Mass picnic on Alexandra Bridge planned for 2017

Grab your blankets and baskets, Ottawa. This will be a picnic like no other.

The mayors of the cities of Ottawa and Gatineau met at the halfway point on the pedestrian walkway of the Alexandra Bridge on Monday morning to share coffee and croissants and announce an ambitious plan to help celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday.

On July 2, 2017, the mayors said, the municipalities will be covering the pedestrian walkway (which also serves as a bike lane across the span) with a thick layer of turf and grass, then renting out spaces for individual families and small groups to picnic on the bridge.

The event, modeled after similar mass picnics in other cities around the world, is expected to be a Canadian first.

Up to 650 people at a time will be able to enjoy food and beverages brought from home (no booze, sorry) for several hours while gazing out at the view across the river. There will be three shifts, explained Ottawa mayor Jim Watson, allowing 1,950 people to take advantage of the one-day event.

“It’s a great way to show the friendship we have between Gatineau and Ottawa,” Watson said as he sat next to Gatineau mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It's a great way to show the friendship we have between Gatineau and Ottawa," Watson said as he sat next to Gatineau mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin.

The bridge will be closed to vehicles for the entirety of July 2, 2017, with the lanes normally reserved for cars and trucks set aside for pedestrian traffic, and the third and final lane used for emergency vehicles. The set-up and tear-down is expected to take place in the overnight hours to minimize traffic disruption.

The fee for renting a space will be “nominal,” Watson promised on Monday. Probably about $5-$10 per group. The fees are designed to help the City of Ottawa recuperate some of the cost of organizing the event, expected to come in around $50,000. The city is also hoping to draw additional tourism dollars by extending the July 1 Canada Day festivities into July 2.

“We’ll also look at things like seeing if catering companies may want to get involved to provide box lunches,” Watson noted.

“We want it to be an affordable, family event where people can just come and have a very unique experience.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We want it to be an affordable, family event where people can just come and have a very unique experience."

The public will be able to start booking picnic spaces on the bridge starting next July.