Some good news.

 Save the hundreds of ostriches at a farm in B.C. "People's Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier has spoken out against a federal order to cull ostriches on a British Columbia farm" by Jeremy Borg,  westernstandard.news, September 29, 2025.

Return the telescope to the Dominion Observatory on the Experimental Farm. In 1965 my classmates and I had an opportunity to look through the telescope.

Ottawa astronomers found Planet X.

Agriculture Minister John Wise never wanted Experimental Farm land privatized.

House of Commons Ottawa May 13, 1988. MP David Daubney (Ottawa West) Progressive Conservative: "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 part of the Experimental Farm proper and in particular that part bordered by Merivale and Fisher 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 take this opportunity 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."

Some Hon. Members: "Hear, hear!" 

Prime Minister Mulroney created the National Interest Land Mass law in 1988. The law prohibits the sale of Gatineau Park, the Greenbelt, 24 Sussex Drive, Rideau Hall, 529 Richmond Road (Maplelawn), Lebreton Flats and many more properties---to housing developers and other commercial entities. (Google: 1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC.)

The future of the Parliamentary Precinct.

"Ottawa city counsellor (for Somerset Ward), Gatineau mayor testify at Committee studying expanded parliamentary precinct." by Giacomo Panico, CBC News, May 31, 2022. "MP's hear case for making Wellington Street a pedestrian, Tramway zone." "Major overhaul in store for entire block facing Parliament" by Ryan Patrick Jones, CBC News February 3, 2020.

House of Commons Ottawa December 7, 1984 MP Joseph Gaston Isabelle (Hull-Aylmer) Liberal: "Several years ago you could see Parliament Hill from far away. Today you have to fly aboard a helicopter to see it, because of a few small skyscrapers that have, for all practical purposes, destroyed the beauty of the majestic Parliament Hill. And the National Capital Commission had to buy some land in order to have control over this area and avoid undesirable construction. That is what the Commission did among other things to avoid the building of huge skyscrapers which would have practically destroyed the beauty of Parliament Hill."

Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau never wanted high rise apartments and the demolition of buildings across from Parliament Hill: House of Commons Ottawa July 20, 1973 The Hon. Jean-Charles Dube (Minister of Public Works): "Concern has been expressed about the danger of visual encroachment on the beauty of the parliamentary precinct, which is one of the great symbols of Canada. We must ensure that nearby developments do not adversely affect it."

"We have all been aware that to properly house the expanded requirements of Parliament for the generations ahead in a way that would both complement and preserve the existing architectural beauty of the Parliament Buildings we must enlarge the present parliamentary grounds. I wish therefore to announce, Mr. Speaker, that 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 the expropriation as I have indicated 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 government requirements. The property of the United States Embassy has been excluded from this expropriation but discussions are well advanced for its acquisition." 

Senate of Canada, Ottawa, December 12, 2019 Senator Serge Joyal: "Parliament Hill does not enjoy any legal protection. Not only does it not benefit from that protection but the immediate area is a jungle for development." 

Buildings that are facing demolition: "They have reached the end of their life cycle." Former American Embassy 100 Wellington (land beside the Embassy is now called infill); Embassy Annex 128 Wellington; Victoria 140 Wellington; Birks 107 Sparks; Valour 151 Sparks; Bate 109 Sparks; Marshall 14 Metcalfe; Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce 119 Sparks; Fisher 115 Sparks; Canada's Four Corners 93 Sparks.

"The height limit for structures facing Wellington Street is 108 metres or 32 storeys, while the height limitation for buildings facing the Sparks Street Mall is 113 metres or 34 storeys" (Parliamentary and Judicial Precinct Area Site Capacity and Long Term Development Plan, page 89/148.) Until 1965 there was a height limit of 13 storeys in downtown Ottawa so that the Peace Tower could dominate the landscape.

I mentioned this before, the Parliamentary Precinct and Lebreton Flats are part of the National Interest Land Mass. "The Concept of National Interest Land Mass refers to lands of national interest, that is lands required for for the long term to support the unique functions of the Capital. This designation extends to all federally owned lands in Canada's Capital region, not just NCC-owned lands." 

House of Commons Ottawa November 23, 1967 The Hon. George McIlraith (Minister of Public Works): "The Lebreton Flats were envisioned as a western extension of the Parliamentary Precinct. Buildings on or near the Precinct cannot be any taller than the Peace Tower."

Eleven Block 2 buildings on Wellington Street that may be flattened.

(Reposting)---An unsuitable location for a hospital.

 

1.) The designation UNESCO World Heritage Site will be removed from the Rideau Canal and the Kingston Fortifications, if the following projects are undertaken: 

• An Ottawa Hospital campus on the Experimental Farm
• The Chateau Laurier proposed expansion (Ottawa)
• The former Davis Tannery Brownfield Site Redevelopment (Kingston)
• Rideau Canal Crossing pedestrian bridge (Ottawa)
• Rideau Marina redevelopment (Kingston)
• Third Bridge Crossing (Kingston)
• Highway 417 bridge rehabilitation (Ottawa)
• Various Federal Infrastructure Investment projects along the length of the Rideau Canal World Heritage property. (Information is from "State of Conservation Report, Rideau Canal, May of 2018.") The Kingston Fortifications are Fort Henry, Fort Frederick, the Murney Tower, Shoal Tower and Cathcart Tower.

2.) "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." (1959 Report of the Ottawa Improvement Commission, page 126/238.)

3.)House of Commons Ottawa May 13, 1988 The Hon. John Wise (Minister of Agriculture): "Next to the Parliament Buildings, the Experimental Farm is the second most popular tourist attraction here in Ottawa."

4.) Urban Design Review Panel, March 1,2018. 930 Carling Avenue and 520 Preston Avenue. "The Panel is concerned with the scale of the proposed development and finds that the project is of a completely different scale than the surrounding neighbourhood...Another important consideration of the Panel is the impact of the hospital on Carling Road, and the Carling-Preston neighbourhood."

5.) House of Commons Ottawa June 18, 1958 The Hon. George McIlraith (Ottawa West): "Mr. Chairman, I wonder if the Minister is now prepared to make the statement he said he would make concerning the policy of the government with respect to building on the central experimental farm?"

Hon. Howard Charles Green (Minister of Public Works): "The policy is that no buildings will be built on the central experimental farm except buildings for the Department of Agriculture." 

Mr. McIlraith: "If I may pursue the first question a bit further, has the Minister come to any conclusion as to what will be done with the land on the farm now occupied by the temporary buildings when they are removed?"

Mr. Green: "I take it that the hon. member for Ottawa West refers to temporary buildings No. 5 and 8. For some years the policy has been that when these temporary buildings are torn down nothing will be constructed on the site."

 Temporary building location #5 became the Dow's Lake parking lot. And the #8 location became Queen Juliana Park. An Eric Darwin photo.

 6.) "The Central Experimental Farm should remain an open area in perpetuity." (A March 19, 1954 Privy Council Order in Council that was signed by Prime Minister Louis St-Laurent.)

7.) The Dominion Observatory campus may be flattened:

"On this site we have at least 24 buildings, including Buildings 1 to 9, the Natural Resources Campus including the Dominion Observatory." Also Building 49, William Saunders. And the K.W. Neatby and Oilseed Research Centre buildings.

"Extensive demolition or relocation of buildings is required for the new build to proceed." (From: 'New Civic Campus. A 21st century hospital in the heart of Canada's Capital.' April of 2016, page 10/76.)

8.) " Concerned about ballooning costs, Poilievre wants hospital site revisited." An Ottawa Citizen article by Elizabeth Payne, March 29, 2017. "You've got a sloped surface, an irregular shape, contaminated land and you are building on a fault line. All of these things combined may lead to an extraordinary price tag and if that's true then we should know about it before we put shovels in the ground."

In the House of Commons MP Pierre Poilievre had many questions about the Civic Hospital move--- see my blog entry "Concerned about ballooning costs, Poilievre wants hospital site revisited." November 21, 2021.

Ottawa Councillors who tried to save Rochester Park in Westboro.

• Jeff Leiper
• Rick Chiarelli
• Jean Cloutier
• Allan Hubley

( From "City planning committee approves new Rochester Field deal with NCC" by Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen, January 23, 2018.)

Rochester Field has been added to the Canada Public Land Bank---"There are currently 90 properties listed, representing the potential for the construction of thousands of housing units on a total of 473 hectares of land across Canada."

I mentioned this before---Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, Minister of State for Urban Affairs Barney Danson and Agriculture Minister Eugene Whelan prevented the expropriation of 700 acres of the Experimental Farm on Carling Avenue, for 7,000 housing units.

 Front-page of the Ottawa Citizen---1974.

The Ottawa Journal in 1974. "Mr. Fullerton has suggested that a 700-acre, 7,000 unit housing development replace crops growing in the area north of Base Line Road between Clyde Avenue and Prince of Wales Drive."

529 Richmond Road in Ottawa is off-limits to housing.

 Maplelawn, the walled garden and Rochester Park were sold to the Federal District Commission in  1952. The Deed stipulated that the property would remain a public space in perpetuity. The government of Canada has now added the 9.39 acre park to an affordable housing project:

"Federal land in Ottawa's west end now available for housing" by Josh Pringle, CTV News, October 8, 2024. "NCC looks to revive 'controversial' Rochester Field development through the 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.

Maplelawn and the greenspace are designated a National Historic Site of Canada. Recognition Statute: Historic Sites and Monuments Act 1985. Designation Date: 1989-06-22.

The 2014 Ontario Provincial Policy Statement documents the fact that "Significant built heritage resources and significant heritage landscapes shall be preserved..."

Maplelawn is a National Historic Site of Canada, Classified Federal Heritage Building and is protected by Part 1V of the Ontario Heritage Act.

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

• Retain all usable green space. (Page 1/7.)
• Increase recreational facilities. (Page2/7.) (The park is a popular soccer venue and a location for people walking their dogs.)
• Confirming all of the Rochester Field Maplelawn parcel and the Atlantis-Selby lands as major components of the greenspace network strategy. (Page 4/7.)
• Confirming the entire Rochester Field parcel as open space. (Page 5/7.)
• Heritage Buildings---City Council shall encourage the preservation and adaptive use of heritage buildings within 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 Park:savecfbrockcliffe.)

Vintage photos

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Photos that were purchased from the USSR Pavilion at Expo 67.

Petrodvorets, Leningrad.

The fountain "Danaide", Leningrad.

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From the closing credits of my Dad's television program "The House Detective"---1962.

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Crown Princess Margrethe and Prince Henrik of Denmark visit Parliament Hill---1967.

Reposting---Properties that cannot be privatized and sold to developers.

 1.) National Parks and Historic Sites---Parks Canada Act of 1998-"This Act establishes the Agency for the purpose of ensuring that Canada's national parks, national historic sites and related heritage areas are protected and presented for current and future generations."

2.) The Ottawa Greenbelt - "The Greenbelt is like an Emerald Necklace and exists as a memorial to the Canadian soldiers who gave their lives in the Second World War. It consists of over 20,000 hectares of greenspace. The Greenbelt reaches a distance of 45 kilometers and ranges over a distance from two to 10 kilometers. (From: "The Greenbelt-Have your say about the Greenbelt's future" by the National Capital Commission, June 10, 2009.)

• Mer Bleue Conservation Area
• Commissioners Park near Dow's Lake
• Green's Creek Conservation Area
• Stony Swamp Conservation Area
• Hornet's Nest soccer fields
• Greenbelt Research Farm
• Pine View Golf Course
• Hylands Golf Club 
• The Log Farm
• Shirley's Bay
• Bruce Pit
• Conroy Pit
• Lime Kiln Trail
• Canadian Food Inspection Agency
• Wesley Clover Park
• Pinhey Forest
• The 19th Tee Driving Range
• The Canadian Space Agency
• The Southern Farm
• Airport land
• The Connaught National Army Cadet Summer Training Centre

3.) 900 square miles in the National Capital Region Privy Council of Canada Document No. 6721. (Greber Report of 1950, page 15/395.)

4.) "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.) Park land:

• Confederation
• Jacques Cartier
• Rockcliffe
• Rideau Falls
• Major's Hill
• Commissioners
• Hog's Back/Vincent Massey
• Lebreton
• Brebuef
• Gatineau
• The Greenbelt

5.)  The National Interest Land Mass - "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: 1988-09-15-TB-re-NCC Land Holdings.)

• GG's residence (Rideau Hall)
• PM's residence 24 Sussex Drive
• Rideau Gate (Guest House)
• Central Experimental Farm
• Greenbelt Research Farm - (Across from the Nepean Sportsplex)
• Shoreline behind Parliament Hill
• Chambers Building
• Confederation Square
• Part of Lebreton Flats N of Transitway
• Victoria Island
• Pts of Wellington in front of Chateau Laurier and Conference Centre and land to the E of the Conference Centre. Also, lands N of Wellington between Rideau Canal Locks & the Chateau Laurier & Major Hill Park. And the approach to the Alexandra Bridge and the new Art Gallery site. 
• Lady Grey Drive and the Ottawa River W of Sussex Drive
• Daly Building at the 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 S of Macdonald Cartier Bridge
• 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
• 4 parcels E of Sussex Drive between Stanley Ave and Rideau Gate
• Ottawa River Parkway Wellington to Carling
• Champlain Bridge, Island Park Drive
• Rideau Canal lands from downtown to Hog's Back Road---222 acres
• Rideau River land from Green Island to Revelstoke Drive
• Airport Parkway
• Eastern Parkway Hemlock Road to Highway 417
• Eastern Driveway and Rockcliffe Park from Sussex Drive to Greenbelt
• Lower Duck Island Ottawa River
• The Greenbelt

6.) National Historic Sites of Canada in Ottawa

• The Parliament Buildings
• Public Grounds of the Parliament Buildings
• Rideau Hall and Landscaped Grounds
• Rideau Canal
• Aberdeen Pavilion
• Beechwood Cemetery
• Billings House
• Central Chambers at the corner of Elgin Street and Queen Street
• Central Experimental Farm
• Confederation Square
• Connaught Building
• Diefenbunker
• Former Geological Survey of Canada Building
• Hart Massey House
• John R. Booth Residence
• Langevin Block
• Laurier House
• Maplelawn & Gardens
• National Arts Centre
• Notre-Dame Roman Catholic Basilica
• Royal Canadian Mint
• Victoria Memorial Museum

7.) The Parliamentary Precinct in the Nation's Capital

• Parliament Buildings and the Hill
• Library of Parliament
• Supreme Court of Canada
• Senate of Canada---2 Rideau Street
• The Lebreton Flats are the western annex of the Parliamentary Precinct
• Library and Archives
• Buildings and land opposite Parliament Hill
• The northern half of the Sparks Street Mall

8.) Parliament Hill Legal Title House of Commons Ottawa December 21, 1963---With the exception of the years 1802-1863, Parliament Hill has been owned by the Crown---successively by the Crown Imperial, the Crown Provincial and the Crown Federal. Since 1823 the Crown has always held these lands for public purposes---either for defence or generally.

1992

Reposting: The City of Ottawa approved a zoning change for the Experimental Farm.

• A Heritage Study
• An Environmental Impact Study
• Traffic Study
• Site Plan
• Transportation Plan
• Parking Strategy were all part of the site plan application.

"The City reassured attendees that all studies will be completed before the site plan application is approved. And that there would be a holding provision in place until that point, but this does not preclude a decision from being made on zoning." (The Glebe Annex Community Association---Ottawa Civic Hospital update to GACA residents, September of 2017.)

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"The conservation of cultural heritage resources is a priority for the City of Ottawa. Historic buildings, districts and landscapes provide us with physical reminders of our past..."

This document is from the 1980's.

Important buildings and landscapes.

 

The Farm will be negatively impacted by de paving, widening or blocking roads.

A Royal Astronomical Society of Canada video on YouTube.

"We are now in a phase where there is going to be a road and traffic study. Already the South Azimuth is getting in the way of road widening plans." (From: Point 27.06 out of of 32 minutes on the video.)

 Agriculture and Agrifood Canada National Historic Site Management Plan, Page 18/20   AAFC never wanted Maple Drive and Prince of Wales Drive altered and converted to ambulance routes.

Interior routes:

• Maple Drive
• Arboretum pathways
• Fletcher Wildlife Garden pathways
• Observatory Crescent
• National Capital Commission Scenic Driveway
• Cow Lane and Winding Lane
• Birch Drive (is now blocked off)
• Morningside Drive and Ash Lane 
• Prince of Wales Drive

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"The use of Maple Drive by emergency vehicles will change the way the road is used to serve the CEF. Other roads, including the NCC Driveway, Winding Lane and the remaining portion of Birch Drive are likely to be affected."

"There is also concern that Prince of Wales Drive may have to be widened and could lose appeal as a scenic driveway through the Farm. What we need to know is how traffic will be controlled to protect the integrity of the Farm." (Friends of the Farm newsletter, Summer of 2021, page 2/12.)

A scene from the movie "The Perfect Assistant" with Josie Davis, Chris Potter and Rachel Hunter.

Previous attempts to flatten Experimental Farm buildings:

• 1970---they were saved by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, astronomer Arthur Covington and heritage groups.
• 1974---more than 700 acres of the Farm were earmarked for housing.
• 1997---more than 50 properties on the Farm were slated for demolition. Part 1V of the Ontario Heritage Act and historical societies were able to prevent the mass destruction. ("The fight for the Farm goes on". A Heritage Ottawa newsletter from the spring of 1997.)

A 1974 Ottawa Journal article.

An Ottawa Citizen article from December 20, 1996.

Big changes on the horizon.

"New Civic Hospital location, the story behind the story." The Glebe Report, October 14, 2022. "...The development will result in an additional 3,000 vehicles seven days a week on Prince of Wales Drive and Carling Avenue. It will significantly compromise the public's access to and enjoyment of Commissioners Park and Dow's Lake..." (Prince of Wales is being widened to accommodate emergency and commercial vehicles including suppliers. A few months ago the federal government saved the Dominion Observatory campus, Google: "Parks Canada News Release, Ottawa, January 15, 2025." The hospital wanted to demolish the South Azimuth in order to widen Maple Drive. Birch Drive has been cordoned off, and the vacant William Saunders Building is in the path of destruction.)

Reposting---A Botanical Garden project in the year 2001:

A 2001 Ottawa Citizen article.

Noteworthy information:

• "The proposed botanical garden on the east side of Prince of Wales Drive would surround but not swallow the arboretum that is a haven for nature lovers. A first, $10 million dollar phase of the proposal from the Ottawa Botanical Garden Society is being studied by an advisory council appointed by Agriculture Canada." "Later stages are expected to include a conservatory with nine greenhouses with sales to the public, a butterfly house, washrooms and small cafes. The non-profit society would charge admission to the butterfly house and garden though not to the arboretum." (From an Ottawa Citizen article by Carolynne Wheeler, August 3, 2001.)
• The society wanted to charge $10 to $15 dollars for access to buildings south of the arboretum.
• Phase 1 would fence off about 108 acres now designated for research.
•  The telescope was removed from the Dominion Observatory in 1970 and relocated to a museum. 

Ottawa's Dominion Observatory discovered Planet X.

Civic Hospital Boundaries - Located on the northeast portion of the CEF. The parcel is bounded by:

• Carling Avenue
• Maple and Birch Drives
• Prince of Wales Drive
• Queen Juliana Park
• The Central Experimental Farm Pathway

Meets criteria for future expansion. (From: The New Civic Campus: A 21st Century Hospital in the Heart of Canada's Capital, April 2016.)

The Central Experimental Farm, Site No. 11, the Sir John Carling location

• On this site we have at least 24 buildings including Buildings 1 to 9, the Natural Resources Campus (including the Dominion Observatory.)
• Number 20, the K.W. Neatby Building and the Oilseed Research Centre.
• Extensive demolition or relocation of buildings is required for the new build to proceed. (From: The New Civic Campus: A 21st Century Hospital in the Heart of Canada's Capital---April 2016, page 10/76.)

Changes to the Rideau Canal.

 Designations may be removed:

• UNESCO World Heritage Site
• National Historic Site of Canada
• National Interest Land Mass
• Canadian Heritage River

Opportunities

• Lansdowne Park redevelopment and future Fifth Avenue pedestrian bridge
• Preston Street intensification at Dow's Lake
• Future University LRT station
• Build on existing temporary use pilot projects by the NCC
• Attract new users who will enhance appreciation of Canal and heritage appreciation
• Create strategic partnerships

Challenges

• Multi-jurisdictional policies and management
• Restrictive zoning and heritage designations
• Limited utility and servicing connections

Land Use and Built Form

• Offer a variety of land uses that enhance areas surrounding the Canal.
• Buildings adjacent to the Canal and parkways should be at a height that is appropriate to the neighbourhood character and context. (Adjacent parkways include the Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales, now owned by the City of Ottawa.)
• Create interesting and unique building designs that contribute to the visual integrity of the Canal. (The buildings and loss of trees will compromise the visual integrity.)
• Infill projects should be a tool to improve, rather than capitalize on the Canal's value. (Note: "Infill is the rededication of land in an urban environment, usually open space for new construction." Wikipedia.)
• Promote temporary land uses at key activity points along the Rideau Canal.
• Integrate traditional mainstreets to provide a range of land uses for the Canal Corridor.
• Enhance streets parallel to parkways with direct Canal frontage, to include uses and building forms similar to traditional mainstreets.
• Ensure cohesive relationships between the Lansdowne Park redevelopment, the Glebe and the Rideau Canal. (Information is from "Animating the Rideau Canal", December of 2013, page 1 and page 3 of 5 pages.)

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A United Nations agency called UNESCO sent a letter to the federal government regarding inappropriate development adjacent to the Rideau Canal. (During the year 2019). Google: "Save Our Rideau". The UNESCO letter of concern is on page 5 out of 16 pages.

A wonderful, 4-hour documentary that was produced by TV Ontario.

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"Urban lands are inherited---representing a legacy to be passed to future generations." (from "Capital Urban Lands Plan" page 35/123.)

Portsmouth Village---A potential Heritage Conservation District.

 Designation Procedure 7.3.C Prior to designating an area as a Heritage Conservation District under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act, the City must undertake a study. During the study period, alteration, demolition or removal may be regulated. (page 375/585.) 

Properties Designated Under the Ontario Heritage Act 7.3.C.2 Properties that are protected by Part 1V of the Ontario Heritage Act may be included as part of the heritage conservation district to ensure the integrity of the district. (Protected by Part 1V of the OHA, or in the process:

• Church of the Good Thief
• 440 King Street West, St. Helen's
• 462 King Street West, Stone Gables
• Rockwood Hospital, Rockwood Villa and many other buildings, 8 Gable Lane.
• P4W, 40 Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard
• Penitentiary Water Tower---244 Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard. Sold to Queen's University in 1965.
• 525 King Street West
•  "City begins process for Ontario Heritage Designation for Kingston Pen" by Bill Hutchins, The Kingstonist, April 8, 2025.)

The City intends to investigate the following areas as heritage conservation districts, including but not limited to:

• lower Princess Street from Division Street to the waterfront
• King Street West from Portsmouth Village to Barrie Street
• Portsmouth Village
• the properties facing onto Alamein Drive
• the Village of Westbrook
• Cataraqui Village
• St. Lawrence Ward, and
• Kingscourt  (all information is from pages 375,376 and 377 of 585 pages, "City of Kingston Official Plan, Consolidated as of August 31, 2024.")

A Restrictive Covenant

A Restrictive Covenant affecting 40 Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard, Kingston. September 12, 2022. File: 52564-1007. To preserve the value and enjoyment of adjoining land. (Union Park redevelopment project, page 93/95.)

Saving irreplaceable buildings in Canada

• Fram, Mark---Well Preserved. The Ontario Heritage Foundation's Manual of Principles and Practices for Architectural Conservation. Erin: Boston Mills Press.
• Heritage Character Statement Building A-3. A former women's prison within the grounds of the Pen:

Building A-3.

• Parks Canada Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada.
• Ministry of Culture (Ontario) Eight Guiding Principles in the Conservation of Historic Properties.

Books written by Dr. Jennifer McKendry, an architectural historian:

City of Kingston. By-Law No. 2007-167.

A By-Law to Designate 40 Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard, Also Known as 'The Prison for Women (P4W)' To Be of Cultural Heritage Value Pursuant to The Provisions of the Ontario Heritage Act, (R.S.O. 1990, Chapter 0.18.) Passed September 18, 2007.

The "Reasons for the Designation" include the following "important" attributes:

• hand worked limestone masonry veneer over a poured concrete core, which is smooth hammer dressed on the public faces of the C-18 Building and the rusticated blocks used on the rear elevations of C-18, the link between C-18 and C-16, and most of C-16,
• the use of the Auburn Penitentiary style cellblock reflects a desire to alter social behavior via architecture,
• its functions as a recognizable landmark in the City of Kingston and throughout Canada.

Architectural details associated with the C-18 Administration Building including:

• its more sophisticated classical architectural styling with the principle facade broken into seven bays,
• its copper coated hip roof topped with a distinctive cupola supported on a square base located just behind the central pediment in the front facade with an octagonal drum topped with a finial,
• its slightly projecting pedimented central entrance bay featuring on the ground floor a double door with a square headed transom set into a portico composed as an entablature and pediment carried by Tuscan columns,
• its distinctive fenestration which includes a modified Palladian window and a three-part window formed of narrow slides flanking a central window in the central bay of the principle facade, and the contrasting use of square headed windows on the first and third floor and the semicircle arched windows on the second floor of the symmetrical wings which flank the central section.

Architectural details associated with C-16 Cellblock, which is divided by fifteen bays with a three-bay rear wall, including:

• its classical style of architecture,
• its shallow pitched copper-covered hip roof,
• its symmetrical arrangement and distinctive treatment of windows which includes the use of semicircular arched windows with keystones,
• its cellblock design found on the third floor and mezzanine (fourth floor) which was more typical of men's prisons, and which is marked by its poured concrete walls, terrazzo floors, steel bars, elevated walkways, barriers, staircases and the locking mechanisms and
• a stone chimney on the north slope of the roof,
• its historic economic benefits to Kingston, through the creation of Federal positions, thereby contributing to the community of prison workers which were a unique group within Kingston, and
• contextual values such as views towards Portsmouth Olympic Harbour and Portsmouth Village and as part of a cultural heritage landscape of prison life within Kingston,.

A portion of the property fronting onto King Street West is included as part of the Kingston Penitentiary National Historic Site of Canada that contains the Warden's House at 555 King Street West. This portion of the property is also "Listed" as a property of cultural heritage value on the City of Kingston Register of Historic Places. (From pages 94 and 95 out of 95 pages "Union Park Kingston Redevelopment Project.")

City of Kingston April 8, 2025. The Pen is "A landmark of national significance."

Notice of Intention April 8--- Notice of Intention to pass a By-law to Designate

The following property to be of Cultural Heritage Value and Interest Pursuant to the Provisions of the Ontario Heritage Act (R.S.0. 1990, Chapter 0.18.)

Take Notice that the Council of The Corporation of the City of Kingston intends to pass a By-law under Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.0. 1990, Chapter 0.18, to designate the following lands to be of cultural heritage value and interest: 

560 King Street West (Block 183-184 and 192, Plan 54, Except Part 1 on Reference Plan 13R-14792; Together with Easement over Part Block 182, Plan 54, Being Part 12 on Reference Plan 13R-18756 as in FC 46925, City of Kingston, County of Frontenac, known as Kingston Penitentiary.)

The property includes 8.5 hectares of land on the south side of King Street West at the terminus of Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard and is adjacent to Portsmouth Olympic Harbour (formerly Hatter's Bay) within the Portsmouth Village neighbourhood of the City of Kingston. 

Kingston Penitentiary (KP) was the first purpose-built penitentiary in Canada and, at the time of its construction emboldened the most enlightened concepts for the reformation of incarcerated individuals. It is a major institutional complex of largely 19th and 20th century buildings designed in the neoclassical style and constructed of local limestone. Taken together, the structures, spatial arrangement and rich layers of meaning associated with KP comprise a cultural heritage landscape that has local, provincial and national significance. 

Kingston Penitentiary (KP) has design value for its high degree of technical achievement, artistic merit and craftsmanship related to its prototypical configuration, layout and spacial organization, in addition to its rich collection of well-crafted 19th century neoclassical structures.

The 19th century site plan prioritized symmetry to support an ordered universe, with a primary north-south axis from the entrance portico/North Lodge carried through the centre of the Main Cell Block and the South Workshop's Greek-cross design. This symmetry was also expressed in the location/orientation of the Dining Hall/Chapel and Hospital buildings, west and east of the Main Cell Block, and the similar locating of the East and West Workshops relative to the main South Workshop.

The property's fine craftsmanship is exhibited in its use of materials and construction methods. The property is a rare and early example of a closed-loop sustainability model of construction. The property displays a very high level of workmanship and elements of technical achievement, particularly exemplified in the 'flying' staircase executed in the cut stone at the South Workshop rotunda, the remarkable groin-vaulted ceiling in sections of the South Workshop, the basement of the Dining Hall and on the main level of the North Lodge. Also of note are the cast iron 'winged' columns designed by Edward Horsey for the Dining Hall that represents an early technical achievement in the use of exposed structural iron.

The buildings within Kingston Penitentiary that contribute to the property's overall cultural value and interest include:

• The North Lodge (1841-46) with bell cupola (1895);
• The guard towers, particularly the northeast (c. 1840) and northwest (1842) towers, and sections of the prison walls;
• The Main Cellblock building (1834-57), excluding the modern gymnasium (1951), kitchen (1956) and disassociation wing (1948);
• The South Workshop (1846-8); 
• The Chapel and Dining Hall (1849-52);
• The Hospital (1847);
• The West Workshop (1858-9 and 1876-82);
• The East Workshop (1855-8) with extant isolation cells (1889);
• The Keeper's Hall (1911); and
• The Women's Prison (1913).

KP possesses historical and associative value because it has direct associations with a number of Themes, Persons and Events and demonstrates the work of various architects that are significant to Kingston, the Province of Ontario and to Canada.

KP was designed to incorporate the most progressive ideas regarding punishment of its day. The very idea of a "penitentiary"-a state-run facility based on principles of reform, rather than simply incarceration was still relatively new when KP was built. Established in 1835, KP was among the first wave of penitentiaries constructed in North America. The creation of KP was an important step towards a modern, systemic and rational treatment of legal transgressors. The history and events that occurred at KP provides an understanding of the historic role of corporal punishment and the treatment of youth, women and those experiencing mental illness in the penal system in Canada in the 19th and early 20th century.

Significant people associated with KP include Hugh Thompson, John Macaulay, Henry Smith, Henry Smith Jr., Philip Pember, Dr. James Sampson, Thomas Kirkpatrick, the Reverend William Herchmer, George Brown and John Creighton, as well as Architects William Coverdale, Edward Horsey and James Adams.

Kingston Penitentiary has a direct association with the Brown Commission report that charged a warden with 119 counts of mismanagement of the facility and the neglect and abuse of incarcerated individuals, leading to substantive changes to the Canadian penal system.

The federal penitentiary system has been a dominant part of Kingston's socio-economic life throughout most of its history. Kingston has served as the premier focus of the federal penitentiary system in Ontario from its inception. KP has strong contextual value because of its importance in defining, maintaining and supporting the character and growth of Portsmouth Village and the City of Kingston. It is physically and visually linked to its surroundings and is a landmark of national significance.

The Ontario government saved a prison chapel.

 IN THE MATTER OF THE ONTARIO HERITAGE ACT, R.S.0., CHAPTER 0.18 AND 20 STRACHAN AVENUE, CITY OF TORONTO, PROVINCE OF ONTARIO.

NOTICE OF PASSING A BY-LAW TO:

Canada Lands Company CLC Ltd., 200 King Street West, Suite 1509, Toronto, Ontario M5H 3T4

Inglis Limited, 1901 Minnesota Court, Mississauga, Ontario L5N 3A7

Ontario Heritage Foundation, 10 Adelaide Street East, Toronto, Ontario M5C 1J3

Take notice that the Council of the Corporation of the City of Toronto has passed By-law No. 1996-0378 to designate 20 Strachan (Central Prison Chapel) as being of architectural and historical value or interest. Dated at Toronto this 27th day of August 1996.

(signed) City Clerk

Barbara Hall, Mayor of Toronto

Liberty Village Park. The former Prison Chapel is the red building on the left.

The Ontario Heritage Act Part 1V is also protecting:

• The Don Jail, 550 Gerrard Street Toronto
• Guelph Correctional Centre
•  Booth Barn on the CEF in Ottawa
• Ottawa Gaol, 75 Nicholas Street
• Maplelawn House and Gardens, 529 Richmond Road Ottawa
• the Isabel MacNeill Halfway House for Women---525 King Street West Kingston
• the Natural Resources Complex bounded by Booth, Rochester, Orangeville and Norman Streets in Ottawa.

  

  Buildings that are being preserved on the NRC campus.

  
  

Sale of the Prison for Women. A Kingstonist article by Bill Hutchins--- October 22, 2024.

The 1992 Directory of Federal Real Property.

Past information regarding the prison. City Council Agenda---May 8, 2019-Brownfield Initial Study Grant Program, Page 4. 40 Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard. "The property is bounded by Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard to the east and Union Street and King Street to the north and south respectively. The owner has stated that the proposed redevelopment of the property will include residential and commercial components that involve the construction of three new buildings and the extensive renovation of the existing Prison for Women building. The proposed redevelopment will be a mixed use comprised of residential, retail and office space for a total area of approximately 795,000 square feet of buildings and approximately 146 surface parking lots."

Plans were underway to knock down the walls between the cells in order to create condos. And all the interior bars and window bars will be removed. 

Canadian Register of Historic Places---Corrections Canada holdings in the Limestone City

• Former Prison for Women Administration Building/Cell Block (C-18, C-16).
• Collins Bay Institution Administration Building A-1 and Cell Block Building B-1
• Kingston Pen, North, East, West and South workshops
• Guard Towers, North Lodge and Main Cellblock---the Pen.
• Elmhirst House, 443 Union Street West
•  Correctional Centre---508 Portsmouth Ave.
• Former Warden's Residence, now a museum---555 King Street West, across from Kingston Pen
• Kingston Pen National Historic Site of Canada
• St. Helen's---Grant House, Red Cross Lodge and Stone Gables---440 King Street West
• Guard Towers--- Collins Bay

  

   Collins Bay Guard Towers. Photo was taken by Timkal.

  
  
  
  
  

Demolition of the walls at the Prison for Women. The video "P4W walls coming down" is on YouTube.