Assistant Deputy Minister's message: The Long Term Vision and Plan for the Parliamentary Precinct—Annual Report 2018 to 2019

We are pleased to present the Long Term Vision and Plan (LTVP) Annual Report for 2018 to 2019. Throughout this report, you will find updates on key activities in support of the long-term strategy that is guiding the restoration and modernization of the Parliamentary Precinct, and the major milestones that have been achieved in advancing this important work.

Over this past year, we marked the achievement of our most important milestone to-date—the historic transition of Parliament from the Centre Block so that it could undergo its much needed overhaul. This has been a central objective of the LTVP since its inception. Over the past decade plus, our focus has been firmly on ensuring that a complex series of interdependent projects were completed so that we could get to the Centre Block—the building literally at the centre of Canadian democracy—on target, and before it experienced a major failure.

The last steps in completing this strategy depended on finishing the temporary homes for Parliament—the West Block and the Senate of Canada Building—as well as a new Visitor Welcome Centre, at the same time. Handing over the West Block and the Senate of Canada Building to Parliament was a momentous occasion and it is hard to underestimate its importance in our collective efforts to restore and modernize the Parliamentary Precinct.

With the transition of Parliament now behind us, we have been able to launch the rehabilitation of the Centre Block, the largest project of its kind in Canadian history. One of the biggest challenges we face on this project is getting the balance right between restoration and modernization. It is essential that we make resilient decisions—that the decisions taken today are the best decisions for tomorrow—that they stand the test of time and make sense 100 years from now. These challenges can seem daunting, but the successes we have achieved to-date and the strong partnership with Parliament gives us confidence that the revitalized Centre Block will retain its iconic stature and will fully support the evolving needs of a modern parliamentary democracy.

Now that we have made it to the Centre Block, we can also look forward and more broadly to creating a fully integrated and modern campus for Parliament. The update to the LTVP that we are now undertaking, the first since 2005 to 2006, will be critical in setting the stage for this important work. Thinking through how everything fits together and works in an integrated manner, from the movement of people and goods, to issues of security, accessibility and sustainability, will ensure that the Parliamentary Campus is flexible and resilient so that it can truly support the evolving needs of Parliament and remain an important place for all Canadians into the next century and beyond.

It is with pleasure that we invite you to review this report on the LTVP’s accomplishments and upcoming projects.

Sincerely,

Rob Wright
Assistant Deputy Minister
Science and Parliamentary Infrastructure Branch

Duncan Retson
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister
Science and Parliamentary Infrastructure Branch