Gatineau adopts action plan for land vacant from 2017 and 2019 floods

Greg Newing

The Ville de Gatineau announced on August 22 that it has officially adopted a plan for land left vacant following the major floods in 2017 and 2019.  A budget of $2.3 million has been allocated toward implementing the plan and the city says the first new developments will be built as early as 2025, with the rest completed by 2027.

Over 200 lots became vacant following the 2017 and 2019 floods, the majority of which are in the Pointe-Gatineau and Lac-Beauchamp districts. In July 2021 the city adopted its master plan for the management of vacant land and mandated the Gatineau service centre to set up an interdepartmental committee to develop an action plan for the land affected by flooding.

The city said the overall aim of the newly adopted action plan is to revitalize the areas and make the sites available to communities affected by the floods. The action plan focuses on the design, development, and maintenance of priority areas identified following consultations with community organizations held in 2022. Potential new developments include community gardens, new ground cover, land for urban agriculture, beekeeping sites, birdwatching areas, sculptures and street furniture. The city will also be releasing calls for additional community development projects and workshops to be held on the newly developed land.

“The floods of 2017 and 2019 left a major mark on our communities,” said councillor for Pointe-Gatineau Mike Duggan.  “This plan will allow us to reconnect with the vacant land and provide our neighbourhoods with lively new spaces, places for sharing, creating and renewing. Now that the plan has been adopted, let’s all work together to make it a reality,” he added.

“The idea behind the plan is to enable communities affected by the floods to reclaim their neighbourhoods,” said councillor for Lac-Beauchamp Denis Girouard. “I’d like to express my gratitude to all the Gatineau residents who played an active role in developing this project. Your involvement, your ideas, and your initiatives remain at the heart of this process.”

For more details on the planned developments and to read the action plan itself, visit www.gatineau.ca and click “Information and Services”, then “Citizen Participation”, “Public Consultations” and “Aménagement des terrains vacants 2023-2027”. (The page is only available in French, but can be translated via an online translator.)

Photo caption: A map of Pointe-Gatineau and Touraine districts showing vacant land ceded to the city after the 2017 and 2019 floods (vacant lots shown in grey).

Photo credit: Ville de Gatineau.