History
Before the development in the early 1950s, this area was officially known as Lot 35, Concession A, Township of Nepean, and, as the name still indicates, it was used as a farmer’s pasture and named after Anthony Tunney who pastured his cows on the empty land.
As a young man, Anthony Tunney emigrated from Ireland to Ottawa in 1867. He married and built a house at 201 Parkdale Avenue. The owner of the pasture, The Ottawa Lumber Merchants’ Association, hired Tunney to be the caretaker of the land and allowed him to graze his cattle in the field. Although Tunney was able to claim ownership because he had been paying the taxes on the property, he never did so and the land was eventually sold by the association to the government.
In 1950, the property became part of the Greber Plan that envisioned it as a government employment centre within a quiet and secure park-like campus. From the 1950s to the 1960s, 18 low-rise buildings were constructed with modern, classical-inspired architecture and similar materials, massing and scale. Most of these combined research and office functionality under one roof. Starting in the 1970s however, new buildings and additions were built that deviatated from Gréber's vision, introducing high-rise office towers, new architectural styles, and cladding materials to the site.
Read more about this topic: Tunney's Pasture
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