By Trevor Greenway
Action Chelsea for the Respect of the Environment (ACRE) says that, while it doesn’t’ feel that any of the land they have saved is under threat, they are concerned about the precedent Chelsea could be setting if they expropriate the Meredith Foundation soccer fields for a new French school.
ACRE president Stephen Woodley told the Low Down that one of his biggest questions surrounding the potential expropriation has to do with precedent and determining if a registered charity has ever been expropriated by a municipality before.
“The idea that you could expropriate land from a charity, which was obtained for community purposes, I’m not aware,” said Woodley, adding that he asked that question during a Chelsea council meeting and was given unclear answers. “Has this ever happened anywhere else in Canada? And to my knowledge, it has not happened. So it does raise the question of…what are the conditions for expropriation, and there’s not a clear answer to that. Expropriation laws are wide.”
ACRE, a non-profit made up of concerned citizens working towards an environmentally-healthy community in the Hills, has acquired and preserved hundreds of acres of land over the last several years, including 70 acres in the Jolicoeur-McMartin Forest for ecological purposes. There’s also the Larrimac Forest, a 42-acre plot of land within the Larrimac Ecological Corridor, which lies adjacent to Gatineau Park. ACRE purchased this land in July of last year to protect it from future development and to maintain the eco-corridor to help plants and animals migrate, reproduce, feed and adapt to climate change.
Despite the potential precedent being set by Chelsea, Woodley said he doesn’t think any of the lands ACRE has saved will be under threat.
“ACRE is not overly concerned that any of our lands are ripe for expropriation, but we’re uncomfortable with the precedent,” added Woodley. “And I’m sure all land trusts in Canada would be uncomfortable with setting this kind of precedent.”
Last fall, the municipality of Chelsea announced the location of a new French school set to open in 2026, which sparked confusion and concern among Foundation members, as two-thirds of the chosen land is owned by the charity and currently in regular, year-round use as a recreational hub for the community.
The Foundation came out swinging last week, telling this newspaper that it was not willing to negotiate with the municipality, and that Chelsea would have to expropriate the land for the school.
The municipality argues that its “hands are tied,” as Quebec’s Bill 40, passed in 2020, allows school service centres to require municipalities to hand over land for the purpose of building or adding to a school.
The municipality has said that the Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l’Outaouais (CSSPO) – the school service centre in the area – is solely responsible for the decision to use the Foundation’s land.
Woodley said he feels for politicians who are in a difficult position and hopes that the CSSPO and the municipality can find a different piece of land to build the school.