We are fortunate to have, at the heart of our city, a remarkable common space in the form of Lansdowne Park. Lansdowne has played a significant role in the history and culture of our city for more than a hundred years and it is important that we continue to invest in its future development. People in our community want to see Lansdowne Park redevelopment and they have the best ideas for it.  The current process, however, is deeply flawed.

Any renewal of Lansdowne must take place in consultation with the community. To date, the proposal by Lansdowne Live has cut the community out of the process and city council should never have suspended its own rules surrounding sole-source contracting. The rules against sole-sourcing exist primarily because previous experiences have shown us it doesn’t work. At a time when we’re being asked to tighten our belt in this economic situation, no one should consider sole-sourcing which, by its very nature, costs us more.

The recent public meetings have also shown that there is deep opposition to the redesign within our community. Both residents and local businesses have raised their serious concerns with the Lansdowne Live proposal and there is genuine fear that this proposal will be detrimental to the communities surrounding Lansdowne Park.

If Lansdowne redevelopment is going to be successful we need meaningful consultations: this means talking to the residents and businesses first to capture their vision for the park’s renewal, then opening the design and the project to a competitive bid.

The current process is doing the opposite.

This is why I joined the community’s rally as they raised their opposition to the city’s approach toward Lansdowne. The residents and businesses in the area have called on the city council to scrap the sole-source arrangement with Lansdowne Live and restart a design competition that would open the process to bids by other development groups. I support their call for transparency and engagement.

The federal government was approached last summer by Lansdowne Live and asked to provide financial support for their project.  In response, I have contacted Minister John Baird and called on him to clearly indicate to the City of Ottawa that federal support for the city’s efforts for the future of Lansdowne Park would become available only upon the completion of an open and transparent process that is accepted by Ottawa’s communities.

Lansdowne Park is truly one of Ottawa’s treasures and future redevelopment will have a lasting effect on not only the park, but the community at large. It is important that the public be given a real opportunity to participate in the planning process in order for the new Lansdowne Park to accurately reflect our city and its people. When it comes to Lansdowne, let’s stop, think and get it right.