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We know, for instance, that with Lansdowne redevelopment, what was promised turned out to be concepts no one intended to implement. In particular, once things move behind closed doors and planners and developers get together to thrash out the fine details, how do we really ensure fidelity to the original plan? Let’s face it, the driving force behind this proposal is the owner of a hockey team for whom a downtown arena is the primary objective. So after the arena is built, what is there to stop Eugene Melnyk, say 10 years later, from finding a good reason why this or that part of the original proposal cannot be implemented?

And trust me, there are always good reasons why one thing or another cannot be done. Under the first LeBreton plan, for example, affordable housing was to be an integral part of the Claridge development. By the time of actual construction, this important component had disappeared. Be warned.

As for Devcore Canderel DLS, the loss must come as a bitter disappoint, but the fact that the sentimental favourite won is no reflection on this proposal. It would have transformed Ottawa as much as the rival plan. But DCDLS tried too hard to be all things to all people and may have lost focus. Proposing a hockey arena without a team seemed like an afterthought and the proposal just didn’t come quite together as one would have hoped.

“We brought opera back to the national capital region,” NCC CEO Mark Kristmanson said in a moment of self-congratulation. Perhaps at full completion. For now, let’s keep the NCC and RendezVous LeBreton’s feet to the fire. The watchword must be vigilance. The plan must be scrutinized and questions must be asked again and again about elements of the proposal.

Federal ministers Mélanie Joly and Catherine McKenna should ensure maximum transparency as things move on. Where the money for the project will come from and how the development will be staged should be laid out in great detail, and the public must be fully engaged. This is a mammoth undertaking of great promise and huge challenges, and care must be taken to ensure it all fits together. The final agreement must be iron-clad so there are no surprises or wiggle room for the developer to exploit down the road.

Mohammed Adam is an Ottawa writer.