wetland areas near Lester Road. It was one of three sites considered, so we wonder 
why a site that includes wetland was selected over the alternatives such as the 
existing railyard. For more information see the citizens’ group Save Our Greenspace 
web site: www.saveourgreenspace.ca/ or the City’s web site www.ottawa.ca/ and 
search for “LRT.” 
Proposed Wetland Purchase 
The City is considering spending $1.2M to purchase two fragments, totalling about 3 
ha, of a larger wetland in the Stittsville area which is approved for development. 
Given the intended development all around them, these wetlands are unlikely to 
survive. Ultimately the City will have two pieces of nondescript greenspace for 
which it paid a premium price. There is also adjacent land to be donated to the City 
which might reduce the average price per hectare being paid. Consider the sale of 
5309 Bank Street by the City: 71 ha sold for 1.7M. This is a unique area, probably 
the most significant one in the City that is not already a Conservation Area. It has, 
in effect, been exchanged for little more than two fragments of, probably, doomed 
wetland. 
With limited funds, the City should use what funds it has to buy premium quality 
greenspaces that can be maintained in their natural state. The promised Greenspace 
Master Plan must provide the mechanism to do better in the future. Please check the 
Conservation pages on the OFNC web site ( http://www.ofnc.ca/conservation) for 
more information. 
Acknowledgments: This report relies on materials prepared by several members of 
the Conservation Committee and some others 
The Manning Funds 
Frank Pope 
On November 8, 1998, Thomas Henry Manning died. He was an honorary member 
of the Club and had been a member for 57 years. Mr. Manning had a keen interest 
in the Canadian north. In his will he left a bequest of $100,000 to the OFNC. 
Members of the Council were asked for suggestions about the use of this money 
(Moore 1999). 
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