Community groups propose City of Ottawa explore acquiring Kanata golf course for urban park

Three community groups are calling on the City of Ottawa to explore acquiring the Kanata Golf and Country Club and turn it into an urban park to prevent the development of 1,500 new homes on the land.

ClubLink, the owner of the Kanata Lakes golf course, and developers Minto Group and Richcraft Homes plan to build approximately 1,500 homes on the course.

The Supreme Court of Canada cleared the path for development after dismissing the City of Ottawa’s appeal of an Ontario Court of Appeal ruling that called the 1981 agreement to keep 40 per cent of the property as greenspace “inoperative.” The Ontario Land Tribunal has approved the development, which is subject to 192 conditions from the city.

The Kanata Lakes Community Association, the Kanata Greenspace Protection Coalition and the Kanata Beaverbrook Community Association have submitted a proposal to the city for a “forward-looking plan” to protect the Kanata Lakes Greenspace Lands as “vital municipal infrastructure and permanent urban greenspace.”

The proposal calls on the city to conduct a feasibility study examining options to acquire the 173-acre property from ClubLink, constrained land valuation, long-term lifecycle costs, liabilities and funding pathways.

The groups also want the city to participate in a “collaborative working group to explore solutions,” and call on the Ontario and federal governments to protect the site.

“This proposal is not about relitigating past court decisions or opposing housing,” Barbara Ramsay, chair of the Kanata Greenspace Protection Coalition, said in a statement.

“It is about asking whether preserving this land as public greenspace and natural infrastructure represents a more responsible long-term investment for Ottawa than inheriting decades of infrastructure risk, environmental liability, and maintenance costs.”

The groups say the Canada Day storm with record rainfall “highlights why protecting natural stormwater infrastructure is increasingly important” in the city.

The proposal says the community’s vision for the former golf course is a “multi-use urban park.” The group says the study should evaluate acquisition models, including full versus partial acquisition by the city, public-private partnerships or land swap options.

To pay for the potential acquisition and urban park, the proposed funding sources and partnerships includes budget contributions from Ottawa’s capital budget, public fundraising and private donations, a Special Area Levy on property tax bills, provincial or federal funding or corporate and philanthropic partnerships.

“Exploring acquisition and protection options now would allow the city to evaluate whether preserving these lands as public greenspace better serves Ottawa’s long-term public, infrastructure, environmental, health and recreational, as well as fiscal interests,” the proposal said.

“This proposal does not request an immediate acquisition decision. Rather, it requests that the City of Ottawa undertake the analysis and collaborative planning necessary to ensure informed decision-making at the appropriate time.”

Last Wednesday, council approved a motion directing Mayor Mark Sutcliffe to write Premier Doug Ford and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Rob Flack and request the province use one of three tools to save the golf course:

• An order under Section 47 of the Planning Act issued by the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to ensure the preservation of the Kanata golf lands and greenspace as part of the 40 per cent greenspace
• Special legislation to ensure the conservation of the Kanata golf lands and greenspace as part of the 40 per cent greenspace lands
• Other possible options or mechanisms within the authority of the Ontario government to ensure the conservation of the Kanata golf lands and greenspace as part of the 40 per cent greenspace.

The fight over the future of the Kanata Golf and Country Club dates back to 2018, when the course’s owner, ClubLink, announced plans to build approximately 1,500 homes on the Kanata Lakes property.

The City of Ottawa and residents have pointed to the 1981 agreement between the former City of Kanata and Campeau Corporation that states 40 per cent of the area must be kept as open space.

In January 2025, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled the 1981 agreement between the former City of Kanata and the former owner of the course, Campeau Corporation, should “be considered void.

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