The National Capital Commission is calling for submissions for ideas to liven up properties it owns along the Ottawa River shoreline.
The NCC is accepting submissions from businesses, community associations and arts and recreation groups for projects that could be launched as early as this summer.
The NCC scheduled a public meeting for prospective applicants on Feb. 20, and the deadline for applications is March 14.
The successful applicants will be chosen by June, with many of their projects launching soon after.
The lands, which extend on the Ottawa side of the river along the shoreline from the Byward Market area all the way to Westboro, are undeveloped.
NCC spokesperson Cédric Pelletier says the land is best suited to seasonal projects, much like the pop-up patios that animate the Rideau Canal shorelines in the summer.
The Rideau Canal initiative, spearheaded by the NCC in 2012, includes a temporary beach area north of the Corktown footbridge, “pop-up” patios with gourmet food trucks, and a reading garden complete with seating, wi-fi and access to books.
But Jantine Van Kregten, director of communications at Ottawa Tourism, says she hopes proponents will get creative with how to use the spaces year-round and not just in the summer.
“I think the Rideau Canal provides the perfect example of how some things that exist only in the winter are a heck of a lot of fun as well.”
Van Kregten says she hopes the initiative will give Ottawa residents and tourists new reasons to visit the river.
“It’s been a pretty passive way to enjoy the waterways,” she says.
“You sort of wander along on your own or on your bike and you enjoy it but there’s not a lot of activity or reasons to head down to the Ottawa River.”
Meredith Brown, executive director of the Ottawa Riverkeeper, is also very excited by the possibility of new ways to enjoy the river.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that the Ottawa River is the major feature that flows through the national capital region, so I think we need to do a better job at embracing it with urban design and planning,” she says.
But she’s worried that projects by private businesses might not take into account the environmental concerns associated with building along the shoreline.
“What I don’t want to see are proposals from businesses that are thinking only of business opportunities to make money and not thinking of the river as a common property and shared resource.”
She is concerned about the possibility of paving properties so close to the river.
Brown says there are many possibilities for projects that would encourage public interaction with the river, while also protecting its ecological integrity.
Brown says she’d also like to see a camping site, where people on long canoe trips could stop and stay.
“These are national lands, and it should be a place for Canadians to reflect on what a great country we have,” she says. “Water is one of the best things going for Canada.”