Denley: Let's be bold and turn the Central Experimental Farm into a boon for all of Ottawa
Ottawa's Central Experimental Farm is bigger than New York’s Central Park, but offers only a tiny fraction of that famous park’s public value.
Author of the article:Randall Denley
Published Aug 15, 2023 • Last Updated 17 hours ago • 3 minute read
Some neighbours clearly don’t like the size, location or design of the project, but it’s just so hard to be against housing these days, especially when a proposal conforms to the city’s Official Plan.
But what about this? Federal soil scientists say the shadows will reduce daylight enough to affect their work on part of the farm. That has led to speculation that other potential developments along Carling Avenue could eventually limit the farm’s utility as a research site, threatening its future.
Ah, the famous soil science card. It was enough to stop the new Civic Hospital campus from being built on prime Experimental Farm land, but it looks like it won’t work this time.
The shady plan is almost certain to be recommended by planning committee. Then it will go to city council for approval. Even Coun. Jeff Leiper, who chairs the planning committee and represents the affected ward, has reluctantly agreed to it, pointing to provincial rules that leave the city powerless to say no.
So the dreaded shadows will descend. If that does limit the Farm’s value as a soil science site, so much the better. It’s time to turn this anachronism into something that benefits the entire city.
While popular with neighbouring dog walkers and cyclists, the farm is just a lost opportunity for the rest of us. Here we have a 960-acre open space in the central area of our city, a site that is bigger than New York’s Central Park, but offers only a tiny fraction of that famous park’s public value.
And yet, the Experimental Farm has its fans. As a city, Ottawa is remarkably undemanding when it comes to our beloved green space. We see the only two ingredients as space and greenness. The Farm certainly offers those, but remarkably little else.
The Farm’s buildings, gardens and the Arboretum are a good start to something that could be much more useful, but the rest of it? It’s no more attractive than any farmer’s field. Any value it does have lies in the novelty of being oddly situated.
Central Park, the natural heart of New York City, was created in an act of civic imagination back in 1858, 10 years before the Farm was created as an act of the federal government.
While the Farm is mostly a flat and unappealing site, that can be changed. According to the Central Park Conservancy, workers moved nearly five million cubic yards of stone, earth, and topsoil, built 36 bridges and arches, and planted 500,000 trees, shrubs, and vines. The landscapes were man-made and all built by hand.
As many will know, the 853-acre Central Park is full of attractions including a lake, a nature sanctuary, a visitor centre, playgrounds, ball fields, and a great lawn. It’s a place that draws people in by offering something more than trees, grass and park benches.
Compare that to soil science work, which no doubt has its virtues, but could potentially be conducted elsewhere. That idea is unattractive to soil scientists, but it’s difficult to argue that it’s the highest and best use for this site. Maybe in 1886, but not now.
A bold idea like creating the major urban park that Ottawa has always lacked would face obstacles. First, boldness is not our primary civic trait. Second, the federal government owns the site and has not displayed a great deal of interest in using its land to improve the country’s capital.
Still, it would be nice to see people champion a big, city-building idea. It would be a much better use of our collective energy than debating apartment towers, which will almost inevitably line Carling and shade the Farm. Rather than lament that, let’s do something better.
Randall Denley is an Ottawa political commentator and author. Contact him at randalldenley1@gmail.com
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