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Friends, Our legal team is heading to Ontario’s Court of Appeal and we need your financial support. This is the first time in Canada that an appellate court is being asked to interpret municipal legislation prohibiting the granting of financial assistance to developers.With your help, we can make our strong case. A historical researcher recently turned up a letter dated May 7, 1953 from then Mayor Charlotte Whitton to a businessman who had inquired about establishing a department store at Lansdowne Park. Charlotte Whitton wrote... "It is simply a waste of time to discuss anything as impossible as taking Lansdowne Park. It would not, under any circumstances that I can imagine, be allowed to go up for sale for commercial purposes. … Lansdowne Park for a fine commercial enterprise would be about as acceptable to the people of Ottawa as the proposal to build on a part of the Parliament Bulidings green…." However, our current mayor, Jim Watson is not like Charlotte Whitton. He supports the commercialization of Lansdowne Park. In the year since he was elected, Mayor Watson has not questioned any aspect of the scheme initiated by his predecessor Larry O'Brien. We remind you of just a few facts about City Council's actions in regards to Lansdowne Park:
In addition to the irregular process and the terrible financial deal, there are many other concerns with the development: the flawed public consultation process, the failure to respect heritage values, the potential environmental risks, the distance from rapid transit and the impact of big American chains on small, local retailers. The transportation issues associated with the proposal are troubling. The City's consultants estimate there will be over 5000 extra cars a day even when there is no event at the stadium. Imagine the impact on residents trying to get downtown from the southern part of the City. What is more, the site is short at least 9000 parking spots compared to what zoning regulations would normally require for these sorts of uses. (Note: the 9000 is not a typo). It is true, as the City's lawyers have claimed in its defence, that Ottawa City Council does have the right to make bad and unreasonable decisions. It is perfectly legal for the City to make a mistake with Lansdowne like it did with Rideau Street and blight a neighbourhood for a generation. However, City Council does not have the right to ignore provincial laws, to misrepresent the scheme to citizens and to ignore its duty to protect the public interest. This is why Friends of Lansdowne has taken legal action to stop the scheme. We are fighting for fair public process and for the public good. A win in court will be the only way to get the City to undertake an open, transparent and competitive process to revitalize Lansdowne Park. It is not too late to get it right. As you know, our legal challenge will be heard in the Court of Appeal for Ontario in a one-day hearing on Monday 28 November 2011 in Toronto. If you can possibly be there to support our lawyers please do so. The address is Osgoode Hall, 130 Queen Street West, Toronto (Subway: Osgoode Station-Southbound Platform ). For info: (416) 327-5742. You can also help by making a (another!) donation. Our lawyers are putting in many hours preparing for the 28 November hearing. Please help if you can. You can donate:
Thanks for your support. Let's Get it Right! |