Report on Activies - June 2017

On June 29, the NCC Board of Directors met to discuss recent and upcoming projects. Here are some of the highlights presented in my Report on Activities.

The Plan for Canada’s Capital 2017-2067

• The Plan for Canada’s Capital was launched May 9 at a Shaw Centre event hosted by the Ottawa Business Journal and the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce.
• This “People’s Plan” and the 17 milestone projects it includes was developed with the help of thousands of Canadians across the country, and will guide the development of the Capital from now until Canada’s bicentennial in 2067.
• A public information session regarding the Plan was held the same day in the Capital Urbanism Lab.
• A parallel launch event scheduled for Gatineau was posponed due to this spring’s flooding; it was held on June 6 at the Hilton Lac-Leamy.

Capital Illumination Plan

• The Capital Illumination Plan is one of the milestone projects included in the Plan for Canada’s Capital. It will make the nighttime Capital more attractive, more safe, and more environmentally sustainable.
• This draft will establish a common vision for the illumination of the Capital and identify priority lighting projects.
• There is currently a demontration project visible on the façade of Rideau Hall.
• A draft plan is complete and is being reviewed by stakeholders and NCC staff, and was posted to the NCC website on June 22 for public feedback, which members of the public can offer online until July 9.
• The plan will be presented to the Board at its September meeting.

LeBreton Flats Redevelopment

• The NCC continues to meet with the RendezVous LeBreton group, the preferred proponent.
• The NCC has also begun discussions with the Algonquin Delegation of Chiefs. These discussions will continue through the summer.

Lilias W. Fleck Fountain

On June 12 the NCC opened an interpretive exhibition around the Lilias W. Fleck Fountain, a unique artifact of Capital history discovered buried on the Flats.

Pindigen Park

June 20 was the inauguration of Pindigen Park, a new public space emphasizing the Capital’s indigenous heritage developed with elders from the Kitigan Zibi and Pikwakanagan communites.

Nepean Point

• On May 25 the NCC announced the four finalist teams in the Nepean Point international design competition. They are headed by Janet Rosenberg, Vincent Asselin, Mark Ryan, and Adriaan Geuze.
• Their concepts  will be presented on Oct. 5 to a joint session of the jury and the NCC’s Advisory Committee on Planning, Design and Realty, and be presented to the public at an open house the same day.    

Ottawa River North Shore

• The consultations regarding the future the Ottawa River North Shore are nearing their conclusion.
• The NCC has brought together local stakeholders, including the City of Gatineau, regarding the formation of a new advisory committee.

Gatineau Park

• The first public consultations regarding the renewal of the Gatineau Park Master Plan will begin in the fall.
• The final consultation on the Gatineau Park trails network was held on April 27.
• This process has built a consensus on modifying the network to prevent further habitat fragmentation while improving the trails experience for park visitors.

Environmental Strategy

• The NCC has created a new cluster for environmental excellence within the comission led by Katie Paris, Director of Environmental Services, Transportation Planning and Real Estate Transactions and Development.
• This group is renewing the NCC’s environmental strategy, which expires next year.
• On June 6, the NCC hosted two workshops, one in each official language, which were attended by staff from the cities of Ottawa and Gatineau, members of local environmental organizations, cycling advocates, academics, NGO representatives, and other stakeholders.
• On June 7, the NCC held a open house to hear the public’s ideas and feedback.
• These will form the basis for futher discussions in the fall.

Confederation Pavilions

Eight of the 10 pavilions in this signature 150^th anniversary project have now been opened. Since the April Board meeting:

• The Modern Architecture Pavilion opened in the Strutt House in Gatineau Park on April 27.
• On May 16 the Aga Khan, His Excellency the Governor General, and Minister Joly opened the Global Centre for Pluralism, also the NCC’s Global Pluralism Pavilion, in the old Canadian War Museum building on Sussex Drive.
• The Ecology and Urban Agriculture Pavilion opened at the Moore Farm on June 8.
• The Kabeshinân Minitig Pavilion opened on June 20 in the former Bronson company headquarters on Victoria Island.
• The new building at 7 Clarence St. opened on June 26. It will house the International Pavilion displays by various foreign missions for the remainder of the year.
• The Geography and Exploration Pavilion at 50 Sussex Drive opened on June 28. It now features an exhibition highlighting the Plan for Canada’s Capital as well as the history of capital urban planning.

Rideau Hall Forecourt

A ceremony inaugurating the renewed forecourt and rededicating the Fountain of Hope was held on June 19, with their Excellencies the Governor General and Mrs. Johnston, all of Canada’s lieutenant governors, and the Commissioner of Yukon in attendance.

MosaïCanada 2017/150

This exhibition – one of the most remarkable in the Capital and the country – opens on June 30 and runs through October 15. Admission is free.

Sunday Bikedays

• The 47^th season of NCC Weekend Bikedays kicked off on May 21. To mark the 150^th annivesary of Confederation, for the first time Confederation Boulevard was also closed to vehicular traffic for the day.
• New features this year are roving water stations sponsored by the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada, and the Youth Entrepreneurship Program – a partnership with Junior Achievement Ottawa that invites interested young people to operate kiosks on select NCC parkways.

Mackenzie Avenue Cycling Lanes

The new cycling lanes, along with improvements to Mackenzie Avenue, were inaugurated on May 19.

Capital Urbanism Lab

• The NCC marked National Aboriginal Day with a Capital Urbanism Lab session on indigenous placemaking, in which some young NCC staffers teamed up with young indigenous planners and architects from across the country to present design concepts for potential placemaking projects in the Capital.
• This was the final session of the season. Season 4 will launch in September.

New NCC website

The NCC website has been redesigned and now includes a blog (ncc-ccn.gc.ca/blog) in which the commission’s in-house experts are posting lively and informative articles.

Annual Public Meeting

The Annual Public Meeting will be held on Sept. 11.

Royal Architectural Institute of Canada

• I presented welcoming remarks to Gold Medal Plenary of the RAIC’s 2017 Festival of Architecture annual conference.
• The Plenary paid tribute to the late Roger du Toit, a visionary who had a great influence on the Capital.