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PRINCE OF WALES BRIDGE! The Prince of Wales Bridge is a rail bridge across the Ottawa River joining Ottawa, Ontario to Gatineau, Quebec. It connected with the Canadian Pacific Railway line just west of Lebreton Flats, and crosses the south channel of the river to Lemieux Island; it then continues across the northern channel into Quebec. It is a multi-span Pratt truss bridge, consisting of six equal spans over the south channel, and seven spans over the north channel; the second-last span, proceeding northward, is longer by a factor of about 1.7. It was built by the Quebec, Montreal, Ottawa and Occidental Railway in 1880, named for Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. At that time, it was one of the few crossings of the Ottawa River, and was one of the most valuable assets of the line, which was owned by the Quebec provincial government. The QMO&O continued to lose money, however, and it was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in 1882, who connected it with their other recent purchase, the Canada Central Railway. This connection gave the CPR a solid rail route from their westward line being built from North Bay to the ports of the St. Lawrence. The Prince of Wales Bridge was joined by the CPR’s Royal Alexandra Interprovincial Bridge in 1901, the second railway bridge to cross the river between Ottawa and Hull. The Prince of Wales Bridge served well into the 20th century, but as rail transport diminished and more efficient routes became more common, the line was abandoned. The City of Ottawa purchased the CPR line, including the Prince of Wales Bridge, during the early 2000s for the O-Train project, however, the bridge has remained unused and the track east of the Bayview Station to the bridge is overgrown. Interestingly, as the purchase of the bridge included the approaches on both sides, Ottawa now owns property in Quebec. #learnsomethingnewmonday (at Prince of Wales Bridge)
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PRINCE OF WALES BRIDGE!

The Prince of Wales Bridge is a rail bridge across the Ottawa River joining Ottawa, Ontario to Gatineau, Quebec. It connected with the Canadian Pacific Railway line just west of Lebreton Flats, and crosses the south channel of the river to Lemieux Island; it then continues across the northern channel into Quebec.

It is a multi-span Pratt truss bridge, consisting of six equal spans over the south channel, and seven spans over the north channel; the second-last span, proceeding northward, is longer by a factor of about 1.7.

It was built by the Quebec, Montreal, Ottawa and Occidental Railway in 1880, named for Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. At that time, it was one of the few crossings of the Ottawa River, and was one of the most valuable assets of the line, which was owned by the Quebec provincial government. The QMO&O continued to lose money, however, and it was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in 1882, who connected it with their other recent purchase, the Canada Central Railway. This connection gave the CPR a solid rail route from their westward line being built from North Bay to the ports of the St. Lawrence. The Prince of Wales Bridge was joined by the CPR’s Royal Alexandra Interprovincial Bridge in 1901, the second railway bridge to cross the river between Ottawa and Hull.

The Prince of Wales Bridge served well into the 20th century, but as rail transport diminished and more efficient routes became more common, the line was abandoned. The City of Ottawa purchased the CPR line, including the Prince of Wales Bridge, during the early 2000s for the O-Train project, however, the bridge has remained unused and the track east of the Bayview Station to the bridge is overgrown. Interestingly, as the purchase of the bridge included the approaches on both sides, Ottawa now owns property in Quebec. #learnsomethingnewmonday (at Prince of Wales Bridge)

“You can’t get 100-year old buildings if you keep knocking down 50-year old buildings.” Christopher Hume. Across Canada, derelict industrial buildings and brownfield sites are being reclaimed and renewed by municipalities, designers and developers to serve as vital creative hubs and thriving urban communities. These include Vancouver’s Granville Island, Winnipeg’s The Forks, Toronto’s Distillery District, Brick Works and Artscape Wychwood Barns, and Montreal’s Old Port. In Ottawa we have a unique opportunity to create our own revitalized cultural space at 7 Bayview Road, in the old City of Ottawa Public Works building known as The Ottawa Workshops. This 40,000 sq. ft. city-owned building with a view of Parliament Hill is part of a much larger site called The Bayview Yards, which is slated for significant intensification in the coming years. The site is bounded to the west by Bayview Road, to the east by the Canadian Pacific Railway, to the south by the Transitway (and future Bayview LRT hub), and to the north by the Ottawa River Parkway. To date, the City has not made any official statement about the future of the building, which was designed in 1944 by J. H. Irwin, the City’s Chief Design Engineer. Recently, however, members of the community have been part of a team that has been working to kick-start discussions regarding the adaptive re-use of the building to ensure it addresses the stated needs and recommendations in the Neighbourhood Planning Initiative for Hintonburg/Mechanicsville (NPI), which was approved by City Council in 2010. One of the priorities of the NPI was the development of more artists’ work and performance spaces to reflect the creative nature of Hintonburg/Mechanicsville. The NPI indentified 7 Bayview as an ideal community asset as it is city-owned, rich in character and potential, and has been ignored for many years. The last tenants were evicted in 2006. #learnsomethingnewmonday (at 7 Bayview Road)
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“You can’t get 100-year old buildings if you keep knocking down 50-year old buildings.” Christopher Hume.

Across Canada, derelict industrial buildings and brownfield sites are being reclaimed and renewed by municipalities, designers and developers to serve as vital creative hubs and thriving urban communities. These include Vancouver’s Granville Island, Winnipeg’s The Forks, Toronto’s Distillery District, Brick Works and Artscape Wychwood Barns, and Montreal’s Old Port.

In Ottawa we have a unique opportunity to create our own revitalized cultural space at 7 Bayview Road, in the old City of Ottawa Public Works building known as The Ottawa Workshops. This 40,000 sq. ft. city-owned building with a view of Parliament Hill is part of a much larger site called The Bayview Yards, which is slated for significant intensification in the coming years. The site is bounded to the west by Bayview Road, to the east by the Canadian Pacific Railway, to the south by the Transitway (and future Bayview LRT hub), and to the north by the Ottawa River Parkway.
To date, the City has not made any official statement about the future of the building, which was designed in 1944 by J. H. Irwin, the City’s Chief Design Engineer. Recently, however, members of the community have been part of a team that has been working to kick-start discussions regarding the adaptive re-use of the building to ensure it addresses the stated needs and recommendations in the Neighbourhood Planning Initiative for Hintonburg/Mechanicsville (NPI), which was approved by City Council in 2010.

One of the priorities of the NPI was the development of more artists’ work and performance spaces to reflect the creative nature of Hintonburg/Mechanicsville. The NPI indentified 7 Bayview as an ideal community asset as it is city-owned, rich in character and potential, and has been ignored for many years. The last tenants were evicted in 2006. #learnsomethingnewmonday (at 7 Bayview Road)

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