Better working conditions, competitive salaries, attraction of newcomers: the federal capital seems to want to overshadow Gatineau. But common challenges push the two cities to find solutions together. Despite the good will on both sides of the shore, this collaboration, although necessary for the development of the region, sometimes comes up against differences in provincial regulations.
“The greater metropolitan region of Ottawa-Gatineau is in a fairly unprecedented situation,” observes Mario Gauthier, professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Quebec in Outaouais. The cross-border situation requires respecting “two quite different legislative frameworks”. Part of the territory (11%) also falls under the jurisdiction of the National Capital Commission (NCC), a federal Crown corporation. Added to this are linguistic duality and proximity to the national capital, which competes with the 4e city in Quebec.
In 2021, the Outaouais Development Observatory (ODO) reported that proximity to the national capital is “a hindrance to the development of the region”, while providing “several assets” for its development. Among the significant challenges is the labor shortage, “exacerbated” by the “more attractive salary and working conditions offered in Ontario”.
The exodus of workers particularly affects the health sector, and particularly nurses. Elsewhere in Quebec, 90% of nursing graduates work in their region of origin, but in Outaouais, the rate is 70%.
The Outaouais also has little chance of counting on immigration to fill this labor shortage, since the majority of immigrants who settle in the region prefer to live near Ottawa. This was the case for nearly 86% of new arrivals in 2016, in particular because the services to welcome them are more developed in Ontario, we can read in the report.
Proximity to the capital, however, is good for the supply of medical services, because it allows Outaouais residents to access specialized care, such as the Cardiology Institute, or the Eye Institute, generally located ” only in large urban centers,” notes the ODO. But the care received on the other side of the border is expensive for the Régie de l’assurance santé du Québec, which has reimbursed Ontario more than a billion dollars in ten years, it is indicated in the document .
Abandoned by Quebec
Beyond the lack of manpower, the difficulty of accessing care in Outaouais results from a “problem of chronic government underfunding,” notes the ODO.
In 2019, the National Assembly unanimously adopted a motion recognizing the Outaouais as a region with “particularities” which “bring significant challenges, taking into account, in particular, its border situation with Ottawa”. She also recognizes that the region “has accumulated a significant delay in recent years in terms of public funding in health, education, higher education and culture”. Despite this, the City of Gatineau indicates that it is still waiting for a financial “catch-up”.
The mayor, France Bélisle, believes that the reality of her city is not well understood by the Legault government, particularly when it comes to housing. According to her, the “pressure caused by the arrival of Ontarians” in the Gatineau real estate market must be taken into account in “affordability calculations”. “We are affordable housing for the people of Ottawa, because it is cheaper to cross the river and come and take accommodation with us. This creates pressure and skyrocketing prices. »
We are affordable housing for people in Ottawa, because it is cheaper to cross the river and come and stay with us. This creates pressure and skyrocketing prices.
A report made public at the beginning of September shows that Outaouais is at the heart of the explosion of homelessness in Quebec, particularly due to the housing crisis.
“Similar challenges”
Homelessness is also a point on which the two cities are inclined to collaborate, by facilitating the movement and reception of homeless people on each side of the border. Ottawa and Gatineau “are communicating vessels,” says Mme Bélisle, adding to closely monitor the overdose crisis plaguing the other side of the river, “because it will have repercussions” on his city. “As close neighbors, we have similar opportunities and challenges,” said Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe, citing in particular “crime prevention and security.” »
The “common economic district” is also at the heart of the collaborations, says Mr. Sutcliffe. In 2017, Invest Ottawa and ID Gatineau presented a joint application to host Amazon’s second head office. Although the attempt was a failure, it “opened the eyes” of Pierre Plangger, former president of the board of directors of ID Gatineau. “Gatineau is not trying to compete with Ottawa, quite the contrary! […] We must work collaboratively and build on our common strengths to attract foreign direct investment projects,” he said in 2019.
The collaboration between the two cities and the NCC has particularly proven itself in tourism management. Events take place every year from both shores. This is particularly the case for the Winterlude festival, which attracts nearly 600,000 visitors each year, according to the ODO.
The Outaouais, with Gatineau Park – which is however managed by the NCC – and a casino on its territory, takes advantage of its proximity to Ottawa by presenting itself as “the playground” of the capital, indicates the ODO. “Nearly half of all cottages located in Outaouais are owned by Ontarians. » Gatineau is also a “gateway to Quebec” for tourists who come to visit Ottawa and who, for example, would not have time to go to Montreal or Quebec.
The tram to confirm the collaboration
” It’s very clear. The interest in collaborating is present,” says Mario Gauthier, former director of the ODO, who participated in the writing of the 2021 report. However, he believes that it mainly results in collaborative projects ad hoc.
“The former municipal administration, under Pedneaud-Jobin, made considerable efforts to get closer to the administration of Mayor Watson, […] particularly around transport infrastructure,” underlines Mr. Gauthier, referring to the tramway project. The project required the collaboration of the two municipalities, since the tram aims to be connected to Ottawa’s light rail system. The opportunity, according to him, “to establish a relationship of trust between the two mayors”. But the two elected officials did not stand for re-election in the last elections. “Since then, we have been a little in limbo,” said Mr. Gauthier.
Mayor Bélisle assures that she has a “very good relationship with the mayor of Ottawa”. And Mr Sutcliffe says he has a “positive and productive working relationship” with the neighboring town.
The fact remains that the response from the federal government regarding funding for the tramway is slow in arriving, deplores Mario Gauthier. “It blocks the progress of the project, then it possibly blocks the collaboration that is being established. » Already, in 2012, the professor wrote in a study that in Ottawa-Gatineau, “municipal consultation” presented “major procedural failures”. “This issue is progressing, but progressing slowly. Very, very slowly. »
While waiting for the tram, Ottawa and Gatineau are struggling to revive their public transportation network since the teleworking policies introduced for federal employees. “It is in the Ottawa-Gatineau region that public transit is experiencing the slowest recovery in Canada since the pandemic,” comments Mme Bélisle, calling on the federal government to demonstrate “strong and assertive leadership” to implement a “metropolitan vision, a “backbone” of transportation.”
The different levels of government will not have the choice to collaborate if they want to “be part of an approach […] fight against climate change,” said Mr. Gauthier. An “imperative” which could make the tramway the “basis of a more formal and institutionalized collaboration […]. Now, development is happening through large metropolitan regions.”