National Metropolitan Commission (Canada)

Car with the NSC logo. Used by environmental officers .

National Capital Commission , or National Capital Commission National Capital Commission (NCC), fr. Commission de la capitale nationale is a Canadian crown corporation managing federal lands and buildings in the National Capital Region , including the cities of Ottawa , ( Ontario ) and Gatineau ( Quebec ).

The Commission was formed in 1959 and replaced the Federal District Commission (FDC), founded in 1927 to replace the former Ottawa Improvement Commission. The creation of a new commission in 1959 to replace the old was due to the fact that the former often failed to convince municipal authorities to cooperate in plans to develop the capital, for which it was often criticized. ^{[1] The} National Metropolitan Commission was given the authority to implement these plans, which were confirmed in the course of the “ Munro v National Metropolitan Commission ” trial that reached the Supreme Court ^[2] .

The Commission reports to Parliament Canada through the Department of Transportation, Infrastructure, and Communities. The commission's headquarters are located in the Chambers Building on Elgin Street , between Queen Street and Sparks Street .

The role of the commission is fundamentally different from the role of municipalities, which primarily defend the interests of local residents - such as maintaining roads, sewers, water supply systems and public transport. The Commission defends the interests of Ottawa, Gatineau and surrounding areas in matters of a national scale, in particular, such as planning the construction of monuments and museums, organizing events and holidays, laying or changing roads, streets and parks of federal significance. ^[3]

Also, one of the tasks of the commission is to attract tourists to the National Capital Region (see the List of Ottawa and Gatineau Festivals ). The Commission is responsible for organizing a number of festivals - such as Winterlude and the Canadian Christmas Lights. The commission also manages the only tourist information center located near Parliament Hill since 1996. The commission also runs the Gatineau Park and a number of official residences such as Rideau Hall , the residence of the Prime Minister of Canada and Stornoway .

The Government of Canada is the largest employer and landowner in Ottawa and Gatineau, so it has a big impact on these two cities.

The activities of the commission sometimes provoked disapproval of municipalities, for example, in 1998, when the commission proposed to demolish a significant section of Downtown to build a ceremonial boulevard along present Metcalf Street .

In the past 30 years, the Government of Quebec has sharply criticized a number of commission activities: it held the view that many of these events encroached on the prerogative of municipalities and provinces, violating the Canadian constitution. Also, the commission was criticized for a number of unsuccessful plans.

In 2006, the new Government of Canada requested a formal review of the commission’s mandate. The body assembled to evaluate the commission’s activity, in its report recommended that the commission allocate more money, and at the same time make its activities more transparent. ^[4] Although the government promised to take appropriate action in its report in early 2007, there have been no changes since then.