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A consultant’s recommendation to have an interprovincial bridge span the Ottawa River at Kettle Island fails to bridge the gap between what is best for the city and what is best for the affected communities, said speakers at a crowded public consultation last night.
Judy Lishman of the Manor Park Community Association called it a “breach of faith” on the part of the National Capital Commission—which worked with the cities of Ottawa and Gatineau and the province—to even consider Kettle Island.
“It’s a matter of finding the right solution, and if you ask the wrong questions, you’ll never find the right answer,” she said.
It’s not a case of not-in-my-backyard syndrome, she adds, it’s about protecting a community and pointing out to citizens across the city everything that will be lost if the bridge is built.
SOLVES NOTHING
And when one of the goals is to eliminate truck traffic from the city’s downtown, positioning a bridge in another downtown neighbourhood solves nothing, Lishman said.
The proposed bridge will cost up to $500 million. Consultants from Roche-NCE consider it to be the logical choice based on estimated future truck traffic and cost.
Project manager Steve Taylor said the Kettle Island option consistently ranked highest of all 12 potential sites based on criteria that factored in traffic patterns, the environment, cost and communities.
But residents at last night’s meeting scoffed at the recommendation, saying it cuts directly through a high-density community, turns the two-lane Airport Pkwy. into a four-lane thoroughfare and negatively impacts the RCMP Musical Ride grounds and the Canadian Aviation Museum.
Many also said the recommendation didn’t give enough weight to the impact on people.
DISAPPOINTMENT
Ottawa-Vanier MPP Madeleine Meilleur expressed disappointment at the technical experts’ choice, saying the second and third runner-up options—Lower Duck Island and a crossing at the Gatineau airport—are preferable and wouldn’t have as great an impact on an established community.
“We have enough bridges downtown, we need a bridge in the east end. We don’t need another bridge four minutes from the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge,” she said. “It was never anybody’s intention to transfer the King Edward Ave. problem (with heavy truck traffic) to another community.”
There weren’t enough chairs to accommodate the hundreds of people who crowded into Salon A at Lansdowne Park.
Many chose not to direct their questions and comments at the consultants, instead turning to their fellow audience members.
(C) Ottawa Sun