City of Gatineau

[J.OT13]

Thought I would create a thread for the City of Gatineau. This would be for policy and political purposes.

First up, I'm disappointed to hear that Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin will not be seeking re-election. I've personally been very happy with his work over the last 7+ years. From the new library and park at Le Plateau to pushing through the new arena after over a decade+ of dithering and championing the tramway project. Add to that sound environmental policy that will see green roofs and far fewer (maybe none after Destination V) big box store developments.

I wish he would run for another 4 years to complete some of the work, including the tramway (at the very least guide the project to the start of construction). I know some disagreed with a few policies, like the rejection of Place des Peuples, but we may look back and thank the administration for the decision in a few decades.

GATINEAU DEVAPPS WEBSITE: https://www.gatineau.ca/portail/defa...f=haut-de-page

Gatineau mayor not seeking re-election, sources tell Radio-Canada

Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin was first elected as mayor in 2013
CBC News · Posted: Jan 28, 2021 4:00 AM ET | Last Updated: 5 hours ago



Gatineau Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin will announce on Thursday he's not seeking re-election, sources tell Radio-Canada.

Pedneaud-Jobin's office did not respond to Radio-Canada's request for comment Wednesday but confirmed he will be holding a news conference at 2 p.m. Thursday to discuss his future.

If Pedneaud-Jobin officially bows out of the next election, it will force the party he founded, Action Gatineau, to elect a new leader.

Pedneaud-Jobin was first elected as a municipal councillor in 2009 in the Buckingham district of Gatineau. In 2013, he was elected mayor of Quebec's fourth largest city and was re-elected in 2017.

The next general election in Gatineau is slated for Nov. 7, 2021.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottaw...2021-1.5890911

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Thought I would create a thread for the City of Gatineau. This would be for policy and political purposes.

First up, I'm disappointed to hear that Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin will not be seeking re-election. I've personally been very happy with his work over the last 7+ years. From the new library and park at Le Plateau to pushing through the new arena after over a decade+ of dithering and championing the tramway project. Add to that sound environmental policy that will see green roofs and far fewer (maybe none after Destination V) big box store developments.

I wish he would run for another 4 years to complete some of the work, including the tramway (at the very least guide the project to the start of construction). I know some disagreed with a few policies, like the rejection of Place des Peuples, but we may look back and thank the administration for the decision in a few decades.

I don't know enough about Gatineau politics and what Maxime's influence has been during his tenure but I feel like Gatineau has been moving in the right direction for the last few years. Great things are happening and it's an exciting time to live here. The amenities and services are improving dramatically after decades of neglect from every level of government.

[J.OT13]

A reporter from Le Droit has made a prediction: the next Provincial election, Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin will run in Papineau for the CAQ while Lacombe will make the shift to Terrbonne where he is currently living with his family.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

A reporter from Le Droit has made a prediction: the next Provincial election, Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin will run in Papineau for the CAQ while Lacombe will make the shift to Terrbonne where he is currently living with his family.

Maxime est de Buckingham qui fait partie de Papineau. Il gagnerait facilement surtout avec la popularité actuelle de la CAQ et Legault.

À Terrebonne c'est Pierre Fitzgibbon qui est aussi ministre mais qui a eu quelques difficultés (scandales).

[Mille Sabords]

Maxime has been a great mayor for Gatineau. He will be missed.

[GeoNerd]

Originally Posted by Mille Sabords

Maxime has been a great mayor for Gatineau. He will be missed.

Completely disagree. Between moving the Guertin to the suburbs, blocking Place de Peupes, and a few other head scratching moves, Maxime has set "downtown Hull" back +20 years. Maxime is a small town mayor with a small vision, content on keeping Gatineau unremarkable. Gatineau deserves a bold modern mayor.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by GeoNerd

Completely disagree. Between moving the Guertin to the suburbs, blocking Place de Peupes, and a few other head scratching moves, Maxime has set "downtown Hull" back +20 years. Maxime is a small town mayor with a small vision, content on keeping Gatineau unremarkable. Gatineau deserves a bold modern mayor.

Those are some contentious issues that have divided a lot of people.

Personally, I fully support both those decisions. With the Centre Slush Puppie, the City is moving the Olympiques' arena closer to their fan base and providing modern community skating facilities for the area. The deal with VMSO, though we've seen some issues, has saved the City quite a bit of money.

As for Place des Peuples, I thought the project was way over scale for the area and would have overshadowed the museum and the historic housing stock (some of the few in Hull). That said, I do wish the Mayor would often said "beau project, pas la bonne place" would tell us where "la bonne place" is. A land swap deal with Brigil would have been desirable (the Guertin site for the Laurier site, possibly).

[J.OT13]

So far, Lac-Beauchamp Councillor Jean-François LeBlanc and head of Toursime Outaouais France Bélisle have confirmed they will be running for the Mayorship.

Former Mayor Yves Ducharme, who recently acted as Brigil's "propaganda minister", is considering running. So is Plateau Councillor Maude Marquis-Bissonnette, who may run as Action Gatineau's candidate.

[Proof Sheet]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Thought I would create a thread for the City of Gatineau. This would be for policy and political purposes.


I wish he would run for another 4 years to complete some of the work, including the tramway (at the very least guide the project to the start of construction).

I don't live in Gatineau, but that 'completing the work they started' reason to get re-elected is one of the most overused reasons for a sitting Councillor to get re-elected. That is why we have some of the deadwood we have on Ottawa City Council.

[GeoNerd]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Those are some contentious issues that have divided a lot of people.

Personally, I fully support both those decisions. With the Centre Slush Puppie, the City is moving the Olympiques' arena closer to their fan base and providing modern community skating facilities for the area. The deal with VMSO, though we've seen some issues, has saved the City quite a bit of money.

As for Place des Peuples, I thought the project was way over scale for the area and would have overshadowed the museum and the historic housing stock (some of the few in Hull). That said, I do wish the Mayor would often said "beau project, pas la bonne place" would tell us where "la bonne place" is. A land swap deal with Brigil would have been desirable (the Guertin site for the Laurier site, possibly).

I don't get the Slush Puppie Centre argument of "moving the arena closer to their fan base". Are people from West Gatineau (Alymer, Pontiac, Hull) not Olympiques' fans? Is it a biggest suburb wins contest? Ottawa made that mistake of moving their arena out of the core, alienating half the city. Gatineau had a real-life case study of what not to do, yet did it anyway. Suburban arenas are a terrible idea.

Yes Place des Peuples was over scale for the area. But so is every first large development to an area. Minto Metropole and Claridge Icon were/are built with nothing else of real height around them. Slowly other developments will sprout up around them over time. Have you taken a walk around the "historic museum district"? It's a few stick frame houses with little architectural value, many are dilapidated, gravel parking lots, bunkhouses....Some have been torn down, others replaced with god-awful vinyl siding new builds. This isn't exactly historic Mont Royal, Brooklyn Heights, or Charlestown. The house may be old, but there is nothing of real historic value in that neighbourhood. If this is the historic district Gatineau wants to preserve, then I worry about the future of downtown Hull.

[J.OT13]

Both the City and the Olympiques have confirmed time and time again that the majority of the fanbase is east of the Gatineau River. It has been stated as one of the advantages of the site.

Slush Puppie's location can't be compared to the CTC. Slush Puppie is in the literal centre of the City of Gatineau. It's walking distance from restaurants, a Cegep, a library and performance centre and a major sports complex, amongst other destinations. It's served by the City's largest transit hub. The CTC is at the far west end of Ottawa and has nothing of interest within walking distance. It's the furthest point from most of the Sens' fanbase. Transit is limited to immediately before and after events.

In the case of Place des Peuples, we DON'T want anything else to sprout up because the immediate area comprises of historic homes that date from before the 1900 fire. You're right that the Museum District is not Mont Royal, Brooklyn Heights, or Charlestown, but that's all we have. We should be preserving the best of what Hull has to offer instead of comparing it to better examples of historic cities. Otherwise, both Hull and Ottawa would be gutted.

Icon and Metropole are mostly surrounded by parking lots, industrial and disposable late 20th century buildings. There's less that justifies preservation nearby (within a few blocks).

[GeoNerd]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Both the City and the Olympiques have confirmed time and time again that the majority of the fanbase is east of the Gatineau River. It has been stated as one of the advantages of the site.

Slush Puppie's location can't be compared to the CTC. Slush Puppie is in the literal centre of the City of Gatineau. It's walking distance from restaurants, a Cegep, a library and performance centre and a major sports complex, amongst other destinations. It's served by the City's largest transit hub. The CTC is at the far west end of Ottawa and has nothing of interest within walking distance. It's the furthest point from most of the Sens' fanbase. Transit is limited to immediately before and after events.

In the case of Place des Peuples, we DON'T want anything else to sprout up because the immediate area comprises of historic homes that date from before the 1900 fire. You're right that the Museum District is not Mont Royal, Brooklyn Heights, or Charlestown, but that's all we have. We should be preserving the best of what Hull has to offer instead of comparing it to better examples of historic cities. Otherwise, both Hull and Ottawa would be gutted.

Icon and Metropole are mostly surrounded by parking lots, industrial and disposable late 20th century buildings. There's less that justifies preservation nearby (within a few blocks).

Yes, it's easy for the city/team to declare that the majority of the fanbase is east of the Gatineau River when the majority of the population also lives to the east. It's simply a way of justifying building on cheap suburban land instead of centring the arena and bolstering the downtown.

Slush Puppies location can be compared to the CTC. While not as suburban, do you actually believe thousands of fans are going to walk down Blvd. de la Gappe or across HWY 148 to these big box style restaurants? It's just another example of choosing cheap suburban car-centric development over downtown renewal. The transit hub is centred on a commuter bus system, and if the "majority of fans" live in the area that hardly helps them. I think you over estimate the STO.

Calling Slushies location the "literal centre of the City of Gatineau" is misleading. That may or may not be true from analyzing the municipal boundary locations, but Hull is the centre of Gatineau, period. By that logic somewhere close to the Half Moon Bay-Manotick area would likely be the literal centre of Ottawa.

In the case of Place des Peuples, we DO want other things to sprout up because the immediate area comprises of low-density, cheap homes that are completely undeserving of preservation. Again, just because something is old shouldn't mean we slap the historic badge on it and protect it forever. The downtown core should be dense with a robust population, restaurants, attractions. Not a bunch of unremarkable rooming houses. This is the exact kind of thinking that is keeping Gatineau from thriving.

Yes, Icon and Metropole were mostly surrounded by parking lots, industrial and disposable late 19-20th century buildings, which is the exact same scenario with Place des Peuples. Except the buildings are even more so disposable, the parking lots even more barren, and the industrial lots long abandonned. The developments going up along Maisonneuve are a prime example of replacing unexceptional old stock homes, by bringing in fresh new residential buildings, office jobs, retail shops, into a depressed area.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by GeoNerd

Yes, it's easy for the city/team to declare that the majority of the fanbase is east of the Gatineau River when the majority of the population also lives to the east. It's simply a way of justifying building on cheap suburban land instead of centring the arena and bolstering the downtown.

I understand, and agree, that there were good arguments for building the arena downtown, but there were also arguments for building it at the new site as well.

Slush Puppies location can be compared to the CTC. While not as suburban, do you actually believe thousands of fans are going to walk down Blvd. de la Gappe or across HWY 148 to these big box style restaurants? It's just another example of choosing cheap suburban car-centric development over downtown renewal. The transit hub is centred on a commuter bus system, and if the "majority of fans" live in the area that hardly helps them. I think you over estimate the STO.

I was referring to restaurants and cafés in the residential buildings and the Cinema 9 block on La Gappe, not Les Promenades. The City of Gatineau also envisions this are to become a denser "ByWard Market" type development (obviously it will never be the Market, but it can be a vibrant suburban town centre), though that has been progressing slowly in the last few years, other than Government projects.

The "majority" of fans don't live in the immediate area, they live east of the Gatineau River. That was an unnecessary hyperbole. The STO has improved significantly over the last decade or so and I have high hopes that it will continue that way. The City could easily have the same type of shuttle service as Ottawa does at TD Place and the CTC.

Calling Slushies location the "literal centre of the City of Gatineau" is misleading. That may or may not be true from analyzing the municipal boundary locations, but Hull is the centre of Gatineau, period. By that logic somewhere close to the Half Moon Bay-Manotick area would likely be the literal centre of Ottawa.

I should not have used "literal centre", but it is quite close to the geographical centre. It's just about equidistance for someone in Aylmer as someone in Buckingham.

Whatever our positions on this, at least something was built, and in an area that many, but not all, agree is suitable. The previous two mayors were unable to get it done.

In the case of Place des Peuples, we DO want other things to sprout up because the immediate area comprises of low-density, cheap homes that are completely undeserving of preservation. Again, just because something is old shouldn't mean we slap the historic badge on it and protect it forever. The downtown core should be dense with a robust population, restaurants, attractions. Not a bunch of unremarkable rooming houses. This is the exact kind of thinking that is keeping Gatineau from thriving.

Yes, Icon and Metropole were mostly surrounded by parking lots, industrial and disposable late 19-20th century buildings, which is the exact same scenario with Place des Peuples. Except the buildings are even more so disposable, the parking lots even more barren, and the industrial lots long abandonned. The developments going up along Maisonneuve are a prime example of replacing unexceptional old stock homes, by bringing in fresh new residential buildings, office jobs, retail shops, into a depressed area.

We can agree on Maisonneuve. The new residential mid-rises have improved the area. But Maisonneuve's parking lots and buildings were not of the same caliber as the Quartier du Musée. They were a mix of cheap 70s builds and gravely disfigured match-stick houses, vacant lots and parking lots.

https://www.google.com/maps/@45.4311...7i13312!8i6656
https://www.google.com/maps/@45.4362...7i13312!8i6656

Quartier du Musée has a stock of well preserved brick houses.

https://www.google.com/maps/@45.4309...7i16384!8i8192

High-rises and skyscrapers are not the end-all be-all. A well designed 10 storey building on the site can be as beneficial as a pair of skyscrapers that compete for attention with the museum.

[GeoNerd]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

High-rises and skyscrapers are not the end-all be-all. A well designed 10 storey building on the site can be as beneficial as a pair of skyscrapers that compete for attention with the museum.

I agree, but with this particular case it wasn't the height of the proposal that was opposed. It was a opposition to any proposal at all. Even a 10 storey building would be opposed. Keeping not so special single family homes in a downtown indefinitely is ludicrous.

Until the Absolute Towers were built, almost no one outside of the GTA had ever even heard of Mississauga. Then it won awards, put Mississauga on the map, and was the catalyst for their "downtown" development. I'm not saying Gatineau should (or could) grow upwards like Mississauga, but we can't refrain from building anything spectacular in Hull ever again in order to not compete for attention with the museum. Imagine what downtown Hull would look like right now with the Place des Peuples and Slushie Centre nearing completion??? Unfortunately we will never know.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Both the City and the Olympiques have confirmed time and time again that the majority of the fanbase is east of the Gatineau River. It has been stated as one of the advantages of the site.

The Olympiques have had games of literally a few hundred people for a few years now. I don't think there's much of a physical fanbase anywhere, really.

Centre Slush Puppie is in a great spot for transit relative to Guertin but it's obvious that the Olympique's move away from Hull and into Gatineau is going to change the type of fan they receive substantially. It'll change from lower income, older groups to more middle income, middle-age groups with children. Despite not physically being located in a suburb the crowds are going to be more suburban at Slush Puppie, if that makes any sense.

[Acajack]

Even before the cities all merged and when the team was still known at the Hull Olympiques it was well-known that a disproportionate share of the fans came from Gatineau (Gatineau) and Buckingham-Masson.

One of the reasons for this and also locating the team in this area (I live really close to the Sloche) is that east of the Gatineau River the population with money tends to be more... entrepreneurial.

Compared to west of the river, this area is filled with self-employed people who own their own small to medium-sized businesses. Or even larger ones.

Neighbourhoods are filled with vehicles that have business lettering on them.

Hull-Aylmer (again, in terms of the affluent classes) is more where your government executive and university or college professor types tend to live.

Obviously there is a mix of people all over the city, but these are the general trends for both sides.

Entrepreneurial types are more likely to sponsor the team, splurge for boxes, etc.

And generally tend to have more civic and regional loyalty too.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by GeoNerd

Completely disagree. Between moving the Guertin to the suburbs, blocking Place de Peupes, and a few other head scratching moves, Maxime has set "downtown Hull" back +20 years. Maxime is a small town mayor with a small vision, content on keeping Gatineau unremarkable. Gatineau deserves a bold modern mayor.

I'd give him a 7 (or an 8 if I am in a good mood).

I was 50-50 on Place des Peuples but I definitely don't think it would have been that transformative for the Vieux-Hull.

Quite a number of new condo, office and commercial buildings have gone up here and there in the district over the past few years.

I'd rather have pockets of smaller development here and there like that than have one massive development like Place des Peuples.

Though both would probably have been OK as well.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I was referring to restaurants and cafés in the residential buildings and the Cinema 9 block on La Gappe, not Les Promenades. The City of Gatineau also envisions this are to become a denser "ByWard Market" type development (obviously it will never be the Market, but it can be a vibrant suburban town centre), though that has been progressing slowly in the last few years, other than Government projects.
.

Yes, the La Cité location is most definitely not like the CTC area.

Calling it a future Byward Market is a huge stretch and totally unrealistic but there is already some life and more potential there as you say.

There is a missing piece of the puzzle that is currently open land to the west of Maison de la culture along La Gappe that optimistically could be developed with some Quartier Dix30-style retail.

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by GeoNerd

I don't get the Slush Puppie Centre argument of "moving the arena closer to their fan base". Are people from West Gatineau (Alymer, Pontiac, Hull) not Olympiques' fans? Is it a biggest suburb wins contest? Ottawa made that mistake of moving their arena out of the core, alienating half the city. Gatineau had a real-life case study of what not to do, yet did it anyway. Suburban arenas are a terrible idea.

Why do you keep calling the new arena location 'the suburb'? All of Gatineau, including Hull, is 'the suburb' unless you call the federal office building district in Hull 'Downtown Gatineau', simply because there are tall buildings there, which I would disagree with completely. Like it or not 'Downtown Gatineau' is starting to form along Boulevard de la Gappe and Boulevard de la Cite in Gatineau proper, right where the new arena is being built.

[Soi-Fon]

Hull is the special need children everyone is afraid to call so. It's supposed to be minutes away from the core of a major G6 country and yet, downtown Hull is so hard Ghetto that it can't even have a supermarket or even keep its Giant Tiger. Of course it couldn't keep that nice Tennis tournament!

I'm sorry guys, but there's something VERY wrong with this area that needs to be addressed and I think there's going to be two outcome on the long term:

A) The place gets gentrified VERY hard, a lot of these ugly ash match stick houses get demolished and we see some more bland looking midrise buildings appearing.

B) We keep things as they are and the area stay decrepit. There's some more developments near the Portage but the area of the old Hull is never gentrified and remains very poor. Gatineau slowly becomes the new downtown of the city and Hull falls behind and is now seen as an unpleasant ghetto.

Gatineau will be known as the city of the two downtowns, incorporating the Plateau and the area of the Promenades in Gatineau. We'll have more direct transportations giving an easier access to the Parliament Hill, The Plateau and Gatineau.

In this outcome, Hull is nothing more but a few disconnected area consisting of the Portage, A chunk of Alexandre Tâché, a small area around Les Galeries de Hull and MAYBE Mont Bleu because of the Cegep but Daniel Johnson and co will still remain hard ghetto as well.