Vanier, Ontario

Vanier
Neighbourhood

Location of Vanier within the City of Ottawa
Country  Canada
Province  Ontario
City Ottawa
Area
 • Total 2.93 km2 (1.13 sq mi)
Population (2016) 16,609

Vanier is an historically francophone neighbourhood in the Rideau-Vanier Ward in Ottawa, Canada's east end. The neighbourhood was a separate city until being amalgamated into Ottawa in 2001. It no longer has a majority francophone population. In fact, in 2012 its francophone population has shrunk to less than 40% from 63% in the early 1980s. The neighbourhood is located on the east bank of the Rideau River, across from the neighbourhoods of Lowertown and Sandy Hill, and just south of Rockcliffe Park, New Edinburgh, Lindenlea, and Manor Park. To the east of Vanier are the suburbs of Gloucester. Vanier has a relatively small area with a high population density. Montreal Road is the main thoroughfare of the community.

History

In 1908, the communities of Janeville, Clarkstown and Clandeboy were joined to form the village of Eastview. In 1913, Eastview was incorporated as a town. Originally it was a popular destination for civil servants who wished to live at a distance from downtown. It later saw a large influx of French Canadians and became the main francophone area in the capital.

During the Depression, Eastview held the attention of the entire nation, as it became a public forum for national debates on birth control during The Eastview Birth Control Trial, which lasted from 1936 to 1937. Significant controversy erupted when Dorothea Palmer was believed to have been distributing birth control information to the poorer, predominantly Catholic neighbourhoods. Later, in 1963 it became a city, and in 1969 was renamed after the recently deceased Governor General of Canada, Georges Vanier.

The City of Eastview erected a memorial at the intersection of Marier Avenue, Dagmar Avenue and Hannah Street. It is dedicated to citizens from Eastview who gave their lives in Canadian military conflicts.[1]

Montreal Road runs through the centre of Vanier.

Present

Starting with an area closer to the Rideau River, Vanier is increasingly considered a target for gentrification. It is one of the last relatively inexpensive Ottawa neighbourhoods with a desirable location next to downtown. The neighbourhood is becoming increasingly popular among young families thanks to the only publicly funded school in Ottawa based on Waldorf education, Trille des Bois, and an active community association.

Vanier offers a wide choice of retail shops, strip malls, eateries, and bars. Both subsidized and self-financed housing is available here, with several existing and proposed upscale condominiums and infill developments. The population on the western edge of Vanier closer to the Rideau River, especially the Kingsview Park neighbourhood, is among the more affluent.

Like nearby Lowertown, Ottawa's Vanier neighbourhood is home to a number of French-speaking immigrants from Africa and elsewhere. It is also the site of the urban Maple Sugar Festival (Festival des Sucres) held in spring, and home to an outdoor Catholic shrine, the Grotte de Lourdes.

Outdoor Catholic shrine, Grotte de Lourdes in the Vanier neighbourhood of Ottawa

Vanier is part of the federal riding of Ottawa—Vanier, and the Ottawa—Vanier provincial riding. It is traditionally one of the staunchly Liberal ridings in Canada, having voted for the party consistently since the riding's creation. It is currently without representation federally and provincially, In the federal level the riding is represented by MP Mona Fortier, and in the provincial level the riding is represented by MPP Nathalie Des Rosiers.

According to the Canada 2001 Census:

Mayors of Eastview

Mayors of Vanier

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Eastview Cenotaph". National Inventory of Military Memorials. National Defence Canada. 2008-04-16. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
Bibliography
  • Shea, Philip (1964), History of Eastview, Ottawa, Ontario 

Coordinates: 45°26.627′N 75°39.625′W / 45.443783°N 75.660417°W / 45.443783; -75.660417

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