Mike Powell Fanclub

This morning I spoke with Roger Greenberg, CEO of Minto, one of the three organizations behind the Lansdowne Live proposal. You may recall that I spoke with Clive Doucet (who I presume is the Councillor that Mr. Greenberg refers to) about this matter back in April.

In any case, the proposal goes before Council this week. Expect a mess of public delegations on Thursday, and I can only presume a heated debate amongst Councillors on Friday. I presume that efforts will be made to change the staff report suggesting that this plan move ahead, making it unclear what might actually be accepted in the end.

For what its worth, I am very much concerned that rejecting this proposal will just leave Lansdowne in the state that it is for the foreseeable future, which would be the real tragedy. I think that any development needs to be mixed-use, and think that a lot can be done to make any retail component something more than just a mall and benefit neighbouring businesses in the Glebe. How successful we are at this will determine how successful the new plan is. I also worry that we are developing a nasty habit of comparing every tangible proposal with every imaginable ideal one (and dread when we start to talk about the transit tunnel in greater detail.)

 Roger Greenberg on Lansdowne Live [9:07m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This morning I spoke with Charles Akben-Marchand, past-president of Citizens for Safe Cycling, about Sunday’s hit-and-run in Kanata and cycling safety more generally.

I do have more to say on this- it’s a pretty exceptional and terrifying event, and I think the city is rightly shocked- and will put something up tonight over at the bike blog.

 Charles Akben-Marchand on Cycling Safety [8:49m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Happy Tuesday all! We are inching closer to the official beginning of summer! Join Adam and I from 7-9am to talk about the week that was; www.ckcufm.com for those from away.

At 7:45, I will be speaking with Peter Blouin, who is helping organize Ottawa’s World Naked Bike Ride event. At 8:10, Adam will speak with Annie Langlois from the Museum of Nature on the Roundtable on water usage.

We’ll also touch on at least some of the following:

My home province (and where Adam wishes he was from) is holding a provincial election today, with every indication being that the incumbent tories will lose to the NDP.

In a push to remain relevant, the PQ announces a return to campaigning for sovereignty, albeit in steps.

Let the bad times roll: Ottawa gets 375 million in stimulus funding; its still a shame we don’t have our transit plan sorted out yet.

The federal government changes the time limits for transit drivers; only Ottawa pleased.

Down in the polls? Go after criminals. And Terrorists.

Buy America spreads; Canadian Municipalities torn in response.

Pirates, Nationalists elected to UK parliament.

Glen Breton fights to keep its name.

Playing outside is should be homework.

On Tuesday, I spoke with Jon Bartlett about Kelp Records 15th anniversary, how the industry has changed since 1994, and this weekends anniversary (kelpiversary?) celebrations. 

Jon’s got a pretty good set of shows lined up this weekend- things kicked off last night at the Mayfair with Jim Bryson and the Acorn, but keeps going today at the WIP Gallery and the Elmdale. Tomorrow, there is a lunchhour show at the Carleton Tavern and an evening show at the Glue Pot Pub. I missed out on getting a bracelet, but will be at the Elmdale tonight.

Not able to make the shows? Boo. You can download the Kelp15 compilation here for free.

 Jon Bartlett on 15 Years of Kelp Records [10:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tuesday! I was gong last week, but real life can’t keep me away for two weeks in a row! As always, we air from 7am to 9am tomorrow on 93.1fm in Ottawa; www.ckcufm.com for everyone else.

We have an exciting show lined up this week. At 7:30, Adam will talk with Rudyard ,who wrote Who We Are: A Citizen’s Manifesto. At 8:30, I’ll talk with Jon Bartlett. He runs Kelp Records, which is celebrating its fifteenth anniversary this weekend.

It’s the BC Liberal’s turn to lose a candidate!

Tories told to try to get Omar Khadr back.

North Korea, the petulant child of the international system, begins extracting plutonium.

Bank Street sees its semi-annual shut down.

Larry’s Trial to begin soon.

Image Courtesy of Flickr user spotmaticfanatic, NC-BY-ND

This morning I spoke with Capital Ward Councilor Clive Doucet on the City Staff report on the two stadium proposals. Perhaps unsurprisingly, he took a rather dim view on both of them. For another perspective, Randall Denley takes a dim view of the tone of the report itself (he thinks they were looking for ways for it to fail), you should also read what David Reevely has to say over at Greater Ottawa, though that is generally a good rule of thumb.

This will be a bit longer than my usual podcast posts, if only as it is a good opportunity to roll in my own thoughts on the matter. If you are reading a blog and can’t handle a little bit of narcissism, you probably should give up on the internet.

I’m mostly interested in the Lansdowne question, and never was really a big fan of the Kanata plan (largely for geographical biases.) I’m torn on the whole affair. I think that we are too quick to equate the question of what to do with Lansdowne with the question of whether or not this city needs or wants a new largish sports stadium. On the second question, I am pretty sure that we probably can support one, and have every confidence that a competent ownership group could make football or, well, football work. Remember, a CFL team survived in this city for the better part of a century, and we are a bigger more prosperous city than before: the failure of the Roughriders and the Renegades must be seen not as a dislike for football, but an absolute failure of the ownership to convince people to pay to go and see it. So, to a certain extent I am sympathetic to Denley’s calls to look at the cost of a stadium, however it is financed, over a longer term.

But that says nothing about whether or not it should be at Lansdowne. Doucet does a bit of an artful dodge on the merits of the city building a big stadium, but he is pretty clear that he doesn’t think it should be where it is now. I think I sort of agree. Putting another stadium at Lansdowne is pretty much building the park around the status quo, even if there is associated new commercial development associated with it. I’m not so much opposed to that as I am interested in seeing what other cool ideas could be brought to the table - be it a new library, some sort of museum, or whatever. I just don’t want this city to get caught thinking that the places things have been in the past is where they should always be.

I also want any redevelopment to encourage the public to go and hang out: I spent three weeks in France last August (pictures and blogs are coming, I swear!), and my favourite parts were sitting at outdoor cafés in public squares. I want the new Lansdowne Park to have that feel. That might still mean a stadium is located there, it might not. I have every faith that there will be developers interested in whatever plan moves forward, so am not super concerned about the current proposed management group walking away as they might if the “Live” plan is rejected. I also have every faith that if a new football stadium were to be built at Bayview, that a tenant could be found and the community would benefit from nightlife and spinoffs. That part of town would probably benefit from such a tenant.

So, the city has been offered a false dichotomy: it is not a question of soccer in Kanata or football in the glebe. It must absolutely do something with Lansdowne park, it also must decide whether or not it wants to be in the Stadium business. These are different questions, both of of which come with a certain amount of cost. Both are projects that have been a long time coming and, if done right, will benefit the city for decades to come. I could live with what Hunt and Co. have proposed, but worry that we’d be settling with the familiar and the safe. That’s not what this city needs more of, but at the same time it’s preferable to waiting 5 or more years and end up accepting more or less the same plan.

And let’s be fair: that’s what we all are assuming is going to happen.

 Clive Doucet on the Stadium Proposal Staff Report [6:03m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Happy Tuesday! At least, it will be a happy Tuesday so long as Ottawa avoids another morning of snow. Adam and I, as always will be on 93.1fm from 7am-9am; you can check us out at www.ckcufm.com if you are from away.

At 7:40, we’ll be joined by Capital Ward Councilor Clive Doucet to talk about the City Staff report on the Lansdowne/Kanata Stadium proposals. The Citizen has a summary here, but the short form is that they score Lansdowne higher (provided you are willing to drop 9 figures on the project.

North Korea fails to launch a long-range rocket; world freaks out.

Denis Rancourt terminated and, in an uncharacteristic move, will try to have administration’s decision overturned.

Parole office relocation under review, but it won’t be on Somerset.

First-year university students lazy, rely too much on wikipedia.

Meanwhile, my high school saviour, Microsoft Encarta, is being discontinued.

Alex Cullen is running for Mayor.

Toronto to get billions for Transit.

Conservatives to invest in Cultural festivals.

Cost effective to supplant the cool in US defense budget.

It’s tuesday! Adam and I will be on air at the usual time, 7-9am on 93.1FM in Ottawa, www.ckcufm.com

Some dude comes to Ottawa, buys beavertail. City goes apeshit.

90 children die in Ontario’s child welfare program last year.

City releases study looking at sites for new stadium. The winner? Bayview yards.

Bob Barker says have your pets spayed or neutered; move your elephants to sanctuaries in tennesee.

David Ahenakew not guilty; totally a douchebag.

CUPE Ontario backs boycott of Israeli Universities.

Skull and Bones sued for Geronimo’s skull and bones.

Do you know what also declines in recessions? Shark attacks.

Chimpanzee that went crazy apparently didn’t get anti-anxiety meds.

That’s the aphorism that the Prime Minister referenced this morning when announcing revitalisation of Go Transit infrastructure as part of the government’s stimulus program. Dalton was there too.

I think that this is now the third or fourth joint transit announcement for the GTA since the LRT program was cancelled. I’ve come around to the downtown transit tunnel (slowly, but surely), but have to feel bad that we are several years out from breaking ground when the other levels of government are more keen to open the pocketbooks.

So, did anyone else notice that the government indicated a willingness to introduce back-to-work legislation for the transit strike the same day it was confirmed that Barack Obama was coming to Canada (and almost certainly Ottawa) in three weeks?

No? Me neither.

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