[kevinbottawa]

NCC hopes to ‘bring more vitality’ to Ottawa River shoreline

By Don Butler, OTTAWA CITIZEN January 22, 2014 7:01 PM

The National Capital Commission wants to make the Ottawa River shoreline a livelier place.

To that end, it will invite proposals next month for pilot projects that will “enliven and bring more vitality” along both sides of the waterway, Jean-François Trépanier, the NCC’s chief executive officer, told board members at a public meeting Wednesday.

Trépanier said the NCC request for expressions of interest will include a map of available green spaces along the Ottawa River, primarily along the Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway and places such as Jacques Cartier Park in Gatineau.

“We’ll leave it to the population and the private sector to offer suggestions on how they would like to offer animation on the shoreline,” he said.

Assuming there are some worthy proposals, the selected pilot projects should begin appearing along the river shoreline later this year.

The Ottawa River represents the second phase of the NCC’s Shorelines Initiative. During the first phase, the NCC approved pilot projects along the Rideau Canal, four of which launched in 2012.

They included Rideau Beach and 8 Locks Flat, a temporary Parisien-style beach bistro, pop-up patios showcasing gourmet food trucks, craft beer and wine, ice-cream push carts and a canal-side “reading garden.”

According to an NCC survey, the projects were a hit with both tourists and local residents, with 96 per cent saying the sites helped to make Ottawa’s core more vibrant.

Trépanier said the NCC hopes to replicate that success along the Ottawa River.

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