An article in today’s Ottawa Citizen (Lansdowne, a big-box forerunner, report says, Maria Cook, March 23, 2010) reports that John Stewart, a heritage consultant hired by the city, describes Lansdowne Park as “the forerunner of what we call the big-box store,” and that stores such as Chapters bookstores and grocery stores would be acceptable uses for the site.
He goes on to indicate that Lansdowne has been a venue for the display of advancements in agriculture, livestock and manufacturing. And that many new initiatives such as the telephone, electric stove, radio broadcasting and first views of a plane in flight were first introduced to citizens of Ottawa here. Last evening I was very confused when I heard Councillor Peter Hume in a short piece on CBC News at Six extolling the virtues of such events as justification for development of retail space a Lansdowne.
It is unclear to me exactly what these wonderful events have to do with developing a large retail space on the grounds of Lansdowne Park. Having exhibition space in the park is one thing. Developing a large retail shopping complex is quite another. Councillor Clive Doucet is right on the mark when he says “…This is all about privatization. It makes no sense in terms of the park’s history…”
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