Published on June 18, 2010 9:30 PM by dbo.
Ten days remain until Ottawa City Council will vote June 28th on the proposal to revitalize Lansdowne Park. As the date has drawn nearer, additional presentations, reports, meetings and analysis have been produced. The design and plan have become clearer, but not the council’s expected decision.
Council heard that the cost to Ottawa is estimated at $172 million while the developers contribution is pegged at $118 million. Details of the components of the plan were pulled from a 400-page report. Unanswered questions about tenants and heritage issues will come with time.
Adding to the belief that nothing will be beyond debate, questions arose as to whether the plan was green enough. Since the decision on the front lawn design, the winning designers and the architects responsible for the stadium and commercial design have been working on merging the two designs, with the front lawn also undergoing changes based on the design jury cuts. Because of the complexity of such a task, a final site design will not be ready for council to review before the final vote.
Reviews of the announcements have been mixed, with Glebe neighbourhood residents split, the Lansdowne design review panel chair calling the developers plans an improvement and academics calling the process flawed. Other figures have expressed concerns over the effect of the development, while others hope for a better future for the park.
This week the financial plan passed the financial scrutiny of the Auditor General. The final design will continue to evolve with new proposals still being forwarded. While it is expected there will be opposition and potentially last ditch challenges, it is believed that enough councillors are satisfied with the process and direction for the proposal to pass. That would make June 28th a very exciting day for the City of Ottawa and football fans across the country. I will continue to watch developments with interest over the next ten days.
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Ottawa: T Minus 10 Days was published on June 18, 2010 9:30 PM by dbo.
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This article is categorized under Stadiums and tagged with lansdowne-park and ottawa.