Difficult decision
Posted Nov 27, 2009 By EMC News
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Tweet ThisIt was the only plausible outcome.
An unsolicited but very workable solution to the ongoing saga that has been Lansdowne Park finally received some solid backing from a majority of Ottawa City Council last Monday night.
The proposal, known as Lansdowne Live, received support by a vote of 15-9, allowing the proponents to finally breathe a little easier after many months of debate.
That debate, over how to proceed with this gem of a property, ignited the passions of Ottawans the likes we have rarely seen.
Opponents took issue with everything from the sole-sourcing of the proposal, the costs to taxpayers, the risks involved, how much retail development would be included, even right down to how much greenery would be featured.
It reached fever pitch during several public meetings held across the city during the summer and continued to the end, with councillor Clive Doucet, the most vocal anti-Lansdowne Live voice on council, actually breaking down in what turned out to be something of a concession speech to colleagues.
While there's absolutely no way to please everyone when an issue to evenly divides a community, maintaining the status quo was not an option.
Lansdowne Live, while not perfect, was brought forward in good faith by local business people who could no longers sit by and watch the park fall apart. Having won a conditional CFL franchise (and perhaps even a USL soccer franchise as well), the plans call for the redevelopment of Frank Clair Stadium and Civic Centre.
But the proposal is more than football and hockey. And with a series of conditions added on - including the completion of transportation studies and a design competition for the front area that incorporates the Ottawa Farmers' Market, Aberdeen Pavilion and horticultural building - the city is taking steps to cover as many bases as it can.
The easiest thing to do would be to do nothing. Hats off to those councillors who have shown the foresight to move forward.
