Orléans, Ontario

Orléans is a suburban area within the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the eastern part of the city along the Ottawa River, about 16 km (10 miles) from downtown Ottawa. The Canada 2006 Census gave Orléans a population of 95,491. (Up from 84,695 at the Canada 2001 Census). It became a ward of the City of Ottawa in 2001. Prior to 2001, the community of Orléans was spread over two municipal jurisdictions, the eastern portion being in the pre-amalgamation City of Cumberland, the western portion in the City of Gloucester.

History

The community is thought to have been named by its first postmaster, Théodore Besserer, after his place of birth, the Île d'Orléans near Quebec City. Orléans was an incorporated police village from 1922 to 1974 and was known as St. Joseph d'Orléans. The name corresponds to the main francophone Roman Catholic Church, Paroisse St. Joseph of which the older part of Orléans is built around, along Boulevard St. Joseph.

The community's name Orléans, apparently inspired the name of one its main roads, Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard, which wraps its way around the community. Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc) was a 15th century martyr who led the French army to victory in Orléans, France.

Orléans has continued its steady growth as a suburban community since the late 1970s; its southern and easternmost boundaries continue to grow as more houses and businesses are built. Orléans continues to have a sizeable French-speaking population, although the proportion of francophones has been decreasing in recent years. The community's name is spelled with an acute accent in both English and French in the relevant regulation to the City of Ottawa Act, reflective of the area's francophone heritage.

Growth has focused around the Place d'Orléans shopping centre, a large shopping centre (with over 175 stores) just off Regional Road 174 (the Queensway), although new business areas on Innes Road at Tenth Line Road and in the vicinity of Trim Road on the eastern end of the area have also been built recently. The country-wide housing boom starting from 2000 has also seen an extremely large amount of housing and residential areas being developed in the eastern Orléans area east of Trim Road and south of Innes Road, such as the new community called Avalon which is known for being a neighbourhood of new, spacey and extremely modern homes.

Recreational Facilities

The Elizabeth Manley skating rink at the Bob MacQuarrie Orléans Recreation Complex (formerly Orléans Recreation Complex) is named for Ms. Manley who trained there and who won a Silver Medal in Women's figure skating in the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. The Ray Friel Complex in the more eastern part of Orléans is home to a public library, a high school, an indoor wave pool, exercising facilities, a physiotherapy clinic, a sports store, a restaurant, 2 soccer fields and 3 skating arenas making it one of the main centres for recreation in Orléans.

Along the Ottawa River in the north-east of Orléans, is the parkland of Petrie Island. The parkland is located on several small islands connected by Trim Road, a north-south roadway. The islands are sandbars developed over time in the river. There was a facility extracting sand from the islands, but this has been closed and converted into a large beach area. Petrie Island is home to turtles in some of its sheltered lagoons and has a nature centre for learning more about the local environment. One section of Petrie Island has several homes, but the area is mainly parkland. There is a marina with canoe and kayak rentals.

Pronunciation

It has frequently been disputed on the correct pronunciation and spelling; for example, the traditional way of spelling the name is "Orléans", while some government departments have made and used road signs where the accented e has been omitted. Francophones pronounce Orléans in French: /ɔʁleɑ̃/ (or-LAY-ahn), since the district is officially spelled with the accented e. Anglophones tend to omit the accent on the e and pronounce it as /oɹliːns/ (or-LEENS) or /oɹliːnz/ (or-LEENZ), similar to 'New Orleans', the American city.

Neighbourhoods

Avalon: Located south of Innes Road, west of Portabello Boulevard and east of Tenth Line Road.

Bilberry Creek: Located east of Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard, north of Highway 174 and east towards the eastern end of the development.

Chapel Hill North: Located north of Innes Road in the Orléans Boulevard area and south of St. Joseph Boulevard.

Chapel Hill South: Located south of Innes Road, and north of Navan Road.

Chatelaine Village: Located north of Highway 174 toward the Ottawa River and East of Champlain Ave.

Convent Glen: Located north of Highway 174 toward the Ottawa River and west of Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard.

Orleans Wood: Located north of Highway 174 toward the Ottawa River, east of Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard and west of Champlain Street.

Eastridge : Future community situated near Trim Road and Blackburn By-Pass Road south of Notting Gate community.

East Village: Located east of Trim Road, north of Innes Road, and south of Old Montreal Road (St. Joseph Boulevard).

Fallingbrook: Located south of St. Joseph Boulevard, west of Trim Road, north of Innes Road and east of Tenth Line Road.

Mer Bleue (future): This proposed neighbourhood would be located south of Innes Road between Mer Bleue and Tenth Line Road and south towards the Urban limit.

Notting Gate: Located south of Innes Road, east of Portabello Boulevard, and west of Trim Road.

Queenswood Heights: Located south of St. Joseph Boulevard, west of Tenth Line Road, east of Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard and north of Innes Road.

Population history

• 1971 - 6,000
• 1976 - 11,000
• 1981 - 24,000
• 1986 - 47,000
• 1991 - 70,000
• 1996 - 79,000
• 2001 - 84,695
• 2006 - 95,491

Schools and Education

English Catholic

• St. Peter Catholic High School - English Catholic High school
• St. Matthew High School (Orléans, Ontario) - English Catholic High School
• St. Francis Of Assisi Elementary School - English Catholic elementary School
• Divine Infant Elementary School - English Catholic elementary School
• Our Lady of Wisdom Catholic School - English Catholic elementary School
• Chapel Hill Catholic Elementary School - English Catholic elementary School
• Convent Glen Catholic School - English Catholic elementary School
• Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha Catholic School - English Catholic elementary School

French Catholic

• École secondaire catholique Béatrice-Desloges - Catholic French language high school
• École secondaire catholique Garneau - Catholic French language high school
• École élémentaire catholique de la Découverte - Catholic French language elementary school
• École élémentaire catholique Arc-en-ciel - Catholic French language elementary school
• École élémentaire catholique des Pionniers - Catholic French language elementary school
• École élémentaire catholique des Voyageurs - Catholic French language elementary school
• École élémentaire catholique Reine-des-Bois - Catholic French language elementary school
• École élémentaire catholique L’Étoile-de-l’Est - Catholic French language elementary school
• École élémentaire catholique Saint-Joseph d’Orléans - Catholic French language elementary school
• École élémentaire catholique Sainte-Marie - Catholic French language elementary school

French Public

• École Secondaire Publique Gisèle-Lalonde - French language public high school
• École élémentaire Des Sentiers - French language public elementary school
• École élémentaire Jeanne-Sauvé - French language public elementary school
• École élémentaire Le Prélude - French language public elementary school
• École élémentaire L'Odysée - French language public elementary school

English Public

• Sir Wilfrid Laurier Secondary School (Ottawa) - English public high school
• Cairine Wilson Secondary School - English public high school
• Fallingbrook Community Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Trillium Public Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Terry-Fox Public Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Henry Larsen Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Convent Glen Elementary School - English public elementary school. Over 150 students a year.
• Forest Valley Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Orleans Wood Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Dunning-Foubert Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Maple Ridge Elementary School - English public elementary school
• Queenswood Elementary School - English public elementary school

Main Roads and Streets

• Orléans Blvd.
• Champlain St.
• Jeanne d'Arc Blvd.
• Des Epinettes Ave.
• St.Joseph Blvd.
• Charlemagne Blvd.
• Innes Rd.
• Tenth Line Rd.
• Trim Rd.

Highway 174

The main highway linking Orléans to central Ottawa to the west is officially known as Ottawa Road 174 and is also known as The Queensway. It was the former provincial highway 17.Highway exits

• Trim Rd.
• Tenth Line Rd.
• Jeanne D'Arc
• Place D'Orléans Dr.

External links

• Details of the future Mer Bleue community
• East End community design plan
• Team Ottawa-Orléans was established in March 2005 to aid the communities of Orléans to provide a comprehensive approach to the development of the area in particular with respect to infrastructure development.
• Orleans Online: local news, sports, classifieds and business directory online
• Friends of Petrie Island

References