Author name: The Low Down

Gatineau Park isn’t broken, say residents 

Local Journalism Initiative / /

Marla Bryant says that Gatineau Park isn’t broken. 

It doesn’t need saving from the government; it doesn’t need legislation to protect it, and it doesn’t need a board of executives in suits to preserve it. 

According to her, the residents who live in the park – some families for centuries – are the true stewards of Gatineau Park who will continue to protect the “crown jewel” of the National Capital Region (NCR).

“Most of the protection up here has certainly been by the residents, especially those that have been living here for, you know, sometimes two or three generations,” said Bryant, who has lived on Meech Lake for 41 years. Her late husband’s family has been in Gatineau Park since the 1920s, and she said that residents – not the National Capital Commission (NCC) – are the ones who regularly pick up garbage along the ditches and monitor late-night activities in parking lots, beaches and trails. 

Bryant’s comments come a week after Pontiac MP Sophie Chatel tabled her Gatineau Park Protection Bill in the House of Commons. The bill aims to establish official park boundaries, protect its ecological integrity, prohibit the sale of public lands and allow the NCC to negotiate a right-of-first-refusal with private landowners who already live in the park. 

Private landowners in the park have taken issue with Chatel’s bill, namely the clause around negotiating a right-of-first-refusal with the NCC. Right-of-first-refusal means that if a landowner wants to sell property in the park, the NCC has the first chance to buy it. 

Bryant owns a double lot on Meech Lake road and only one of the lots contains a home. Under the bill’s provisions, Bryant would be forced to first offer her second lot up to the NCC, “at fair market value” by an expert’s appraisal before being sold to a third party.

“People have to wait 60 days every time they want to move a piece of land, or, if they want to sell it to their daughter or somebody, they have to wait 60 days to make sure the NCC decides it doesn’t want it,” said Bryant. “But it isn’t like there’s a lot of vacant land in the park. My assessment of this situation is somebody trying to gain points by saving the park. It doesn’t need saving.”

Bryant’s neighbour Christopher Frank agreed and said that, while protecting the Park from development is a good thing in principle, he’s mostly upset that there was no consultation from Chatel’s office with the landowners who have lived in the park for generations. He said Chatel and Senator Rosa Galvez’s bill didn’t take into account the rights of homeowners who have owned land in the park before it was ever named Gatineau Park.

“This would be a major change in our lives and a major impact on the value of our property and our ability to sell it,” said Frank about the proposed bill. “The right-of-first-refusal expropriates our ability to freely sell our home. The whole thing is very strange for those of us whose [family] members have been here since early in the 20th century. Why we would be treated differently than our neighbours in this part of the world, I just don’t understand.”

The bill, however, does contain exceptions for lands that have residences built on them. According to the bill, in cases where a residence is on land that a property owner wants to sell, the owner has to “notify the [National Capital] Commission of the owner’s intention to dispose of the immovable property. The notice must contain an expert’s appraisal of the immovable property’s value.”

But it’s not just the right-of-first-refusal that Frank has an issue with but a number of protections that he calls “overkill.”

“It’s not just our ability to resell our home, but that is – that’s the main thing, but it touches on so much beneath it,” added Frank. “Our right to use our neighborhood and the lake, for instance; restrictions on  who or what way you might use the lake. It’s a free country.”

The bill, if passed, would authorize the NCC to negotiate a right-of-first-refusal with the property owner, according to Chatel. If no such agreement is made, then the owner must let the NCC know that it intends to sell the property and must include an expert appraisal of the property. 

“If you intend to sell your property, there is a notification that is given to the NCC,” said Chatel about properties with residences on them. “That’s all. You just have to say, ‘Hey, I intend to sell my property.’”

Chatel’s bill was introduced in the Senate on Oct. 10 and will go to second reading sometime in the future. However, if a federal election is triggered, the bill will die on the order table, and Chatel will have to reintroduce it if she’s re-elected. 

Chatel has confirmed that she will run again in the Pontiac and, if elected, will reintroduce the bill. 

Chatel said that without protection, a legislative framework and defined park boundaries, the “crown jewel” of the National Capital Region will never be “a real park.”

Gatineau Park isn’t broken, say residents  Read More »

Who will staff the new ‘mega-hospital’?

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

The head of the region’s health authority says that if the government built its “mega-hospital” today, it wouldn’t be able to operate it. 

This is because there aren’t enough doctors, nurses or medical technicians to run the facility. 

On Oct. 14 the CAQ government officially announced its plan to build a 600-bed “mega-hospital” in Gatineau by 2030. 

Speaking with the Low Down two weeks after that announcement, Marc Bilodeau, the CEO of Outaouais Integrated Health and Social Services Centre CISSSO said, while a new hospital is a boon for the region, there is plenty of work to be done to recruit, train and build incentives for healthcare workers to stay in the Outaouais before a new hospital can be staffed.

“That’s the reality; we just don’t have the people. We need them to build a plan, and a plan would take, most likely, 10 years to deliver,” he said, putting the responsibility on the CAQ government. 

Bilodeau explained that recruitment isn’t immediate because education programs take time to build and several years for students to complete. He said the Outaouais is graduating its first cohort of doctors from the McGill campus in Gatineau, which opened four years ago. Those 23 students will start their residency in the Outaouais this summer, said Bilodeau. He added that, since the campus opened in 2020, they have been increasing the number of medical school spots, with the latest class up to 38 students. 

“There is going to be an increasing number of new doctors that will have been trained in Outaouais, which means that they know the area, they know the territory and they probably have started to build some roots here,” said Bilodeau. 

He explained that CISSSO has created a recruitment committee to figure out ways of how best to recruit and retain medical professionals.

“We need to figure out how we can support new, potential doctors and new families coming on board. How can we support them with lodging, daycare and so on, so that we facilitate their integration, and they are more likely to stay,” he said.

Bilodeau said he is aware, though, that without salary parity with Ontario healthcare positions, it will always be a challenge to keep workers in the region. He said the biggest challenge is in the medical technicians department, as those workers can make upwards of $30,000 more in Ontario than they do in Quebec. 

The CISSSO tried to combat this last summer when it pressured the government to give $22,000 bonuses to medical technicians to stay in hospitals in the Outaouais. While the bonuses did help retain staff at Wakefield and Shawville, Bilodeau said it’s a “short-term fix.” 

He said that salaries for nurses and doctors are somewhat comparable with Ontario, but he added that the real discrepancy comes on the medical technician side – radiologists, MRI technicians and ultrasound experts. Bilodeau said salary parity should be a “key element” in the government’s retention strategy. 

The opening of a new “mega-hospital” raises questions about what will happen to local hospital services, namely smaller hospitals like those in Wakefield and Shawville. In its Oct. 14 announcement, the CAQ government didn’t include a cost, timeline or location, and said the new hospital’s aim is to centralize specialized workers in one large facility to service the Outaouais region. The official press release stated that local services would be “completely reorganized.”

Pontiac MNA André Fortin told the Low Down that “everyone should be worried about the future services in Wakefield.”

“It is formally written in the CISSSO’s clinical plan that once the new Hull Hospital opens, the Wakefield Hospital will become a geriatric readaptation facility,” said Fortin. “The CISSSO’s own official documents show that the hospital will lose its ‘hospital’ vocation. But Wakefield needs a functional emergency room, it needs frontline services, it needs care units, it needs a hospital.”

Bilodeau told the Low Down that the Wakefield Hospital is not under threat of closing but that the next few years will be key in finding out what users need the hospital to be. With the needs of the population changing, he said his next few years of work will be focused on finding out what those needs are and fighting to keep those services intact. 

“Is it going to remain as is?” asked Bilodeau about the future of the Wakefield Hospital. “Is it going to transfer to something a bit different, because we know we’re still going to need care in that area, but what care will be required?”

Marcel Chartrand, spokesperson for Vigi Santé, a health watchdog group in the Outaouais, said that the government has spent $15 million over the last few years bringing in extra doctors and nurses to help out in the region, and he wondered how the government is going to staff a new 600-bed hospital. He said hospital emergency rooms in Hull and Gatineau are operating between 25 and 40 per cent capacity. 

“That’s the million dollar question,” Chartrand told the Low Down when asked who will staff the new hospital. “We have three openings in Wakefield for doctors, and another one, Dr. Menard, [who] announced his retirement last week or the week before, so that will be four, and we can’t replace them.”

Chartrand said that his organization was assured that services at the Wakefield Hospital would not be diminished when the government builds its new hospital.

Who will staff the new ‘mega-hospital’? Read More »

Zamboni driver arrested for DUI in Chelsea

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

MRC des Collines Police allege that a Zamboni driver under the influence of alcohol crashed into the boards at the Meredith Centre Oct. 21 and caused damage to one of the doors inside the Chelsea arena. 

According to police, the 25-year-old Zamboni driver, who has not been named, was arrested for drunk driving and will appear in court at a later date. The man’s licence was suspended. 

Police allege the man was cleaning the ice around 9:45 p.m. when he slammed into the end of the rink boards. 

A video released by police of the event appears to show the Zamboni crashing into the boards at the far end of the ice. The driver then reverses, and there is some yelling between a referee on the ice and the driver. 

According to MRC des Collines Police spokesperson Martin Fournel, a witness at the arena called the cops shortly after the incident. When police arrived, they performed a sobriety test, which police say he failed. Fournel told the Low Down that the driver’s blood-alcohol content was above .08 per cent, which is the legal limit. 

“It’s important to remember that our officers intervened after receiving a call from a concerned person that was on site and because it was possible for that person to observe symptoms of impairment, plus the fact the person just had a collision causing damages with a big machine and kept driving after – it was unsafe for the driver himself and for anyone present there at the time,” added Fournel. 

He continued: “And it was the right thing to do. Any citizen witnessing something like this should also call. So, once on site, our officers confirmed the fact that the gentleman was driving under the influence of alcohol, and he got arrested.”

The incident has raised questions about whether or not the driver should have been arrested for a DUI, as he wasn’t driving on a public road. 

According to Fournel, it doesn’t matter where or what you’re driving, if it’s a “motor vehicle” and you’re under the influence of alcohol or drugs, you can be charged. 

“You can be arrested driving a boat, a train, a plane, an ATV and you are not on the road,” Fournel explained, citing the Criminal Code, which defines a motor vehicle as “a vehicle that is drawn, propelled or driven by any means other than muscular power.” 

Fournel said the 25-year-old was cooperative, but was led out of the arena in handcuffs, which he said is standard police procedure. 

According to Chelsea Foundation executive-director Amanda DeGrace, the organization which runs the Meredith Centre, the driver was not a municipal employee but rather a staffer with the Chelsea Foundation. 

While she wouldn’t discuss the specifics of the incident, citing that it was an internal matter, she did say that the Chelsea Foundation takes these events seriously. 

“Public and staff safety is a high priority for us,” said DeGrace. “We do have extensive training protocols in place as well that all staff follow. DeGrace wouldn’t comment on whether or not the employee was fired or disciplined. 

When asked if he was a municipal or Foundation employee, she said, “He is, was, an employee of the Chelsea Foundation.”

This is not the first time in Canada that a Zamboni driver has been charged for driving an ice resurfacer while drunk. A man in Manitoba was arrested after he crashed into the boards during a game in 2015. Another incident that same year, this time in North Dakota saw a man spend nine days in jail for driving a Zamboni while under the influence. 

Zamboni driver arrested for DUI in Chelsea Read More »

Pontiac’s Chatel among MPs looking to oust Trudeau

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Liberal MP Sophie Chatel says that her constituents in the Pontiac riding want “a change of leadership.”

That’s why it wasn’t surprising to see her name among the  25 or so federal Liberal MPs who signed a letter asking for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step down as their leader by Oct. 28. 

“People in my riding are saying, ‘We want change, but we don’t want to go backward,’” Chatel told the Low Down on Oct. 26, a day after she reportedly stood up in a dramatic caucus meeting to support West Vancouver–Sunshine Coast–Sea to Sky Country MP Patrick Weiller’s motion to ask Trudeau to step down. 

Chatel wouldn’t confirm or deny whether or not she signed the letter or the specifics of what happened in caucus, however it has been widely reported by multiple news outlets that she was among the dissenting voices. 

When asked what the “change” her constituents want to see is, Chatel said, “It’s not 100 per cent clear, and that’s why we are having this discussion.”

“Of course, the obvious one is a change of leadership for many constituents,” added Chatel. “But, across Canada, if it’s not a leadership change, then what else? And that’s the discussion we are having.”

When asked if she still had confidence in Trudeau’s leadership, Chatel dodged the question and said any talk of a leadership change should be between caucus and the prime minister. She told the Low Down that whatever Trudeau decides to do – whether he will resign or not – she will “respect” his decision.

“I think that what’s important is to have a discussion in caucus with the prime minister about the change that Canadians want,” said Chatel. 

“But that discussion, to me, is between caucus members and the prime minister.”

Despite coming out against Trudeau, Chatel told the Low Down that she is proud of everything the Liberal party has accomplished since it took power in 2015 – namely, tackling issues facing Indigenous communities, the environment and the party’s social–economic policies. 

She said she has “tremendous respect” for Trudeau and will ultimately support his decision. 

“…We all want the same thing – to protect the progress we’ve made under our prime minister’s leadership,” she said. 

“The decision is the decision of the prime minister, and I’m sure that whatever decision he takes, it’s for the best interest of the country and the best interest of the party.”

Conservative candidate hopeful in the Pontiac, Brian Goodman, wasted no time in calling out the Liberal party’s dysfunction. Just a day after the news broke that Chatel was one of the dissenting MPs, he called her out publicly, asking for her to explain her stance and to disclose whether or not she would sit as an independent MP if Trudeau refuses to resign. 

Goodman told the Low Down that the Liberal party is failing Canadians by infighting instead of focusing on the issues plaguing the country.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty for Canadians right now, and the Liberals are basically fighting each other when they should be focused on the economy, focused on helping people,” said Goodman. 

He said he agrees with Chatel on constituents wanting change, saying he’s heard a similar sentiment during his campaigning throughout the Hills to become the Conservative nominee for the Pontiac riding. 

“People have had enough of Trudeau and the Liberals as well,” said Goodman. “You can’t pin everything on [Trudeau], but he’s been there for nine years, and there’s a lot of people in a bad situation right now, and people are tired, and people are ready for a change.”

Pontiac’s Chatel among MPs looking to oust Trudeau Read More »

La Pêche needs to fix agin sewer system 

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Wakefield needs to fix its aging sewer system, but despite the state of disrepair, La Pêche says it has nothing to do with the recent spring contamination at the top of Valley Drive. 

According to La Pêche Mayor Guillaume Lamoureux, a Ministry of Environment assessment in 2022 revealed a number of fixes that the municipality must make on the sewer system in Wakefield that was built nearly 30 years ago, namely failing pump stations. 

“Our biggest concern is around backup pumps for the pumping stations,” said Lamoureux. “We had to rent two pumps last year when maintenance on our pumps was required. We have also had issues with control panels; they must be replaced.”

The work will cost close to $350,000, and workers will begin repairs immediately, with a completion date of next summer. La Pêche passed a borrowing bylaw Oct. 24 for $357,000 to complete the work. 

“The sewers were built in 1996,” said Lamoureux. “Components of the system are used up and must be replaced. Also, the work needs to be done to avoid having to do urgent repairs in the near future if we wait until components fail. This equipment is very specialized, and there can be considerable delays for obtaining components.”

Lamoureux told the Low Down that the municipality is certain that the aging system isn’t linked to recent boil water advisories that have affected the Wakefield spring on Valley Drive. He said the effluence from the treatment plant is not contaminating Wakefield’s water source. 

“The outlet of the sewer system is in the Gatineau River, located near the intersection of Riverside and Chemin de la Vallée-de-Wakefield,” said Lamoureux. “On top of installing flowmeters, we have done a lot of tests and camera inspections in recent years to ensure the impermeability of the system and found no leak on the system’s outlet.”

Lamoureux added that the municipality has no plans to expand the sewer system, as the capacity of the aerated ponds is at just 50 per cent. He said there is “no need” to expand capacity, but he did leave the door open to extending the network to service new areas.

La Pêche needs to fix agin sewer system  Read More »

‘How Indigenous are you?’

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Nathalie Coutou wants to share her story – and STO Union is helping her tell it. 

The owner of Khewa, an Indigenous boutique in Wakefield, says she has faced questions about her ancestry and her connection to Indigenous, Inuit and Métis culture. She wants to tell the story of how devastating it is when someone questions your heritage and scrutinizes your right to share stories from your past. 

Coutou is collaborating with STO Union, a world-renowned and award-winning, Wakefield-based, theatre company to explore what it means to belong. 

The three-event series will feature Algonquin Traditional Elder Annie Smith St-George, Hereditary Chief on the Mi’Kmaq Grand Council Elder Stephen Augustine and Wakefield resident Elizabeth Logue, along with STO Union Artistic Director Nadia Ross and Coutou. 

“I started to question my place of belonging, and that’s when fear kicked in,” said Coutou, who has owned and operated her Khewa Indigenous Art Boutique for 23 years in Wakefield. 

When she first opened her boutique in 2001, she said nobody would come inside because of the stigma of the Oka Crisis – a 78-day standoff between Mohawk protesters and Quebec’s provincial law enforcement over a proposed golf course expansion on disputed land that encompassed a Mohawk burial ground. 

The stigma of that standoff, in which Sûreté du Québec Corporal Marcel Lemay was killed, was still present and people began to question where Coutou was from and why she had set up an Indigenous boutique on unceded Algonquin territory, according to Coutou. 

“Then it was like, ‘How Indigenous are you?’” said Coutou about customers who came in and asked where she was from. She said she would tell them that she is of French-European-Mi’kmaq-ancestry in Quebec and a single mother of two, rebuilding her life, alone. But she said they continued to press her, asking, “‘Well, this is unceded Algonquin territory. How come she’s here?’ Those are not questions I used to have.”

Through a three-event series entitled “A Soft Place to Land,” STO Union and Coutou are inviting the public to come, listen, learn and understand the different ways that people feel they belong – or don’t.

“As identity politics gained ground in the late 2010s and early 20s, [Coutou’s] identity and right to share anything from her mixed heritage’s perspective began to get scrutinized,” wrote Ross in the event’s official press release. “Who was she? And did she have the right to reconnect to her ancestry as a proud woman of mixed ancestry and share stories with the public about Indigenous, Inuit and Métis culture?”

Coutou said the questions about her heritage have brought up trauma from her past, as her father was a victim of “yellow journalism” – fake news that emphasized sensationalism over fact-based reporting. Coutou’s father, Claude, a well-known breeder of malamute dogs at his kennel in Saint-Alexis north of Montreal, would become the centre of a sensationalized media campaign in the Montreal-based tabloid Allô Police in the 1980s. The media campaign against her father was rumoured to have been initiated by organizations with competing agendas – that the smear campaign was meant to discredit the dog breed and her father as a breeder, according to Coutou and Ross.

“The family was completely destroyed by these weekly Sunday reports in this newspaper of people saying that their breed of dog were child killers – this specific breed of dog, the Malamute breed of dog, were child killers,” said Ross. The stress of the coverage tore Coutou’s family apart, with her father dying of cancer, leaving his 29-year-old wife to care for Coutou and her three siblings. Coutou said her father was in the midst of suing the tabloid over defamation when he fell ill and died. 

The three-part series is happening at the Wakefield community centre over three different evenings: part 1 of the series, “A soft place to land”, takes place Nov. 8.; part 2, “Malamute”, is on Nov. 9; and the final part, “Welcome home”, is on Nov. 10. All three events start at 7 p.m. and they are non-ticketed with a $20 suggested donation.

“My hope is that we can come together to share stories and discuss what belonging means to us as a community,” added Coutou.

For more information, visit https://stounion.com/

‘How Indigenous are you?’ Read More »

More than 1,000 workers sign up to be bilingual staffers

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Anglophone residents looking to navigate the province’s healthcare system won’t have to look far to find someone who speaks English at local CLSC clinics and hospitals. 

More than 1,000 healthcare workers in the Outaouais are now wearing yellow badges with the words, “Allo, vous parlez Anglais?” They are all bilingual employees and will get you the care you need, whether you speak French or English. 

“Just look for an employee with a yellow badge and directly go and ask them, ‘Can you help me?’” says Joanne Dubois, CISSSO’s coordinator for accessing English services across the region. She’s responsible for implementing the yellow-card system for anglophone services, something she said she saw her colleagues in Côte-Nord do with great success. “My role is to make sure that there’s access [to healthcare] for the English-speaking population,” she added. “Because there’s no language when it comes to your health.”

CISSSO’s yellow-card badge system is simple: anglophones needing help in their mother tongue no longer have to wander hospital hallways looking for the right examination room, elevators or even washrooms. All they will need to do is look for someone wearing a yellow badge. According to Dubois, those employees have volunteered to be bilingual representatives and are committed to helping anglophones navigate clinics and hospitals that do not have bilingual status. 

Dubois said the CISSSO has always had an English language coordinator, but she admitted that her role has become much more active and important with the adoption of Bill 96 – the province’s overhaul of the charter of the French Language, which restricts the use of English in government institutions. 

In July, the CAQ government published a health directive outlining, in excruciating detail, when English could be used in a health or social services setting. The directive suggested anglophones would be required to produce an English eligibility certificate to receive health and social services in their mother tongue. Anglo leaders decried that directive, and the CAQ quickly scrapped the 31-page document and replaced it with a new one in September, which clearly states that English residents are entitled to health and social services. 

Bill 96, now Law 14 after its adoption in 2022, still requires that all CLSCs without bilingual status adhere to the updated language rules, meaning no posted signage in English, no English pamphlets or resource information. 

But now, after launching the yellow-badge initiative in September, more than 1,000 CISSSO employees across the Outaouais are designated bilingual healthcare workers. Dubois said she feels the system will be a major stress reliever for mental health patients in particular. 

She said that anglophones could be in Maniwaki, Shawville or in the city when they need mental health support, but the region’s mental health hospital is in Hull, a predominantly French facility. 

“Already, you’re nervous, saying, ‘Oh, my god, nobody is going to speak English because we’re in Quebec and this law came in.’ Knowing that once you go into the building and find someone with a yellow badge decreases the stress level of the family that is going in to get an evaluation for their child.”

Dubois said she was not surprised at the positive response from staffers, as the initiative was offered on a voluntary basis. She said the high number of healthcare workers who want to help reinforces the Hippocratic Oath, a mantra doctors undertake to ensure that the “health and well-being of my patient will be my first consideration,” according to the oath.

Vigi Santé spokesperson Marcel Chartrand told the Low Down that while the initiative is a good move, he still finds it hard to accept that we’ve gotten to a point where we must identify what language we speak to get healthcare. 

He was impressed, however, with the number of workers who came forward to volunteer to wear the bilingual badges. 

“Well, at first, I was sort of ambivalent,” said Chartrand when asked his initial thoughts on the yellow badge system. “I said, ‘Oh, my God. Are we there? Now, we have to identify people who can speak to you. But I looked at it again, and I guess it’s a step in the right direction. And more importantly, there are over 1,000 employees who now have that card.” Chartrand said the initiative couldn’t have come at a better time, as it will “reinforce” anglo rights while the government continues to cut English services across the province. 

Vigi Santé owns and operates long-term care homes in the region and has also become a health watchdog and a leading voice for regional healthcare.

“It will reinforce the notion that it doesn’t matter where you go; you’ll be served in your language, contrary to that stupid directive that we saw a couple months ago,” said Chartrand. 

“Things are getting clearer, and anglophones can feel safe to go anywhere in the system and be addressed in their language and be understood and be served.”

Yellow cards good, but real issue is funding (SUBHED)

SOS Outaouais executive-director Jean Pigeon told the Low Down that while he sees the yellow badge initiative as a “step in the right direction,” he does have concerns that it’s not a mandatory requirement for healthcare workers. However, he said the initiative will remove some “tongue barriers” for English speakers in health settings.

“What I think is very important is accessibility,” said Pigeon. “Accessibility should be done in any way for anybody at any time – whatever language they speak, whatever religion they are, whatever race they are. Accessibility should be offered to 100 per cent of the clientele. So that’s a big responsibility of the healthcare system.”

However, Pigeon said he remains focused on a much bigger task – one that SOS Outaouais, a coalition of organizations and citizens who share concerns about the state of health and social services in the region, could make or break the Outaouais in the years to come: funding. 

According to SOS Outaouais, the region is facing a $181 million shortfall to be on par with other regions of the province. 

This underfunding and the lack of salary parity for Ontario and Quebec healthcare workers continues to plague the Outaouais region. 

“We’re faced with the underfunding, and we’re faced also with the fact that there are so very few healthcare workers and social workers in our system that we’re not even providing accessibility to these services, and that has nothing to do with the language we’re speaking or the colour of our skin or whatever,” Pigeon said.

According to SOS, the Gatineau emergency room is operating at less than 30 per cent capacity, while Hull’s ER is working with less than 50 per cent of its staff. 

Because of a lack of staffing, CISSSO paid over $14 million to personnel placement agency services to get more workers to the region from April to July of this year alone. The Gatineau operating room is at 25 per cent capacity, while the Hull operating room is at just 43 per cent capacity. 

This means that wait times for elective surgeries across the entire Outaouais region continue to be the longest  wait times in the province. 

More than 1,000 workers sign up to be bilingual staffers Read More »

Chelsea Wall of Fame adds some big names

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Lily Kunstadt is going on Chelsea’s Wall of Fame. 

The 13-year-old elite skier is this year’s recipient of the inaugural Rising Star award for the Chelsea Foundation’s Wall of Fame and will be inducted, along with 11 other leaders in sport, innovation and leadership, on Oct. 26.

Kunstadt was one of the best skiers in her age group across the province, but the young athlete was severely injured in a ski lift accident in Switzerland earlier this year and is currently recovering at the Holland Bloorview Rehabilitation Centre in Toronto. 

“Lily continues to be her funny, positive self and is working hard at physio,” said her mom, Shannon. She added that her daughter hopes to be in attendance this Saturday at the awards ceremony, although her family is waiting for the go-ahead from doctors. 

Lily placed second in giant slalom and slalom at the U14 international ski race in Tärnaby, Sweden, earlier this spring, and just missed first place by less than 0.2 seconds in each race. Lily hopes to continue racing but is facing 1–2 years of recovery, according to her parents. 

Joining Lily are another 11 individuals who have contributed to Chelsea in some way, through sports, arts and culture and community building. These include: professional racing cyclist Mike Woods, who won Stage 9 of the Tour de France in 2023 and Canadian former Lethwei fighter Dave Leduc. 

Leduc is a former six-time Lethwei world champion who held the openweight Lethwei Golden Belt and was undefeated under traditional rules KO to win. Lethwei, or Burmese boxing, is a full-contact, combat sport originating from Myanmar and is regarded as one of the most brutal martial arts in the world. Leduc first gained widespread notoriety after winning a controversial prison fight inside a maximum security prison in Thailand. He was not a prisoner. 

Ray Zahab is another inductee this year. The ultra-marathoner took the world by storm when he ran across the Sahara Desert in 2006 while filming the documentary film ‘Running the Sahara’, produced by Matt Damon. The film raised awareness for the drinking water crisis in North Africa. In 2008, Zahab founded his Impossible2Possible charity, which inspires and educates youth through adventure learning, inclusion and participation in expeditions. 

In 2022, Zahab was diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer Lymphoma, but that didn’t stop him. In February of the following year, in between chemotherapy treatment, Zahab and Val Gagne and Kevin Vallely completed a winter crossing of Baffin Island through the Paalik Valley. 

Other inductees this year include: Monica Dashwood in the Sport Builders category; Carson Becke, Paula Murray, James Stephens and Ian Tamblyn in the Arts & Culture category; and Dr. Nicole Bruinsma, Michelle Hegge and Stephen Woodley in the Community Builders category. 

Tickets for the gala are on sale now at https://chelseafoundation.ca/. The gala is part of the Chelsea Foundation’s 26th anniversary. 

“This program celebrates our community and its uniqueness both in terms of exceptional individual achievements in sports and the strength and quality of the voluntary sector that sustains and shapes our community,” said Fiona Duguid, president of the non-profit charitable organization, whose principle purpose is to promote sport, culture and leisure, as well as foster a sense of community in the municipality of Chelsea.

Chelsea Wall of Fame adds some big names Read More »

World Trails Conference brings 55 trailbuilders to village network

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

More than 50 trail builders from around the world gathered in Wakefield Sept. 30 to learn how a village of volunteers banded together to extend the Trans Canada Trail from Gatineau Park through their town. 

The Sentiers Wakefield Trails gathering was part of the World Trails Conference in Ottawa in late September, which brought 55 international delegates on a tour along three kilometres of Wakefield’s robust trail network “to get a first-hand look at how a community of volunteers has taken on large trail projects, preserved local history and woven the village of Wakefield into the Trans Canada Trail.”

Sentiers Wakefield got its start in 2005 when the now-defunct Wakefield Ensemble funded a series of trail projects around the village. The trails organization, which became an official non-profit in 2016, has created and maintained an extensive network of trails throughout La Pêche. With the help of hundreds of volunteers over the years, Sentiers Wakefield connected the Trans Canada Trail from Gatineau Park through the Wakefield village, crossing the iconic Gatineau River at Hendrick Park at Maison Fairbairn.

Half of the delegates were led by Wakefield Trails president Ken Bouchard, who has been dubbed the “Old Fart Trail Champion,” while the rest of the group was taken on a tour from Maison Fairbairn by Wakefielder Micheal Cooper. 

The conference in Ottawa was organized around themes revolving around Reconciliation, Regenerative Tourism and Climate and Nature. Wakefielder Elizabeth Logue introduced the group with a short introduction to Anishinabe culture and language. 

“I didn’t expect to be as moved by the conference as I was,” said Sentiers Wakefield Trails spokesperson Laura Wesley. “Over three days, we watched films, heard speakers and talked with fellow trail builders.” 

Among the delegates was National Trails UK, which shared its creative approach to an erosion problem it is facing due to climate change. The UK trails group is using designated coastal trails as conserved land to help reach national targets of conserving 30 per cent of of terrestrial and marine habitat by 2030.

“We have a network of trails that connect the village to the Gatineau Park, people to the natural world and to each other,” said Wesley. “I’m proud of what our community has built. And there are so many opportunities yet to explore. Inspired by what others are doing, I left the conference wondering, ‘What is the story we are creating now that will be told by future generations?’”

World Trails Conference brings 55 trailbuilders to village network Read More »

Kaz mayor ‘disappointed’ in Bill 96 decision

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

editor@lowdownonline.com

The mayor of Kazabazua says he’s disappointed with a Superior Court decision to deny a temporary injunction on Bill 96 while bilingual municipalities fight the controversial law in court. 

Kazabazua Mayor Robert Bergeron says that his municipality is one of the 23 bilingual municipalities fighting Bill 96 in court and argues that, while only 41 per cent of Kazabazuans identify English as their mother tongue, that number increases significantly when including cottagers. 

“First of all, we’re a bilingual municipality,” Bergeron told the Low Down. “Second of all, if we look at our population count, permanent residents are 42 or 43 per cent English. However, if we take our lakers, then you’re jumping higher – over 50 per cent, close to 60 per cent of English speakers. [Cottagers] pay more than 60 per cent of our taxes, and we felt that they should have service in their language.”

The latest 2021 Canada census shows that, while Kazabazua has more “mother-tongue French speakers,” more than half of its population – 54.1 per cent – speak English at home, compared to the 51.2 per cent that speak French at home. Bergeron said that maintaining a bilingual municipality helps it thrive, as it’s easier to retain employees and bid for contracts, and it offers more flexibility when working on municipal initiatives. 

“If you look or listen to our municipal council meetings, the minutes are always bilingual,” said Bergeron. “And all of our signage and communications are bilingual.”

In the summer of 2023, a coalition of 23 municipalities joined forces to fight Bill 96 in court, namely five areas of the law, which they argue will bring “serious and irreparable harm” to their municipalities. Those five areas included contracts and communication, the requirement to adopt a resolution to maintain bilingual status, alleged illegal searches and seizures, government grants and the obligation to discipline employees.

According to municipal lawyer Julius Grey, that lawsuit could take years to wind its way through the courts. In the meantime, he requested an injunction from Superior Court Judge Silvana Conte to suspend part of the law while the legal challenge continues. 

Grey asked the judge to suspend four provisions of Bill 96 for the 23 bilingual municipalities pending the outcome of their legal challenge, including:

the provision that requires all municipal contracts to be drafted in French, even when all parties are anglophones;

the provision that allows the province to withhold grants and subsidies to municipalities failing to comply with Bill 96;

the provision that allows inspectors from the Office Québécois de la langue française (OQLF) to conduct searches and seizures of documents without a warrant and without notice;

the provision requiring municipalities to discipline employees who don’t comply with Bill 96.

Grey said the municipalities shouldn’t have to comply with these provisions while waiting for the case to be decided on its merits.

On Oct. 15, Conte denied the request, arguing that the municipalities had not proved serious or irreparable damage. 

“It’s disappointing for sure, but we will just have to find another way of approaching it, but we certainly will keep on trying,” he said.

Communities with bilingual status have the right to serve their citizens in English and French, while municipalities without that status are prohibited from communicating with residents in English.

Chelsea confident about its bilingual service (SUBHED)

Chelsea has bilingual status but didn’t join the coalition to fight the law in court. Mayor Pierre Guénard told the Low Down that he and his council feel they have a good hold on bilingual services, with the municipality holding bilingual meetings, serving residents in both languages and translating minutes and documents into English. 

According to the 2021 census, Chelsea’s demographic data shows that 46.4 per cent of residents have a mother tongue of French, compared to 43.1 English. Despite the slight prevalence of French speakers, Chelsea still has bilingual status and intends to keep it that way, according to Guénard.

“My two kids now are fully bilingual. Why? Because they grew up in Chelsea,” said Guénard. “For the Chelsea council, it was always important to ask the province to keep the bilingual status and to keep serving the population in both languages.”

The province’s OQLF made two visits to Chelsea in the past year: once after a complaint about signage at the Meredith Centre and another at the Nearly New thrift shop. 

Kaz mayor ‘disappointed’ in Bill 96 decision Read More »

CISSSO’s yellow-badge initiative helps anglos navigate health system

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Anglophone residents looking to navigate the province’s healthcare system won’t have to look far to find someone who speaks English at local CLSC clinics and hospitals. 

More than 1,000 healthcare workers in the Outaouais are now wearing yellow badges with the words, “Allo, vous parlez Anglais?” They are all bilingual employees and will get you the care you need, whether you speak French or English. 

“Just look for an employee with a yellow badge and directly go and ask them, ‘Can you help me?’” says Joanne Dubois, CISSSO’s coordinator for accessing English services across the region. She’s responsible for implementing the yellow-card system for anglophone services, something she said she saw her colleagues in Côte-Nord do with great success. “My role is to make sure that there’s access [to healthcare] for the English-speaking population,” she added. “Because there’s no language when it comes to your health.”

CISSSO’s yellow-card badge system is simple: anglophones needing help in their mother tongue no longer have to wander hospital hallways looking for the right examination room, elevators or even washrooms. All they will need to do is look for someone wearing a yellow badge. According to Dubois, those employees have volunteered to be bilingual representatives and are committed to helping anglophones navigate clinics and hospitals that do not have bilingual status. 

Dubois said the CISSSO has always had an English language coordinator, but she admitted that her role has become much more active and important with the adoption of Bill 96 – the province’s overhaul of the charter of the French Language, which restricts the use of English in government institutions. 

In July, the CAQ government published a health directive outlining, in excruciating detail, when English could be used in a health or social services setting. The directive suggested anglophones would be required to produce an English eligibility certificate to receive health and social services in their mother tongue. Anglo leaders decried that directive, and the CAQ quickly scrapped the 31-page document and replaced it with a new one in September, which clearly states that English residents are entitled to health and social services. 

Bill 96, now Law 14 after its adoption in 2022, still requires that all CLSCs without bilingual status adhere to the updated language rules, meaning no posted signage in English, no English pamphlets or resource information. 

But now, after launching the yellow-badge initiative in September, more than 1,000 CISSSO employees across the Outaouais are designated bilingual healthcare workers. Dubois said she feels the system will be a major stress reliever for mental health patients in particular. 

She said that anglophones could be in Maniwaki, Shawville or in the city when they need mental health support, but the region’s mental health hospital is in Hull, a predominantly French facility. 

“Already, you’re nervous, saying, ‘Oh, my god, nobody is going to speak English because we’re in Quebec and this law came in.’ Knowing that once you go into the building and find someone with a yellow badge decreases the stress level of the family that is going in to get an evaluation for their child.”

Dubois said she was not surprised at the positive response from staffers, as the initiative was offered on a voluntary basis. She said the high number of healthcare workers who want to help reinforces the Hippocratic Oath, a mantra doctors undertake to ensure that the “health and well-being of my patient will be my first consideration,” according to the oath.

Vigi Santé spokesperson Marcel Chartrand told the Low Down that while the initiative is a good move, he still finds it hard to accept that we’ve gotten to a point where we must identify what language we speak to get healthcare. 

He was impressed, however, with the number of workers who came forward to volunteer to wear the bilingual badges. 

“Well, at first, I was sort of ambivalent,” said Chartrand when asked his initial thoughts on the yellow badge system. “I said, ‘Oh, my God. Are we there? Now, we have to identify people who can speak to you. But I looked at it again, and I guess it’s a step in the right direction. And more importantly, there are over 1,000 employees who now have that card.” Chartrand said the initiative couldn’t have come at a better time, as it will “reinforce” anglo rights while the government continues to cut English services across the province. 

Vigi Santé owns and operates long-term care homes in the region and has also become a health watchdog and a leading voice for regional healthcare.

“It will reinforce the notion that it doesn’t matter where you go; you’ll be served in your language, contrary to that stupid directive that we saw a couple months ago,” said Chartrand. 

“Things are getting clearer, and anglophones can feel safe to go anywhere in the system and be addressed in their language and be understood and be served.”

Yellow cards good, but real issue is funding (SUBHED)

SOS Outaouais executive-director Jean Pigeon told the Low Down that while he sees the yellow badge initiative as a “step in the right direction,” he does have concerns that it’s not a mandatory requirement for healthcare workers. However, he said the initiative will remove some “tongue barriers” for English speakers in health settings.

“What I think is very important is accessibility,” said Pigeon. “Accessibility should be done in any way for anybody at any time – whatever language they speak, whatever religion they are, whatever race they are. Accessibility should be offered to 100 per cent of the clientele. So that’s a big responsibility of the healthcare system.”

However, Pigeon said he remains focused on a much bigger task – one that SOS Outaouais, a coalition of organizations and citizens who share concerns about the state of health and social services in the region, could make or break the Outaouais in the years to come: funding. 

According to SOS Outaouais, the region is facing a $181 million shortfall to be on par with other regions of the province. 

This underfunding and the lack of salary parity for Ontario and Quebec healthcare workers continues to plague the Outaouais region. 

“We’re faced with the underfunding, and we’re faced also with the fact that there are so very few healthcare workers and social workers in our system that we’re not even providing accessibility to these services, and that has nothing to do with the language we’re speaking or the colour of our skin or whatever,” Pigeon said.

According to SOS, the Gatineau emergency room is operating at less than 30 per cent capacity, while Hull’s ER is working with less than 50 per cent of its staff. 

Because of a lack of staffing, CISSSO paid over $14 million to personnel placement agency services to get more workers to the region from April to July of this year alone. The Gatineau operating room is at 25 per cent capacity, while the Hull operating room is at just 43 per cent capacity. 

This means that wait times for elective surgeries across the entire Outaouais region continue to be the longest  wait times in the province. 

CISSSO’s yellow-badge initiative helps anglos navigate health system Read More »

Community pillar’s legacy felt across globe

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Norma Geggie took her last, peaceful breath inside the palliative care home that she helped create. 

The 99-year-old was a community pillar who always believed that those facing end-of-life should have a peaceful place to rest, and her tireless work on establishing Wakefield’s Maison des Collines was integral to its opening in 2019. 

On Sept. 24, just five years after the palliative care home opened its doors, Geggie died within the very walls she helped erect. 

“It’s a very big loss,” says her daughter, Judy, sitting in her mom’s old living room on Sully Road in Wakefield. It’s a warm, inviting room with a central fireplace decorated with dated furniture. It feels lived in, and it was. 

Norma spent much of her life there – just steps away from the bustle of the village – up until three days before her death. Judy looks around and takes a deep breath. “We shared so much together – I’ll just miss her every day.”

Norma’s legacy stretches far and wide throughout the Hills and beyond as the decades-long volunteer had her hand in scores of community projects: from raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Wakefield Hospital through her annual garden parties to helping set up two seniors’ homes in the Hills. She founded the Wakefield Grannies in 2004 – a grandmother-to-grandmother campaign, which connected Wakefield grandmothers with their South African counterparts who were facing an AIDS epidemic. The Wakefield Grannies was the first-ever Granny Group in the world, and more than 250 of them are now set up across North America through the Stephen Lewis Foundation. 

“Norma’s legacy is that a generation in Alexandra Township [in South Africa] has become educated, functional people with a commitment to their communities,” says long-time friend Brenda Rooney.

Rooney was in the room when Norma had the “What if…” question in 2004: What if a group of Wakefield grannies began a relationship with grandmothers (gogos) in Alexandra Township who were caring for children orphaned by AIDS? That idea 20 years ago has since blossomed into a full movement. 

Since the Stephen Lewis Foundation launched its Grandmother to Grandmother campaign in 2006 – two years after the original Wakefield Grannies was born – more than $40 million has been raised in support of grandmothers and the community-led organizations who support them in sub-Saharan Africa.

“Her legacy is going to be the same for Wakefield, with the Scouts, and all of these groups that she’s affected,” adds Rooney. “Look at what she has done for seniors. It is almost impossible to figure out just what her cumulative legacy is, but she certainly has made Wakefield and Alexander Township a better place.”

Norma was born in Australia in 1924 but spent most of her life – 71 years – in Wakefield, where she worked as a nurse and midwife in the 1950s. She and a friend had seen an advertisement that the Gatineau Memorial Hospital – now the Wakefield Memorial Hospital – was looking for nurses. Dr. Harold Geggie, who would later become Norma’s father-in-law, founded the hospital in 1953 and later brought his son, Stuart, over from England for a temporary residency. It was then that Norma met Stuart, and although Harold truly needed doctors, Norma always thought it was intended to set her up with his son. And if it was a setup, it worked. 

Norma and Dr. Stuart spent 10 days together before he was due back at his medical residency in the U.K. Norma was planning to head back to Australia for good and had to make a connecting flight in England. While there, Stuart proposed to her. She said yes and never made it back to Australia. 

“He proposed to her at the docks after having spent 10 days together. It was very romantic,” says Judy. They were married days later, spent their honeymoon camping in Scotland and headed back to Wakefield to run the Wakefield hospital. 

“They were great together. They were really, really close. They did everything together,” she adds.

This is when Norma really started to make an impact on the community. She threw extravagant hospital garden parties every year, which would usually bring in anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 for hospital equipment. Readers may remember the impressive straw hats that locals would don for this popular afternoon event. 

With her Wakefield Grannies, she and a dozen others travelled to Alexandra Township to connect with their South African counterparts, bringing supplies – food, clothing, condoms – and hope to struggling families who had been impacted by AIDS. She helped establish two long-term care homes in Wakefield and Masham, raised hundreds of thousands over the years for the Des Collines Health Foundation, and was the treasurer for Maison des Collines; her living room was the venue for early-day meetings as the facility had no office. 

Norma was also highly creative. Long before Kaffè 1870 was a village watering hole, it was a craft shop, where Norma and long-time friend, Nicole Feraud-Lewis, would weave together intricate clothing – neckties, mittens, scarves and even her daughter Judy’s wedding dress. 

“She dyed the fabric, wove it, sewed it,” says Judy. “So my wedding outfit was totally made [by] her…she could just make absolutely anything.”

When Norma wasn’t making clothes or raising money or awareness for village causes, she could often be found deep within the pages of one of her many journals. Norma was “a born writer,” says friend, John Hardie, who joined a creative writing club with her in 2012. A dozen or so locals would gather around her fireplace, tell their stories and share their life struggles. 

“This was shortly after Joan Garnett’s partner, Norma Walmsley, died, and Norma saw a soul in distress, so she said, ‘Why don’t we have a little writing group?’” says Hardie. The group had close to 120 writing sessions before COVID hit. 

“She really, really loved that writing group and adored it,” says Hardie. “It was something she looked forward to every month.” 

Norma also published three historical books: one about local cemeteries, one featuring her father-in-law Harold’s medical journals and one entitled, ‘La Pêche: A History of the Townships of Wakefield and Masham in the Province of Quebec.’

Her volunteer efforts were recognized by Canada as she was awarded the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers in 2012 and the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in 2013.

Her crafting friend Feraud-Lewis  described Norma in just four words: “pragmatic, courageous, generous, curious.” 

Norma often told her friends and family that she never wanted to live to 100, saying that “people are living too long,” and that living to 100 usually meant “losing your capacity.”

Norma died five days before turning 100.

Community pillar’s legacy felt across globe Read More »

By-election replaces councillor who spent summer in Bahamas

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Kazabazua has a new municipal councillor after its previous one spent too much time in the Bahamas. 

The municipality held a by-election this past Sunday to replace two-term councillor Craig Gabie, who missed too many council meetings because he was on a research assignment in the Bahamas for several months this summer, according to municipal minutes. Gabie had not been at a meeting since February.

Sunday’s election saw the up-the-line municipality elect Brandy Killeen as the new councillor, who beat out several other candidates, including Gabie’s wife, Kelly Connolly. According to Elections Quebec, Killeen won 34.44 per cent of the vote, with an 18.83 per cent voter turnout. 

According to the Act Respecting Elections and Referendums in Municipalities In Quebec, municipal councillors can only miss up to 90 days, or their term automatically ends. Gabie told the Low Down that he missed six meetings while he was working at a research institute focused on sustainability and eco responsibility. 

The work was not part of his councillor role. Gabie told the Low Down earlier this summer that he had planned to attend July’s meeting, but his flights were changed and delayed. He said that, although he was away for such an extended period, he still kept tabs on municipal politics.

“Yes, I have stayed in touch with Kazabazua affairs,” Gabie said. “Our home is Kazabazua, and we are in continuous contact with family, friends and council members.”

Kazabazua Mayor Robert Bergeron said that council agreed to pass a motion this summer to grant Gabie more time to be away so that he could continue his research work and still act as a councillor, but the Commission municipale du Québec (CMQ) ruled that Gabie’s absence was “unjustified” and his term was officially terminated. 

Gabie told the Low Down Oct. 15 that he suggested to council in February that he resign from his seat, as he didn’t know how long his Bahamas work contract would last and wasn’t sure how engaged he could be. But he said he was told that Kaz was legally allowed to grant him extensions, and that he did not need to step down. He tried to join meetings via Zoom, but was told that was not possible. 

Gabie said that, although he is no longer a councillor, he will continue to do everything he can to make Kazabazua a better place to live.

“My dedication to this community is not as a councillor, it is as a community member, as a dad, a son, a brother, an uncle, a friend and a neighbour,” Gabie told the Low Down. “I am a proud member of the Kaz community, and my dedication to it is so that my kids don’t have to leave our community to find better opportunities in life; so that they can have all of those things right here in Kaz.”

Coun. Killeen did not respond to an interview request from the Low Down by press time. 

By-election replaces councillor who spent summer in Bahamas Read More »

Indigenous author brings world-building sequel to Wakefield

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

Waubgeshig Rice never thought he would find himself exploring abandoned motels, empty roadside stores and deserted homes along Hwy 69 between Sudbury and Parry Sound. But that’s where much of his visual research took him when he was building the decaying world of his new book, ‘Moon of the Turning Leaves.’

The Indigenous author, journalist and storyteller travelled along that highway because he wanted to understand just how buildings age – how the wood rots and swells, how a once-solid roof could collapse from years of neglect and just how quickly vegetation and nature can take over a space that was once buzzing with life and activity. He said he didn’t have to travel far to find that inspiration. 

“With ‘Moon of the Turning Leaves’, it’s farther into the future – it takes place 12 years after the blackout that ends the world,” Rice said, describing the sequel to his first book, ‘Moon of the Crusted Snow.’ “So, you know, with the passage of time, there’s been deterioration. I had to do a bit of research in terms of how buildings decay after abandonment. How do communities decay after there are no people living there anymore? There are a lot of examples around where I live of that because Hwy 69 has changed.”

Rice told the Low Down that the world-building aspects of both his books – ‘Moon of the Crusted Snow’ and now the sequel – were the most fun to write, as he was able to creatively build parts of a new world by using real-life experiences to fill in those unknown gaps. 

“It was a fun sort of writing practice because, when you’re imagining the future, it’s all speculation, but there are, like, real life, current examples that you can draw from.”

Rice’s sequel picks up a decade after his first novel, where a global power outage has caused chaos and disorder. While it has been described as a post-apocalyptic journey, Rice, himself, calls it more of a “post-urban or post-technological or post-industrial” story – one of resilience, survival and heartbreak. He said he feels that we’ve already been through an apocalypse. 

“As is discussed in the books themselves, and more widely among Indigenous authors, is this experience of already having survived [the] apocalypse as Indigenous people,” said Rice. “It’s already our lived experience, having been displaced from our homelands and having been brutalized by the state and so on. And then I think when the pandemic happened, it just…solidified some of those themes for me.”

Rice will be exploring these themes and other issues on Oct. 16 alongside debut author Kai Thomas at this year’s Wakefield Writers Fête. The two Canadian authors are kicking off the 10th anniversary of the festival with ‘Stories of Resilience’ in what promises to be a thoughtful, provocative evening of words. 

Thomas’ debut novel ‘In the Upper Country’ explores slavery in Canada and gives a fresh perspective on the Underground Railroad. 

Both authors will join host Adrian Harewood onstage for an evening of discussion at the Wakefield community centre beginning at 7 p.m. For tickets, visit www.writersfete.com 

Indigenous author brings world-building sequel to Wakefield Read More »

Chase the Ace deals Low arena $500K

Local Journalism Initiative / /

By Trevor Greenway

To say that the Chase the Ace fundraiser was a success for the Low arena would be a massive understatement. 

The arena made a whopping near half million dollars – $484,000 to be exact – through CHGA 97.3 FM’s community fundraiser, which saw Ottawa resident Tony Snow win a life-changing $3.8 million. The fundraiser also fed money to several up-the-line organizations, including the Low Heritage Hall, Be and Become youth centre and the Gatineau Valley Retirement Village. 

While the Gatineau Valley Arena doesn’t have a full tally on how many tickets they sold, volunteer Scott Mahoney said it was “far and away the most sold by any of the charities involved.”

“It just took off,” said arena coordinator Mahoney, referring to the wave of ticket sales that picked up after the first few weeks of the contest. 

He praised community members like Lisa Brown and Lisa Fleury, who were getting requests to buy tickets through e-transfers from dozens of locals. 

“It’s mostly about the people; the community. If you don’t have the people buying tickets, you’re dead in the water. People were buying tickets from Buckingham right to Gatineau and Ottawa.”

People were certainly buying tickets. When the Low Down was driving through Gracefield in mid-September, the town’s Ultramar gas station was a hub of activity, with locals and tourists frantically filling out scores of entry forms. 

The radio station drew tickets weekly, and if someone’s name was drawn, they would win the weekly prize – sometimes upwards of $200,000 – and also a chance to pull the ace of spades from a series of envelopes. 

The contest got more and more popular as the weeks went on, as the pot kept getting bigger and bigger after weekly draw winners consistently failed to pull the ace of spades from one of the envelopes, until there was just one single envelope left. That meant whoever’s name was drawn would be the grand-prize winner of $3.8 million – in this case it was Ottawa’s Snow, who purchased his ticket at the Low arena. 

According to Mahoney, the arena has used the money on some much-needed repairs, including an entire kitchen renovation, extensive work on the ice plant and an upgraded second-hand Zamboni, which means no more holes in the ice during Paugan Falls Rapids playoff games. 

“We put money into every aspect you could think of,” said Mahoney, adding that the rink’s doors and windows have also been upgraded. “The kitchen has been transformed.”

Cash comes Rapid-ly 

The money comes at the perfect time as the Rapids are set to open their season in the Eastern Ontario Super Hockey League at home on Oct. 5 when they host their rivals, the Arnprior Rivermen. 

Doors open at 5 p.m. and TSN’s sports reporter AJ Jakubec will host a ceremonial puck drop at 7 p.m. Get your tickets at www.pauganfallsrapids.com 

Chase the Ace deals Low arena $500K Read More »

Ditch the second car, Communauto is here

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , ,

BY:TREVOR GREENWAY

After close to four years of planning and negotiating, Chelsea and La Pêche residents will have a new option to get around the Hills.

And they won’t even have to pay for gas. 

The Outaouais’ regional counsel on the environment and sustainable development, CREDDO, has partnered with both municipalities to bring a fleet of 16 Communauto hybrid cars to the region. Twelve of them will be stationed in Chelsea, with the remaining four spread out throughout La Pêche. 

It’s an initiative that CREDDO president Benoit Delage said he hopes will change residents’ car-centric habits. 

“If we want to build a centre village, we can’t have a sea of parking,” said Delage, referring to Chelsea. 

He explained that the project is in collaboration with four Chelsea developers: Cargo, Multivesco, DACM Investments Inc. and In Harmony Developments, which will host the cars in their parking lots for the public to use. 

With the developers on board, Chelsea changed its urban planning bylaw to bring the minimum number of parking spots per unit for new developments from two, to just one. In the process, it has eliminated several “heat islands” that would have been spread out over Chelsea’s centre village, explained Delage. A heat island is an urban area that experiences hotter than average temperatures than outlying areas due to infrastructure.

Benoit said that the municipality will have 150 fewer parking spots in the village because of the project.

“Can you imagine what the difference will be for what will be our centre village without that parking?” asked Delage. “It’s more trees, it’s more space for people.”

According to CREDDO, 79 per cent of greenhouse gasses in places like Chelsea and La Pêche come from transportation, and the organization said it is confident the addition of 16 community hybrid cars will bring that number down. The organization said it also hopes that the car-sharing initiative will entice residents to ditch their second family car, which will create less impact on the environment and help residents save money. 

“It costs residents $12,000 per year to own a car,” said Delage, referring to maintenance costs, insurance, gas and other repairs. With Communauto, residents can sign up for a number of various membership packages from as low $0 per month and $12.75 per hour, or up to $30 per month, which will allow residents to use the cars for just $2.75 per hour. And users won’t have to pay for gas. The packages are built to cover the cost of gas through membership fees. Each car will have a Communauto credit card for users to fill up when they need to. But all the cars are hybrid – 12 Prius’ and two RAV4 SUVs. 

Chelsea Mayor Pierre Guénard said the project presents a “decisive turning point for our municipality.”

“This project is perfectly in line with our environmental values, offering Chelsea residents a transportation solution that complements active mobility and Transcollines services,” said Guénard. “Through this initiative, we are creating a more integrated transportation network, helping to reduce our carbon footprint.”

The project relied on $500,000 worth of funding from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ green fund, with Chelsea chipping in $75,000 and La Pêche contributing another $25,000. The four developers also chipped in a total of $300,000, according to CREDDO. 

The vehicles will be available in November and will be parked at the four developments above, as well as at town hall in Chelsea. Two cars will be located somewhere in Masham, and CREDDO said it hopes to station two more in Wakefield. 

Residents can take advantage of $45 off of certain membership packages using the promo code:  HORIZONS online at: www.communauto.com

Ditch the second car, Communauto is here Read More »

Pencil pusher turned designer making mark in Chelsea

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

By Trevor Greenway
editor@lowdownonline.com

At the height of her career in governance policies, Kate Wightman kept asking herself what she wanted to be when she grew up. 

The Chelsea-based interior designer had been at the helm of governance and administration at CBC, working long hours, travelling frequently and grinding away at her busy government job, when she realized that “something’s got to give.”

“I’ve always kind of wondered, ‘What do I want to do when I grow up?’” said Wightman, who was enduring a difficult divorce, navigating a teenager through COVID and travelling “constantly” for her job.

“I left the government, drove seven-and-a-half hours to Timmons, Ont., bought a vintage camper trailer, hauled it home and spent two months with my dad gutting it and renovating it and ran it as a pop-up shop in Chelsea,” she explained.

The pop-up shop was the gateway to her new career as an interior designer, as she was curating vintage products, showcasing local artisans and helping customers with home design. This is when she was approached by a customer to redesign an Airbnb rental, and she immediately jumped at the opportunity. 

“It was a blast,” said Wightman. “I loved just having a bit more time to chit chat with people being in a creative realm, as opposed to, you know, the hectic job that I had in government.”

That was nearly three years ago, and now business at her Kiosk Route 105 shop is ringing off the hook. 

“I do absolutely no advertising – it’s all word of mouth and repeat clients,” added Wightman. “[Our firm] always got a list of a half dozen projects on the go at any given time and leads in the pipeline. And we just keep ourselves as busy as we kind of want to be.”

Wightman, who was clear that she’s not an accredited interior designer, said that her lack of accreditation actually works in her and her clients’ favour, as she is about “half the price.”. But even more than this, Wightman’s entire philosophy around design is using what’s already there and discouraging her clients to buy a new couch or dresser when it’s not necessary. 

Wightman said she believes that most homeowners have great things – mementos, collectables, antiques – but don’t know how to showcase them well or arrange them in a way that provides flow. She said the most common design flaw she sees in Hills homes is “a lack of intention.”

“When you move into a home, you’re bringing your existing stuff, and then you’re trying to put that wherever it fits in the home,” said Wightman. “And then you go, ‘Okay, I need a new couch to fit this space.’ You’ll go and find the couch to fit the space, but you’re not looking at the picture as a whole. You’re not saying, ‘What do I already have that could do this? How can we rejig it to work with other items in your home?’”

Wightman spoke a lot about the difference between a house and a home, and said that, while both are “form and function,” a home takes on a more emotional and personal feeling than just having a roof over your head. She said residents should feel their shoulders drop in relief when they arrive home, and the space should be a “refuge” from their busy lives. 

“I think ambiance is hugely important in a home, so things like lighting, flow of your furniture, plants and making sure that your home includes your own personality,” she said. “Where we work our magic really is working with what is already existing. We can keep projects to a really low budget because we can either revamp, reuse or repurpose existing items to improve flow and improve the aesthetics of someone’s home.”

Wightman’s Kiosk offers styling and staging services, custom decor solutions and full home renovations. 

The switch in careers has done more than light the creative fire in her soul, she said, it has allowed her to be a mom again. 

“I’m at a point now where I can pick and choose the job and the clients that interest me, and I have time for my family…,” said Wightman. “I have time for a new relationship. I can get back into cooking and baking and all that kind of stuff.”Prospective clients can meet with Wightman by appointment through her www.spacesbykiosk.com website, or you can visit her pop-up shop near Bougie Doozy Candle on Old Chelsea Road.

Pencil pusher turned designer making mark in Chelsea Read More »

If you build it, they will come

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

‘Field of Dreams’ may not be Tyler Langfield’s favourite movie, but he certainly believes in the “If you build it, they will come” mantra. 

On hot summer days, Langfield and his wife Stephanie Seddon’s Chelsea backyard is full of neighbourhood kids. 

They’re not watching Netflix; they’re not on their phones; they’re not scrolling on social media. They’re skateboarding. 

“When we have the kids over here…it’s a cool vibe,” said Langfield, standing on a half-pipe skateboarding ramp that he built himself during COVID. “Our neighbours come over; there’s a couple of boys next door, and they come over. They use it, but it gets everyone together, chilling.”

Langfield is a skateboarder himself and grew up, like other skaters, skating at places where he wasn’t supposed to be: city parks, courthouse staircases and any place where there would be a good “gap” to clear or a rail to grind. This was until cities and towns started building skateparks, like Wakefield did in 2013. 

Langfield could always be found at a local skatepark somewhere until COVID hit in 2019. During the pandemic, he wasn’t allowed to skate anywhere publicly. Impatient for government restrictions to ease, he brought the skatepark to the community. 

“At the time, my kids were pretty young, but I wanted to get them into skating,” said Langfield. “Literally, the minute [the pandemic] happened, I planned on doing this, and I reached out to a company in Montreal who manufactures the top sheet.” 

That “top sheet” he referred to is called Pure Surface, which is 27 layers of kraft paper laminated and glued together to create a smooth, gripping surface that is durable. And while it’s not cheap  – $210 per sheet – seeing his kids and neighbourhood friends rock a kickflip is all worth it, according to Langfield. 

“They spend a lot of time out here,” added Seddon. “Especially right now, with the beautiful weather, it’s amazing. Our eldest loves it, and it gets our youngest out here to try a bit harder.”

Langfield is aware that not everyone can build a $12,000 skatepark in their backyard, but if you ask Chelsea resident Brad Stewart, who has been dubbed “the king of freecycle,” you don’t have to break the bank to convert your backyard into a summer paradise. 

Stewart said he was paying attention to the Steamwhistle acquisition of Beau’s in 2022 and realized that the new owners were scrapping the yearly, epic Oktoberfest, and with it, their big skateboarding demonstration. He reached out and scored the half-pipe for just $800. 

“They were looking at burning it all,” said Stewart about a pile of wood and ramps that he will soon piece together for his own backyard skateboard halfpipe. The skateboard half-pipe is just one feature of Stewart’s impressive backyard that boasts a large above-ground pool, hot tub, trapeze line and trampoline – most of which he either scored for free or heavily discounted on Facebook Marketplace. 

Stewart’s pool – 29 feet by 15 feet – was scooped for free after a neighbour was looking to get rid of it before they sold their house. All he needed to do was disassemble it himself, move it to his house and reassemble it. He spent $400 on a new liner and a few hundred on chemicals to get it up and running. 

“It was an older pool, so it needed some TLC,” said Stewart, explaining that wooden pools of this size can cost between $10,000 and $20,000. 

When winter rolls around, Stewart’s pool acts as a polar dip for the kids going back and forth into a hot tub. 

Similarly, in winter Langfield converts his front porch into a snowboard run, and his backyard is just as busy when the snow hits. 

The hot tub was another major score for Stewart, who scooped it off Facebook Marketplace for just $600. Again, all he had to do was move it. 

Stewart offered up some tips for residents buying off Facebook Marketplace. 

“Know what you want and make sure that you jump on stuff early,” said Stewart. “And don’t be paranoid,” he explained, noting that sometimes buyers are weary of scammers.  Stewart also urged those looking for deals to set up Facebook Marketplace alerts so that they can be first to show interest in a product. And, he added, if you know it’s a good deal, “don’t haggle” for a lower price. 

“No matter what good deal you give people, they still will ask for $100 bucks off and that’s not cool,” he said. “Because you could have been selling it for $2,000.”

Stewart also recommended getting to know local repair people, as discounted items often need a piece here or an extra part there, and knowing who can fix things locally will save a lot of time and money. 

If you build it, they will come Read More »

Chase the Ace deals Low arena $500K

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

To say that the Chase the Ace fundraiser was a success for the Low arena would be a massive understatement. 

The arena made a whopping near half million dollars – $484,000 to be exact – through CHGA 97.3 FM’s community fundraiser, which saw Ottawa resident Tony Snow win a life-changing $3.8 million. The fundraiser also fed money to several up-the-line organizations, including the Low Heritage Hall, Be and Become youth centre and the Gatineau Valley Retirement Village. 

While the Gatineau Valley Arena doesn’t have a full tally on how many tickets they sold, volunteer Scott Mahoney said it was “far and away the most sold by any of the charities involved.”

“It just took off,” said arena coordinator Mahoney, referring to the wave of ticket sales that picked up after the first few weeks of the contest. He praised community members like Lisa Brown and Lisa Fleury, who were getting requests to buy tickets through e-transfers from dozens of locals. “It’s mostly about the people; the community. If you don’t have the people buying tickets, you’re dead in the water. People were buying tickets from Buckingham right to Gatineau and Ottawa.”

People were certainly buying tickets. When the Low Down was driving through Gracefield in mid-September, the town’s Ultramar gas station was a hubbub of activity, with locals and tourists frantically filling out scores of entry forms. 

The radio station drew tickets weekly, and if someone’s name was drawn, they would win the weekly prize – sometimes upwards of $200,000 – and also a chance to pull the ace of spades from a series of envelopes. The contest got more and more popular as the weeks went on, as the pot kept getting bigger and bigger after weekly draw winners consistently failed to pull the ace of spades from one of the envelopes, until there was just one single envelope left. That meant whoever’s name was drawn would be the grand-prize winner of $3.8 million – in this case it was Ottawa’s Snow, who purchased his ticket at the Low arena. 

According to Mahoney, the arena has used the money on some much-needed repairs, including an entire kitchen renovation, extensive work on the ice plant and an upgraded second-hand Zamboni, which means no more holes in the ice during Paugan Falls Rapids playoff games. 

“We put money into every aspect you could think of,” said Mahoney, adding that the rink’s doors and windows have also been upgraded. “The kitchen has been transformed.”

Cash comes Rapid-ly (Subhed)

The money comes at the perfect time as the Rapids are set to open their season in the Eastern Ontario Super Hockey League at home on Oct. 5 when they host their rivals, the Arnprior Rivermen. Doors open at 5 p.m. and TSN’s sports reporter AJ Jakubec will host a ceremonial puck drop at 7 p.m. Get your tickets at www.pauganfallsrapids.com 

Chase the Ace deals Low arena $500K Read More »

Ditch the second car, Communauto is here

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , , , ,

By Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

After close to four years of planning and negotiating, Chelsea and La Pêche residents will have a new option to get around the Hills.

And they won’t even have to pay for gas. 

The Outaouais’ regional counsel on the environment and sustainable development, CREDDO, has partnered with both municipalities to bring a fleet of 16 Communauto hybrid cars to the region. Twelve of them will be stationed in Chelsea, with the remaining four spread out throughout La Pêche. 

It’s an initiative that CREDDO president Benoit Delage said he hopes will change residents’ car-centric habits. 

“If we want to build a centre village, we can’t have a sea of parking,” said Delage, referring to Chelsea. 

He explained that the project is in collaboration with four Chelsea developers: Cargo, Multivesco, DACM Investments Inc. and In Harmony Developments, which will host the cars in their parking lots for the public to use. 

With the developers on board, Chelsea changed its urban planning bylaw to bring the minimum number of parking spots per unit for new developments from two, to just one. In the process, it has eliminated several “heat islands” that would have been spread out over Chelsea’s centre village, explained Delage. A heat island is an urban area that experiences hotter than average temperatures than outlying areas due to infrastructure.

Benoit said that the municipality will have 150 fewer parking spots in the village because of the project.

“Can you imagine what the difference will be for what will be our centre village without that parking?” asked Delage. “It’s more trees, it’s more space for people.”

According to CREDDO, 79 per cent of greenhouse gasses in places like Chelsea and La Pêche come from transportation, and the organization said it is confident the addition of 16 community hybrid cars will bring that number down. The organization said it also hopes that the car-sharing initiative will entice residents to ditch their second family car, which will create less impact on the environment and help residents save money. 

“It costs residents $12,000 per year to own a car,” said Delage, referring to maintenance costs, insurance, gas and other repairs. With Communauto, residents can sign up for a number of various membership packages from as low $0 per month and $12.75 per hour, or up to $30 per month, which will allow residents to use the cars for just $2.75 per hour. And users won’t have to pay for gas. The packages are built to cover the cost of gas through membership fees. Each car will have a Communauto credit card for users to fill up when they need to. But all the cars are hybrid – 12 Prius’ and two RAV4 SUVs. 

Chelsea Mayor Pierre Guénard said the project presents a “decisive turning point for our municipality.”

“This project is perfectly in line with our environmental values, offering Chelsea residents a transportation solution that complements active mobility and Transcollines services,” said Guénard. “Through this initiative, we are creating a more integrated transportation network, helping to reduce our carbon footprint.”

The project relied on $500,000 worth of funding from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ green fund, with Chelsea chipping in $75,000 and La Pêche contributing another $25,000. The four developers also chipped in a total of $300,000, according to CREDDO. 

The vehicles will be available in November and will be parked at the four developments above, as well as at town hall in Chelsea. Two cars will be located somewhere in Masham, and CREDDO said it hopes to station two more in Wakefield. 

Residents can take advantage of $45 off of certain membership packages using the promo code:  HORIZONS online at: www.communauto.com

Ditch the second car, Communauto is here Read More »

Wakefield’s Hamilton Gardens back after 13-year hiatus

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

Local Journalism Initiative

It’s been 13 years since Wakefielders first got up in arms over the design of Hamilton Gardens’ three-storey condo design. 

After more than a decade of back-and-forth proposals and a controversial move by Devcore president Jean Pierre Poulin to block parking for locals on Riverside Drive after opposition to his original 2011 plan, the development is back on track. 

The new Hamilton Gardens features a total of 40 units, mixed within duplexes, triplexes and townhomes, which will offer two-to-three bedroom homes for locals in a community setting. 

“The development has a real community look and feel that’s well integrated into the village and respects its surroundings,” said Devcore project manager Daniel Landry. 

The designs are a far cry from the original towering condos that would have changed the feel of the village. These homes will be built in a traditional style, with peaked roofs, large dormer windows and big covered porches where residents can sit and interact with village life. 

The development will also include a local park for residents, common courtyard, and walking trails that aim to encourage residents to transform their neighbourhood into a walkable community. 

“We are creating spaces for people to meet and to walk. The place where it’s located, it’s so easy to just leave your car at home. If you want to go to the community centre or the post office, you don’t have to take your car,” added Landry. “And with the river, it’s so nice, even in the winter. It’s like cottage life inside of a village.”

Landry said the design approach is based on a “missing middle” design – developments that contain a higher density than a single-family house but a lower density than a mid-rise building. 

The homes in the front of the development are lower-density, two-unit buildings that look like regular Wakefield-style homes, while three-bedroom townhouses will take up the centre of the development. Three triplexes of six units each will appear at the back and west side of the lot, however Landry said the configuration could still change slightly. 

Each home will also come with a detached basement for active residents looking to store bikes, tires or other belongings, and they won’t have to travel through their homes to get there. Basement access will be separate from the interiors. 

“Let’s say you have a paddleboard, your skis, your bikes… you go directly in the basement,” added Landry. “Residents can create what we call, sometimes, like a mud room down there.”

Landry said the designs are based similarly on 1950s-style homes that had large porches at the front. The large front porches in the design will be slightly elevated to give residents a peek into what’s happening in the village, but also some much needed privacy. 

“It gives the appropriate height – people sitting there will be able to interact with people walking, but they’re higher, so people won’t see into the house,” said Landry. “But when you’re in your living room, you’ll be able to see what’s going on out front.”

The homes will be clad in a mix of red brick, wood and high density wood fibre like Maibec or other composite materials. They will have tin roofs, and every unit will be its own unique colour; earth tone reds, greens, yellows and greys. 

“What I like is that they all have different colours, so it’s easy to say, if you’re a kid, ‘I live in the yellow house there,’ or ‘I live in the green one.’”

Devcore hasn’t fully finished the specs and couldn’t say what the square footage of each unit will be or what the footprint of the buildings will be.

Landry said there are a few things still to be approved by the municipality, but Devcore hopes to break ground on this project next spring. Prices for the homes have not been finalized, and Landry said Devcore plans to host a public presentation on the development next spring. 

Wakefield’s Hamilton Gardens back after 13-year hiatus Read More »

School board elections integral for parents

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , , ,

By Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

If ever there was a time to become involved in your child’s education, it’s now. 

With the Western Quebec School Board (WQSB) elections coming in just over a month, English rights advocacy groups in the province are calling on parents to run for a position and show the government how important it is to keep control of their own school board. 

Bill 40 was passed in the National Assembly in 2020 and with it came abolishment of French school boards, which were converted into school service centres. While the CAQ government tried to extend the bill to English school boards in the province, a superior court ruled last year that major elements of Bill 40, an act that amends the Education Act concerning school organization and governance, are unconstitutional.

Quebec Premier François Legault has vowed to appeal the decision, making this year’s school board election more important than ever. 

“Oh, my God, it’s so important,” said Quebec Community Groups Network director-general Sylvia Martin-Laforge. “Parents have to get involved, not only for the education of their children but also because the English school board system is an institution of the English-speaking community, and we have to show the government of Quebec that we – as parents, as grandparents, as community members – value that the governance of our school boards remains in the hands of committed, English-speaking, community individuals.”

Martin-Laforge said that keeping control of English education will mean that school board commissioners will not only fight to keep control but also fight to preserve and protect the “uniqueness” of English education in Quebec. She said those who run for school board commissioner roles will have more influence on curriculums, budgets and other important aspects of education. 

“The parents are the direct line, for sure, and have to keep school board officials on their toes to really reflect what is needed in an English-speaking public system,” said Martin-Laforge. She also noted that, while Bill 40 targets public education, parents also need to keep tabs on postsecondary policies, as legislation, such as Bill 96, now Law 14, adds extra French courses to students’ course loads at English CEGEPS. 

“Remain politically active in the English-speaking community,” she said. “It’s about the governance of our institutions. It’s about interference in government and how we want our children to be treated throughout the continuum of education.”

What does a school board commissioner do?

The WQSB director-general George Singfield was quick to point out the difference between the school board’s council of commissioners and a governing board member. The governing board is made up of an equal number of parents and staff members, while councils of commissioners are voted in through an election. School board commissioners do not have to be parents to run in the election. 

Singfield said commissioners control everything from budgets and curriculums to school expansion and other financial projects. 

“We just adopted the budget for our board, but it has to be approved by the council of commissioners,” said Singfield. “They adopt the budget, they approve curricular approaches as presented by the principal, activities and all kinds of pieces that involve programming. So there are many examples of what we do, but really their role is governance.”

The WQSB has 11 electoral districts, with a commissioner at the helm of each one. Singfield said commissioners meet at least once a month, depending on whether or not a commissioner also sits on a committee, which includes transportation, human resources and other committees. 

“You’re looking at a few hours a month,” added Singfield. “If you’re a commissioner and you sit on a committee then it could be up to 10 hours a month.”

This year’s election for commissioners happens on Nov. 3, although candidacy papers are due by Sept. 29. 

How to apply? To be a school board commissioner, you must be on the Anglophone Electoral List. All eligible parents with children currently enrolled in a WQSB school are automatically registered. If your child is not currently enrolled in school, you’re still eligible to run as long as you reside within the WQSB catchment area. To register on the electoral list, visit www.westernquebec.ca and complete the Notice to the Anglophone School Board form and send it to rvincent@wqsb.qc.ca

School board elections integral for parents Read More »

Doctor shortage impact felt locally

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

By Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

Bruce Langer is 75 years old. 

He’s suffered two heart attacks and does not have a family doctor in Quebec. 

“Dr. Sarah Olive at the University of Ottawa medical clinic was my doctor for over 20 years, so she had a lot of history with me,” said Langer, sitting in a garden in front of the St. Stephen’s Church in Chelsea. “In that 20-year span, I’ve had two heart attacks and two stent procedures. And so she was my family doctor and connected me to a lot of Ontario specialists…for follow up.”

Langer was told three years ago that the clinic would no longer be taking patients from across the river, unless they were university alumni or current students. With no family doctor, Langer now relies on the health ministry’s Primary Care Access Point, or GAP, and while he said he doesn’t have issues booking an appointment, he’s completely lost his patient-to-doctor relationship. 

No follow-ups with the same doctor and nobody following his medical history. Every time he goes to see a new doctor, he said he has to retell his entire medical story. 

“You definitely don’t get any of the kind of follow-up that you would with a consistent doctor or family doctor care,” said Langer. “They’re so overwhelmed with not being able to see you on a regular basis because there’s not enough doctors that they can’t maintain that consistency that you would normally have with the family doctor.”

According to the CISSS de l’Outaouais (CISSSO), there are currently 75,326 people in the Outaouais without a family doctor and 7,073 in the MRC des Collines region. 

That number is set to rise by several hundred next year as Wakefield MD Dr. Jacques Ménard announced last week that he will be retiring from the Wakefield Family Medical Clinic next June. 

Ménard will be the third Wakefield doctor to leave the clinic in the past two years, as the clinic lost both Dr. Folkerson and Dr. Sattenstein this past summer. The two village doctors left behind close to 1,500 local patients. 

To help ease this crunch, the Regional Department of General Medicine (DRMG) has created a new “gateway” for the GAP and keeps more than 62,000 open appointments per year for “orphan patients requiring a medical visit.”

Wakefield didn’t lose techs

The Outaouais was facing a major crisis this summer after several imaging technicians left the Hull and Gatineau hospitals for Ontario, where they could earn $30,000 more in salary. To combat this, the CISSSO added bonuses for medical techs to stay in the region. 

While the first round of funding was not equal among rural hospitals, the ministry eventually increased the bonuses to $22,000 for those working in Shawville, Maniwaki and Wakefield. CISSSO spokesperson Patricia Rhéaume told the Low Down that the Wakefield Hospital did not lose any medical technicians. 

“The three technician positions are filled at Wakefield [hospital]. 

No movement of this staff to other hospitals in the territory is currently planned,” said Rhéaume, adding that the health authority took a number of measures to avoid a major crisis this summer – one that Gatineau MD Dr. Peter Bonneville warned would end in more deaths. 

“In those sectors with greater challenges, for instance the operating room and the imaging department, action plans were applied to ensure continuity of care and avoid interruption in services,” added Rhéaume. “We are continuously working on ensuring the right patient is at the right place at the right time. Examples of this are the efforts made to re-orient patients presenting to the [emergency department] not needing emergency care and daily reevaluation of alternatives to hospitalizations for patients in need of care.”

Quebec patients ‘uninsured’

More and more Ontario clinics are saying no to Quebec patients – or doubling the rates for their out-of-province patients. Wakefield resident Andrea Rowe told the Low Down that her Ottawa doctor recently sent a letter stating that she – and other Quebec patients – are considered “uninsured.” The letter came with a list of updated fees that Rowe said are double what she used to pay. 

“They don’t consider us covered at all, even though we’re covered by Quebec,” said Rowe. 

She said she used to pay $50 for an appointment and Quebec would pay $40 of it. But now, with the fee increase – $102 for a short appointment or $232 for a long appointment – Rowe said she worries that she will still only get the $40 reimbursed and going to see her doctor of over 15 years will cost her greatly. 

“It’s such a big increase; it’s huge,” she said. “So, it’s gonna be over $60 that I have to pay just for a 10-minute visit.”

Other fees from the Ontario clinic include $30 for a referral note, $25 for a sick note and $225 for a driver’s medical examination and form. 

Doctor shortage impact felt locally Read More »

Affordable housing project canned in Masham

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

Local Journalism Initiative

A multi-unit housing project that could have provided affordable housing to some Masham residents has been quashed by La Pêche council after community members pushed back against the small development. 

According to La Pêche Mayor Guillaume Lamoureux, 30 Masham residents signed a petition against a four-unit housing development project in the Chemin Labelle neighbourhood earlier this month, with at least one of them admitting that their opposition was based on the Not in My Backyard (NIMBY) approach. 

“That is something I heard during the information session,” Lamoureux told the Low Down. “The person was saying, ‘Yes, this is an example of me, in a sort of NIMBY posture’ and then they would explain the context for their decision.”

Lamoureux said about 15 people showed up to a public consultation in early September to oppose the plan. 

Council started exploring the idea of multi-unit housing earlier this summer, after it approved a similar development on Caves Road in Wakefield – a four-unit multiplex. However, when La Pêche launched a registry for a potential referendum on the Masham development, only one person signed it. 

Because the registry was initiated in mid summer, council said it felt that many residents either missed the date because of holidays or didn’t fully understand the process for a referendum. Lamoureux admitted there was some “miscommunication” between council and the public, and that’s why they decided to host another public consultation on the issue. 

When 15 people showed up to fight the plan, council decided to kill it. Lamoureux told the Low Down he was “disappointed” that the project won’t go through. 

“We need to diversify our housing,” said Lamoureux. 

“We want to promote this kind of project throughout La Pêche, especially in urban perimeters, because of how uniform housing units are in rural communities like ours. We need to do our best to increase the number of rental properties in our municipalities.”

Region’s housing crisis in numbers

According to regional housing roundtable La Table de développement social des Collines-de-l’Outaouais (TDSCO), 15 per cent of MRC households spend more than 30 per cent of their income on housing. 

The 30 per cent income-to-housing ratio is the threshold used by the Canadian Housing and Mortgage Company (CMHC) to consider a home as “affordable.” 

The TDSCO’s 2021 data shows a major divide between homeowners and those who rent in the region. According to the report, 31.6 per cent of renters in the MRC des Collines spend more than 30 per cent of their income on rent, while just 13 per cent of those who own their homes spend as much on their mortgages. Of the 835 residents surveyed, most identified a lack of housing diversity, a lack of affordable housing and housing conditions as the top three issues facing the region. 

Lamoureux said he hopes to revisit the project in the near future. 

Affordable housing project canned in Masham Read More »

Cops investigating threat at PWHS

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

By Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

Gatineau Police are investigating threatening communications that were sent to Philemon Wright High School on Sept. 16. 

The alleged threat did not trigger a lockdown or an evacuation, and police said the school was secured by mid-morning. 

“There’s an increased presence of our police officers in that sector, and we work in collaboration with the school personnel in order to offer the school population a safe environment,” said Gatineau Police communications officer Patrick Kenney. 

Police would not disclose the nature of the threat and wouldn’t discuss whether or not it was targeted to an individual or the student body as a whole. 

The school sent out an alert to parents at 11:34 a.m. on Sept. 16 with a vague message about a “potential threat.”

“I am emailing you to let you know that we received information about a potential threat through social media,” wrote Principal Dodie Payne in the email. “We take all threats seriously. We have called the police, and they have investigated. At this point, everything is under control. The police will continue to work with us through the investigation.”Kenney said police “probably know” who sent the threat, but they are continuing to investigate further.

Cops investigating threat at PWHS Read More »

MNAs quash eligibility requirement for anglos

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

Despite a unanimous vote in the National Assembly affirming that English-speaking Quebecers will not need an eligibility requirement to receive healthcare in their mother tongue, Liberal health critic André Fortin still has concerns that the CAQ government will continue to erode English health rights. 

The MNA for Pontiac put forward the motion on Sept. 12, and while he was happy it was adopted unanimously, he said he didn’t trust that the province’s French Language Minister Jean-François Roberge will actually adhere to it.

“I don’t trust the guy as far as I can throw them, so we really don’t know how the government will react,” Fortin told the Low Down. “They’ve got a pretty poor track record when it comes to protecting English-speaking Quebecers’ rights, and in this case it is a clear case of protecting or ensuring that rights are respected when accessing healthcare in English,” he added. 

“This is a very direct motion, a very clear motion that was voted on unanimously, but the minister still has to do his job and apply the will of the National Assembly,” said Fortin.

Fortin’s motion stems from outcry from the anglophone community after the province’s health ministry unveiled a directive on July 18 outlining when English could be used in health and social service departments. The directive also states that only “recognized anglophones” – defined as English speakers who are eligible to send their children to English school – are permitted to communicate in English. 

Quebec’s Minister of the French Language Jean-François Roberge pledged in August to rewrite the directive. However, until he does, the original directive will remain in force. 

Eva Ludvig, president of the English rights advocacy group, the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), is now calling on the province’s Health Minister Christian Dubé to provide clarity to anglophones in the province. 

“It is now time for Minister Roberge and Health Minister Christian Dubé to either scale back or eliminate these directives altogether, or, at the very least, suspend the existing measures until a full and far-reaching consultation can be held with representatives of the English-speaking community of Quebec prior to their redrafting and reintroduction,” Ludvig added.

While the QCGN said it still has concerns about the directive in force, she said the unanimous motion by the National Assembly speaks volumes. 

“This is a significant step,” said Ludvig. “It may have little force in law, and I’m told the minister could theoretically choose to largely ignore it, but this full expression of the Assembly’s view is an important statement.”

Roberge has not said when the new directive will be released. Fortin said he doesn’t have high hopes for the new directive, as it shouldn’t take over a month to rewrite the “complicated, convoluted” document. 

“If the directive today is to say, ‘Give services to everybody in French or in English, in the language they ask,’ that doesn’t require a 31-page paper. It just requires a very simple directive,” said Fortin.

MNAs quash eligibility requirement for anglos Read More »

Gatineau man dead after motorbike crash

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

A 30-year-old Gatineau man is dead after a motorbike crash on Meech Lake Road on Sept. 15. 

According to MRC des Collines Police, the man was driving west on Meech Lake Road when he crashed into an embankment. The 30-year-old, who has not been named by police, was transported to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. 

Police say they believe speed could have been a factor in the single-vehicle fatal crash. 

“At this time, one of the hypotheses being considered by investigators is that speed may have been a contributing factor,” a police press release reads. “The investigation currently shows that the motorcycle involved belonged to a third party, and that the victim had no driver’s licence. A mechanical inspection of the motorcycle is scheduled to take place shortly.”

Investigators were combing the scene until about 4 a.m. Sept. 16 and will continue to search for a cause. 

Another motorbike accident in the Tim Hortons parking lot in Val-des-Monts on Sept. 14 could have ended worse than it did. 

According to police, a 58-year-old driver from Gatineau, while taking a driving course, hit the front gas throttle before fully sitting down and the Ryker Can-Am three-wheeler sped into a window and ejected the woman from the bike. The bike then changed course and slammed into another vehicle. The driver was transported to hospital to be treated for non-life threatening injuries. A driving school instructor witnessed the entire accident. 

MRC des Collines Police were also called to another motorbike accident on Chelsea’s River Road on Sept. 12. Those involved escaped with minor injuries.

Gatineau man dead after motorbike crash Read More »

Masham family ‘abandoned’ after care home death

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

by Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative
It’s been more than five months since Aline Besner died while under the care of an elder home in Gatineau, and her Masham family still has no answers about the circumstances surrounding her death.
Besner’s son, Guy Maisonneuve, and his wife, Shelley, have been anxiously awaiting a coroner’s report and said they’ve been left in the dark about how their mother and mother-in-law died. The Masham couple have a running clock for how long they’ve been waiting for answers. It was 144 days when the Low Down visited their Masham home on Sept. 12.
“We feel just utterly abandoned,” said Guy. “We haven’t heard from anybody,” added Shelley, explaining that they have now filed a complaint with the ombudsman because of the multiple delays in their file.
Besner died on April 14 after her cries for help three days earlier were ignored by staff at the Résidence Villa des Brises care home, according to several other patients who were staying at the facility.
Doctors at the Hull Hospital later discovered bed sores all over Besner’s torso, neck and back and immediately filed a complaint against the care home, which triggered a coroner’s investigation.
Following Besner’s death, the Maisonneuves have been trying to wade through mounds of government red tape and said that over the past five months, nobody from the Centre intégré de santé et des services sociaux de l’Outaouais (CISSSO), the health minister’s office, their own MNA Robert Bussière or even the care home itself, has attempted to reach out to the grieving family. They have sent multiple letters and emails to the ministry and to Bussière’s office, but said their pleas for answers have been ignored.
“It’s excruciating,” added Shelley. “But I get the funny feeling that everybody’s under a gag order – ‘Don’t talk to the families because you could say something,’” she suggested. “It is mentally and physically exhausting to have to chase this down,” she added about getting answers to her family’s inquiries.
The Maisonneuves said they’re also shocked and appalled that nobody from the ministry, the CISSSO or MNA Bussière have reached out to them following Besner’s death – no sympathy calls, no apologies and no commitments from political leaders to bring about change.
Their heartbreaking letter sent Aug. 21 to Bussière, Minister Dubé and Premier François Legault details the grief the family has endured since Besner’s death.
“Not only am I now faced with the grief of losing my mother, but I also have the added stress of dealing with a coroner examining the cause and circumstances of my mother’s death,” wrote Guy. “My mother has now been dead for 130 days, and we still haven’t received a response to our complaint from the Office of the Service Quality and Complaints Commissioner, the first step in the complaint process that your office directed us to.”
This was the second letter the family has sent since March 17 – the first one was sent before Besner died asking for help to get her out of the care home. That first letter coldly referred them to a complicated, multi-step complaints process, and the latest one was ignored.
The Maisonneuves have a thick binder on a table full of documents, witness statements and other information they’ve compiled for their case. And despite sometimes feeling overwhelmed or deflated, Guy said he won’t give up until he gets the answers he and his family need to fully grieve their 95-year-old “Grandmama.”
“It feels intentional; it feels like they’re trying to wear us down,” said Guy. When asked if it was working, he replied, “there’s no goddamn way.”
“The memory is so, so fresh, and I’m constantly reminded of it,” he added, referring to the horror he and his family endured when discovering the state of his mother’s body – and after learning that her screams three nights earlier went ignored. “I just have to conjure my mother. And that’s my motivation.”
Care home routinely ignoring patients
Low resident Steve Connolly was another patient at the home and documented the daily neglect he and other patients witnessed at Villa des Brises. His 44-page diary shown to the Low Down describes orderlies at the home routinely ignoring patient alarms, neglecting patient needs and one instance where Besner’s calls for help were ignored, and Connolly found her lying on the floor alone, helpless.
According to CISSSO, which jointly manages Villa des Brises’s second floor as a post-acute and overflow ward for those needing rehab or a transfer to a long-term care home, an “improvement plan” has been initiated at the care home since Besner’s death. CISSSO spokesperson Camille Brochu-Lafrance told the Low Down in June that the health organization has a full-time manager at the home to “report discrepancies” if any are found.
“The CISSS de l’Outaouais takes each of these events seriously, and they were investigated with the support of the Nursing Directorate (DSI) and the Quality, Performance Evaluation and Ethics Directorate (DQEPE),” wrote Brochu-Lafrance. “In accordance with our anti-abuse policy, as soon as there is suspicion of neglect or abuse, a report is made and safety nets are immediately established in collaboration with the residence. A complete analysis of each situation is then made with a view to correction or improvement.”
Health Minister Dubé and MNA Bussière did not respond to the Low Down’s queries regarding Besner’s death. CAQ spokesperson Léa Fortin told the Low Down that, because Villa des Brises is in the Hull sector, it is under the responsibility of Hull MNA Suzanne Tremblay. However it’s important to note that Guy and Shelley Maisonneuve both live in Masham and are constituents of Bussière.
Following our interviews with the family, Bussière’s office finally responded to the Maisonneuve’s on Sept. 16. Pascale Labelle, Bussiere’s political attaché emailed to “offer you and your family my deepest sympathies following the death of your mother.”
“Once again, Mr. Maisonneuve, I would like to apologize for the situation. Mr. Bussière has immense respect for the citizens of the riding he represents. It is very important to him that citizens who contact the office are satisfied, receive the necessary support, are directed to the right resources, are accompanied if necessary, etc. Regardless of age, social status, culture or other, all citizens are important and deserve respect.”
However, the family still has not received a call, email or letter from Bussière himself.

Masham family ‘abandoned’ after care home death Read More »

Gatineau River not swimmable at three sites

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

Local Journalism Initiative

The Aug. 26 Friends of the Gatineau River (FOG) tests show three sites from Wakefield to Chelsea that are not recommended for swimming. 

After a lab error during previous month’s testing of the Gatineau River, data now shows two concerning spots in La Pêche and another near the Alonzo Wright Bridge in Chelsea, where all recreational activities should be avoided, according to FOG. Several pieces of data were missing from the initial sample. 

FOG announced on its Facebook page that all three sites are not recommended for swimming. 

On FOG’s map of the test sites, one point near the Alonzo Wright Bridge has a red dot over it, with the tests reading more than 1,000 fecal coliforms per 100 millilitres. Standards for “good” or “excellent” readings are between 0 and 100 fecal coliforms per 100 millilitres. 

“So there should have been a no swim advisory actually issued,” said a FOG director, who wished to remain anonymous. “Whenever there’s a red dot, it means no swimming.”

A second site in south Chelsea at Mill Road is reading as “good,” but that area has been a constant concern for FOG, as historical data shows sites south of Chelsea’s sewage treatment plant have consistently yielded poorer results than most other river sites throughout the Hills. 

Last year’s tests showed the area around Alonzo as “mediocre” with tests showing between 101 and 200 fecal coliforms per 100 millilitres. In 2022, the Alonzo site was showing “good” results, however the Mill Road site at that time was “very poor” with fecal coliforms hitting over 1,000 per 100 millilitres. 

FOG said it can’t conclusively link Chelsea’s sewage treatment plant to increased bacteria in that area, but it remains a theory for the river advocacy group and something it will continue to monitor. 

The FOG director was adamant about including the missing data, as they feel that much of the attention is given to the river upstream from the Chelsea Dam, as that’s where most of the popular swimming holes are and where most of the motorboats and paddlers are. However, they said with new people moving into the area, it’s important to ensure residents are clear about the quality of the river. 

While much of the river has favourable results that are either “excellent” or “good,” two sites in La Pêche consistently show higher levels of bacteria: The McLinton Creek and near the entrance of the La Pêche River. Both have been deemed not recommended for swimming by FOG. 

FOG director Stephen Ferguson alluded to the fact that the bacteria could be coming from beaver dams upstream. Another FOG director also noted that there are two horse farms and a cattle farm above McLinton Creek, and FOG believes that could be part of why the fecal levels are so high.  

There was also the question around the septic treatment plant on top of Chemin de la Vallée-de-Wakefield and whether or not its effluent was contaminating sites in the village. However Mayor Guillaume Lamoureux confirmed that the exit pipe is near Kaffé 1870, which is downstream from McLinton and the La Pêche River sites.  

With global warming bringing more intense storms and rain to the region, FOG is now starting to test the river after rain events – 24 and 48 hours after a storm – to see how runoff from the roads and forests above the river affects its quality. 

FOG wants to be clear that its boating safety campaign, in which the organization is trying to lower the speed limit for motorboats on the Gatineau River, is not only about safety but also about preserving and protecting the river. FOG says that boat wakes are the top contributor to shoreline erosion, and legislation to slow boats down will both save lives and protect the river’s shoreline. 

What can you do to protect the river?

FOG has a section on its website where residents can gather information on how to be a steward of the river and how to limit our impact on the river

Eliminate household toxins

FOG encourages riverfront residents to refrain from using household toxins like herbicides, pesticides and exfoliating cosmetics, as they promote algae growth, affect animal biodiversity and can be found in the fish that residents catch and eat from the river. 

Maintain good septic systems

FOG encourages residents to “use healthy products” like biodegradable detergents and solutions that can break down in your system. 

Residents should also save water as much as they can, as increased consumption of water speeds up the circulation of the tank and stops the separation of sludge and scum. 

FOG also recommends keeping septic systems away from sheds and swimming pools to promote air circulation. 

Shoreline regulations

FOG also wants to remind residents of the shoreline regulations, as it is against municipal bylaws to cut vegetation within 15 metres of the shoreline. Permits are required for all docks on the Gatineau River and private boat launches are prohibited. 

Gatineau River not swimmable at three sites Read More »

Wakefield north won’t be a suburb, developer says

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , ,

By Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

Wakefield could soon be expanding north. 

When Sylvain Viau puts the finishing touches on his 55-acre Esplanade Wakefield development, a new village neighbourhood will rise between Mclaren Road and the current Hwy 105 north. 

And once the Hwy 5 extension is completed, these new residents could have a walkable route into the village, through a multi-use pathway. The pathway will replace the stretch of Hwy 105 between the intersection of Maclaren and Hwy 366 and Alcove, where the new Hwy 5 extension will end. 

“That path is in the plans of the Ministry of Transport to convert Hwy 105 to a multifunctional path, which to me, is one of the nicest spots on the 105 right now,” said Esplanade developer Viau. “It would make a fantastic path to walk down to the village.”

While Viau’s vision is a full neighbourhood – 250 or more units depending on the capacity of municipal services, which include apartments and affordable housing units as well – he was clear that only Phase 1 of his project has been approved by the municipality, which is 13 homes on one-acre lots that will “integrate well with nature.”

Viau was adamant that he is not turning the end of the village into suburbia. 

“The general vision is: [the homes] have to be houses with a rural feel,” said Viau, explaining that home sizes will be restricted to a maximum of 3,000 square feet for one-storey homes and 1,800 square feet footprint for two-storey buildings. 

“It won’t be these suburban, big dwellings or mansions or brick turrets – they have to integrate well with nature. But they can be Scandinavian models. They can be mid-century. They can be craftsmen or log-ish or like. They can be a bunch of different things, but they have to kind of fit the vibe of a forest setting close to the water.”

Viau, who lives in Wakefield,  is a civil engineer by trade and has expertise with these kinds of developments after working on the Chelsea Highlands development near Larrimac. Viau said he is taking his knowledge from that project and applying the nature-first mentality to his new Wakefield project. 

While Viau said he doesn’t want to limit prospective buyers too much with design restrictions, he has hired local designers and builders who live in the Gatineau Hills to help keep that “village feel” intact. He is working with Wakefield architect Sally Vandrish from Spike Studio and Terra Construction for the builds, although prospective buyers won’t be forced to use their services. 

“They have passion for this place,” said Viau about the local designers and builders. “They love this place, and they won’t have to explain to you at the grocery store why they blew up a mountain.” They’re not blowing up a mountain, but instead integrating a neighbourhood within the big hill at the top of Maclaren Road, he said. 

While Phase 1 is just 13 houses, the full neighbourhood will be designed with natural walking paths, trails, river lookout spots, a wetland, a community park and some commercial buildings.  

“We also understand that the municipality and everyone want more housing density – cheaper units and all of this stuff. So it’s kind of fitting both,” added Viau. “Affordable housing, multi-generational housing, and different types of housing – we’re looking into all of this for future phases.”

He said that future phases of the higher density buildings, including apartement and affordable housing units, would connect to the municipal sewer system. 

Viau said he believes affordable housing is “not a developer problem. It’s a social problem,” and argued that, while he is happy to be one voice on the issue, he believes solving Canada’s housing crisis should include regional, provincial and federal governments and, ultimately, legislation. 

Esplanade lots are currently selling between $195,000 and $225,000. Two have already been sold. Visit the project at www.esplanadewakefield.ca 

Wakefield north won’t be a suburb, developer says Read More »

CAQ’s ‘half-baked’ health measures too little too late

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , ,

By Trevor Greenway

Local Journalism Initiative

The head of a local health watchdog group says the bonuses extended to Wakefield, Maniwaki and Shawville medical techs are too little, too late. 

While SOS Outaouais president John Pigeon said he was happy that the CAQ government finally agreed to pay rural medical technicians the same $22,000 bonus as their counterparts in Gatineau and Hull, he said he feels the temporary measure is only a band-aid solution and just kicks the region’s health crisis down the road two years. 

“By no means does this really solve anything in the deep problem that we’re facing,” said Pigeon Sept. 9, two days after the CAQ announced the additional funding. “We see the government acting to, sort of, putting out this little fire here and there, but there is a big, overall problem, and that problem is that there’s a lack of the capacity for our Integrated Health and Social Services Centres (CISSS) to be able to be competitive with the market of Ontario.”

Earlier this summer, amid a looming health crisis in the Outaouais that saw a number of health technicians in the region leave for Ontario where they could make $30,000 more in salary, the CAQ government announced a $22,000 bonus for medical techs in Hull and Gatineau. 

The move was criticized by the province’s public health and social services union, the Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux (APTS), as well as politicians and health groups. 

In response, the province backtracked and offered workers in Wakefield, Maniwaki and Shawville an $18,000 bonus – $4,000 shy of the money their counterparts were offered in urban Outaouais hospitals. This was announced Sept. 7. 

Quebec’s health ministry told the Low Down that the union had agreed to the bonuses. 

“Let us first recall that the Ministry of Health negotiated and agreed on bonuses with the APTS,” wrote the ministry in an email Sept. 5, two days before increasing the bonuses. “A committee was set up to monitor the effects and will make recommendations, if necessary.” 

Gov’t failed to act until near collapse

Liberal MNA for Pontiac and the official health critic André Fortin said, while the bonuses are a good start, he is “frustrated” that it took a near-full healthcare collapse in the Outaouais for the government to finally act. 

“It’s shocking that it took months and months and months for the CAQ government to realize what everybody was telling them – what the region’s wardens were saying; what the CISSO president was saying; what the radio techs themselves were saying: that we needed one bonus across the region in order not to fight amongst ourselves and deplete some hospitals to replenish others,” said Fortin. 

Fortin said he agrees with SOS Outaouais that, while the bonuses, which are only in effect for two years and only offered to full-time employees, are nice, they don’t tackle the region’s real issue: paying doctors, nurses and medical staff enough money to make them stay in Quebec. 

“We should be addressing the fundamental issue here, which is the discrepancy in salaries between our healthcare workers and Ontario’s healthcare workers,” he said. 

“Minister [Christian] Dubé and Premier Legault, for some reason, still insist on using temporary, half-baked measures that will not address the crux of the issue and will not allow the regional healthcare network to start improving.”

The Outaouais network of prefects, the Conférence des préfets de l’Outaouais (CPO), called the bonuses a “significant victory” for healthcare workers, as well as patients, in the region. 

“The CPO duly welcomes this decision, which strengthens our region and demonstrates the impact we can have by joining forces to defend the interests of the Outaouais,” said CPO president Benoit Lauzon in a statement. 

“We thank the local stakeholders of the government of Quebec, the APTS and all those who contributed to this important victory for the region.”

CAQ’s ‘half-baked’ health measures too little too late Read More »

Heritage College says Bill 96 unfair to students

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

By Trevor Greenway

editor@lowdownonline.com

Some Heritage College students will attend school on a weekend this year to prepare for Quebec’s French-language exit exam, a new requirement for those who don’t hold an English eligibility certificate. 

Heritage College’s academic dean Lisa Peldjak said the school is working on a mock exam for this October, where all non-certificate holders show up on a Saturday to measure themselves against the provincial standard in French. Those who struggle in the exam will have time to improve before the actual exam next spring. 

“This is going to be a real snapshot of what the French exit exam will look like,” said Peldjak. “They’re going to be here all day. It’s mandatory for the students to attend. And it’ll be worth grades. But they’re going to grade it like the French exit [exam] to give the students a taste of what the exam will be like.”

But Heritage’s director-general Terry Kharyati said he has no idea how many of these students will attend this mock exam in October, as the prospect of non-French speakers taking the same exit exam as their francophone counterparts has been a major deterrent for prospective students. 

“All students have the opportunity to feel welcome, first, and the accessibility to what is a great education,” said Kharyati. “But for some who’ve never taken French, it’s ominous. We see that already from students who are coming here from Ontario or who are from the Glebe High School [Ottawa]. If they come here, they’re considered non-anglo because they don’t have their English eligibility rights.”

“We’re recruiting students for basketball. We have students coming over from Ridgemont High School [in Ottawa],” added Kharyati. “But it’s getting more difficult to recruit from Ottawa schools.”

Part of the problem with the English eligibility certificates is that the Ministry of Education will only give them out to students who are currently enrolled in English high schools in Quebec. Those who have already graduated and request a certificate after they’ve graduated are being denied. Those who attend CEGEPs without the certificate will be required to write the province’s three-hour French exit exam, whereas those who hold the certificate will take an English exam.

The new CEGEP rules are part of the CAQ government’s implementation of Bill 96 – the province’s overhaul of the Charter of the French Language, which requires all non-English certificate holders to take the French exam. Bill 96 became Law 14 after it was passed in 2022, affecting how the charter applies to English CEGEPs in the province. Students who do hold English certificates will also have to take three additional French-language courses or three core courses in French, creating a two-tiered system for students. 

Peldjak explained that the college is using incoming high school grades in French, as well as a college assessment, to determine whether or not a student is placed in the advanced French stream. The advanced stream will allow students to take two French as a second language (FSL) courses, two complementary courses in French and one program-specific course in French. Non-advanced stream students will take a total of five FSL courses within their two years at the college. 

“Depending on the student and their level of French, they’re not all coming in being treated fairly or equally,” she said. 

Peldjak noted that students who are required to take the five FSL courses don’t have the option of taking complementary courses, which give them a “highlight into other interests that they might have.” These students, according to Peldjak, miss out on the entirety of other courses the college has to offer. 

The college won’t know how much of a deterrent these new rules will be on the student population until final enrollment numbers are reported in mid-September.

Heritage College says Bill 96 unfair to students Read More »

Outaouais health group sends SOS to minister

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Local Journalism Initiative

The head of a health watchdog group in the Outaouais says the region is facing two major problems – and both of them come down to money. 

John Pigeon, president of SOS Outaouais, laid out these two issues during a 15-minute phone conversation with Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé last week and said, while he’s “cautious” about the government’s next steps, he is hopeful the province will address the region’s chronic underfunding and increase salaries to retain healthcare workers. SOS Outaouais is a health watchdog group comprised of community organizations and healthcare leaders. 

“The first area is the fact that we’ve been historically under-financed in the region, and there needs to be actions taken to resolve this,” said Pigeon, referring to a nearly $200 million gap between healthcare funding in the Outaouais and other regions in Quebec. “The second item is salaries – salaries for healthcare workers.”

The Outaouais region went through a tumultuous summer in the healthcare sector, with multiple operating rooms in the Gatineau and Hull hospitals being shuttered and scanning technologists leaving the province for more money in Ontario. 

The region lost several technicians to Ontario, where they can make up to $30,000 more per year. The Quebec government did eventually add bonuses for techs who stay in the region – $22,000 for technologists at hospitals in Hull, Gatineau and Papineau, and other bonuses of up to $18,000 for technologists in Maniwaki. Shawville and Wakefield employees were originally left out of the deal, however Gatineau MNA Robert Bussière announced that they would also receive the $18,000 bonus, but it was still $4,000 less than what employees in other hospitals received. 

“If you don’t have technicians to operate those imagery departments, well, that’s where everything seems to go downhill,” added Pigeon. “But it’s beyond imagery technicians. This is affecting a lot of workers, including nurses. There are 1,200 nurses that are missing in our region, which is devastating when you just look at our surgery department.”

According to SOS Outaouais, the Gatineau Hospital’s emergency ward is currently working at 30 per cent capacity, while its surgery ward is only working at 25 per cent capacity, which is causing delays for patients in the region. 

Pigeon said that Minister Dubé was “receptive” to the struggles facing the Outaouais but still doesn’t understand why the region is so chronically underfunded – a problem governments have been aware of since 2019, when the National Assembly passed a motion recognizing the unique situation of the Outaouais with its close proximity to Ottawa. 

He said the region has always been in a “bubble” of the National Capital Region, where Quebec residents could seek care in either Ontario or Quebec with ease. 

That is changing, according to Marcel Chartrand of health watchdog group Vigi Santé. 

He said that with Quebec’s new centralized health network, Santé Québec, more and more Ontario hospitals are turning away Quebec patients, and it’s causing more delays. 

He also argues that the province’s health overhaul will centralize Quebec’s health network and remove key decision-making roles from doctors and healthcare professionals working on the ground. 

“Give the locals the power,” Chartrand previously told the Low Down. 

While Pigeon was hoping for a thorough sit down with the health minister, his organization had to settle for a 15-minute phone call. He said that SOS hopes it will be the beginning of regular, constructive dialog on the region’s health crisis. 

Outaouais health group sends SOS to minister Read More »

Heritage joins call to exempt Indigenous students

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Local Journalism Initiative

A petition to exempt Indigenous students at Heritage College and other English CEGEPs across the province from being required to take a French exit exam has garnered nearly 2,000 signatures. 

The petition urges the CAQ government to exempt Indigenous students from Bill 96, which became Law 14 when it passed in 2022,  and forces all non-English eligibility certificate holders to take a three-hour French exit exam to graduate. 

Heritage College argues that many of its Indigenous students do not have an English certificate and says the province’s new law is stifling those who want to pursue a higher education. 

“Our biggest concern is that we are a public institution, and we are restricting access to students,” said Heritage College director-general Terry Kharyati. 

The petition was launched by Dawson College in Montreal, but every English CEGEP across the province is now supporting it. 

“We are encouraging people to read the petition,” added Kharyati. “We’re not asking anybody to sign it. We’re just saying, ‘This exists.’ Get informed and then make decisions.”

Law 14 requires that anyone attending English CEGEPs without an English eligibility certificate must take the province’s French-language exit exam in order to graduate. Heritage College academic dean Lisa Peldjak said that the school’s Indigenous students who don’t already have their certificates likely won’t get them, as the Ministry of Education is only giving the certificates to those who are still in high school. Those who apply after they’ve graduated are being denied. 

“The process is quite onerous for our Indigenous students,” added Peldjak. “It also can be viewed as disrespectful because they’re actually, once again, having to fight for their rights as Indigenous Peoples. And it’s not ‘fill out the paperwork and you’re exempt.’ Not everyone is being exempt.”

The petition states that the Act Respecting French, the Official and Common Language of Quebec, known as Bill 96, “requires Indigenous students with little or no knowledge of French to take additional French courses beyond their abilities, thereby compromising their chances of academic success” and acts as a “deterrent for Indigenous students in their pursuit of post-secondary education.”

Last spring, five English CEGEPs, including Heritage, unveiled a series of emotional videos from Indigenous students, who argue in those videos that Bill 96 was unfairly penalizing them and their chances of receiving a higher education.

“In my community, French isn’t offered. No one learns French. A lot of us aren’t introduced to it at all, and they knew they wouldn’t be able to keep up,” said John Abbot College’s Cameron Biron, a Cree student from Wemindji, in one of the videos. “I came here willing to learn French…but after the bill, it’s too much. I feel like it’s being forced upon me. It’s putting my education at risk.”

The five English CEGEPS penned a letter last year to Premier François Legault, urging the leader of the CAQ to minimize the impact of Bill 96 on Indigenous communities. 

“In the absence of a satisfactory response from the relevant departments, and with limited time before the school year begins, we are compelled to make our concerns public,” states the letter, signed by the directors of Dawson, Vanier, John Abbott, Champlain and Heritage colleges. “Due to the urgency of the situation, we were forced to make this decision as a last resort. We are concerned that our current Indigenous students will be unable to earn their [diploma of college studies], and that the many Indigenous students, who will begin their studies this fall, will face numerous obstacles.” 

Kharyati agrees, and said that, when you “add another layer” to an already complicated application process, it acts as a major deterrent for Indigenous students to apply to college. 

The petition can be found online at: https://shorturl.at/ec9Pn. 

Heritage joins call to exempt Indigenous students Read More »

MNA fighting property hikes in Alleyn-et-Cawood

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

The municipality of Alleyn-et-Cawood is trying to change the way Quebec assesses property values after taxpayers saw their home values rise a staggering 370 per cent this spring as part of the province’s triennial assessment role.  

According to Alleyn-et-Cawood director-general Isabelle Cardinal, more than 100 lots in the municipality were sold between $40,000 and $50,0000 over the past two years – well above their market value of $12,000 for an acre of land. Because of this, municipal values as a whole went up throughout the entire territory, pushing property values up as high as 370 per cent in some cases – impacting both residents and the municipality significantly. 

“This affected our shares for the MRC,” said Cardinal, explaining that Alleyn-et-Cawood’s contribution to MRC Pontiac increased from $113,000 to nearly $300,000 this year. 

“They’re using a standardized value to calculate our shares and that’s why we were hit so hard,” she said. “Our MRC Pontiac shares have risen from $113,000 to almost $290,000, an increase close to $177,000 because our municipal value increased from close to $75,000,000 to more than $276,000,000.”

The Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l’Habitation determines its triennial assessments using a median proportion and comparative factor, which is established based on sales on the municipality’s territory during the previous year, compared with the value deposited during the first year of the triennial roll. Because of the large vacant lot sales over the past two years, Alleyn-et-Cawood’s municipal assessment went way up and Cardinal is arguing that it’s not an accurate snapshot of the municipality’s financial situation. 

“Myself and a member of the task force went to the preliminary meeting of the mayors at the MRC, and we asked for them to adopt a bylaw for the calculation of the share,” she told the Low Down in early August. “So basically, what we’re asking is for them to use our current municipal evaluation and not the comparative factor.”

The municipality has launched a petition to pressure Quebec to eliminate the comparative factor and build a new model that is more reflective of a municipality’s current financial picture. The petition, which has garnered 441 signatures, can be found on the municipal website at https://www.alleyn-cawood.ca/en. 

Cardinal explained that the municipality assured residents that it will adjust the mill rate before next year’s budget to balance out property taxes, however with the big jump in triennial assessments, things like fixed school taxes are what will really hit the wallets of residents. 

“We’re trying to convince the Municipal Affairs Minister that a situation like this is untenable for a number of residents,” said Liberal Pontiac MNA André Fortin, continuing, “namely full-time residents who owned small homes for a long period of time, who potentially are already struggling to make ends meet – to pay their municipal taxes, their school taxes and, all of a sudden, they see the value of their house nearly quadruple on the municipal evaluation.”

A mill rate Mill rate is a tax rate – the amount of tax payable per dollar of the assessed value of a property. 

Part of the problem, according to Fortin, is that municipal triennial assessments take a sweeping average of home sales to determine the increase, but the method doesn’t take into account whether a certain lot is waterfront, vacant land or farmland. 

“So, because they had to go with the average increase in the sales prices, it means that some people whose real home value hasn’t increased that dramatically, will face substantial increases in, for example, their school taxes,” added Fortin. 

“There has to be a way to maybe set aside either the evaluation of a sector in the municipality, or there has to be a mechanism by which some home values are excluded from this calculation,” he said.

Fortin said he is working with the ministry on changing the triennial assessment method.

MNA fighting property hikes in Alleyn-et-Cawood Read More »

Capsized canoe renews calls to lower river speed limit

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Local Journalism Initiative

An incident on Canada Day, in which two Wakefield seniors were capsized in their canoe by a police boat, has renewed calls from Friends of the Gatineau River (FOG) to lower the speed limit on the Gatineau River. 

The current speed limit on the Gatineau River is 55 km/h or 10 km/h if you are within 10 metres of a shoreline. 

FOG doesn’t have specifics on what speed limit the river should have, but director David Wilson said it would be a multi-pronged decision by the MRC des Collines, local politicians and, ultimately, Transport Canada. 

FOG has been working with Pontiac MP Sophie Chatel who helped streamline a process for changing rules on a body of water within Transport Canada last year. FOG said it has been working closely with Chatel and will officially submit a request to the federal body once it conducts more public consultations with river users and the MRC des Collines. 

According to a 2021 FOG survey on river safety, 87 per cent of respondents rated the river as “dangerous,” and the majority feared that someone would eventually be seriously injured or killed. Of the 700 residents surveyed, 94 per cent said they “recognize the negative impacts of boat wakes on other users and the environment.” An overwhelming majority – 81 per cent – said they support reducing the current speed limit.

“I think it’s not just a FOG concern; I think it should be a concern to everyone who uses the river, including motorboat users,” said Wilson. “And these dumping incidents that have happened recently, one that involves a police boat, just illustrates that these problems aren’t going away.” (See story Page 1). Wilson said that as more and more people move into and frequent the Hills in summer, river use will consistently increase, and incidents like what happened to Irene Halang and her partner will likely happen again. Wilson also mentioned an accident involving a swimmer and a jet ski several years ago, and said he worries that if speed isn’t taken seriously on the river, it will lead to fatalities. 

“It shows that it’s not just an academic issue,” Wilson told the Low Down. “These safety issues are real.”

Wilson said there is a common misconception that FOG is anti-motorboat. He said that’s not the case at all, and its Boating Safety Consultation campaign is about “finding a balanced approach” to accommodate paddlers, swimmers and those who want to use their motorboats. He alluded to the safety hazards spread across the river – old foundations from the pre-flood era, shallow sandbar areas and boom logs that are still floating from when the logging industry used the river to transport wood throughout the Outaouais. Many of those hazards still exist, he said. 

“It’s also a very narrow river in many places, which is part of the reason why zipping by at a good clip close to the shoreline is really problematic,” said Wilson about speeding boats. 

“Please, for everyone’s sake, slow down,” he added. “And I guess for the swimmers and paddlers, it’s ‘watch out.’”

For more information on river safety, visit FOG at www.fog-arg.org/boating-safety-consultations

Capsized canoe renews calls to lower river speed limit Read More »

Police boat tips senior’s canoe

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Irene Halang was enjoying a paddle in her canoe on Canada Day when a speed boat came “roaring past.”

The boat created a large wake, and, unable to face the waves head-on, Halang and her partner capsized in their canoe. Halang peered across the water as they tried to get to shore and saw the culprit: An MRC des Collines Police boat. 

“We had just gotten out into the bay from the bottom of Rockhurst and were rounding the corner when a police boat came roaring by us from behind,” Halang wrote in an email to the Low Down. “Next thing we knew, we were in the river; canoe upside down. Now, we are not p***ies, but we are seniors, and the canoe was heavy.” Halang and her partner both had life jackets on and said that the police boat did not notice that the canoe had tipped over, and they didn’t stop. A friend onshore saw the ordeal and called out to ensure they were okay. Two other boats stopped to help, and the two were able to get back into their canoe and “back on the horse,” according to Halang.  

“We paddled home, wet but ok and maybe a little shaken,” added Halang. “The police had spent the morning patrolling the river for safety around lifejackets and booze, often targeting paddleboarders,” added Halang. “No judgement, but maybe their time would have been better spent ticketing the many speeders we saw that day on our journey home.”

Police wouldn’t say much about the incident, only confirming that “everything seemed OK” with the complainant – Halang’s partner – after he came and discussed it with officers on July 1. 

“The person involved (Monsieur) came to our police station and talked with our staff Lieutenant Daniel Pariseau to talk about this event (on the same day),” said MRC des Collines Inspector Marc Dubé.  “Following this discussion, everything seemed OK. I can confirm that we do not have an official complaint.” 

According to police, officers were on the water on Canada Day to ensure that all motorized and non-motorized boaters were in compliance with the rules of the water – ensuring that everyone on board had lifejackets, bailers, whistles and ropes. Dubé told the Low Down that police have handed out 22 tickets this year for such violations but zero for speeding. He said it’s always been a challenge for cops to catch speeders on the water. 

“Radar operations need to be stable to have an accurate reading, so on a body of water, it is very challenging, if not impossible,” explained Dubé. “Ideally, one would be capable of doing this on a riverbank; a portable radar is not made to be used while moving/wobbling.”

Police boat tips senior’s canoe Read More »

‘Beautiful river’ backed by favourable water tests

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

There isn’t a lot of poop floating around in the Gatineau River these days.
Of the 19 testing sites throughout the Hills, an overwhelming 17 show “excellent” or “good” water quality, with only two places showing fecal coliforms above the recommended levels.
“We have a beautiful river,” said Friends of the Gatineau River (FOG) president Stephen Ferguson. He and FOG volunteer, Gary Fehr, spent July 29 in a boat testing bacteria levels from Chelsea to Gracefield, which the organization does three times a year.
According to the results, there were only two spots – near the entrance of the La Pêche River and at the McClinton Creek – that were above the recommended levels of fecal coliforms.
Ferguson said that the bacteria levels are typically high at the entrance of the La Pêche River, likely because of animal feces flowing from La Pêche into the Gatineau.
“We’re not really sure where [the bacteria] comes from, but there is probably a beaver dam down there,” said Ferguson. “[The bacteria count] is always a little on the high side.”
Despite the two high bacteria spots, the rest of the Gatineau River is marked as “excellent” or “good” and well below the 200 coliforms per 100-millilitre standard.
To put the results into perspective, Paris spent $1.5 billion to clean up the Seine River for the recent Olympics so that athletes could compete in the historic waterway.
In spite of their efforts, bacterial testing showed nearly 1,000 coliforms per 100 millilitres, and several German competitors got sick after splashing into the water.
The two high bacteria spots in Hills are areas of concern, but they do not significantly impact the overall water quality of the Gatineau River, according to Ferguson.
“The federal standard is 200 [coliforms per 100 millilitres] for swimming, and in France, they were saying how 1,000 was safe enough, which is unbelievable,” said Ferguson. “I definitely wouldn’t swim in that kind of water.”
Gatineau best river to paddle

Chelsea Olympic paddler Sophia Jensen agrees.
The 24-year-old made her Olympic debut in Paris and sprinted through the Seine River in the C1 200m Sprint Canoe finals, finishing sixth overall. She told CBC News after her race that, while she is biased, the Gatineau River is the best place to go paddling.
“It’s where I grew up, and it’s beautiful,” she said in the interview. “There’s, like, a million kilometres of river to be on, no matter if you’re in a sprint boat, a normal boat, anything. It’s amazing, and you’re invited.”
While Ferguson agrees, he said there are still several things that shoreline and waterfront homeowners can do to “keep it beautiful.”
“One is the shoreline protection – don’t mow your lawn down to the shoreline,” said Ferguson.
“And keep your septic systems in good shape. Some of them, like BioNest and Eco-Flow systems, are actually allowed to go directly into the river.”
Ferguson noted that while these septic systems put very little coliforms into the river, they do bring E. coli levels up in the river. E. coli is a type of bacteria that normally lives in the intestines of humans and animals. High exposure in humans can cause nausea and vomiting and more serious illnesses including kidney failure, stroke or seizures.
“You’re not ever going to get no E. coli because of animals, but the more we put in, the higher it’s going to get,” he added.
Seeking personhood for river

Gatineau Valley Historical Society president and former Kitigan Zibi chief Gilbert Whiteduck has launched a campaign to give the Tenàgàdino Zibi, the Algonquin name for the Gatineau River, “personhood” status. Whiteduck said he feels that without protection, the river will continue to be exploited.
“The belief that we are not connected to water and land has allowed its destruction to permeate the world and our own little piece of that world,” wrote Whiteduck in a 2023 column for this newspaper.
Giving a river ‘personhood’ status means recognizing it as a legal entity with rights, similar to those of a person. This allows the river to be protected under the legal framework of nature rights in Canada, ensuring that its ecological integrity and the rights of the communities that depend on it are respected.
The Magpie River, which sits between Labrador and Quebec and travels nearly 300 kilometres across the rocky landscape to the Gulf of the St. Lawrence River, became the first river in Canada to be granted “legal personhood” in 2021.
Whiteduck, along with FOG, created the Tenàgàdino Alliance last year, a collaborative effort aimed at protecting the river.
The two organizations are working on a comprehensive campaign that includes measures to monitor and improve water quality, protect the river’s ecosystem and raise awareness about the importance of the Gatineau River to the local community and the environment.

‘Beautiful river’ backed by favourable water tests Read More »

Chelsea businessman seizes company back

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

Christian Bordeleau says that Chartered Professional Accountant Pierre Cote stole his financial business from under his nose.
He and his lawyers spent the last nine months gathering evidence to take it back, and, on Aug. 1, bailiffs descended on a property located at 388 Hwy 105 in Chelsea – the site of Financial Evaluation Canada (F.E.C.) CPA – and seized office equipment, computers and data, which Bordeleau claims belong to him.
The court order forced CPA Cote, who was in charge of F.E.C. CPA, to hand over five laptops, usernames, passwords, combinations and keys and forbid him or his staff from accessing or destroying any documents or data on the computers.
Bordeleau is also claiming $1.6 million in damages for the alleged illegal use of a company truck, misappropriated funds, missing cash from his company bank account, missing revenue and the alleged falsification of Cote’s salary.
According to Bordeleau, when he was hired in 2019 by real estate training company MREX, business started coming in fast and furious, and he needed help processing invoices for several of his companies, including MREX, his construction company named RainBridge Construction and LeBronx Pizza in Chelsea.
He hired Cote for $72,000 and gave the CPA full power of attorney to handle all of his financial assets.
“I made him an offer at $72,000 a year, plus potential bonuses, and he accepted,” explains Bordeleau. “When he came on board, I was like, ‘Wow, everything’s going to be so perF.E.C.t.’ I have my own CPA; it’s going to be extremely well done. Everything’s going to be perF.E.C.t. I’m never going to hear [from] Revenue Quebec ever in my life.”
But, in the midst of a fraud allegation in which MREX accused Bordeleau of stealing $1.7 million from the company, Bordeleau alleges that Cote took all of his clients, accounts receivable, company cash, computers and other items and registered them under a new company name – F.E.C. Canada CPA. Bordeleau also supplied affidavits from former F.E.C. employees, who alleged something was amiss at the company.
Former employee Kamal Masoud wrote in an affidavit filed in court that, when Cote was hired in January of 2022, the work climate “changed dramatically.” They wrote that F.E.C.’s books “did not appear to be accurate.”
“Pierre did not perform his duties, namely did pay not source deductions or sales tax or prepare remittance forms for F.E.C. or the companies under our administration,” wrote Masoud in a signed affidavit. Masoud resigned in 2022, citing poor management under Cote’s direction. “Before resigning, I advised Christian that I had great concerns about the way the bookkeeping and general administration of F.E.C.’s affairs were being handled by Pierre and/or under his direction and control.”
Bordeleau says he was essentially locked out of his own business until Aug. 1 when a Quebec Superior Court order approved the seizure.
“It’s the office,” says Bordeleau, when asked what he got back. “It’s the office space – it’s the furniture, it’s my computer, it’s the data, it’s the account, it’s the bank account, it’s everything.”
Pierre Cote did not respond to the Low Down’s request for comment. None of these allegations have been proven in court.


Christian Bordeleau says gaining access to his financial books will help him clear his name in a $1.7 million fraud allegation.
The Chelsea businessman says that after a search and seizure on Aug. 1 led to him getting his F.E.C. Canada financial business back, he can now provide additional documents to support his case in the fraud charge, proving his salary was $278,000.
That’s the basis of a lawsuit filed against Bordeleau by MREX owners Nikolaï Guillemette-Ray and Nicolas Leclerc, as the two Quebec City business partners claim that Bordeleau’s salary was only $104,000 and that he stole $1.7 million from the company. He was fired by the company in 2022.
According to court records obtained by the Low Down, MREX alleges that Bordeleau paid himself and other companies more than $1.4 million between 2019 and 2022 in “unjustified payments” – based on his alleged $104,000 salary. But Bordeleau and his lawyers argue that the report is inaccurate. Bordeleau submitted as evidence a photo of an employment contract signed by MREX CEO Guillemette-Ray proving his $278,000 salary. Guillemette-Ray claimed in court that “this document is a forgery.”
However, in a 2024 cross-examination filed in court, lawyer Patrick Brunelle, who is part of Bordeleau’s legal team, asked Guillemette-Ray about the employment contract, who said he didn’t recall signing the document.
“Does this look like your signature?” pressed Brunelle.
“Yes, that looks like my signature,” responded Guillemette-Ray.
“Is it possible that you visited and signed this document there?” pressed Brunelle again, indicating whether he visited Bordeleau in person and signed the contract.
“Not to the best of my knowledge,” replied Guillemette-Ray. Further in cross-examination, Brunelle tried to determine whether Bordeleau’s alleged salary of $104,000 was gross or net pay. Guillemette-Ray, the CEO of a real estate company with millions in sales, admitted he couldn’t tell the difference.
“The salary of $104,000 indicated in paragraph 30. Is it gross or net in your opinion?” asked the lawyer.
“It’s $104,000,” replied Guillemette-Ray.
“Is that after deductions or before deductions?” questioned Brunelle.
“If someone says: ‘I earn $104,000,’ it’s $104,000,” replied Guillemette-Ray. He then asked the lawyer to define gross and net pay. After doing so, the CEO said, “I don’t even know what gross and net mean, honestly.”
Bordeleau’s legal team also submitted a letter from Guillemette-Ray, which they say “confirms Bordeleau’s salary at $278,000 gross per year.” They also argue that two payments approved by Guillemette-Ray “clearly indicate” that Bordeleau’s salary was $278,000. Bordeleau’s legal team has also submitted a handwritten note signed by Guillemette-Ray indicating that Bordeleau’s salary was $278,000. The note, which the Low Down has obtained, has “278k” written on it, along with the words, “Expenses, cell, car.” Guillemette-Ray’s signature appears to be scribbled on the bottom of the note.
A report by CPA and consultant Chris Mak, which reviewed MREX’s evidence to “support firing with cause,” found that the company’s report spreadsheet “inaccurately depicts due to/from the employee, which claims Bordeleau owes the company $1.017m.” The report notes a “stark contrast” between the MREX report and F.E.C. Canada’s report, which shows that MREX owes Bordeleau $20,000.
Bordeleau says now that he has received his financial documents back from Cote, he will be able to clear his name under the fraud charge. He’ll return to court sometime this fall to fight the allegations.
Both parties’ allegations have not been tested in court.

Chelsea businessman seizes company back Read More »

Chelsea paddler realizes Olympic dream

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway and Hannah Scott-Talib

Chelsea’s new Olympic athlete Sophia Jensen ranks among world champion canoeists after her sixth place finish in the C1 200 metre sprint canoe finals at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. 

It’s been a long-time coming for the Chelsea athlete – training three to four times a day for the past few years, always with the goal of making it to Paris in mind, according to her father, Olaf Jensen. 

“Here we are after the culmination of three hard years of work leading up to the Olympics,” said Olaf. “[Our family] made the decision to go to the Olympics if she qualified.”

Sophia did more than qualify: speeding through her first heat with a first-place finish on Aug. 8, immediately advancing to the semi-finals on Aug. 10, and then securing a top four finish there to make it to the event’s finals later that day. Despite coming short of a podium spot in the final, Sophia set another personal record for herself with what Olaf said she stated was one of her best-ever performances. 

Among the over 20,000 who came to Paris to watch the sprint canoe races, Sophia’s support crew showed up – her father; mother, Allison Amero; brother, Ivan; good friend and C2 sprint canoe partner, Julia Lilley-Osende; and boyfriend, Jon. 

“For us, it was just amazing,” said Olaf. “There you are, at the Olympics, in front of a crowd of 24,000 people, we were feeling all the energy from the crowd and the emotion.”  

About 40 people – mostly Cascades Club members – had gathered back at home in Chelsea at the club for Sophia’s final race just before 8 a.m. on Aug. 10. 

Many of them proudly donned their red Cascades shirts, poured coffee, ate snacks and chatted about Sophia’s growth at the club. And when it was time for the race, there was near silence for a split second as the boats readied at the start line. 

And then it was all screams and hollers, as most in the room jumped off their seats to cheer their local paddler on. It was an intense 45 seconds. And, although it was clear about 15 seconds in that Sophia likely wouldn’t medal, there was still a major sense of pride surging through the room. 

“She’s just a beautiful athlete,” said former Cascades Club president Monica Dashwood, who said she has watched Sophia paddle on the Gatineau River since she was seven years old. 

She said from a very young age Sophia “understood” the water, how it moves and how it reacts with a boat, and that’s why she excelled so quickly. That, and because she was basically, “born in a boat” because her parents were such outdoorsy folk. Dashwood said watching Sophia realize her ultimate dream on the world’s biggest stage was “visceral.”

“It’s tears, it’s goosebumps,” said Dashwood. “To see her carve out this incredible, elite, high-performance niche that she just kind of went parallel in her life. It’s just amazing to see what sport has done for her, and it’s just reflected back to all of our athletes at the club.”

Following the race, Sophia was able to spend a quick few seconds on FaceTime and said “Hi” to her screaming fans at the club. 

“Thanks for being there, you guys, it means a lot,” said Sophia, minutes after the race. She then got the Cascades Club crew to pose in front of the camera for a photo, and said, “Thank you guys, you’re the best!”

Back in Paris, Olaf said that the family spent a quick night celebrating with Sophia after her performance in the finals, before she was whisked off the next day to take part in the closing ceremony. He was proud to point out that, at the ceremony, she was visible at the front of the Canadian team as they entered, cheering and hyping up the crowd. 

“What a great host city for the Olympics,” he added. “It was just so cool, very open and integrated into the city life – it was really fun [to be there].”The Low Down couldn’t coordinate a full interview with Sophia, as she is already on her way to the Swiss Alps for what her father is calling a “post-Olympics hike.” Congrats Sophia!

Chelsea paddler realizes Olympic dream Read More »

intense storm washes out chelsea

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

ustin Showler was up to his chest in raging water as he tried to save his Hollow Glen home from flooding. 

He eventually lost the battle. By the time the Aug. 9 storm had passed, eight inches of water had puddled in his recently finished basement; his front lawn was a lake; and the road he lives on – Hollow Glen – had been destroyed by water and debris, stranding multiple residents for hours. 

“It was intense,” said Showler, two days after the storm that washed out several roads throughout the municipality, including Chemin Fleury, Meech Lake, Mountain and Hollow Glen. He said the storm left a six-foot hole in the road in front of his house. 

“It could have been, in its biggest surge, an eight-foot-deep river on the road. It was such an unimaginable amount of water,” he said.

A massive storm hammered Chelsea Aug. 9, sending surging water and loads of debris – large boulders, branches, rocks and sticks – down Mountain Road and flooding multiple properties in Hollow Glen. More than 115 centimetres of rain hammered the region, forcing Chelsea to declare a state of emergency over the weekend to deal with the cleanup. 

Showler spent several hours building a temporary retaining wall during the storm, which was made of logs from his property. He said the wall would constantly wash away as more water flowed from the giant hill that borders Mountain Road. 

He said he was winning the battle until something gave way on the hill above, and a “raging river” came surging down the road. 

Showler noted that at one point two feet of water was flowing across Hollow Glen Road, and when he went to speak to a firefighter on the road, he fell into the rushing water, as the road below had washed away. He worked desperately to pull himself out, as he was getting pummelled by rocks, sticks and branches that had been swept from the hill above. 

“It was scary,” Showler told the Low Down. “I fell in, up to my chest, in rushing water, because I thought there was a road there, but it was all eroded underneath, and I fell in. I had to climb out of the rushing water and then get back to my property, which eventually was an island.”

He managed to get back to his home safely, but by that time his makeshift dykes had given way, and his basement was taking in water. 

“At a certain point, when we had fully lost and there was eight inches of water and three pumps still going in the basement, and the whole property was under water, you just stop,” said Showler, adding that he cracked a beer and sat on the deck to “watch the river go by” because there was “nothing more to be done.”

Several of Showler’s neighbours were also stranded and couldn’t get in or out of their properties for several hours. 

The Meech Lake area was also heavily affected, and the Chelsea Fire Department was forced to evacuate several residents by boat. 

“We used boats to evacuate 10 people from the far end of Meech Lake Road,” Chelsea Fire Chief Charles Éthier told the Low Down. The fire department borrowed boats from local residents and the National Capital Commission to ferry residents from their land-locked homes to O’Brien Beach. 

“We had approximately 12 firefighters working at that particular location. The first emergency call came in at 3:11 p.m. and the firefighters were able to head home around 10 p.m.”

Éthier spoke of the challenges that firefighters and Public Works employees were up against with the storm and said that residents should be prepared for emergencies by packing a 72-hour kit that has everything they may need. He said that Chelsea residents showed “resilience” in the midst of this weekend’s emergency. 

“We cannot be at all places at the same time, and everyone must prioritize,” he told the Low Down.  “Even though the storm had major impacts on Chelsea, 9-1-1 was not overwhelmed with calls from Chelsea residents. We are proud of that fact and that the residents make contingent plans in advance with their neighbours and families.” A bridge at Hendrick Farm was also destroyed by the storm. 

According to the municipality, as of noon on Aug. 12, all municipal roads had been reopened, but the state of emergency has remained in place so that crews can continue working on infrastructure. The municipality extended the measure for another 10 days on Aug. 12. 

Mayor Pierre Guénard praised his staff, namely Public Works employees who worked around the clock to keep residents safe and roads open. 

“Some staff were leaving for holidays. They put a hold on that. They came back to town hall,” he said. “As mayor, and for the team of directors, our main focus is the safety of the population. I’m very glad that nobody in Chelsea, to my knowledge, was hurt. Roads we can repair, but a human life is priceless.”

‘Rolling thunder’ wasn’t thunder 

Erin Gregg lives on Mountain Road near Hollow Glen and said she and her kids heard “rolling thunder” during the Aug. 9  storm – around 3 p.m.  – but didn’t see any lightning. 

That’s when Gregg said she was horrified to see a landslide on the hill above, and loads of water, boulders, sticks and other debris were gushing down towards her property. At the storm’s peak, more than three feet of water raged past her husband James Brooks’ workshop, eventually flooding the inside of the building. 

“[My son] went out to check it out on the deck and said, ‘Mom, I can hear the rolling thunder.’ And I was like, ‘That is not rolling thunder, that’s – that’s the forest coming down.’ And sure enough, less than a minute later, just boom,” Gregg told the Low Down, describing what she said was a river of mud, sand, branches and large boulders that were tumbling down from the hill above.    Two days later, her property looks like a messy beach, with sand and mud washed up to nearly her shed roof. Gregg, Brooks and several other neighbours will spend the next weeks dealing with insurance and trying to coordinate a cleanup. Their home, which is higher up on the property, was spared from flooding. 

This is the second major property crisis this couple has had. In 2001, Gregg and Brooks’ log home was completely destroyed by fire. They rebuilt and now have to deal with another big property cleanup. 

But it’s not only them. Scores of Chelsea residents spent the rest of the weekend cleaning up their properties that had mounds of debris strewn about. Nick Atourelle and his wife, Jovie Bilodeau, were lucky enough to avoid getting water in their basement, but they worked hard during the storm, using planks to divert the water and debris away from their property off Mountain Road. By Monday, large heaps of sand and debris were piled beside their driveway, which had tumbled from the hills above. Like other residents, Atourelle said he recalls hearing a loud bang before the surge of water came flowing down. 

“There was thunder rumbling, and we’re like, ‘There’s no lightning, we haven’t seen lightning. What’s going on?’ And then I looked out the window, and the water was coming over top of the road,” said Atourelle. “We were freaking out because we could see that it was coming down the road.” 

Mayor Pierre Guénard said that cleanup will take “weeks” in some areas, and added that he and staff will be meeting with the National Capital Commission (NCC) in the coming days to assess damage and coordinate a repair plan.  Over the weekend, the NCC closed most of its Gatineau Park trails to walkers, hikers and cyclists. The storm closed the Champlain Parkway between the Fortune and Gatineau parkways and took out several footbridges along Trail 13. By Aug. 11, the parkways were reopened, but Dunlop Road remains closed. 

intense storm washes out chelsea Read More »

Rapids bolster blue line with Royals defence duo

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

It may be the off-season, but the Paugan Falls Rapids brass have continued to work the phones all summer, looking for ways to get better before the hockey season rolls around.

They did that in late July when they added two standout defencemen from the Bytown Royals – players that management say will be a “force on the blue line.”

“One of our off-season goals was to add two more high-calibre defencemen to our defensive group,” said Rapids head coach and general manager Randy Peck in a statement.

The Rapids picked up former Royal, Timothy Cousineau, who led all Eastern Ontario Super Hockey League (EOSHL) defencemen with an impressive 12 goals and 10 assists in just 16 games this past season. The 6’2” defender from Aylmer split his junior hockey between the Gatineau Flames and the Rockland Nationals. Cousineau also spent two seasons with the CEGEP Outaouais Griffins and captained the team to a championship in 2022. 

The Rapids also acquired Royals defenceman Jacob Roy-Lauzon, who logged big minutes last season and notched 12 points over the 16-game campaign. 

The addition of the two, six-foot-plus defencemen will certainly add grit and offence to an already stellar Rapids blue line. 

“We feel that Tim and Jacob will be a perfect fit to take our defence to the next level, and we can’t wait to see them in Rapids blue this season,” added Peck. 

“Known for his excellent skating and offensive prowess, Timothy [Cousineau] is expected to make a significant impact on the Rapids’ defensive corps,” added the team in a statement. 

The Rapids opened its inaugural season last year with the goal of making the playoffs in its first year in the league. The team delivered, when they not only made the playoffs, but also took out the top-seeded Royals in the first round after a dramatic overtime win at home in front of 500 fans. 

The team lost in the second round against the North Dundas Rockets. The Rapids will hope to catch some of the magic from last season when they suit up again this fall. 

Wanna be a Rapid? 

Do you want to be a Rapids hero like Bryan Kealey was last year when he won it all in overtime? Can you skate like the wind? Can you hit like a train? The Rapids are hosting open tryouts for hockey players who can tough it out in one of the grittiest senior men’s leagues around – the EOSHL. The Rapids will be hosting tryouts at the Masham arena on Aug. 28. Hockey players must first register at pauganfallsrapids.com/tryouts to participate.

Rapids bolster blue line with Royals defence duo Read More »

Anglos may need English certificate for healthcare

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

A new health directive from the CAQ government suggests that “historic anglophones” will have to supply an eligibility certificate to receive medical care in English. 

The new directive, unveiled last week under the heading of “oral and written” communication, states that historic anglophones must meet two criteria in order to receive communication from a health network exclusively in English. 

The two criteria include:

• They have been “issued the document Déclaration d’admissibilité à recevoir l’enseignement en anglais du ministère de l’Éducation du Québec,” otherwise known as the English-language eligibility certificate;

• They must also “expressly request (English services).”

Historic anglophones are Quebec residents who have received English education in Canada or those whose parents were educated in English. The government already requires anglophone students to produce eligibility requirements to attend English CEGEPs. The other possibility is if Quebec anglophones can prove that prior to May 13, 2021 they had corresponded “only in English” with a health network institution regarding their medical file, and the institution is able to confirm this English-only correspondence before that date.

The suggestion of an eligibility requirement for anglophones is part of the CAQ government’s 31 pages of directives outlining when health professionals are permitted to speak English to patients in hospitals and clinics throughout the province. 

Health watchdog Vigi Santé spokesperson Marcel Chartrand called these directives “extremely disappointing.”

“My concern is with the delay in providing care. To me, that is crucial,” he told the Low Down. “If you are not well, every delay will just exacerbate your situation.” It has also proven difficult for anglophones to receive English certificates for CEGEP acceptance, as a backlog in the province has caused major delays and forced thousands of students to miss months of school at the beginning of last year. 

Chartrand said he worries about anglophone residents not being able to get basic health information from local CLSCs. 

The facility in Masham does not have official bilingual status. Chartrand said his organization recently dropped off some English flyers at the Masham clinic, but after someone complained to the Office québécois de la langue française (OLF), the flyers were removed from the racks. 

“We had a flyer listing all the services and the phone numbers that someone could access for citizen services – senior services, vaccinations,” said Chartrand.

“Now you cannot find anything in the CLSC that is written in the English language,” said Chartrand. “You have to ask for it. That’s how far the law goes now; it’s crazy.”

Chartrand did confirm that the Wakefield Hospital does have official bilingual status, but critics across the province aren’t convinced that a bilingual status will guarantee English services at hospitals or clinics. 

Montreal lawyer and chair of the Coalition for Quality Health and Social Services Eric Maldoff told the Montreal Gazette that, under Bill 96, the province’s overhaul of the Charter of the French Language, the new directives would also apply to bilingual hospitals. 

Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) director-general Sylvia Martin-Laforge told the Low Down that her organization even met with Minister Responsible for Relations with English-speaking Quebecers Eric Girard a month ago and was assured that access to English healthcare would not change for anglophones. 

“[Girard] was saying, ‘There’s no problem, don’t worry,’” Martin-Laforge recalled. “How can anyone say ‘don’t worry’ when they are imposing these directives on the healthcare sector?”

The QCGN is calling for a full exemption from Bill 96 in the health and social services sector. 

The MNA for this riding, Robert Bussière, has repeatedly ignored calls from our newspaper on this issue. 

List of official bilingual hospitals and clinics in the Outaouais

CLSC de Chapeau

CLSC de Mansfield-et-Pontefract

CLSC d’Otter-Lake

CLSC de Quyon

CLSC de Rapides-des-Joachims

CLSC et centre de services externes pour les aînés de Shawville

Hôpital du Pontiac

Hôpital Mémorial de Wakefield/Wakefield Memorial Hospital

Anglos may need English certificate for healthcare Read More »

Critics decry CAQ’s English healthcare directives

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Editor-in-Chief

Less than a year ago, Gatineau MNA Robert Bussière told the Low Down that English health care rights would be “grandfathered in” for those who were born in Quebec and for those who were Quebec residents before the CAQ government adopted the Bill 15 health reform in December of 2023. 

And two years ago, just before the CAQ adopted Bill 96 – the province’s overhaul of the Charter of the French Language – Premier François Legault told reporters that his government “will not refuse to treat patients in English if it’s needed.”

However, earlier this month, this same government announced a 31-page directive spelling out the “exceptional” circumstances in which English is permitted to be spoken in hospitals and other medical facilities. 

Inspectors with the province’s language police, the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) have expanded their inspections to hospitals and clinics, pulling workers from important duties to ensure they are speaking French to all patients.  The new health directives include a number of imagined linguistic scenarios  in hospitals and medical clinics that are outlined in painstaking detail.

Directives to health care on the use of English (SUBHEAD)

In light of the new directives that healthcare professionals are to adhere to regarding the use of English in healthcare settings, we are republishing some quotes from politicians who have, in the past, promised that English rights will be protected under Bill 96 and Bill 15. 

But these promises made by ruling politicians seem to be out of line with the new directives. Legault went as far as saying that Bill 96 “changes nothing” for English patients, but the new directives clearly change how English patients will be treated. One directive speaks to a 14-year-old girl who is having an abortion. If she’s brought in by her aunt, who can’t speak French, an exception would be made and English would be permitted. 

“A 14-year-old girl (the legal age for making decisions without parental consent) goes to the youth clinic of a local community service centre to have an abortion. She is accompanied by her aunt or friend, who will be responsible for following the instructions after the procedure. Since this person does not understand French, it is permissible to give her the checklist in another language,” the directive reads. See some of the directives on this page, along with reactions from critics and what the politicians promised us when adopting Bills 96 and 15. 

“An anglophone father arrives at the hospital with his 10-year-old son, who can speak French. The child’s condition is serious and will require immediate medical intervention. If the health professional is able to, they can use English to obtain the father’s consent without delay.”

“An operator at the 811 health hotline receives a call from an adolescent who is in a state of psychosis and who is speaking in English. The operator is able to communicate in English too.”

“A patient shows signs that his or her health and safety may be compromised in the short term (because of suicidal signs, worrisome or threatening attitudes or behaviour, etc.). Staff may use a language other than French to ensure prompt and appropriate care.”

“It is possible to use another language, in addition to French, when the exclusive use of French is not possible and the communication is (needed) to repatriate a (dead) body.”

What the critics say (SUBHED)

“It’s appalling….The premiere and every one of his ministers told us, ‘don’t worry, be happy – nothing will change.’ Well, that’s not true. How can anyone say ‘don’t worry’ when they are imposing these directives on the healthcare sector?” 

– Sylvia Martin-Laforge, Director-general of the Quebec Community Groups Network

“If you go into the emergency and if somebody had to interpret whether or not they can speak in the language of your choice, then there is another delay in care. If you are having a heart attack, it’s not good. Every minute counts… “This is another example of where the Language Act oversteps its boundaries.”

– Marcel Chartrand, 

Vigi Santé spokesperson

What the politicians told us about protecting English healthcare (SUBHED)

“If you go to the hospital and you were born in Quebec, you’re entitled to your service in English, and that will continue forever. If you are here at the time when we adopt [Bill 15], you’re allowed to have your services, and we will continue giving them to you.”

– MNA Robert Bussière, CAQ party, 2023

“I want to reassure anyone speaking English, including immigrants that we will not refuse to treat patients in English if it’s needed. I want to be very clear: there is no change at all in the actual situation of services given to anglophones and immigrants in English in our healthcare system.”

– François Legault, CAQ premier of Quebec, 2022

“There will be no changes in services for anglos or in the status of their hospitals. I just want to be clear on that.”

– Christian Dubé, 

CAQ Quebec Health Minister, 2023

“When you go to the hospital and you’re in pain, you may need a blood test, but you certainly don’t need a language test.”

– Lucien Bouchard, Parti Québécois premier,  1996

“As a doctor, my mandate is to help the person that is in front of me and in order to help that person, the best way I can communicate is the best way to help them. So, if that person has trouble speaking French, I will speak English to them.”

– Dr. Peter Bonneville, ER doctor in Gatineau

Critics decry CAQ’s English healthcare directives Read More »

Villagers resurrected ‘impossible’ bridge project

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Editor-in-Chief

It may have taken just seven minutes for the Wakefield covered bridge to burn down, but it would take another 13 years until the big red iconic bridge was resurrected over top of the Gatineau River. 

Not because there wasn’t interest in rebuilding it, but raising hundreds of thousands of dollars in a small town in the 1980s was no small feat. But no challenge was too great for the late Norma Walmsley. 

“When you think of it, it was an impossible job,” says Joan Garnett, sitting in her Wakefield apartment in early July. It’s been 13 long years since her partner Walmsley died, but Garnett will never forget the tenacity and dedication she had to rebuild the bridge. Walmsley had a lot of friends, but many would avoid her on the street when they saw her coming their way – certain she was going to hit them up for a donation or two.

“Of course, Norma walked around with her receipt book and people would cross the street or look down or whatever,” said Garnett laughing. “Then she would go to meetings and she would get all those people to give an aid. It was such a relief when that was over.”

The commitment to rebuild the bridge began the night it burned—on July 10, 1984, when Walmsley and Garnett watched their beloved bridge collapse into the Gatineau River, one flaming section at a time. 

Former Low Down reporter Ernie Mahoney wrote in his 1997 Up the Gatineau! article that “Norma Walmsley viewed the conflagration in a state of shock from her home high on the hillside overlooking the bridge. It was then that she vowed that the bridge must be rebuilt, even as the flames were dying.”

The Wakefield Covered Bridge Committee held its first meeting on Nov. 13, 1987. A first plan was drawn up – but it depended on a temporary replacement “bailey bridge” the province put in place but would later remove when the permanent twin-lane concrete bridge (near the current Wakefield police station) was built.

The chairman of the committee at the time, Col. Guy Tremblay, went back to the drawing board and rethought the project, legally incorporating the Wakefield Covered Bridge Project. The new design featured a bi-level walking/cycling structure made of steel and was clad in wood. It also included shopping kiosks, toilets and the possibility of a restaurant. The price tag on that was around $2 million. 

Over the next two years, the designs of the bridge changed; interest in a two-tiered bridge had waned. The project was redesigned in 1990 to be an exact replica of the original 1915 Gendron Bridge, for walking and cycling, at an estimated cost of $600,000 and fundraising really took off. The theme of the campaign was “buy a beam, buy a bolt, buy a board,” allowing lower-income families to contribute in a way they could afford. 

In spring, 1991, Walmsley, with the help of her fundraising assistants Anita Rutledge and Ann Chudleigh, began to seriously bring in the bucks with outdoor concerts, fundraising dinners and a giant village yard sale. The committe raised $30,000 through golf tournaments, a strawberry social and a stuffed gorilla that was stolen, replaced and then auctioned off for $1,000. Fundraising would continue, and by 1993, there was more than $70,000 in the bank. Fundraising efforts would ultimately bring in over $350,000 for the $600,000 bridge. The rest of the money came in the form of government grants. 

When building began in 1994, the bridge committee didn’t have much trouble finding volunteers. Maybe at first, but when then-construction coordinator Neil Faulkner moved the building site from Morrison’s Quarry to Riverside Drive, locals could see the project taking form and wanted to be a part of it.  

“We wanted to move it up to the village where the school is now, because it was visible,” said Faulkner from his home in Wakefield. He said locals would drive by and see these massive bridge sections taking form and the sight would force some of them to pull over immediately to grab a hammer or make plans to return to help.  “It had to be visible, you know, working in a hidden place didn’t get anybody’s attention. So that was a key move that we accomplished.”

Through a federal grant, the committee hired civil engineer Rob MacLeod and builder Mario Breton who led the construction project, along with four students who became the main six-man crew who built the bridge. And they had a lot of work to do: cut 150,000 feet of lumber from boom logs, and build four massive bridge spans and 148 roof trusses. But the real challenge came later – how in the heck would they raise, transport and connect the giant spans to form the 90-metre bridge?

“The river is swift, there are rapids immediately downstream from the bridge, and the western approaches are steep and narrow with private properties bordering both sides of the road. Given our lean bank account, least risk and lowest cost were invariably the most important considerations,” Faulkner wrote in his 1997 Up the Gatineau! article.  After much deliberation, the plan was made to launch the giant bridge spans onto several barges that were moored near the Wakefield General Store. It took 15 hours and the use of two hydraulic cranes to load the bridge spans onto transport trucks that haul the giant structures to the river. Tugboats would then pull the barges to the bridge site, where workers would connect them all together. It was a sight to be seen – two 45-metre bridge spans lifted over the fast-flowing Gatineau River, some 16 feet in the air, then meticulously aimed and set down on the bridge abutments. It took crews seven risky hours before the bridge sections were secured on the piers below, as volunteers and villagers anxiously watched from the shore. 

“That was very touchy,” Faulkner recalled. “It was a huge relief when they touched down because, I mean, if you make a mistake, it could crash into something, it could be dumped and then what would we do?”

Once the sections were installed, workers continued to install rafters for the roof, installed the tin and had Wakefield Elementary students and cops out to paint sections of the red cladding.  In the end, nearly 2,000 volunteers worked tirelessly over 13 years to see their red, iconic bridge turn from dream to reality. While it’s impressive, Faulkner is not surprised so many offered their support. 

“There’s something unique about the covered bridge in Wakefield,” he said. “Bridges are just a way to bring people together, whether it’s to go to the other side, or to help, bridges do that. I’m ready to put that on my tombstone.”

The Wakefield covered bridge was officially opened on Oct. 4, 1997, and it quickly became much more than just a thoroughfare for pedestrians and cyclists. Numerous locals have been married on the bridge, the Wakefield Grannies have held concerts and many a  photographer has used it as a backdrop for weddings, portraits and grad ceremonies. For years it was a rite of passage for young villagers to hurl themselves off into the dark waters below – though bridge jumping and more recently, even swimming has been banned by the municipality.  Still, tourists and some locals still gather at the rocks near the beloved bridge to sunbathe, sneak in a quick swim if they can, or launch a flotilla from the rapids.  

The bridge has become a hub of village life. 

Villagers resurrected ‘impossible’ bridge project Read More »

Chelsea home struck by lightning catches fire

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

Firefighters in Chelsea managed to control a house fire after lightning struck it on July 24, but Fire Chief Charles Éthier said the blaze could have been much worse. 

Nobody was injured, and a family cat was rescued from the burning home. 

Fire crews were on the scene on Summit Road just off Hwy 105 in Larrimac within seven minutes of the call, said Éthier, noting that had firefighters not been in the station maintaining equipment, it would have taken them much longer to respond. He said the department’s quick response time helped crews limit the fire to only 20 per cent of the house. 

“Like every Wednesday, we had a team of four firefighters working at the fire station doing equipment and vehicle inspections and different chores. Therefore, our time of response was seven minutes, which is very, very good,” Chief Éthier wrote in an email. “Otherwise, it could take up to 20 minutes depending on different factors, which obviously has consequences on the evolution and damage of the fire.”

On July 24, a severe afternoon thunderstorm ripped through the Gatineau Hills, downing trees and powerlines and crumpling an outdoor tent at the Meredith Centre. One of several lightning strikes hit the home on Summit Road, setting the roof on fire, according to Éthier. He said that the owner was not home at the time, but crews were able to save the homeowner’s cat. 

“The neighbours called 911 after going outside after hearing a big bang, smelling smoke, and seeing flames from the roof,” added Éthier. 

The Chelsea Fire Chief encourages everyone in the Hills to be prepared for sudden emergencies. He urges homeowners to put together a 72-hour emergency kit and have it ready, as storms and other weather events can come without warning. 

“With climate changes, such events will happen more and more frequently, therefore, residents should be prepared,” he said.  “They should have their 72-hour emergency kit ready and listen to the news for weather updates and emergency alerts.”

Chelsea home struck by lightning catches fire Read More »

Four decades later, Wakefield’s own whodunnit remains a mystery

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway
editor@lowdownonline.com

When Joan Garnett peered out her Wakefield window in the late evening of July 10, 1984, all she could see were flames. 

Wakefield’s treasured wooden bridge – a village icon that had spanned the Gatineau River for 69 years – was a fiery inferno. Villagers were out on their docks or scattered along the riverbank, watching the structure crack and bust apart span by span – many of them, like Garnett and her partner, Norma Walmsley, aghast as the violent flames tore through the nearly 90 metres of wood in a matter of minutes. It was precisely 40 years ago from this edition’s publication date. 

“We were up, and we saw it start,” said Garnett from her home in Wakefield. Back then, she was living with Walmsley just off Wakefield Heights Road, and their living room had a clear, first-row view of the bridge. The two would spend hours on their deck, taking in the iconic site they loved so dearly. But that night, they couldn’t bear to watch their beloved bridge burn. “We saw it, and we pulled the curtains closed.”

After a few minutes, the pair decided to walk down to the water’s edge, where several other residents were gathered “in their nightclothes,” Garnett said. “It didn’t take long [for it to burn]. It broke in two; one part remained, and the other floated. It was just like an ocean liner going down and crackling all the way. I just couldn’t believe it.”

Garnett recalled hearing the steam off the wood hiss as the walls and the roof became ablaze, and within minutes, bits of the burned bridge were floating down the river. 

By morning, all that was left were two grey piers – a difficult sight to see, according to many locals. Garnett said the whole ordeal was “surreal.”

“It didn’t really sink in until the next morning, and I saw the piers,” said Garnett. 

Investigators from the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) deemed the incident arson, as the culprit or culprits rolled a car full of gasoline onto the bridge around 11 p.m. The 69-year-old structure was lit on fire, entirely burned, and its several charred sections sent floating down the Gatineau River – all within seven minutes.

Mysteries within a mystery

Forty years later, the case remains unsolved, and the police files – the 9-1-1 call, the police report and any other authoritative information about the case – have been sealed. It has become Wakefield’s own whodunnit. The Low Down tried to unseal some of the documents through an access to information request, but was told that some of the files have been “purified.”

“Depending on the nature of the files, they are destroyed after a certain number of years,” wrote SQ Media Relations Officer Sgt. Marc Tessier. “This file is no longer available.”

Typically, the Low Down would be a perfect source for this information, as the local paper covered the burning, the criminal case and the impressive and successful campaign to rebuild it 13 years later. But when we looked in our files, someone had ripped out all the coverage from our bound archive books – every article about the case is missing. We only found a Gatineau Valley Historical Society feature article by former Low Down reporter, the late Ernie Mahoney. 

In his Up the Gatineau article from 1997, he noted that the Low Down ran the headline, “Heart Torn Out of Village”. The article also referred to David McAfee’s gripping photograph “of the blazing bridge spans collapsing into the water.” 

“Even to this day, some people will not look at the photo, as they claim it is akin to looking at a dying relative, so much was the intense passion associated with the famous landmark,” wrote Mahoney. “Witnesses said that there was nothing that could be done to stop the fire, and that even a nearby house was in danger of catching fire. Its aluminum siding was hot to the touch.”

Despite the mystery, Wakefielders in the 1980s certainly had their theories. 

“You would get all these people phoning and saying, ‘I think I know who did it, I know who did it,’ and that went on for about two weeks,” said Judy Grant, the editor of the Low Down at the time. 

She also didn’t know about the ripped-out pages in the Low Down’s archives. 

When asked about it, Grant said she couldn’t recall much of the Low Down’s specific coverage, but she did remember the day after the fire – when she arrived at the office to see a large photograph of the bridge on fire pinned to the Low Down door. 

Grant said she refused to run the photo, thinking the arsonists wanted to see their “dirty work” on the front page. 

“I was afraid to put it on the front page. Someone had set this fire, and I thought, ‘Somebody wants this printed very badly.’ And so I didn’t put it on the front page…”

Why then-publisher Art Mantell didn’t enforce the journalism mantra of “if it bleeds it leads” is yet another mystery.

“When something like this happens, everybody has their ideas of who did it, but what a stupid thing it was to do something like that,” said Grant, pointing out that it left people on the other side of the Gatineau River stranded.

The ‘congestion’ theory

Despite the mystery surrounding the identity of the arsonist or arsonists, many witnesses, residents and journalists agree on the motive: truck drivers sometimes had to wait hours to cross the single-lane bridge to get across the Gatineau River. 

The original bridge, built in 1915, was the only bridge between Chelsea and Low linking both shores of the Gatineau River, and delays could be long on busy weekends, holidays or during rush hour. The only other option was a nearly 30-kilometre detour to the nearest crossing. The bridge was also in extreme disrepair, and the province had not committed any funding or action to repair it. 

The theory is that a trucker, or truckers, torched the bridge so that the province would be forced to build another two-lane bridge, which it did in 1987 – the concrete and steel bridge that you now see near the Wakefield police station. 

“There would be lineups on weekends, and the delays would be high during the ski season,” said Wakefielder Neil Faulkner. He wasn’t living in Wakefield when the bridge burned down but became a significant player in the rebuilding efforts during the 13-year build. “I used to go over [to Wakefield] to go skiing, and it wasn’t too bad. But there were periods where there’d be quite a lineup. There are pictures of trucks that had [partially] fallen through – it was in really bad shape.”

It didn’t take long for Wakefielders to rally for a new covered bridge. In fact, Mahoney reported that it was the night of the fire when Walmsley vowed to rebuild it. 

“Norma Walmsley viewed the conflagration in a state of shock from her home high on the hillside overlooking the bridge,” wrote Mahoney. “It was then that she vowed that the bridge must be rebuilt, even as the flames were dying.”

Walmsley took charge of fundraising and spent the next decade-plus raising money and rallying the community to build a new bridge. 

The new bridge was finally completed on Oct. 4, 1997, but what happened between 1984 and 1997 “would astound even the greatest skeptics,” as Mahoney put it. 

Read Part 2 of this series on July 31 and the story of how a small village built a multi-million dollar bridge against all odds. 

Four decades later, Wakefield’s own whodunnit remains a mystery Read More »

Entrance to village not being developed yet

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

editor@lowdownonline.com

Remi Robert is not building condos on Valley Drive. 

He’s not deforesting the area around Wakefield Spring or selling the 32 acres of forest to a developer – not yet, anyway. 

The Wakefield resident and owner of Rona in the village built a driveway off Valley Drive that leads to his property on Chemin Labarge. The sight of a laneway cut through the forest earlier this spring has caused panic and alarm among nearby residents, who told the Low Down that they fear the entire Rockhurst hill will be developed into homes. 

According to Robert, he’s “open to anything,” but he wanted to be clear that nothing is imminent. No deals have been signed with developers; no development plans submitted to the municipality; and no design plans drawn up for the area. 

“It’s just a driveway,” said Robert from his hardware store in Wakefield. “It’s a long driveway. It’s not a road. People have been saying that it looks like a road, but it’s my driveway.”

The driveway was cut in early spring, and a torrential downpour on June 6 caused sand and mud on the driveway to slide. The debris blocked a nearby storm drain, causing significant flooding on Valley Drive, forcing the municipality to close the road for several hours while they worked to clear the drain. 

Robert said he has since installed crushed stone and an 18-inch culvert to divert the water. He told the Low Down that the driveway wasn’t completed when it washed out. The property is near the Wakefield stream, a popular source of drinking water that many Hills residents rely on. The municipality built a zone of protection around the spring to prevent potential damage from development. 

Robert said he’s very aware of the zone of protection around the Wakefield Spring and agrees that protecting the spring is paramount to any future development. 

“I’ve been here 35 years, so I care about that spring more than anybody,” said Robert. “This water comes from the spring right here, what we drink,” he added, pointing to a water cooler inside Rona. “I would never do anything to harm the spring in any way whatsoever.”

Robert said he built the driveway so that he would no longer have to drive his heavy equipment down Rockhurst Road, with its winding curves and hilly stretches where kids usually play or bike along the road. 

The 32 acres off of Valley Drive are inside Wakefield’s urban perimeter, meaning they could be developed in the future. Robert said he knows how sensitive people are about development in Wakefield, but he’s also aware of the region’s housing crisis. With a growing region, he questions where everyone is going to live. He said he’s open to condos, affordable housing apartments or forested private lots. 

“There could be a development there, and there’s almost no limit to what it could be,” he said about the Rockhurst property. “But I haven’t done anything in that way yet other than just talking and evaluating.” 

Robert said the forest is a “gem” in the village. “There are huge, huge pine trees and spruces. And it’s just gorgeous. We’re open to anything.”

La Pêche Mayor Guillaume Lamoureux confirmed that Robert did get municipal approval to build a laneway.

Entrance to village not being developed yet Read More »

Patriotic canucks gear up for Hills Canada Day parties

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

editor@lowdownonline.com

Patriotic residents across the Hills are gearing up for another epic Canada Day this July 1 and judging by the parties that are happening locally, there’s lots to be proud of. 

In Wakefield, things are kicking off early with a village parade at 12:30 p.m. that will see scores of trucks, cars, bikes and probably a few lawn tractors take over Riverside Drive en route to the community centre. Once there, it’s party time. Opening ceremonies officially begin at 1:30 p.m. which launches a roster of fun activities for both kids and adults. There’s a bouncy castle, dunk tank and kids games from 2-4 p.m. while a silent auction will entice festivalgoers to open their wallets and give. A roster of Hills artists including kids from Bluesfest’s Be in the Band program, Duust, Claire Bestland and the headliners: Montreal’s Urban Science Brass Band. 

Up in Low, things start off a bit later with a 3 p.m. parade and kids games running indoors from 4 to 7p.m. There will also be outdoor activities from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. as the live music starts. Ottawa band Sugar and Old Spice will play a set of classic covers at 4 p.m. before Ottawa party band Your Porch Or Mine turns the Low Arena grounds into a country dance floor at 7 p.m. The night culminates with a fireworks show at 10 p.m.

At Chelsea’s Le Terrasse du Square, there will be a Canada Day Party from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with DJs, buskers, inflatable kids games and food. 

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coop votes yes to community centre transfer

Local Journalism Initiative / / /

By Trevor Greenway

The membership has spoken. 

The Centre Wakefield-La Pêche (CWLP) cooperative has voted to transfer the building to the municipality. 

After three long years of infighting, “finger pointing,” and struggling to keep up with the aging building and its pile of bills, the membership sent a clear message that it wants to see real change. 

In a landslide vote June 20, close to 82 per cent of coop members voted in favour of handing the keys over to the municipality. While an agreement has yet to be finalized, the plan is for the board to continue to focus on programming and keep the centre buzzing with events, while the municipality will handle pretty much everything else – from the aging roof that will need to be replaced to plumbing problems to upgrading the centre’s audio-visual equipment. The details still need to be worked out, and an agreement must be signed.

“This is a point in time where we can embrace the opportunity to let go or move forward from the past and to connect and step into what our possibilities could be for the future,” said CWLP Board President Julie Coté. “It’s less about the finger-pointing and the angst. I’m really hoping that we can get together and really start to create that culture of art and recreation back into the community centre.”

The “past” she refers to is years of poor governance that saw the centre go through five director generals in as many years, controversial firings and several years of disputes between past and current board members over financials. 

However, with 225 out of 276 members voting in favour of transferring the building to the municipality, it’s clear that the coop wants to move forward rather than keep the status quo. 

“I think it’s a move in the right direction,” said former board member and employee Carly Woods.  “I think it’s a final step, a big step, moving forward in where we need to go.”

When she was a board member, Woods worked long hours on the draft agreement that is now the framework for the municipal transfer. She has experience on both sides—as an employee and as a board member—and said she has no doubt that the deal will be a boon for both the community and the municipality. With the municipality managing the building, the board can look ahead instead of struggling through each day. 

“It’s always been a burden on the centre’s board,” added Woods, referring to the ongoing challenges of heating, repairing and maintaining a large building, which took them away from programming, rentals and events.  “[The board’s] focus should be on the future, and not the ‘now.’ And it was always the ‘now’ with the building. So now they can really focus on the future of our coop and centre.”

She also knows how many hours volunteers put into the centre and said removing the responsibility of maintaining the building will be a relief for current and future board members. 

“Being on the board for the centre has been exhausting for, I think, at least since Sally Swan was president on the board in 2016.”

Under the current framework of the draft agreement, the municipality of La Pêche will essentially become the landlord of the building and will allow the coop to run the centre rent-free. All repairs will become the municipality’s responsibility, while the board will still maintain control over the centre’s programming, staffing, and its youth centre, the WAY. 

Coté said the board will now create a transfer committee within the board to start negotiating a final contract with the municipality. If there are any significant changes, the membership will be made aware. 

“We’re definitely happy to have this behind us,” added Coté. “It’s been a very it’s been pretty tumultuous. It’s been tough.”

La Pêche Mayor Guillaume Lamoureux said the 82 per cent vote shows that the membership is confident that the municipality will act in the coop’s interest. 

“People are confident that this can only help the coop and the board,” said Lamoureux. As I have said many times before, the municipality wants to help the coop be more viable. With the municipality taking care of the building, the coop will finally be able to focus all of its energy on programming.”

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