The National Trust Urges Federal Government to Revisit Transfer of Central Experimental Farm Lands
The National Trust for Canada wrote to the Honourable John Baird, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister Responsible for the National Capital Commission, today to request that the federal government revisit its decision to transfer 60 acres of the Central Experimental Farm, a National Historic Site of Canada to The Ottawa Hospital for the development of a new hospital campus.
This action would allow time to consult with the Central Experimental Farm Advisory Council (CEFAC) and discuss the impact such a transfer would have on the integrity of the farm.
“As the steward of this nationally important site on behalf of the people of Canada,” wrote executive director Natalie Bull, “it is incumbent upon the federal government to protect the future integrity of this heritage treasure.”
The letter draws attention to the key references in the Central Experimental Farm Management Plan—with particular emphasis on the Research Fields and the pressures of urban growth—and in the all-important Commemorative Integrity Statement to show the many negative impacts the proposed land transfer would have on the farm, from eroding land for scientific research to eliminating character-defining view planes.
The Central Experimental Farm National Historic Site Management Plan was created shortly afterwards “to sustain a cultural landscape of national historic significance through a reinvigorated and ongoing agricultural research program.”
The letter to Minister Baird is available here.