Sailors and boaters fear a National Capital Commission assessment could recommend a new bridge across their favoured water on the Ottawa River, even though area politicians have roundly condemned the idea.
Britannia Yacht Club members say a span over Lac Deschênes, from Aylmer’s Boulevard des Allumetières to either Holly Acres Road or Moodie Drive, would end 150 years of sailing in that part of the river by making it unsafe for beginners and veterans alike.
”(The politicians) are saying the right things, but we’re not seeing the action,” said Bill Fenton, a sailor and Britannia member. “The difficulty we have is that the process is continuing.”
A Roche-NCE consulting team is examining 10 locations, including the two Lac Deschênes options, as part of the $4.5-million environmental assessment for the NCC, the Ontario and Quebec governments, and the cities of Ottawa and Gatineau.
Ottawa West-Nepean MPP and Municipal Affairs Minister Jim Watson told the Citizen in February that a bridge in the area would be built “over my dead body,” saying the Liberal government prefers an east-end crossing to divert truck traffic from Lowertown. Bay Councillor Alex Cullen and John Baird, the federal environment minister, have also voiced their opposition, and Ottawa city council voted in June 2007 to tell the NCC to drop potential western locations from consideration.
Mr. Watson said the Holly Acres and Moodie sites make no economic sense because they are located at one of the river’s widest points. Any bridges there would also cross either Andrew Haydon Park or the NCC Greenbelt to reach Highways 416 and 417.
Opponents say the words are helpful, but not enough to ease their fears that a new bridge could cut straight through longstanding sailing zones.
“As sailors, we’ve got a very pristine body of water here,” Mr. Fenton said. “The consultant’s response is that you can sail around the pillars of any bridge. But you would not have very much wind on the downward side.”
He said the Holly Acres option through Andrew Haydon Park would eliminate sailing on the bridge’s east side and within one kilometre of the west side, bisecting popular areas for races and junior programs. A bridge to Moodie Drive, meanwhile, would run through an Olympic-sized training circle used by Britannia and other nearby clubs, including the Nepean Sailing Club, Lac Deschênes Sailing Club, and Aylmer’s Club de voile Grande-Rivière.
The consultants are due to make further recommendations later this year.
(C) Ottawa Citizen