Today's letters: Developers and architects should stop taking the easy way out
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A housing plan approval for Sussex Drive is probably a mistake, but considering the NCC's track record of not approving stunning new building designs, don't hold your breath. As Mohammed Adam points out, the Daly Building — which was the finest example of Chicago architecture in Ottawa — was demolished and instead of keeping that wonderful façade, its replacement beside the elegant Château Laurier and across from the stunning old Union Station is an architectural eyesore failure. There should be more public input into what the ultimate designs will look like.
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After all, Ottawa is the nation's capital. Shouldn't it set an architectural standard? Are tourists going to make the Canadian duty trek to their capital only to see architectural ugliness? Apartments and condo buildings along the 'embassy row' part of Sussex will radically change our grand avenue to the point where it may just eventually turn into another modern strip of car dealerships and burger joints.
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Developers and architects owe this city exceptional architecture rather than taking the easy way out and constructing something that doesn't attract attention, and might even make you want to throw up.
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Architect Frank Lloyd Wright, once supposedly said, 'A doctor can bury his mistakes, but an architect can only advise his clients to plant vines.' If the NCC and developers don't turn Ottawa into a place of grandeur, then vines might be the only answer, because you're stuck with these distasteful architectural results for decades.
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Unfortunately the night ended in tragedy as I was tended to in an ambulance onsite because I was over-heated and under-hydrated. When we arrived, after walking from Bayview Station, we dragged our thirsty selves around for about a half-hour trying to find a booth to buy water where there wasn't a long lineup to buy booze. What happened to the water stations that used to be located all over the site?
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Well guess what, they offer free water in the medical tent. So everybody, go to the medical tent to get your water.
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It sounds like the NCC was doing a competent job informing the public with the Access to information process. Then along comes the Commissioner of Official Languages, who claims that these NCC emails and short notes to the individuals have to be posted in both official languages. Now public access has been shut down.
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