FALLING FOR GATINEAU
Zibi promises new vista
When Gatineau Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin looks out over the Zibi development on the Ottawa River, what excites him most is what he won’t see.
In October, demolition crews will dismantle a massive 250-metre-wide former Domtar building at the corner of rue Eddy and rue Laurier that has separated the city from the river as effectively as a prison wall.
“It’s going to change the face of Gatineau,” Pednaud-Jobin said. “The site has been industrial since the beginning of Hull in the 1800s. It’s going to give us a view on the river that we’ve never had in about 200 years.”
The builders of Zibi — Toronto real-estate firm Dream Unlimited and THEIA, a company spun off from Windmill Developments — held a show-and-tell at the site Tuesday, giving the media and Ottawa Centre MP Catherine McKenna their first up-close view of the $2-billion project. The event was hosted by THEIA CEO Jeff Weistende.
“This is the most incredible piece of land I’ve ever seen,” said Michael Cooper, founder and CEO of Dream Unlimited, the company behind Toronto’s successful Distillery District redevelopment. “It’s got thousands of acres of waterfront. It’s in two provinces. It’s got incredible opportunities for sustainability.
“We think we can create one of the greatest global mini-cities. If you’re patient with us, we will exceed your expectations.”
The first condominium, a roughly 80-unit building on the Gatineau side, known for now simply as “Building O,” is to open this fall. Excavation has begun on the first condo on the Ontario side. The entire project — condos, retail and office space, and public green space — will likely take 15 years to complete, Cooper said.
The project will have a huge impact on Gatineau, Pednaud-Jobin said, and not just because of the sweeping vista opened up by the demolition of the old Domtar building. The new community will also give life to the Gatineau riverfront that was harmed by the construction of the enormous federal Place du Portage complex in the 1970s.
“We went through some trauma when the federal building arrived,” Pednaud-Jobin said. “They were extremely positive financially and for the economy, but the neighbourhood was destroyed. This is a way to change that, to rebuild that sense of community up to the river. With this building coming down and Zibi coming up, it’s going to change Gatineau profoundly.
“It’s going to look better. It’s going to be beautiful. It’s going to represent what we are today a lot better than those old buildings.”
Zibi sits astride Chaudière Falls, whose cataracts were once one of the great natural wonders of the region. It is also on traditional territory of the Algonquin people, something the developers took care to acknowledge. A cultural advisory committee with members from the Pikwàkanagàn First Nation in Golden Lake and the Anishinabeg First Nation of Kitigan Zibi, Que., gave input on ways to acknowledge and support Indigenous people.
“This is our homeland. Despite what’s taking place, this will still be our ancestral home,” said Samantha Tenasco, an adviser from Kitigan Zibi who also teaches business at Algonquin College.
“It’s high time we engage in development,” Tenasco said. “That’s what we’re looking for here. For me, this is something that I dream of for our people: to be here and engage in business opportunities, work opportunities, lifestyle opportunities and see recognition for our people.”
She acknowledged that not all Indigenous people with ties to the Zibi land agreed with the development.
“Differing opinions are OK. But, in terms of recognition, no one can disagree. We want Algonquin people to take their rightful place and be recognized and engaged. Nobody can stand against that argument.”