivided or given away to settle a land claim. "The Greenbelt is like an Emerald Necklace and exists as a memorial to the Canadians who gave their lives in the Second World War". From: The National Capital Commission--- Have your say about the Greenbelt's Future, June 10, 2009.

7.)  "Land forming part of the National Interest Land Mass will be retained by the National Capital Commission on behalf of the government in perpetuity." (Google: 1988-09-re-NCC Land Holdings.)

Government property cannot be used as a land bank.

 Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Deputy Prime Minister Erik Nielsen created the National Interest Land Mass designation in 1988: 

• to prevent government entities (especially the City of Ottawa) from using federal property as a land bank
• to stop the privatization of Crown assets that belong to all Canadians.

National Interest Land Mass holdings in Quebec in 1988

• Gatineau Park-32,000 ha or 79,073 acres. Gatineau Park is part of a 900 square mile memorial to Canadian soldiers who were killed fighting in foreign wars. 
• 3 parcels- Ottawa River shoreline at Portage Bridge and beside Eddy Street.
• Parts of Laurier St. in front of Place du Portage.
• Ottawa River shoreline at Alexandra Bridge approach
• Hull wharf Ottawa River lot only.
• Museum site Laurier Ave.
• Ottawa River shoreline S of Brewery Creek.
• 8 parcels on E side of Brewery Creek.
• Ottawa River shoreline proposed Voyageur Parkway.
• Leamy Lake Park and part of the Philemon Wright Corridor.

National Interest Land Mass holdings in Ontario in 1988

• The Greenbelt-14,000 ha or 34,594.753 acres. In 1998 the land mass encompassed 45,000 acres.
• Part of LeBreton Flats N of Transitway-65.37 ha or 161.53279 acres.
• Agriculture Canada experimental farms on Carling Avenue and 1740 Woodroffe, the Greenbelt.
• Victoria Island-6.35 ha.
• Shoreline behind Parliament Hill-2.91 ha.
• Chambers Bldg. Elgin and Queen.
• Confederation Square-0.15 ha.
• Pts of Wellington in front of the Chateau Laurier and Conference Centre. Also lands N of Wellington between the Rideau Canal Lock & the Chateau Laurier & Major Hill Park. Also, the approach to Alexandra Bridge & the new Art Gallery site.
• Lady Grey Drive and the Ottawa River W of Sussex Drive.
• Daly Building, corner of Rideau & 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.
• Small park on W side of Sussex Drive S of MacDonald Cartier Bridge. Parking lot at Earnscliffe and water lot.  
• 4 Parcels on the Rideau River around City Hall. (City Hall is now the John George Diefenbaker Building.)
• 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.  
• Ottawa River Parkway, Wellington Street to Carling Ave.
• Champlain Bridge, Island Park Drive
• Rideau Canal land from downtown to Hog's Back Road-90 ha or 222 acres.
• Rideau River lands 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. (For all information Google: 1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC Land Holdings.)

Lady Grey Drive behind the Royal Canadian Mint and other notable buildings. The 1920's photo is from the National Archives.

The disposal of federal property for housing and migrant shelters.

 NCC looks to revive controversial Rochester Field development through land bank by Catherine Morrison, Ottawa Citizen, November 22, 2024. "The federal government has added the site at 529 Richmond Rd. to the Canada Public Land Bank." The site is next to Maplelawn.

Threats to the Greenbelt: One of the stated purposes of the land, "to meet government facility needs", is a questionable concept. It implies that the Greenbelt is a land bank for the feds...A barn on agricultural lands is compatible, but a high tech park is not. Facilities that are currently there should not be torn down, but don't put any more up. (From: Greenbelt Master Plan, December 2009, page 52/107.) Note: Unattractive temporary shelters will be constructed on the Greenbelt--- on the Eagleson Park and Ride; the Nepean Sportsplex; behind the Confederation Education Centre and possibly 3311 Woodroffe.

More land bank properties in Canada's Capital: The Rideau Falls Lab on 1 John Street:

Directory of Federal Real Property The Rideau Falls Dam & Central Heating NRC Plant Site.

Property Number 54824

Custodian: Public Services and Procurement Canada

Interest: Crown Owned

Restriction: No Restriction

Primary Use: Parks and Recreation

Address: 50 (1 John Street), 90 and 98 Sussex Drive

Municipality: Ottawa

Province/Territory: Ontario

Federal electoral District: Ottawa-Vanier

Census: Rural

Land Area: 3.8216 ha

Building Count: 3

Floor Area: 4.769 sq. m.

Exterior Parking: 11 spaces

Record Created On: July 4th, 1995

Record Last Modified On: April 18th, 2019

The former Edward Drake CBC Building on 1500 Bronson.

The Graham Spry CBC Building on 250 Lanark.

Property Number: 57722

Organization: Public Services and Procurement Canada

Use: Office

Interest: Crown Owned

Address: 250 Lanark Avenue

Municipality: Ottawa, Ont.

Land Area: 3.1865 ha.

Buildings: 1

Floor Area: (sq. m.) 5,816

The Sir Charles Tupper Site---Years ago, Public Works wanted to donate Heron Road and Riverside Drive within Confederation Heights to the City of Ottawa. The Tupper buildings are facing demolition.

L'Esplanade Laurier 

Property Number: 08910; Custodian: Public Services and Procurement Canada; Interest: Crown Owned; Restriction: No Restriction; Primary Use: Office; Address: 140 O'Connor Street, 171 Bank Street and 300 Laurier Avenue. Municipality: Ottawa; Province/Territory: Ontario; Federal Electoral District: Ottawa Centre; Census: Rural; Land Area: 0.9863 ha; Building Count: 3; Floor Area: 91,160 sq. m. Exterior Parking: 0; Interior Parking: 382 spaces; Record Created On: August 12th, 1990; Record Last Modified On: January 8th, 2024.

National Defence Medical Centre, 1745 Alta Vista Drive:

Property 08635: Organization: National Defence: Use: Military: Interest: Crown Owned; Address: Ottawa; Municipality: Ottawa, ON; Land Area: 18.406 ha.; Buildings: 1; Floor Area: (sq. m.): 35,202.

Taxation Data Centre, 875 Heron Road. At one time the land mass was 150 acres, now it is 23. Facing demolition.

Property Number: 08651

Organization: Public Services and Procurement Canada

Use : Office

Interest: Crown Owned

Address: 875 Heron Road

Municipality: Ottawa, ON

Land Area: 9.5000 ha

Buildings: 2

Floor Area: (sq. m.): 55,713

Canada's Capital Greenbelt Master Plan - 2013.

Guidelines pertaining to the Nepean Sportsplex and Confederation Education Centre 

• Limit buildings and parking lots to existing area in accordance with Chapters 5 and 6.
• Recognize this facility as an edge facility and permit future continued intensive use and adaptive re-use of the site, including maintenance of existing sports fields and the use of the school's existing site for recreational uses; 
• Encourage integration of educational and promotional messages about the Greenbelt and Pinhey Forest at the Nepean Sportsplex. (page 120/196.)

  Allowable Activities and Uses 

• Non-intensive or linear recreational uses, such as nature interpretation, walking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing.
• Geo-caching and orienteering events in designated areas.
• Cycling and horseback riding on designated trails.
• Ecological research.
• Federal activities that support facility operations without causing permanent ecosystem damage.
• Existing houses.
• Existing interpretive or training facilities.
• Existing off-leash dog areas. (page 74/196.)
• ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Members of my family on the Pinhey Forest Trail and cross-country skiing on the Greenbelt:
• 
  
  
  
  
  
  

Prohibited Activities and Uses

• New facility area
• New stormwater management facilities
• Motorized access along recreational trails
• Any other uses that would degrade natural features or undermine ecosystems. Seasonal restrictions may occur for some of the listed Allowable Activities and Uses. (page 73/196.)

The Regent Park School of Music is included in a Taylor Swift album.

The song is called "It's Nice to Have a Friend."

 

900 square miles of land in the National Capital Region are a living memorial to Canada's War Dead.

 Privy Council of Canada Document No. 6721 "The Committee of the Privy Council have had before them a report, dated 25th October 1945, from the Minister of Public Works, stating: 'That under the authority of Order in Council P.C. 5635 of August 16, 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.' (From: The Greber Report of 1950.) Prime Minister of Canada William Lyon Mackenzie King signed the Order in Council.

"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." (From: The Greber Report of 1950, page 228/395.)

The 50,000 acre Greenbelt in Ottawa is part of the National War Memorial. Foreign ownership of this land is prohibited--- as well as the construction of condominiums and subdivisions, hospitals and asylum shelters.

 Properties that are on permitted on the Greenbelt: (Reposting)

• Pinhey Forest
• Major's Hill Park behind the Chateau Laurier
• Commissioners Park on Carling Avenue
• Agriculture Canada research farms on Carling Avenue and 1740 Woodroffe
• Green's Creek Conservation Area
• Hornets Nest soccer fields
• Pine View golf course
• Mer Bleue Conservation Area
• Farms
• Bruce Pit---an off-leash dog park
• Conroy Pit---an off-leash dog park  
• the Connaught National Army Cadet Summer Training Centre
• Canadian Space Agency
• Shirley's Bay
• Airport land
• Wesley Clover Park
• Schools
• Canada Food Inspection Agency
• Hylands Golf Club
• Lime Kiln Trail
• the 19th Tee Driving Range
• Stony Swamp Conservation Area

House of Commons Ottawa November 3, 1981 MP Jean-Robert Gauthier (Ottawa-Vanier) Liberal: "Madame Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Public Works who is responsible for the National Capital Commission. Last week, Ottawa newspapers headlined that the NCC was prepared to give up land in the Greenbelt, the untouchable zone surrounding the National Capital." 

The Nepean Sportsplex parking lot--- a study by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.

 Ottawa, Ontario April 27, 2020. "The National Capital Commission has determined that the proposed Nepean Sportsplex Parking Lot Rehabilitation is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects."

Mitigation measures taken into account for this determination will be put in place to address potential significant adverse effects on the following components of the environment:

• Wildlife, including
• Migratory Birds
• Species at Risk
• Groundwater/Surface Water Quality and/or Quantity
• Soil Quality
• Soil Quantity
• Air Quality
• Vegetation
• Human Health
• Archeological Resources

"After reviewing comments received and conducting an internal review, the National Capital Commission is satisfied that the carrying out of the project is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects." (Google: Nepean Sportsplex Parking Lot Rehabilitation.)

The Glebe Annex Community Association comments about the Experimental Farm "There is much concern voiced over the fact that the public is asked to cite its concerns about zoning now, when so much information is missing. Currently there is no:

• Traffic Study
• Environmental Impact Study
• Heritage Study
• Site Plan
• Transportation Plan
• Parking Strategy

"The city (of Ottawa) reassured attendees that all studies will be completed before the site plan application is approved, and that there will be a holding provision in place until that point, but this does not preclude a decision from being made about zoning." 

I am reposting the following information:

• Potential removal of Greenbelt designation from Eagleson Park and Ride.
• Potential removal of Greenbelt designation from Nepean Sportsplex. (Google: Greenbelt Master Plan Consultation Report-Phase 1-Step C-Land Use Concept---Prepared for the NCC on January 2012.) Page 16 of 124 pages.

The people of Canada are losing park land, Experimental Farms, government buildings, athletic fields and sports venues.

 The Hog's Back Park encompassed 125 acres in 1957. In 2024 the land mass is 57 acres.

The Directory of Federal Real Property. The map and information is from 2023.

• Property Number: 02882
• Custodian: National Capital Commission
• Interest: Crown Owned
• Restriction: No Restriction
• Primary Use: Parks and Recreation
• Address: Hog's Back
• Municipality: Ottawa
• Province/Territory: Ontario
• Federal Electoral District: Ottawa South
• Census Classification: Rural
• Land Area: 23.2657 ha
• Building Count: 2
• Record Created: July 30th, 1998
• Record Last Modified On: November 9, 2023

The 1957 Annual Report of the Federal District Commission, page 17/49 "Desirous of providing a park in the southern part of Ottawa comparable to the Rockcliffe Park in the eastern part of Ottawa, the Commission continued in 1957 the progressive development of Hog's Back Park. Located as it is in the new government group of office buildings where thousands of employees will be housed within the next 5 years, this park in addition to its use by the general public will be used for picnics on a large scale."

"The plans for the additional service buildings at the Hog's Back picnic area have been approved by the Commission. These plans comprise a refreshment pavilion, a general shelter, a bus stop and rest rooms. Among its main features will be a parking area for 540 cars and a bus terminal; two softball diamonds; 400 picnic tables; several overlooks and 30 outdoor fireplaces and drinking fountains. The formal opening of the 125-acre Hog's Back Park picnic grounds are scheduled to take place early next summer." Location- The east side of the Rideau River, north of the Hog's Back Falls.

Similarities between the Nepean Sportsplex and Confederation Education Centre.

The Nepean Sportsplex and Confederation Education Centre are on the Greenbelt. "The Greenbelt is like an 'Emerald Necklace' and exists as a memorial to the Canadians who gave their lives in the Second World War. Starting at Shirley's Bay just north of Kanata, it circles through Stony Swamp and Pinhey Forest and then continues east through the experimental farm where it arcs back northward through Mer Bleue and then follows Green's Creek to the Ottawa River. The Greenbelt reaches a distance of 45 kilometers and ranges in width from two to 10 kilometers." (NCC-Have your say about the Greenbelt's future! 2009.)

House of Commons Ottawa June 23, 1992 Mrs. Beryl Gaffney (Nepean): "I have a letter which clearly reflects the wishes of the majority of the people in this region and it states: 'We do not want the greenbelt lands severed and sold for residential and commercial development.' Can the minister give a clear undertaking in the House today that this will not happen in the national capital region?"

Hon. Elmer MacKay (Minister of Public Works): "...I see no likelihood of any of these lands being severed and sold for residential purposes. I certainly do not endorse such a policy."

The Nepean Sportsplex and the former Confederation High School are part of the National Interest Land Mass. "The National Interest Land Mass consists of 'National Shrines, the river and canal banks, the Confederation Boulevard, the Gatineau Park and the Greenbelt in the National Capital Region considered essential to the realization of Vision of the Capital...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." 1988.

Most of the land adjacent to the former high school and Sportsplex is reserved for Parks and Recreation: Reposting The Directory of Federal Real Property Nepean Sportsplex:

• Property Number 01009
• Custodian: National Capital Commission
• Interest: Crown Owned
• Primary Use: Parks and Recreation
• Address: 1701 Woodroffe Avenue
• Municipality: Ottawa
• Province/Territory: Ontario
• Federal Electoral District: Nepean
• Census Classification: Rural
• Land Area: 15.8315 ha (39.12048847 acres.)

Confederation Education Centre

• Property Number 01007
• Custodian: National Capital Commission
• Interest: Crown Owned
• Restriction: No Restriction
• Primary Use: Parks and Recreation
• Address: 1645 Woodroffe Ave.
• Municipality: Ottawa
• Province/Territory: Ontario
• Federal Electoral District: Nepean
• Census Classification: Rural
• Land Area: 4.5195 ha (11.1679 acres)
• Record Created On: July 30th, 1998
• Record Last Modified On: September 25th, 2017.

The Eagleson Park and Ride may be converted to housing units: "Ottawa eyes 20 sites for affordable housing" by Geraldine Grones, April 1, 2019: "The Tom Brown Arena, Bob MacQuarrie recreation complex and a baseball stadium on Coventry Road could one day be redeveloped into affordable housing, according to the City of Ottawa.''

Also on the list for affordable housing: The RCMP Headquarters on the Vanier Parkway; a small gas station site on Richmond Road; the Forward Family Shelter in Mechanicsville; Park and Rides in Greensboro and Place d'Orleans and a 2.4 ha (5.9 acre) site in Barrhaven on Greenbank Road at Strandherd and Longfields. 

Nepean Sportsplex

Confederation Education Centre

Down the Merivale Road. A poem by W.W. Campbell.

At morning down the Merivale Road When all the world is June 

Of woods and fields the blest abode And meadowlarks atune under the maples in the sun.

 The world is fair and sweet. For miles the fields and meadows run.

 A paradise complete.

In fields where daisies blink their eyes, and molten sunlight shifts the buttercups into the skies.

 Its golden chalice lifts. And out beyond the valley the mighty river lies. Dim, blue and misty, vast and fair.

The lone Laurentians arise.

Front-Norman Duncan and William Wilfred Campbell. Back-W.L. Mackenzie King and Henry A. Burbidge.

The Canadian Space Agency will be shut down.

 

Directory of Federal Real Property

• Property Number: 08591
• Custodian: Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
• Interest: Crown Owned
• Restriction: No Restriction
• Primary Use: Communications
• Address: 3701 Carling Ave., Highway 17; Area 1 to 4 and 8
• Place Name: Shirley's Bay (part of the Greenbelt)
• Municipality: Ottawa
• Province/Territory: Ontario
• Federal Electoral District: Ottawa West-Nepean
• Census Classification: Rural
• Land Area: 313.2850 ha. (774.1440943 acres)
• Building Count: 59
• Floor Area: 64,326.80 sq. m.
• Record Created On: January 18th, 1990
• Record Last Modified On: April 18, 2024

The world-famous Canadarm was created here, and the agency was part of the American space shuttle missions.

The Nepean Sportsplex.

The Directory of Federal Real Property 

• Property Number 01009
• Custodian: National Capital Commission
• Interest: Crown Owned
• Primary Use: Parks and Recreation
• Address: 1701 Woodroffe Ave.
• Municipality: Ottawa
• Province/Territory: Ontario
• Federal Electoral District: Nepean
• Census Classification: Rural
• Land Area: 15.8315 ha (39.12048847 acres)

The "underutilized football field" behind the Nepean Sportsplex.

 "In alignment with Canada's National Housing Strategy, the NCC will continue to explore the possibility of using underutilized NCC lands to support affordable housing options and sustainability objectives. Through this strategy, the NCC hopes to be an active contributor to resolving the housing crisis in the National Capital Region, while also meeting sustainability targets." (From: Summary of the NCC Corporate Plan 2024-2025 to 2028-2029 page 4/58.)

"While its owned by the National Capital Commission, the city has an existing lease for an 'underutilized football field' and has been given permission to shift its use." (From: Site near Nepean Sportsplex chosen for asylum seeker Welcoming Centre.( The article was written by Elyse Skura, CBC News, November 16,2024.)

Parks, Parkways and Playgrounds.

"These parks will be accessible to the people, on the principle that parks should be brought to the people, instead of people being forced to travel long distances to the parks...There will be a playfield of from 8 to 10 acres within one-half mile of any dweller in the city. These playgrounds should provide room for athletic sports, gymnasiums and playfields." 

• Rockcliffe Park will be extended and the ridge north of the quarries acquired.
• A park adjoining the Rideau River and the Hurdman's Bridge on property now owned by the city.
• The development of Dow's Lake as a recreational centre and its improvement by a revision of the shore line and the construction there of frontage for motor and pleasure boats and its connection with the Experimental Farm; also the connecting of Dow's Lake with Brown's Inlet by means of a canal to allow circulation of water.
• The construction of a park at the bluff at Irving Avenue and the Grand Trunk Railway, and on lower land.
• A park between the Canadian Pacific Railway and the Ottawa River west of the city facing Bate Island and Remic Rapids.
• Lemieux Island, now owned by the Government.
• The land north and west of Bronson Avenue and Wellington Street, at the foot of the cliff on the Ottawa River. 
• Additional area at the Experimental Farm. Under no conditions whatever should the ground now occupied by the Experimental Farm be used for other than park purposes, should its present use as a farm be abandoned.  
• The acquisition of Kettle and Duck Islands as park areas.
• A park in Hull, on the Ottawa River, between the Gatineau River and Brewery Creek.
• Parks in Hull between Laurier Avenue and the Ottawa River.
• A park beyond the Chelsea Road, northwest of Hull.
• The improvement as a park or recreational area of portions of Victoria and Philemon Islands.

Playgrounds-The following playgrounds are recommended:

• Five playgrounds east of the Rideau River and north of the proposed industrial district.
• Ten playgrounds and small parks east and south of the Rideau River and south of the proposed industrial area.
• Six small parks and playgrounds between the Rideau and Ottawa Rivers north of the Experimental Farm and east of Holland Avenue.
• Three playgrounds west of Holland Avenue and north of Carling Avenue.
• Five playgrounds east of the Gatineau River and north of the Ottawa River.
• Eight playgrounds and small parks including Flora Lake in Hull and in the outlying platted area of that city.

•  (Information is from the Report of the Ottawa Improvement Commission, 1915, page 180/238.)

Save the Greenbelt and the Experimental Farm---Senator Mike Duffy.

Debates of the Senate of Canada, December 12, 2019. The Hon. Acting Speaker: "Senator Duffy?" "Thank you Your Honour. Congratulations Senator Joyal, on your two pieces legislation today. I join everyone else here in expressing our gratitude on behalf of all Canadians for your amazing contributions to building a better Canada over your entire political career, and I feel that will continue."

"Do you think it would be a good idea to expand your bill, or would it require another piece of legislation to preserve the unique nature of the capital, so that the Greenbelt will be protected and that places like the Experimental Farm, which is in the middle of the city of Ottawa, will also be protected. Because of this pressure for urban development, we have developers looking at this land saying, 'Hey, there's millions of dollars to be made here.' So far as I can tell, they are not in a much better position than we are with the Chateau Laurier in that those lands are quite valuable."

The Greenbelt Research Farm was an annex of the Experimental Farm on Carling Avenue in Ottawa. "As of March 31, 1998, the Greenbelt Research Farm, which covers 1,200 hectares of land bordered by Hunt Club, Woodroffe Avenue, Fallowfield Road and Greenbank Road, ceased to function as an Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Research Centre. This was announced in the 1995 Federal Budget." (From: NCR Region Greenbelt.)

"Canada can build more homes without getting rid of Greenbelts." A quote from Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre.

From an interview with Josh Pringle and Bill Carroll on CFRA The Morning Rush, August 23, 2023.

 The asylum shelters will be built on the Greenbelt--- The Nepean Sportsplex, Eagleson Park and Ride and Confederation High School. 

House of Commons Ottawa May 25, 2010 MP Marcel Proulx (Hull-Aylmer): "The Liberal members from the National Capital Region, the member for Ottawa South, the member for Ottawa-Vanier and myself have good reason to call for enhanced protection of the greenbelt...Together the City of Ottawa and the NCC can do what they like with it. We believe this greenspace must be protected from developers."

House of Commons Ottawa September 16, 2009: The Hon. Gordon O'Connor (Minister of National Defence): "I am one of the great supporters of the greenbelt. I believe it is part of our heritage...The NCC has the mandate to maintain the greenbelt."

House of Commons Ottawa August 11, 1987: MP Don Boudria (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell) Liberal: "It is the responsibility of the NCC to protect and maintain the Greenbelt."

House of Commons Ottawa April 22, 1996: MP Marlene Catterall (Ottawa West, Lib.) "Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure to present a petition signed by close to 1,000 people. It arises from a situation that occurred in our nation's capital last year when the National Capital Commission was looking at selling off parts of green spaces and open corridors in the nation's capital."

"The petitioners call to the attention of the House that when Jacques Greber released his plan for the national capital in 1950 it was dedicated, at the direction of Cabinet, as a national war memorial. Therefore the petitioners call on Parliament to ensure that this commitment and the greenspaces of the capital are maintained as a war memorial and are not disposed of or sold."

House of Commons Ottawa September 16, 2009: MP Royal Galipeau (Ottawa-Orleans, CPC) "...This great swath of land encircling urban Ottawa includes farms, forests and wetlands that total over 20,000 hectares....The Greenbelt encircles Ottawa from Shirley's Bay in Ottawa West-Nepean to Green's Creek in Ottawa-Orleans...More than one million visitors a year go walking, sliding down hills, cross-country skiing or snowshoeing there, among other places..." 

The takeover of Ottawa's Greenbelt.

 Mer Bleue "Protect the Greenbelt from devastating development" by the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) Ottawa Valley Chapter-"As the population of the National Capital Region continues to grow, the City of Ottawa has identified a need for new transportation infrastructure to support the growing communities south of Orleans. Their preferred option is to extend Brian Coburn Boulevard across the Greenbelt to connect with the existing highway south of the intersection of Highway 174 and Blair Road."

"The proposed high speed, multi-lane highway will have a devastating impact on the ecological integrity of the Greenbelt and should not be built in the area being advanced by the City of Ottawa. The new highway will sever all natural linkages between Mer Bleue, Greens Creek and the Ottawa River, and will adversely impact Mer Bleue Bog-an internationally recognized wetland and the most biodiverse area in eastern Ontario."

"Other options do exist, including expanding the proposed LRT network farther into Orleans, or improving the design of existing infrastructure such as Innes Road, which already crosses the Greenbelt."

November 2024- The City is building an asylum shelter at the Nepean Sportsplex. Other construction sites are the Confederation High School athletic field and Eagleson Park and Ride. The Greenbelt is dedicated to the memory of Canada's war dead. And Canadians have the right to use athletic fields and community centres.

2024 The Canadian Space Agency is being shut down. The 774 acre property is located on 1701 Carling Avenue---on Greenbelt land at Shirleys Bay.

2010 House of Commons Ottawa March 25, 2010 Mr. Marcel Proulx (Hull-Aylmer, Lib.) "...Does my colleague not have a problem with the fact that there is nothing to protect the greenbelt? In other words, his government or any other government could suddenly decide to sell or get rid of the greenbelt, which is so important to the greater Ottawa-Gatineau region."

 2009 House of Commons Ottawa September 16, 2009 Hon. Mauril Belanger (Ottawa-Vanier, Lib.) "Bill C-37, which is before us now, talks about protecting the ecological integrity of Gatineau Park. That is clearly what it says. Nothing is said at all about protecting the ecological integrity of the greenbelt." 

 2008-The City wanted one quarter of the land for housing. (From: Greenspace Alliance of Canada's Capital, May 27, 2008, page 8/11.)

2007-House of Commons Ottawa November 26, 2007 Mr. Marcel Proulx (Hull-Aylmer, Lib.) "Mr. Speaker, the Greber Plan gave us the greenbelt to create a green, modern and avant-garde capital. The greenbelt contains farms, forests and wetlands, which provide opportunities for recreational and outdoor activities as well as learning. The value of greenbelts in large urban areas has been appreciated in Europe for a long time. Now the new president of the NCC wants to promote urban development in the greenbelt. Does the government plan on letting him do what he wants and permanently destroy our precious greenbelt?"

The Hon. John Baird (Minister of the Environment, CPC) "Mr. Speaker, as a member from the Ottawa region, from the national capital region, I am well aware that this was a very good policy. I completely agree with the member." 

2007-"One million people inside our Greenbelt." An Ottawa Citizen article by Richard Woodley of Kanata, November 22, 2007.

In the future- Commissioners Park on Carling Avenue may be needed by the Ottawa Hospital for parking. (The Glebe Report, March 17, 2022.)

"Newcomer reception centres: What you need to know."

"The City of Ottawa is proposing up to two potential locations for newcomer reception centres. Construction will take place at the primary site,1645 Woodroffe Ave., on the federally owned Nepean Sportsplex. The secondary site at 40 Hearst Way, on part of the Eagleson Park and Ride, is dependent on funding and other factors." (Note:1645 Woodroffe Avenue and the Eagleson Park and Ride are protected by the Greenbelt designation.)

The City of Ottawa wanted one quarter of the property: "It is estimated that of the 20,800 hectares in the Greenbelt, at least one quarter, approximately 5,560 hectares might be eligible for development consideration if the Greenbelt designation was removed and the development policies of the City's Official Plan were applied to these lands." (From: Greenspace Alliance of Canada's Capital-Report-May 27, 2008, page 8/11.)

Politicians who wanted to save the Greenbelt:

• Minister of National Defence Gordon O'Connor
• Minister of National Defence Barney Danson
• MP Beryl Gaffney
• MP Don Boudria
• Senator Mike Duffy
• Environment Minister Jim Prentice
• Environment Minister John Baird
• MP Marcel Proulx
• MPP and City Councillor Alex Cullen   
• MP Mauril Belanger
• MP David McGuinty
• MP Walter David Baker
• MP Royal Galipeau
• Hon. Arthur Laing, Minister of Public Works
• MP Warren Allmand
• Hon. Jean-Robert Gauthier

Organizations:

• Friends of Mer Bleue
• Greenbelt Coalition of Canada's Capital
• Gloucester Allotment Gardens
• Ottawa Rural Council
• Citizens for Safe Cycling
• La route verte
• Velo service
• Responsible Dog Owners of Canada
• Crystal Bay Community Association
• Crystal Beach/Lakeview Community Association
• Riverside South Community Association
• Country Place Community Association
• Glens Community Association
• Convent Glen Community Association
• Qualicum-Graham Park Community Association
• Westboro Beach Community Association
• Navan Community Association
• Transport 2000
• Heritage Canada (Information is from pages 35 and 36 out of 107 pages, Google" Greenbelt Phase 1, Step A, Government of Canada Publication, Crystal.")

New organizations:

• Kanata Neighbours Against Sprung Shelter
• Nepean Residents Against Sprung Shelter
• Merivale Gardens Residents Against Sprung Shelter
• Barrhaven residents gather to oppose proposed shelter

New housing is not permitted on the land. 2067 Greenbelt Vision Statement Page 53/196: "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 in Canada's Capital Region."

The Greber Report of 1950 "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 principle parks and the different public buildings." (Page 192/395; originally from the Todd Report of 1903.)

Save Ottawa's wildlife, recreation areas, trees and parkland.

As I mentioned before, there was opposition to stripping Greenbelt protection from the Nepean Sportsplex and Eagleson Park and Ride:

• Potential removal of Greenbelt designation from the Nepean Sportsplex.
• Potential removal of Greenbelt designation from the Eagleson Park and Ride. ("There is concern that potential 'removal' will see increased development.") (From: Greenbelt Master Plan Review-Phase 1-Step C-Land Use Concept January 2012). Page 16 and page 17 out of 124 pages. 

House of Commons Ottawa October 26, 2009---TRAN (40-2) No. 32-Bill C-37: "The Commission has the power to reclassify downward any land it deems necessary, including Greenbelt lands...Our concern is that the ecologically less significant lands, although part of the whole, may lose their Greenbelt designation to satisfy some development proposal."

Greenbelt Master Plan Review-Government of Canada Publications, October 2013. Comments from the public:

• Keep Pinhey Forest as it is, not developed. (The Nepean Sportsplex and athletic field should always be on the Pinhey Forest. Development refers to the installation of new highways and roads, subdivisions, etc.)
• No new roads or built facilities should be allowed in the Greenbelt.
• No new development, no new roads.
• The Greenbelt is supposed to be a green and undeveloped belt of land within Ottawa. We rely on the National Capital Commission to maintain and protect it that way. Non-federal facilities and operations (meaning commercial and residential infrastructure and development) is NOT acceptable on Greenbelt lands. There should be no question about that. Ottawa's Greenbelt has been whittled away too much already, and everything that goes into it further damages the quality and fragments the continuity of natural habitats that are essential for the physical and mental health of all inhabitants of Ottawa, and for its visitors as well. Land, wetlands and watercourses that are removed or suppressed in the Greenbelt are never returned.

Part of an August 24,2019 letter to the Ottawa Citizen, regarding residential expansion into the National Interest Land Mass: "The City of Ottawa recently released its discussion paper '5 Big Moves' as part of its Official Plan Review. Much of it is laudable, but Policy 3 under Growth Management is not. The policy states: 'Where urban expansion may be required in the future...consider the potential to expand into the Greenbelt.' 

"Whoa! Ottawa is already  at one million people and expected to grow, but nowhere are they manufacturing any more greenspace. Once you permit urban development of the Greenbelt that greenspace is lost forever. In short, don't bother considering this option." Alex Cullen, Ottawa

Athletic arenas and fields that may be shut down.

 Petition: To save Ottawa's single pad ice rinks-Change.org. "The City of Ottawa wants to close Tom Brown, Dulude, Belltown Dome, McNabb and a few other arenas in the city. These rinks are not only useful but a home for many Minor Hockey Leagues and its players as well as the communities they are located in." The petition had 7,212 signatures.

Rochester Field on Richmond Road.

The Department of Agriculture Recreational Association Tennis Club, or the DARA Tennis Club, on the Experimental Farm.

The Nepean Sportsplex and Confederation High School athletic fields.

The Ottawa Athletic Club was demolished.

The RCTG Baseball Park on 300 Coventry Road. "Requirement to disengage from stadium uses." (Google: Document 1, Affordable Housing Opportunities.)

Ottawa eyes 20 sites for affordable housing development by Geraldine Grones, April 1, 2019. "The Tom Brown Arena, Bob MacQuarrie recreation complex and a baseball stadium on Coventry Road could one day be redeveloped into affordable housing, according to the City of Ottawa."

Also on the list: the RCMP Complex on the Vanier Parkway; a 2.4 hectare site in Barrhaven; a small gas station site on Richmond Road; the Forward Family Shelter in Mechanicsville; Park and Rides at Greensboro and Place d'Orleans.(Note: The City of Ottawa is planning to build a shelter on the Eagleson Park and Ride in Kanata next to a day care.)

Photos of Princess Diana that I took--- at the opening of the Terry Fox Canadian Youth Centre in Manor Park on June 22, 1983. A few years ago the Terry Fox property was sold:

The Nepean Sportsplex is located on the Greenbelt, a National Interest Land Mass.

City of Ottawa housing projects are banned on the National Interest Land Mass. According to the 1975-1976 National Capital Commission Annual Report, page 9/52:

  The National Interest "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 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 the government of Canada may be in accordance with its national significance."

It has been argued that only municipal authorities have the responsibility for promulgating and implementing region-wide plans 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..."

The City of Ottawa cannot use federal property as a land bank - Google: "House of Commons Evidence, October 26, 2009": Mr. Al Speyers- "We support and share Minister Baird's concerns that the greenbelt should not be whittled away and serve as a land bank for municipal projects..."

The definition of the NILM  "National shrines, the river and canal banks, the Confederation Boulevard, 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 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 involvement by the Treasury Board Secretariat." (From: 1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC Land Holdings.)

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation should not have any involvement with Ottawa's Greenbelt: The Fifth Column by Richard Woodley of Kanata, November 22, 2007: Bill Teron's Plan to Destroy the Greenbelt "According to the Ottawa Citizen, 'Kanata's founder', developer Bill Teron, thinks that there are not enough people using the Greenbelt so we should develop it and build another Ottawa inside it. He states 'It's a gorgeous place, but very seldom do you see people within it. Here, a million people could connect'."

"In case you think you did not read this correctly Bill Teron wants to build a city of one million people inside our Greenbelt."

"According to the Citizen: 'Within the developed land, Mr. Teron envisioned small 'villages' of 5,000 to 10,000 people each, which would be developed around roads such as Woodroffe and Merivale."

"After all, what good are environmental lands with trails in them when you can have villages instead. And what good is greenspace without roads running through it, as Teron states: "We would be the only city in the world in which our ring roads run through a green paradise."

"As a regular user of the greenbelt I know people use it. They may not be crammed together on the trails or lined up on them like a ride at Canada's Wonderland but they are using the trails, and enjoying them because they are not congested. One can only imagine what putting a city of a million people inside it would do to the Greenbelt. Not being a fan of horror movies I would rather not imagine that."

"And yes, Teron has some novel ideas about adding to the greenbelt, but that would not make up for destroying what is there now. We all know what would happen if this plan is taken seriously---the negative parts of the plan would be implemented and then it would be discovered that the positive aspects are 'impractical' and 'unworkable'.'

"It is time for us all to stand up for the greenbelt."

Jacques Greber did not want local politicians involved with the Greenbelt. House of Commons Ottawa Evidence October 26, 2009 Mr. Al Speyers, Alliance to Save Our Greenbelt: "Jacques Greber felt that the only way to have a Greenbelt and keep it was that the most senior level of government in Canada would have to establish it, maintain it, keep it and preserve it. Cities are essentially vehicles for development. Their election campaigns are over 90% financed by the development industry."

Federal properties now owned by the city. 

• the Ottawa Teacher's College on 195 Elgin Street is part of City Hall.
• the Mackenzie King and Laurier Avenue bridges over the Rideau Canal.
• DOC Telecommunications Engineering Lab on 1241 Clyde Avenue.
• Mooney's Bay Park is rented to the city.
• Beaver Barracks on 464 Metcalfe.
• 933 Gladstone, the Oak Park Armoury.
• the former Graham Spry CBC/CBOT building on 250 Lanark.
• former Canada Mortgage and Housing rowhouses across from the Adult High School on 300 Rochester. I attended the High School of Commerce during the early 1980's, and I still have my diploma.
• 1010 Somerset Street West was a Public Works and Government Services building. 

Greenbelt Master Plan Review-Phase 1-Step C-Land Use Concept January 2012 Comments from the public:

• Potential removal of Greenbelt designation from the Nepean Sportsplex---A majority of respondents disagreed with removing the designation.
• Potential removal of Greenbelt designation from the Eagleson Park and Ride---There was opposition to the measure. "There is concern that potential 'removals' will see increased development." (pages 16 and 17 of 124 pages.)

House of Commons Ottawa June 22, 1992 Mrs. Beryl Gaffney (Nepean Ontario, Liberal) "The greenbelt was established to control urban sprawl, provide beauty to the nation's capital, and assist municipalities in local improvements such as cycling paths, the Stoney Swamp, the Pinhey Forest and the Log Farm. The people of Nepean are most concerned that the NCC is moving away from that premise. The majority of us in Nepean clearly don't want the greenbelt chipped away for residential or commercial development."