Larry O’Brien

Michael Kaminer, a freelance writer, penned an article in Sunday’s Washington Post (Discovering Canada’s cool capital) about how he discovered something that our residents and millions of tourists already know, Ottawa is “lively, smart, quirky and confident.” ”In fact, if anything now characterizes the city, I’d say it’s an unselfconscious cool. There’s a proudly indie aesthetic in its neighborhoods, but without the hipster posturing of Toronto.” Washington Post July 11, 2010Take a moment to read the whole article and feel free to send it to your friends and family (especially if they live in Toronto)

Today, the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), who will be releasing full crime statistics for the year 2009 next week, announced that Ottawa remains one of the safest cities in Canada. OPS has outlined some of the highlights from their upcoming report and I am delighted with the progress that is being made.

The City experienced a significant decline in the number of non-traffic criminal code offences, violent crimes, abductions, and property crimes in 2009. In addition, there were fewer break and enters, less fraud, and less mischief-related offences.

I would like to congratulate Police Chief Vern White and the entire Ottawa Police Service for their dedication, hard work, and results. Thanks in part to their efforts, the nation,s capital has become the most livable city in Canada.

Today, the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) unveiled their designs for the proposed redevelopment of Lansdowne Park. Architects Richard Brisbin, Barry Hobin, and Robert Claiborne of Cannon Design in Toronto said their goal was to create an urban space that reflects a vision for the future coupled with a connection to Lansdowne’s past.

The designs revealed today include a refurbished Frank Clair Stadium, an expansion of the Glebe’s grid street system into Lansdowne to accommodate a mix of commercial space, residential development and public squares, and a new location for the Horticulture Building that will become the site of the Ottawa Farmer’s Market.

I am delighted that we have reached this milestone in the Lansdowne project, a design plan that can be examined by our citizens and brought to City Council in June. It’s exciting that we are on the threshold of finally moving forward with a plan to bring Lansdowne back to its former glory.

I congratulate the team of architects on their superb work. It is obvious that these world-class architects laboured around the clock to deliver a design that is worthy of this important site.

I now look forward to hearing more from the residents of Ottawa as we move forward in the effort to make Lansdowne the envy of Ottawa, Canada, and the world.

Today at City Hall, in partnership with the National Capital Commission and Parks Canada Agency, the City unveiled five exciting proposals for a new urban park at Lansdowne.

The design ideas, created by some of the world’s best landscape architects, are available to view on the City’s website and at several City buildings. Public comments will be gathered until May 31, 2010 on ottawa.ca.

After the public comment period, a jury of design experts and officials from the City’s partner agencies will select a winning design.

This is a great moment for the City of Ottawa and its partners on this project. As a Council we asked for the best ideas for a revitalized Lansdowne Park and now we get to see what some top talent in the field can create for this important heritage site in our capital.

The designs are on display at:

City Hall, May 20-23,

Lansdowne Park, May 24-26,

Ray Friel Recreation Centre, May 27-28,

Nepean Sportsplex, May 27-28,

Walter Baker Sports Centre, May 29-30,

Kanata Recreation Centre, May 29-30.

Together, we can revitalize Lansdowne Park and turn it into a stunning, awe-inspiring place that will attract Ottawans, Canadians, and people from around the world to our great city for decades to come.