Did you get a card from MP Anita Vandenbeld requesting that you “Share your vision” for properties the National Capital Commission (NCC) is making available? The card refers to an interactive map at the Canada Public Land Bank website. The Transportation Infrastructure and Planning Committee (TIP) looked into it and found that there are two pieces of land near us (the website calls them “parcels”): Parcel 02578 and Parcel 04230.

 The pieces of land on Google maps

Note that the website refers to them both as Bruce Pit, but they’re not what we mean by Bruce Pit (where we toboggan and walk our dogs).

Parcel 02578 is 1730 Richmond Road across from Silver Spring Farm.

Parcel 02578

Parcel 04230 is Baseline Road at Cedarview, across Baseline from the Queensway Carleton Hospital.

Parcel 04230

Share Your Vision

You can share your vision and ideas for how these spaces can be used for parks, housing, recreation, Indigenous-led spaces, seniors’ homes, or a combination of uses. Send ideas and proposals to terrainspublics-publiclands@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca.

You are also welcome to share your ideas with the TIP. We’ve been thinking that the NCC probably feels these lands have little value as greenspace and that they might be better used for housing projects or some other commercial opportunity. Perhaps the City might look at these sites for affordable housing.

Proximity to the hospital and the Bells Corners business area gives them value. They’re also near Highway 416, Cedarview Road, Baseline, and Richmond Road, and will be on the Baseline Bus Rapid Transit route. Some density there might be helpful in strengthening the transportation connections between CBL and our centre of commerce in Bells Corners. Or maybe people want more pickleball courts. What do you think?