Photo caption: Ville de Gatineau general director Simon Rousseau joins Mayor France Bélisle and councillor Steve Moran in sharing the findings from a recent study from l’Observatoire de l’Outaouais.
Photo credit: Taylor Clark
A shift is needed within the Ville de Gatineau to deliver an ambitious plan for the future of its centre-ville, Mayor France Bélisle told journalists at a press briefing following a meeting of the Table de concertation du centre-ville on February 2.
“Sometimes I find that what we have heard is very positive. We are not here in a world of cuddlybears where we tell ourselves that everything is perfect,” said Bélisle. “We are in a world where we say we roll up our sleeves. Let’s become ambassadors of solidarity. And to be ambassadors ofsolidarity, we need a clear plan.”
For the first time, members at the table were joined by the commission du développement du territoire et de l’habitation and commission de développement économique to review the findingsfrom a study by l’Observatoire de l’Outaouais.
Carried out at the request of the city, the study, entitled Étude sur l’attractivité et la diversification économique du centre-ville de Gatineau , highlighted various challenges faced by the sector and recommended possible solutions.
The study laid out six courses of action and three conditions for success. It underlined the fact that recommendations do not establish a public policy proposal or action and that the final say would be up to the Ville de Gatineau and its partners to prioritize actions.
“I don’t think the data we saw concerning the downtown is surprising,” said Bélisle. “What I feel is that the plan is not clear; people are looking for what is happening. People clearly don’t understand where we’re going. We need to take note of that and do better.”
Bélisle was joined by Hull-Wright district councillor Steve Moran, who also sits on the Table de concertation du centre-ville, and general director Simon Rousseau.
The research revealed a “certain confusion” that has emerged around downtown governance and the multitude of roles and responsibilities which Rousseau said would be reviewed.
“I don’t want us to pretend to take what has been done and throw it in the trash,” said the general director. “That’s not how we’re going to do things. I think we will really be in continuous improvement. If we want to move to another level, we must do it a little differently.”
Another hurdle comes with citizens’ sense of belonging to the centre-ville. In a city that has been amalgamated for over 20 years, Bélisle noted that people’s attachment was naturally to their sector.
“We have to get out of this logic of competition because we’re actually responding to different needs for the various people in the region,” said Moran. “Our downtown must be defined as a collective. This means that it must meet the needs of the entire region, not just the people of a certain sector, but of the entire Outaouais.”
But a sense of belonging takes time, said Bélisle. “We won’t see gains in 48 hours, nor next year. We will have to talk about it again in ten years.”
In the meantime, an annual action plan should come to light in March, as well as budget requests in the context of the 2025 budget.
“Then, we will have a little clearer idea of what we are doing and what the financial commitments are.”