RIDEAU CANAL CULTURAL LANDSCAPE STUDY - OTTAWA REACH

HERITAGE OTTAWA

On July 14, the City's Heritage Planning Branch, together with the National Capital Commission and Parks Canada, presented the Rideau Canal Cultural Landscape Study - Ottawa Reach to the Built Heritage Committee. It was a collaborative effort by the three bodies to study the landscape setting of this important stretch of the Rideau Canal in Ottawa, a signature part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, National Historic Site of Canada, and Canadian Heritage River. 

Built Heritage Committee voted unanimously in support of the staff's recommendation that City Council receive the Rideau Canal Cultural Landscape Study - Ottawa Reach and to approve the implementation of key recommendations: 

1. The adoption of the Statement of Significance for the Ottawa Reach section of the Rideau Canal and the conservation of the area's Character Defining Elements. 
2. The creation of new Heritage Conservation Districts to protect critically important character-defining elements, such sections of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway; Echo Drive and Colony By Drive. 

Heritage Ottawa representatives involved in the consultation process leading up the writing of the final report also provided written and public submissions to the Built Heritage Committee in support of the recommendations. As was noted in one written submission in 2024, "Heritage Ottawa has a special interest in the usefulness of such a document in effectively dealing with municipal and provincial laws, by-laws and legislation relating to the city's built heritage."

As well as fully supporting the key recommendations before Built Heritage Committee, Heritage Ottawa made a number of additional recommendations:

• that the vehicular traffic arterial role of Colonel By Drive and Queen Elizabeth Driveway be recognized along with the scenic role the adjacent walking and cycling paths provide.
• more emphasis be placed on the potential impact of Landsdowne Park on the canal. 
• that the City take a leadership role with the other partners in the study to develop a time-bound action plan for the implementation of the Study recommendations. 

CLICK HERE to read the Rideau Canal Cultural Landscape Study - Ottawa Reach.