Lansdowne approval leaves 'divided community'

City council's approval of a plan to redevelop Lansdowne Park has left Ottawa split between those excited and those disappointed by the decision, including one councillor who is preparing to launch a legal fight.

"Now we have to go to court," said Coun. Clive Doucet, who represents the ward that includes the Glebe neighbourhood and Lansdowne Park. "And [we] shouldn't have to do that, but I don't think council has behaved in a responsible way for the city of Ottawa.

Councillors voted 15-9 Monday night to approve the plan, a public private partnership between the city and the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group. Under it, the city would renovate the stadium and hockey arena. OSEG would bring a Canadian Football league team to the stadium and build shops, restaurants and condos on the 16-hectare property in Ottawa's Glebe neighbourhood.

Doucet said he will gather together opponents of the plan, including some councillors, the Glebe Business Improvement Area, council and the group Friends of Lansdowne Park to figure out how to approach and fund a legal challenge against the decision. 

Coun. Diane Deans, who voted against the plan Monday night, said she thinks "unfortunately, there's a divided community left in the wake of this decision."

But she added that now that council has made a decision, people need to move on.

"And for me," she told CBC's Ottawa Morning Tuesday, "I think it's important to support this deal and to make it work for our citizens into the future."

Mark Cohon, commissioner of the Canadian Football League, called the decision "a major step forward for all of us who look forward to the return of the Canadian Football League to the nation’s capital." In a statement Tuesday, he added, "We are very excited at the prospect of CFL football in Ottawa, in a beautiful stadium in an iconic location, is much closer today."

OSEG member Roger Greenberg said he was relieved that the plan, which has been discussed and debated for three years, finally passed.

"I'm very excited for the residents of Ottawa and for council itself. I think it's a big step forward for a major city asset that has been left to deteriorate for a very, very long period of time," he said Monday.

Maria McRae said Tuesday that she voted in favour of the deal because just couldn't allow the deterioration to continue.

"Allowing it to crumble at a cost of $4 million a year was just not on for me," she said Tuesday. "And I think the majority of council shared that issue."

Success depends on future decisions: Deans

But Gilbert Russell, chair of the Lansdowne Park committee for the Glebe Business Improvement Area, said he didn't feel council addressed citizens' concerns about the deal, despite the 13 hours of discussion before the vote.

"Most of the time was spent making sure that the needs of the developers were met," he said. "So concerns we have with size, the mix…the traffic issues, the parking issues — those weren't addressed."

Deans, who had similar concerns, said there is no doubt the deal will continue to face challenges in the future, such as legal challenges, Ontario municipal board challenges, and zoning and site plan amendments.

"There's many, many more decision points along the way," she said. "And I do think that it will depend on a lot of the decisions that are yet to come how ultimately successful this plan will be."