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A national botanical garden has been a dream for Ottawa since at least 1887. But this time around, it’s a dream that will become a reality, vows a group that aims to see ground broken on the Central Experimental Farm next year.
The goal: a garden of international caliber on 34 acres bounded by Prince of Wales Drive and the Rideau Canal, with a grand opening in 2019.
“Canadensis, the Garden of Canada,” would feature exhibition grounds, a children’s garden, an aboriginal garden and embassy gardens as well as a conservatory with birds and butterflies, a restaurant with food grown in the “urban garden,” a boutique, conference space and meeting rooms.
Amenities would include an outdoor amphitheatre for concerts, and programs like winter walks and horticulture lectures and workshops. It would be a showcase for Agriculture Canada horticultural research and offer the wow factor of water gardens, a canopy walk with a view over the treetops and a living green tower as a vertical landmark. There would be a green element: all of the surface water is to be managed on site and buildings are to be LEED certified.
Conceptual plans show a “canopy walk” with a view of a landmark green tower.
“We want to make this a destination. It’s a lot more than pretty flowers,” says Gérald Lajeunesse, a member of the board of Canadensis, the successor of the Ottawa Botanical Garden Society.
The botanical garden is the missing piece of a “horticultural node” that includes the arboretum, the Fletcher Wildlife Garden and the ornamental gardens, says Lajeunesse.
“It could be a green lung for Ottawa, like Central Park in New York,” says Lajeunesse.
Canadensis hopes to raise the initial $25 million over the next few years, and is in the process of building a fundraising committee with a professional fundraiser at the helm. About $40 million is expected to come from infrastructure development grants, with the remainder coming from sponsorships and fundraising.
John Westeinde, a veteran of the Ottawa construction industry and a member of the board, estimates it will take about $25 million to create the bare bones of the botanical garden to start attracting visitors, with the eventual completion cost of about $80 million.
The first job will be a comprehensive master plan, a step that will cost about $1 million. That done, there would be a sod-turning in 2017, with shovels in the ground to get the necessary infrastructure installed in 2018 and a grand opening in 2019. The conservatory and research and learning facilities will be the first to be built.
“It could be a green lung for Ottawa, like Central Park in New York,” says Lajeunesse.
Every other G20 capital city has a national garden, says Canadensis board member Monique Oaks. There are, however, a lot of stakeholders to juggle, including Agriculture Canada, the NCC, the City of Ottawa and Parks Canada, which owns a buffer along the Rideau Canal.
Land for a botanical garden was set aside in 1887.
“Everyone we’ve spoken to says it’s a great idea. But it’s a chicken-and-egg situation,” says Lajeunesse, referring to the need for fundraising to give the plan momentum.
Last year, the board commissioned Toronto’s Enigma Research to do an economic impact study for the proposal. Based on a telephone survey, Enigma’s December 2015 report estimated that the completed garden would attract an average of 500,000 visitors a year; create 6,000 direct and indirect full and part-time tourism jobs over five years and have an overall economic impact to the local and regional economy of $450 million within the first five years.
“It has tremendous potential for a great legacy,” says Oaks.
The major stakeholders have approved the project, but there are three conditions, said James Watson, a spokesman for Agriculture Canada. The design has to meet the spirit of the Commemorative Integrity Statement for the Experimental Farm’s national historic site designation; it has to meet all other federal and municipal regulations associated with development on the farm, including the NCC’s Federal Land Use Plan, and the project has to demonstrate long-term financial viability.
The garden is to be run on a break-even basis, with revenue likely coming from facility rentals and special events.
jlaucius@postmedia.com
Timeline: Canadenisis, the Garden of Canada
1887: Land is set aside for a botanical garden in plans for the Central Experimental Farm. The plans include 65 acres for an arboretum and a botanical garden “where all the useful trees, shrubs and plants of the Dominion, as far as climatic conditions will permit, will be brought together.”
1887-1915: A garden grows on the site, until the First World War puts an end to the project.
1963: John Diefenbaker’s agriculture minister Alvin Hamilton is poised to announce plans for a botanical garden. But the Conservative government loses power.
1987: Ottawa mayor Jim Durrell puts a horticultural garden on his wish list for the city.
1988: The NCC orders a feasibility study.
1998: The Ottawa Botanical Garden Society is formed. Members argue that a public-run society could get things done where bureaucrats have failed.
2003: After five years of discussion, the government agrees a botanical garden would be a good use for the land. Among the ideas mentioned: water gardens, a biosphere, an interactive museum and a children’s area. However, there is controversy. Critics fear a full-scale garden would be too Disneyfied and detract from the agricultural and historical integrity of the Experimental Farm.
2011: Fredericton-based landscape architect Daniel Glenn produces a business plan for the garden.
2012: The Ottawa Botanical Garden Society changes its name to “Canadensis,” a Latin word that means “of Canada,” used in botanical names.
Beyond the Edge: Artists’ Gardens
What is it? See the site of Canadensis at an outdoor exhibition featuring sculptures by Brian Newman, Patrick Thibert and Peter Kolisnyk, with garden installations by Jean Bridge, Engelina Schmitz and Marc Walter
Where: Just off Prince of Wales Drive, south of the red barn on the Experimental Farm
When: The opening is June 16, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. The exhibition runs until Sept. 15
For more information: www.canadensisgarden.ca
查看原文...
The goal: a garden of international caliber on 34 acres bounded by Prince of Wales Drive and the Rideau Canal, with a grand opening in 2019.
“Canadensis, the Garden of Canada,” would feature exhibition grounds, a children’s garden, an aboriginal garden and embassy gardens as well as a conservatory with birds and butterflies, a restaurant with food grown in the “urban garden,” a boutique, conference space and meeting rooms.
Amenities would include an outdoor amphitheatre for concerts, and programs like winter walks and horticulture lectures and workshops. It would be a showcase for Agriculture Canada horticultural research and offer the wow factor of water gardens, a canopy walk with a view over the treetops and a living green tower as a vertical landmark. There would be a green element: all of the surface water is to be managed on site and buildings are to be LEED certified.
Conceptual plans show a “canopy walk” with a view of a landmark green tower.
“We want to make this a destination. It’s a lot more than pretty flowers,” says Gérald Lajeunesse, a member of the board of Canadensis, the successor of the Ottawa Botanical Garden Society.
The botanical garden is the missing piece of a “horticultural node” that includes the arboretum, the Fletcher Wildlife Garden and the ornamental gardens, says Lajeunesse.
“It could be a green lung for Ottawa, like Central Park in New York,” says Lajeunesse.
Canadensis hopes to raise the initial $25 million over the next few years, and is in the process of building a fundraising committee with a professional fundraiser at the helm. About $40 million is expected to come from infrastructure development grants, with the remainder coming from sponsorships and fundraising.
John Westeinde, a veteran of the Ottawa construction industry and a member of the board, estimates it will take about $25 million to create the bare bones of the botanical garden to start attracting visitors, with the eventual completion cost of about $80 million.
The first job will be a comprehensive master plan, a step that will cost about $1 million. That done, there would be a sod-turning in 2017, with shovels in the ground to get the necessary infrastructure installed in 2018 and a grand opening in 2019. The conservatory and research and learning facilities will be the first to be built.
“It could be a green lung for Ottawa, like Central Park in New York,” says Lajeunesse.
Every other G20 capital city has a national garden, says Canadensis board member Monique Oaks. There are, however, a lot of stakeholders to juggle, including Agriculture Canada, the NCC, the City of Ottawa and Parks Canada, which owns a buffer along the Rideau Canal.
Land for a botanical garden was set aside in 1887.
“Everyone we’ve spoken to says it’s a great idea. But it’s a chicken-and-egg situation,” says Lajeunesse, referring to the need for fundraising to give the plan momentum.
Last year, the board commissioned Toronto’s Enigma Research to do an economic impact study for the proposal. Based on a telephone survey, Enigma’s December 2015 report estimated that the completed garden would attract an average of 500,000 visitors a year; create 6,000 direct and indirect full and part-time tourism jobs over five years and have an overall economic impact to the local and regional economy of $450 million within the first five years.
“It has tremendous potential for a great legacy,” says Oaks.
The major stakeholders have approved the project, but there are three conditions, said James Watson, a spokesman for Agriculture Canada. The design has to meet the spirit of the Commemorative Integrity Statement for the Experimental Farm’s national historic site designation; it has to meet all other federal and municipal regulations associated with development on the farm, including the NCC’s Federal Land Use Plan, and the project has to demonstrate long-term financial viability.
The garden is to be run on a break-even basis, with revenue likely coming from facility rentals and special events.
jlaucius@postmedia.com
Timeline: Canadenisis, the Garden of Canada
1887: Land is set aside for a botanical garden in plans for the Central Experimental Farm. The plans include 65 acres for an arboretum and a botanical garden “where all the useful trees, shrubs and plants of the Dominion, as far as climatic conditions will permit, will be brought together.”
1887-1915: A garden grows on the site, until the First World War puts an end to the project.
1963: John Diefenbaker’s agriculture minister Alvin Hamilton is poised to announce plans for a botanical garden. But the Conservative government loses power.
1987: Ottawa mayor Jim Durrell puts a horticultural garden on his wish list for the city.
1988: The NCC orders a feasibility study.
1998: The Ottawa Botanical Garden Society is formed. Members argue that a public-run society could get things done where bureaucrats have failed.
2003: After five years of discussion, the government agrees a botanical garden would be a good use for the land. Among the ideas mentioned: water gardens, a biosphere, an interactive museum and a children’s area. However, there is controversy. Critics fear a full-scale garden would be too Disneyfied and detract from the agricultural and historical integrity of the Experimental Farm.
2011: Fredericton-based landscape architect Daniel Glenn produces a business plan for the garden.
2012: The Ottawa Botanical Garden Society changes its name to “Canadensis,” a Latin word that means “of Canada,” used in botanical names.
Beyond the Edge: Artists’ Gardens
What is it? See the site of Canadensis at an outdoor exhibition featuring sculptures by Brian Newman, Patrick Thibert and Peter Kolisnyk, with garden installations by Jean Bridge, Engelina Schmitz and Marc Walter
Where: Just off Prince of Wales Drive, south of the red barn on the Experimental Farm
When: The opening is June 16, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. The exhibition runs until Sept. 15
For more information: www.canadensisgarden.ca
查看原文...
