Tom Brown Arena is one of the 10 proposed locations to offer camping on this Canada Day weekend. Kelsey Curtis, Centretown NewsThe City of Ottawa has moved forward with its plan to set up temporary campsites across the National Capital Region, principally to accommodate the expected overflow of visitors during the Canada Day weekend of the country’s 150th anniversary year in 2017.
At a planning committee meeting on Nov. 21, councillors approved the creation of 11 campsites across the city, with one located at the edge of Centretown. Tom Brown Arena on Bayview Road is the closest site to Parliament Hill, Major’s Hill Park and other expected hubs of activity on Canada Day. The sites are being set up in response to the overwhelming demand for hotel rooms during Canada Day weekend. Hotels across the city are being booked solid despite the increase in price.
At the Nov. 21 meeting, Alta Vista Coun. Jean Cloutier proposed an additional site at the Goulbourn Recreation Complex in Stittsville. The committee unanimously agreed. The sites will be open from June 29 to July 4, 2017.
Mayor Jim Watson said the campsites are “a novel idea,” and that similar programs have been successful in other cities.
There are also two sites in Vanier, at the St. Laurent Recreation Complex and the Richelieu-Vanier Community Centre.Other campsites are located across the city, in Nepean, Kanata, Alta Vista, Gloucester, Orleans and Cumberland. While the widely dispersed sites may seem inconvenient for transportation, Guy Laflamme, executive director of Ottawa 2017, said an approach that includes multiple areas of the city is the best option.
“That was part of the strategy, to bring a wealth, not only in the downtown core, but to get as many parts of the city to benefit from the influx of visitors and the investments to be made by visitors,” Laflamme said. “Most of those sites were selected on the basis of being located where you already have very efficient public transportation services, so most of those sites are covered by OC Transpo.” Laflamme added he expects visitors who choose not to use public transit to take their own vehicles to get downtown.
While the idea of temporary campsites was only made public in October by Centretown News, Laflamme said they were in his initial plan for the festivities.
“This is not something we improvised,” he said. “We just waited until we got an indication that the hotels had a fairly high reservation rate before going public with this initiative. But it is something that I have discussed and explored with our board a number of times and with key stakeholders over the last two years.”
City council originally voted in favour of the proposal on Nov. 10, but also agreed to lower the rates to be charged to those using the temporary campsites. Visitors can choose between three- and five-day packages, with the prices varying depending on whether they stay in a tent, a regular recreational vehicle or a long RV. Three days in a tent will cost $195, while the five-day fee will be $300.
The city’s parks and recreation department is in charge of the program’s financial assessment, and it maintains that the program is intended to be not-for-profit.
Laflamme said the revenue earned from the campsites will be used to cover the costs of water, electricity and other amenities in adjacent recreation centres during the five nights they are open to campers.
While alcohol will be prohibited and the city’s standard noise bylaw will be enforced, Laflamme acknowledged potential concerns from nearby neighbourhoods, but said he hopes residents will look at the big picture.
“This is just for a five-day period,” said Laflamme. “It’s an exceptional, really extraordinary situation, because not every year will we host Canada’s 150th celebration.”
Coun. Cloutier said many of the campsites were chosen because they are not close to residential neighbourhoods. However, Tom Brown Arena is an exception, with a number of homes directly across Bayview.
Local community organizations, such as the Dalhousie Community Association, have not yet been consulted on the plan for the campsites.
Dan Chenier, general manager of parks and recreation, wrote in a statement that the councillors of each ward hosting a campsite were included in the original planning phase.
Chenier added that residents can share their opinions with the city before council finalizes its decision on Dec. 14.