"The Central Experimental Farm should remain an open area in perpetuity." Reposting.

 

A March 19, 1954 Privy Council Order-in-Council or Cabinet document created by Prime Minister of Canada Louis St-Laurent. Are construction companies, the National Capital Commission, City of Ottawa and the Civic Hospital more influential than Prime Ministers of Canada, Agriculture Ministers and a Reimagine Ottawa petition bearing thousands of names, opposing the destruction of the Farm? The Experimental Farm is a National Historic Site of Canada and a National Interest Land Mass.

. Research fields, countless wild animals, 750 trees, the Rideau Canal UNESCO World Heritage Site, Dominion Observatory, Macoun Memorial Garden, Historic Hedge Collection, William Saunders Garden, the Arboretum, Fletcher Wildlife Garden, the Tulip Festival, Winterlude, Maple Drive, Prince of Wales Drive, the cherry blossom trees near Prince of Wales Drive, greenhouses, museums and barns will be irreparably harmed by this encroachment by a hospital, the Carling Towers and a 4-storey parking garage.

We, the people of Canada, own the Central Experimental Farm. We have owned this property since 1886.

The parkways.

 House of Commons Ottawa June 1, 1970 Mr. Skoberg (Moose Jaw) New Democratic Party: "Is the National Capital Commission giving favourable consideration to the development of a plan which would eliminate automobiles from the downtown area of Ottawa?"

Mr. Martin P. O'Connell (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Regional Economic Expansion) "...At present, no plans exist for the elimination of automobiles from downtown Ottawa."

House of Commons Ottawa May 15, 1970 Mr. Duncan Gordon Blair (Grenville-Carleton) Liberal: "...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 inquiries 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 this inconvenience  (caused) by the disruption that this extraordinary and senseless experiment will cause."

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

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The scenic highways in the National Capital Region are part of the National Interest Land Mass and they cannot be de-paved, sold or given away. "Land forming part of the NILM will be retained by the National Capital Commission on behalf of the government in perpetuity."

"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." (1950 Greber Report, page 228/395.)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scenic driveways in the National Capital Region in 1984 and 1985, the NCC Annual Report:

• Ottawa River Parkway
• Airport Parkway
• Eastern Driveway
• Queen Elizabeth Drive
• Hog's Back Road
• Rockcliffe Park Driveway
• Queensway
• Island Park Driveway
• Station Boulevard
• Experimental Farm Drive
• Other Parkways

Quebec Parkways in 1984 and 1985

• Gatineau Parkway
• Voyageur Parkway
• Philemon Wright
• Northern Entrance
• Hull South
• Secteur Fournier
• Lac des Fees Parkway

The following parkways and corridors were part of Canada's landscape in 1988:

• Ottawa River Parkway-Wellington Street to Carling Avenue - 254 ha.
• Champlain Bridge, Island Park Drive -15 ha.
• Airport - 120 ha.
• Eastern Parkway Hemlock Road to Highway 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 Philemon Wright Corridor - 285 ha.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The parkways are "relics of the 20th century" and de-paving them would create billions of dollars of surplus Crown real estate. (Ottawa Citizen interview, February 25, 2014.)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre discovered that the Dow's Lake parking lot is worth $4,021,000. The land has been rezoned as mixed-use and not institutional. The Dow's Lake parking lot was donated to a hospital.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Why is the NCC letting these parkways go dark?" CBC News October 23, 2023 by Alistair Steele. Only 83 of the 229 street lights on the Queen Elizabeth Driveway are working, every single streetlight on Colonel By Drive is out, and the scenic driveway through the Experimental Farm is completely dark.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Petition for the NCC to restore access to the Gatineau Park Parkways. "This is a petition for the NCC to restore access to the Champlain Parkway, Gatineau Parkway and Fortune Parkway in Gatineau Park. Parkways are closed to motor vehicles except for a few hours on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.

When the federal highways are closed, 13 parking lots with 377 free spaces are inaccessible;

1.) Pink Lake Lookout - 9 spaces

2.) Pink Lake Trail - 40 spaces

3.) Waterfall Trail - 18 spaces

4.) Lauriault Trail and Picnic Area - 30 spaces

5.) Mulvihill Lake and Picnic Area - 42 spaces

6.) King Mountain Trail and Picnic Area - 42 spaces

7.) Bourgeois Lake - 15 spaces

8.) Huron Lookout - 32 spaces

9.) Etienne Brule Lookout  and Picnic Area - 35 spaces

10.) Keogan Shelter - 34 spaces

11.) Fortune Lake Lookout - 9 spaces

12.) Penguin Picnic Area - 12 spaces

13.) Champlain Lookout - 64 spaces.

National Historic Sites in Ottawa.

 Aberdeen Pavilion 

My Dad is walking past the Aberdeen Pavilion during the 1940's.

Beechwood Cemetery

Billings House

Central Chambers

Central Experimental Farm

Chateau Laurier

Confederation Square

Connaught Square

Diefenbunker

Earnscliffe

Former Archives Building

Former Geological Survey of Canada

Hart Massey House

J.R. Booth Residence

Langevin Block

A photo that I took of Princess Diana on June 21, 1983 with the Langevin Building in the background.

Laurier House

Maplelawn Gardens and House

National Arts Centre

Notre-Dame Roman Catholic Basilica

Parliament Buildings

Public Grounds of Parliament Buildings

Rideau Canal

Rideau Hall and Landscaped Grounds

Royal Canadian Mint

Victoria Memorial Museum

Zoning and legal protection of government land.

Gatineau Park - "The NCC has prepared a new zoning plan for Gatineau Park which, among other things, will preserve strictly the park's wilderness area." (1975-1976 Annual Report of the National Capital Commission, page 21/52.)

The NCC's Plan for Canada's Capital "For jurisdictional reasons, the lead planning document for land use decisions affecting CEF lands is the NCC's Plan for Canada's Capital. It sets out the federal government's goal for use of federal lands in conformity with with this Plan through the Federal Land Use & design Approval and Land transaction processes."

"The PFCC contains broad, high-level policies that place the CEF within the context of other federal lands in the National Capital Region, identifying the lands

• east of Prince of Wales as Capital Urban Greenspace
• the Rideau Canal and nearby CEF shore lands as Waterway and Shore Lands
• the Canada Agriculture Museum as National Cultural Institution
• the research fields as Rural Lands
• and the lands near Carling as Federal Node

"In the context of this plan, the CEF's role as a National Historic Site and a cultural landscape of national historic significance underlies all its other federal land use roles. The PFCC also adopts the FHBRO Code of Practice while providing broad guidance for interpretation and visitor experiences..."

"The PFCC further designates several roadways situated both within and connecting with the CEF. Prince of Wales Drive north of the traffic circle and the NCC Driveway are designated as Capital Parkway, connecting with Queen Elizabeth Drive on the east and Island Park Drive on the northwest." (Central Experimental Farm National Historic Site Management Plan, modified 2019-09-17.)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Capital Core The enhancement of the centrepiece of the National Capital - Parliament Hill and its surroundings - was one of the main preoccupations of the NCC this year. The Commission acquired some 3 acres of downtown land in five parcels within one to three blocks of the Hill as a means to control development of this land in the future. Federal ownership will prevent construction of buildings which would blur the magnificence of the Parliament Buildings. Planning went ahead for construction of buildings which will grace the riverfront immediately west of Parliament Hill. These include

• a new National Gallery
• a new Public Archives
• a new building for the Federal Court
• a plaza in front of the Supreme Court
• a mall and a municipal arts centre.

On the Hull side of the Capital Core, construction continued on the Place du Portage group of federal office buildings and for property acquired for two national museums in the Brewery Creek area. (NCC Annual Report for 1975-1976, page 20/52.)

House of Commons Ottawa July 20, 1973 The Hon. Jean-Eudes Dube (Minister of Public Works) Liberal: "...I have today, on behalf of the government, filed a notice of intent to expropriate all the land and buildings in the area bounded by Wellington Street, Elgin Street, Sparks Street and Bank Street. The purpose of this expropriation is to protect the environment of Parliament from any development which could adversely affect it..."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Moffat Farm was part of the Greenbelt. Gatineau Park and the Greenbelt are part of a living memorial to Canadian soldiers who never returned after World War 11. (Greber Report of 1950).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sparks Street Mall- File contains material regarding by-laws to protect Sparks Street. Controls on urban development; height and slant restrictions on buildings; heritage properties (The Brouse Building; Slater Building; Bate Building; Birks Building). (Google: Romeo LeBlanc, National Capital Commission, March 1983-May 1984. Page 11/19.)

Building provincial and municipal projects on federal NCR land is unconstitutional.

 From the 1975-1976 National Capital Commission Annual Report, page 9/52. Reposting.

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 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 a national agency for that purpose, and there has been such a national agency since 1899.

An important aspect of this agency-now the NCC-has always been its non-partisan character. The agency has always enjoyed the confidence of successive Parliaments and governments since Laurier's day and progress in the National Capital has never been identified with the policies of a particular government. The resultant continuity and stability are at least partly responsible for the quality of development so far.

The Commission has functions different from those of a government department. Its special advisory committees-on planning, on design and on property transactions-are able to assess federal projects in the Region from a national viewpoint. The committees, like the 20 commissioners themselves, are drawn from all regions and provinces in Canada and they give Parliament and the government independent professional advice in the fields of architecture, urban planning, environment, transportation and land use and development.

In short, the emphasis in the Commissions policies and operations is on the national view in the planning and development of the Capital.

The Ottawa Hospital's Tower A cannot be built because it will create an "irreversible and permanent loss of views from the Observatory to the sky."

• Tower A will create construction impacts.
• Isolation of the complex from its surroundings.
• Obstruction or diminishment of significant views of the Dominion Observatory.
• Obstruction or impact to views of the night sky from the dome.
• Impact of the lighting plan; City of Ottawa Application #D07-12-22-0168.
• Impacts to views from the Observatory dome to the sky should a telescope ever be reinstated-will be irreversible and permanent once Tower A of the hospital building is realized. Also, light spillage and pollution can reduce the amount of stars and astrological features visible. (Page 8/87, City of Ottawa Application #Do7-12-22-01-68.)

The Dominion Observatory is an annex of the Parliamentary Precinct and cannot be overpowered by high rise buildings or flattened. "The popularity of the Observatory occurred when it opened in 1905, due to the support of Prime Minister Sir Wilfrid Laurier. Laurier's advocation reinforced the idea that the Observatory was to be considered an arm of the parliamentary precinct. At the time it was recognized as a national achievement where the nation's time would be kept. The buildings would be symbols of Canada's progress in astronomical science." (From: "Astronomer Mary Grey and the Architecture of Canada's Dominion Observatory." Page 10/67. Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Sharon Odell.)

Public infrastructure Hospital infrastructure is not permitted on land that is adjacent to the Rideau Canal UNESCO World Heritage Site, or to part of a National Historic Site of Canada. (From: Capital Urban Lands Plan, National Capital Commission, December 17, 2021, page 57/124.)

Buffer zones adjacent to National Historic Sites

Debates in the Senate of Canada December 12, 2019.

Gonazles Observatory, 302 Denison Road, Victoria BC

House of Commons Ottawa May 15, 1992 MP Dennis Mills (Broadview-Greenwood) "The Department of Public Works sold the Gonzales Observatory to the City of Victoria."

Public Consultation on the Ottawa Hospital Site Review - Final Report. November 4, 2016.

 Comments

• Please do not break up the Central Experimental Farm. As the Nation's Capital we should have a "Central Park" and the Farm is the only land that is not yet developed.
• Don't touch the farm. Ottawa has the Central Experimental Farm, which is an invaluable green and agricultural space located inside the urban core. It is unique. What other urban centre wouldn't wish to have such a treasure?
• The Experimental Farm research benefits all Canadians, both farmers and consumers. The hospital should not be built on the Farm.
• The hospital should not be built on the land of the Central Experimental Farm. It is very valuable land used for research that has served the local and distant farming communities for over 150 years and developed some of the most important crops for Canada.
• Placing the new facility on the Central Experimental Farm site is not acceptable. It will destroy important research facilities and greenspace.  (From: page 31/53).

Disadvantages of the Sir John Carling site

• Irreversible impact on the experimental fields and shelterbelts, views and cultural landscape elements identified as having national significance as part of the Central Experimental Farm National Historic Site.
• Impact on cultural heritage due to intrusion into boundary of CEFNHS, proximity to Rideau Canal UNESCO World Heritage Site, and presence of heritage buildings. (The buildings that are slated for demolition are the Dominion Observatory, South Azimuth and surrounding astrophysical landmarks, the vacant William Saunders building and the K.W. Neatby and Oilseed Research Buildings.) The Ontario government saved the Booth Barn during the 1990's.
• Site topography and configuration could create design challenges. (From: NCC Federal Site Review for the New Civic Campus of the Ottawa Hospital, November 2016, pages 30 and 31/256.)

Site 11: Carling Avenue (east)

Site 11 centres on the former site of the Sir John Carling Building towards the northeastern edge of the Central Experimental Farm. However, its boundaries were modified to exclude existing buildings including the Dominion Observatory, creating an irregularly shaped parcel.

Savecfbrockcliffe - the Dominion Observatory and South Azimuth will be demolished:

1.) The hospital does not want irregularly shaped parcels of land.

 2.) "On this site we have at least 24 buildings including Buildings 1 to 9, the Natural Resources Campus including the Dominion Observatory. Extensive demolition or relocation of buildings is required for the new build to proceed."

3.)  Maple Drive is being restricted to emergency vehicles, there will be at least 100 emergency vehicle trips a day. The Natural Resources campus is clustered around Maple Drive.

4.) The South Azimuth is being removed because it will interfere with the widening of Maple Drive.

5.)  The NCC and Public Services and Procurement Canada have the power to remove the designations National Interest Land Mass, National Historic Site of Canada, Classified Federal Heritage Building and Recognized Federal Heritage Building.

6.)  The Dominion Observatory is part of the Parliamentary Precinct; properties on or near the Precinct cannot be any taller than the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill. As I said before, an Ottawa City Councillor predicted 20 years ago that "Carling Avenue will be a wall of condos." 

• Land Area: 20 hectares/50 acres
• Owner: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Public Services and Procurement Canada, National Capital Commission
• National Interest Land Mass Status: Yes
• Existing Land Use: Federal Facilities/Employment, Informal Greenspace, Parking
• Long term planned use: Federal Facilities/Employment, Greenspace. (From: NCC Federal Site Review for the New Civic Campus of the Ottawa Hospital, November 2016, page 27/256.)

Heritage Conservation Districts in the city of Ottawa.

 Overview - "Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act allows municipalities to recognize and protect neighbourhoods, rural landscapes, main streets, or other areas of special cultural heritage value that have a cohesive sense of time and place. Designated heritage districts often enjoy a renewed cultural and economic vitality not only because district designation highlights their special values but also because they are protected from decay and the intrusion of incompatible structures."

Bank Street (By-law 175-2000)

Besserer-Wurtemburg (By-law 2018-339)

Briarcliffe (By-law 2013-65)

ByWard Market (By-law 60-91)

(Carlington North Veterans' Housing - Veterans' Housing Heritage Character Area. Bounded by Carling Avenue to the north, Fisher Avenue to the east, General and Marshall Avenues to the south and Merivale Road to the west. September 10, 2021 - "The City of Ottawa has directed heritage planning staff to conduct a heritage analysis of the veterans housing subdivisions on Carlington North to determine cultural heritage value and consider strategies for conservation and commemoration" 

"Proposed changes to a Heritage Character Area do not require the approval of Council, unlike a designated Heritage Conservation District which is protected by the Ontario Heritage Act." (Heritage Ottawa, May 12, 2022.)

 savecfbrockcliffe-I believe that powerful entities have their eye on the Veterans Housing units, which are located on valuable land. Deals have probably already been made regarding demolition, rezoning, intensification and air rights. "The housing crisis" will be used as an excuse to validate the destruction of this area.  There is a reason why this property is a Heritage Character Area and not a Heritage Conservation District. The Wartime Housing should be the legally protected by the designation "Heritage Conservation District". 20 years ago an Ottawa City Councillor said that "Carling Avenue will be a wall of condos."

Veterans properties that were privatized or sold to a province:

Rideau Veterans Lodge on 363 Smyth Road.

Wallis House on 589 Rideau Street.

Benny Farm in Montreal.

Moffat Farm near Mooney's Bay

Sunnybrook Veterans Hospital in Toronto.

Shaughnessy Military Hospital was sold to the province of BC and it will be demolished.

Royal Roads Military College in Victoria, BC.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cathedral Hill (By-law 286-89)

Centretown (By-law 269-97)

Clemow Estate East (By-law 2011-346)

Clemow - Monkland Driveway and Linden Terrace (By-law 2020-287)

Daly Avenue (By-law 308-82)

King Edward Avenue (By-law 310-82)

Lorne Avenue (By-law 2005-13)

Lowertown West (By-law 192-94)

Minto Park (By-law 142-88)

New Edinburgh (By-law 2001-44)

Rockcliffe Park (By-law 97-10)

Russell - Range (By-law 2018-338)

Sandy Hill West (By-law 255-94)

Sparks Street (By-law 174-2000)

Stewart-Wilbrod (By-law 311-82)

Sweetland Avenue (By-law 309-82)

Wilbrod-Laurier (By-law 307-82)

Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau tried to protect the Parliamentary Precinct from demolition and inappropriate development. The Precinct includes the Parliament Buildings, Lebreton Flats, the Sparks Street Mall and the Dominion Observatory.

House of Commons Ottawa July 20, 1973 The Hon. Jean-Eudes Dube (Minister of Public Works) "...I have today, on behalf of the government, filed a notice of intent to expropriate all the land and buildings in the area bounded by Wellington Street, Elgin Street, Sparks Street and Bank Street. The purpose of this expropriation is to protect the environment of Parliament from any development which could adversely affect it, and simultaneously provide the land for an appropriate expansion of Parliamentary facilities and other governmental requirements..." 

Protected land and waterways in the National Capital Region.

  The following properties were part of the National Interest Land Mass, or National Historic Sites of Canada, Province of Ontario Cultural Heritage Districts Ordnance and Admiralty land, etc, 

Table 1, Category 1-Google: "urban natural features strategy, City of Ottawa, April 11, 2006".

• Airbase lands-Federal, Private
• Arboretum Woods-Federal
• Aviation Parkway North-Federal, City
• Brittania Bay-Federal, City
• Brittania Conservation Area-Federal, City
• By-Pass Woods-Federal
• Carlington Woods-Federal, City, Private
• Central Experimental Farm Woods-Federal
• Champlain Bridge Woods-Federal
• Champlain Bridge Islands-Federal
• Chaudiere Rapids-Federal
• Del Zotto Woods-Federal
• Deschenes Lookout-Federal
• Hampton Park Woods-Federal, City
• Hog's Back Woods-Federal, Private
• Lemieux Island-Federal, Private
• Leopold Woodlot-Federal, Private
• McCarthy Woods and Southern Corridor-Federal
• Montfort Woods-Federal, Private
• NRC Woods North-Federal
• Parliament Hill-Federal
• Pinecrest Woods-Federal
• Prince of Wales Woods-Federal, City
• RA Centre Woods-Federal
• Rideau River Islands-Federal
• Rideau River Park Woods-Federal
• Riverside Park-Federal
• Rockcliffe Park East-Federal
• Rockcliffe Park West-Federal
• Rockcliffe Shores-Federal

An August 3, 1998 front page article in the Ottawa Citizen.