Chaudière Falls, just north of the Canadian War Museum, are to be illuminated to mark Canada 150. Cody MacKay, Centretown NewsTo mark Canada’s 150th birthday, the Ottawa 2017 group organizing the city’s celebrations will shine a spotlight — literally — on one of the capital’s most controversial places.
In September and November 2017, a special light show will illuminate Chaudière Falls. Accompanied by music and interpretation panels, the event will pay tribute to indigenous people and in particular the rich Algonquin heritage of the region.
For many in Ottawa, seeing the Chaudière Falls will be a first. While the site seems like a well-kept secret, it holds decades of rich history for Canada — and recently, deep tensions with regard to its future.
“It’s going to be quite breathtaking,” said Mayor Jim Watson. “It’s an opportunity for members of First Nations communities to come and better explain their history, culture and traditions on-site through a series of interpretive panels and presentations.”
Chaudière Falls, known as Akikodjiwan among Algonquin people, is situated just west of the Chaudière Bridge between Ottawa and Gatineau and north of LeBreton Flats and the Canadian War Museum.
The falls used to be a key point in Canada’s major transportation route — what Watson described as the “1800s Queensway” — and a sacred meeting place for indigenous people for centuries. The falls are located on unceded Algonquin territory and access to the general public has been denied for more than 100 years.
The light and sound show will be a significant event after decades of prohibited entry. The public, and particularly indigenous people with a spiritual connection to the falls, will finally be allowed a close-up view of the natural wonder once again during the signature event for Canada’s 150th.
Due to recent hydroelectric redevelopment at the site by Hydro Ottawa, spectators will be able to view the light and sound show from behind the Canadian War Museum, said Ottawa 2017 co-chair and Rideau-Vanier Coun. Mathieu Fleury.
The falls are at the forefront of a fierce debate surrounding the planned Zibi commercial-residential development on the nearby islands and the adjacent Ottawa River shoreline straddling the Ontario-Quebec border in downtown Ottawa-Gatineau.
The Zibi project is an urban restoration project intended to redevelop formerly industrial land as a retail, residential and office community. The redevelopment plans — and the Ottawa 2017 light show at the falls — have drawn support from Chief Kirby Whiteduck of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation west of Ottawa.
In a statement announcing the show, Whiteduck said: “We look forward to this opportunity to tell residents and visitors of Algonquin history in our territory and of our future aspirations.”
However, his community’s aspirations do not match the visions of all Algonquin bands in the area.
Pikwakanagan is the only one out of 10 federally recognized Alquonquin communities backing the Zibi project.
Métis architect Douglas Cardinal, designer of the Canadian Museum of History, has been at the forefront of opposition to the redevelopment.
In addition to Zibi, Hydro Ottawa’s ongoing expansion of its hydroelectric plant — powered by Chaudière Falls — has prompted conflicting opinions.
A group called Free the Falls has argued against the two projects and wants to tear down the hydro dam that now surrounds the falls and restore the Chaudière as a natural wonder and sacred place for the indigenous community.
But Peter Stockdale of Free the Falls said the upcoming light show could be a great opportunity to draw attention to the falls and increase awareness about its history and meaning.
He said he hopes Canadians will use this opportunity to learn how special the falls are to Canada’s past.
“It’s not about getting into the tension points around the land and the future use of the land. For us, it’s about celebrating the water, the history, the Algonquins of the region,” said Fleury.
Produced in collaboration with iPolitics.