Canada Day planning for LeBreton seems to me to be flawed.
Here is the Heritage Canada set-up (from their Canada Day Webpage):
OK, a first look says that a lot of the area is off-limits to the public. That tells me that there is very limited ‘close-up’ public viewing of the Fireworks from the west, south, and east. At best, standing along Albert, or on the north side of the Ottawa River would seem to give the best views. (I recall getting covered in dye spots from standing right under the fireworks at Andrew Haydon Park. Ah, the care-free good-olde days.)
A bit more detailed look gives this:
This makes me wonder how much thought was put into the site design.
Most theaters have a widening field for spectators as you get further from the stage. Not here. The stage was put at the wide end of the field. With the lighting block in the middle of the field (in black, above), the stage views are limited to the red areas, above. This seems very odd.
Having the stage in the west-south-west also means that the setting sun will be in the eyes of the spectators.
Look at where the fireworks are being set off. Yes, they are up in the air, but the stage effectively blocks the view of anything low. People can bunch up close to the stage, for a view of the concert, OR see the full fireworks – but not both.
And, as noted by MANY, access to the site is very restricted.
Since we are looking at the Canada Day celebration happening at LeBreton for at least the next 6 years, what about spending a bit of money to make them great?
Here are some of my ideas:
Use the NCC land south of Wellington Street, west of Booth Street, for the main concert area. Yup, it has been sitting unused, as a rocky expanse for decades. There doesn’t need to be a grass surface. Sweep the rocks, drill in some tall posts with ‘sail’-type parasols, and put the stage along the aqueduct edge. Chip some of the steps into ramps, if necessary, and fill holes with concrete. This will give a huge spectator area. I doubt that the NCC has anything better to do with the land before 2035. Ottawa Bluesfest, CityFolk, Ottawa Jazz Festival, and other outdoor concerts could also use the set-up.
Having the stage face (mostly) north also gets rid of the setting sun problem. And people could simply turn to their right to watch the Canada Day fireworks.
The area between Wellington and Vimy Place, could be repurposed for attractions that used to be at Major’s Hill (formerly Colonel’s Hill). Hasn’t anyone else missed the Giant Tiger train, the Chicken Farmers BBQ, and the little stage down the hill that always had the comedy and high-diver shows? (Although, I would really prefer that Major’s Hill (formerly Colonel’s Hill) be revived as a Canada Day attraction location, adding in the new Kiweki Point facility.)
As for access; I suggest that it become MUCH less restrictive. That doesn’t mean that it needs to becomes much less safe.
Although Booth Street would allow pedestrians on the south-bound side, the north-bound side would remain for emergency vehicles. The same would apply to the section that crosses the Ottawa River. Pedestrians should have access to the western lanes. Wellington and Kichi Zibi Mikan would be much less crowded with pedestrians, so would also be available to emergency vehicles.
The biggest expense, I imagine, would be to ADD A FULL TRACH SWITCH EAST OF PIMISI (likely in the straight stretch between the curves between Pimisi and Lyon. This allows east-bound trains to load at Pimisi from either platform. These trains would NOT TRAVEL WEST OF PIMISI. In fact, there would be no trains traveling between Pimisi and Bayview stations.
Between Bayview and Tunney’s Pasture stations, there could be two trains running, one on each track, back and forth to move people to the buses at Tunney’s Pasture. Yes, this is a 1-stop trip, but it is a fast way to get people out of the LeBreton area, and there is lots of bus staging space within Tunney’s Pasture. (HINT: expand outside of the station and use roads within the campus for additional stops.) Once the train extends west of Tunney’s Pasture, a full switch should be added just west of Bayview Station so that either platform could also be used for loading west-bound trains. Still no trains would travel between Bayview and Pimisi – the train lines (1 & 3) would be broken into two, with western trains and eastern trains.
With no trains traveling between Pimisi and Bayview, the fences can have gates added so that people can walk across the tracks on the Preston Street extension path. (Maybe the gates could swing ‘in’ to form a barrier, preventing folks from walking along the tracks.) Those heading south, on the Trillium Line, could stay north of the tracks, on the NCC’s MUP that leads to the lower level of Bayview station. Those with mobility aids would also use the MUP to avoid the hill on Albert.
Also for those using mobility aids, a south-eastern exit to the lower (heritage) Booth Street Bridge would allow access to an elevator at Pimisi Station, to avoid the climb up Booth to Pimisi.
So, Yes, there would need to be some money spent, but the alternative is the status quo – which many, including myself, feel is wholly inadequate.
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