Holiday Hours for the Capital Ward Office
It’s been a busy year, and we appreciate the all the effort residents have put into making Ottawa a better city for everyone. We hope you all have some time to relax over the holiday season.
The Capital Ward office will be unstaffed from December 19 to December 27. Emails will be checked intermittently during that time, but if there is an urgent matter, please call 311 or email [email protected]. Otherwise, we will attend to your messages when we return after the holidays on Monday December 30.
Capital Ward Holiday Party
…and while we’re talking about the holidays, don’t forget that tomorrow is the Capital Ward Holiday Party at the RA Centre’s Clark Hall from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. Come out for free food and some Capital Ward cheer!
Budget
When it was first released, the 2025 draft budget needed some improvements. The proposed transit budget was especially troubling. If passed unchanged, it would have seen astronomical increases to transit for seniors, as well as significant increases to the U-Pass and to youth transit.
After much discussion and pressure, increases to the Senior Pass were brought down. We also directed staff to consult and negotiate properly with colleges and universities before making any changes to the U-Pass, and to discuss with the province and school boards the possibility of creating a U-Pass for under 18 students, which would be a big advantage for our city.
Despite these improvements, the transit budget still included large increases to fares and was still lacking in my view.
The full city budget is not perfect—we will definitely need to see funding improvements in a number of key areas in the 2026 budget—but we did secure several important projects for the city and Capital Ward.
Capital Ward highlights include:
- Over $28M for integrated road sewer watermain construction, including:
- Clarey-Regent-Morris-Monk-Melgund-Thornton renewal
- Ella-Ralph renewal
- Cameron-Seneca renewal
- Bronson Avenue renewal
- Chamberlain-Isabella renewal
- Pretoria Avenue renewal (Metcalfe Street to Bank Street)
- $6.8M for a new community centre in Old Ottawa East
- $1.9M for a new park at Greystone Village Forecourt
- $1.9M for Heron Park Fieldhouse replacement and expansion
- $1.5M towards a new indoor major aquatic facility
- $1.4M for stormwater collection design on Chamberlain Avenue
- $1.3M for Hurdman Bridge Water Pumping Station
- $462K for exterior repairs at Glebe Community Centre
- $250K to renew the Percy Street cycletrack
- $237K for a new park on Carling Avenue
- $87.5K for road safety measures
- $27K for an accessible washroom at the Glebe Community Centre
Our full budget re-cap can be found on our website.
Construction Updates
We have quite a few large construction projects happening in the Capital Ward right now. Some will be wrapping up for the season, but some will be continuing through winter.
Here’s a look at what’s happening throughout the ward:
Bank Street Re-Development
- Bank Street will return to four lanes and full sidewalks between the river and the transitway for the winter.
- Bank Street will be two lanes between the transitway and Randall Avenue, with pedestrian facilities on both sides.
- Work will continue between Sawmill Creek and Lamira Street.
Greenfield-Main-Hawthorne
- Construction will be shutting down this month for winter, and all residents will be hooked up to the city watermain.
- Roadways and sidewalks will be implemented with permanent or temporary asphalt.
- Two-way traffic will be restored on Main from Col By to Greenfield, and on Greenfield from Main to King Edward Avenue
Grove-Grosvenor
- Grove and Grosvenor will be opened over the coming weeks.
- Route 7 could return to its traditional route on Grove Avenue as early as December 15.
Monk-Oakland-Wilton-Woodlawn
- Pedestrian facilities are accessible on all affected streets.
- Queen Elizabeth Place, Monk Street, Wilton Avenue and Oakland Avenue are vehicular traffic.
- Woodlawn is closed, with access for pedestrians and local traffic, only.
For more details, please visit our website.
Ward 17 Resident Honoured at Ottawa Art Gallery’s Second Artist Investiture
On Tuesday, November 26, 2024, the Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG) Board of Directors honoured five outstanding visual artists from the region, paying tribute to the significant contributions of distinguished individuals to the Ottawa art scene and beyond.
Included in the honourees is Capital Ward’s own Pat Durr, an accomplished painter and printmaker.
Congratulations, Pat!
You can read more about Pat, the other honourees and the Artist Initiative at the OAG website.
Seniors Health Innovation Hub in the News!
Seniors Health Innovation Hub (SHIH), founded by residents of Capital Ward, continues to do impressive advocacy work in support of a common-sense model of primary care to support seniors in our city. You can listen to this excellent interview about their proposal. Our office will be working with SHIH to host our second Older Adult Forum, focusing on access to primary care, in the new year! Stay tuned for more details.
More Winter Accessibility in Capital Ward
Last month, we mentioned that the city’s pilot project to maintain access to staircases in the winter would continue this year with the maintenance of the stairs to the Flora Footbridge being kept open. We can now confirm that the stairs off Bank Street to both Central Park East and Central Park West will be open, as well. This has been a long-standing request from residents as both sides of the park remain very popular throughout winter, and we’re glad staff have agreed to clear the stairs.
We are also in discussions with city staff and Carleton University to open the new Rideau River Pedestrian Bridge between Carleton and Vincent Massey Park in the winter. We were not pleased when the city decided to close the bridge. It was our understanding it was to be a year round facility and could connect up with an eventual extension of the Rideau winter trail.
Sidewalk Repair at 175 Main Street
We received a report of a hazardous depression in the sidewalk outside of 175 Main Street. We’re happy to report that this tripping hazard has been addressed with the interlocking brick re-set to create a flat walking surface.
Thanks to staff for the quick action and to residents for identifying this issue.
Newcomer Welcoming Centres
Recently, there has been a lot of public attention paid to the temporary Newcomer Welcoming Centres that the city will be erecting to help settle refugees in our city. There’s no doubt that the city did not handle this file well. Neither city plans nor the site selection process were properly communicated with residents. The lack of transparency is quite concerning.
But make no mistake, these centres are desperately needed. We can quibble about selection criteria, but at the end of the day, there are people who have arrived in our city having fled war and civil strife, and it is our duty to help them as best we can.
Currently, people are housed in community centres that are wholly unsuited to the task. We need to do better than that, and these centres will be an improvement.
Ottawa has a history of welcoming refugees. We can be proud of that legacy…but only if we are willing to do our part now.
Alta Vista Transportation Corridor Public Consultation
As the city continues its review and update of Ottawa’s Transportation Master Plan, we will be holding a public consultation in the new year to discuss the future of the field on Lees Avenue that currently serves as park space, but is identified to be used for the future Alta Vista Transportation Corridor.
Join us on Wednesday January 29 from 7:00 to 900 pm over Zoom.
Visit our website for more information and to RSVP.
Lansdowne 2.0 Public Consultations
In January, the city will hold two public consultations on the proposed re-design of the north side stands at Lansdowne Park.
On Wednesday January 15, there will be an in-person open house at Lansdowne.
On Thursday January 16, there will be a virtual public consultation over Zoom.
Times, registration and other information will be shared in the new year.
Service Line Warranties of Canada P3 Program Comes to an End
As of January 9, 2025, the agreement between Service Line Warranties of Canada (SLWC) and the City of Ottawa will be ended. This comes after motions brought forward by our office following the roll out of the public-private partnership in Q1 of 2021.
For those not familiar with Service Line Warranties of Canada, it is a subsidiary of a multinational corporation based in the United Kingdom that the city had given permission to use the official City of Ottawa logo in their advertising and in their communications with Ottawa residents in exchange for fees paid to the city from the insurance provider (5% of subscription fees, which was a small amount of funds).
This arrangement resulted in communications with Ottawa residents that led some residents to question whether the city was, itself, asking residents to purchase insurance, when in reality it was one particular private insurance provider advertising its services.
In May of 2021, our office brought forward a report to the Environment and Climate Change Committee directing staff to review the program and report back on the issues to date, and to make recommendations based on those findings.
This was followed by another motion we brought to the committee in October of 2023 directing staff to pursue amending the contract in order to preclude direct mail to Ottawa residents (and to not renew the contract upon its expiry in 2027), or, failing that, to terminate the agreement for convenience, pursuant to the terms of the agreement.
That latter scenario has now transpired. Moving forward, the city will communicate to residents the options available to protect the private portion of water and sewer services without favouring a particular private sector provider.
Overflow Brewing Celebrates Six Years!
Last month, Overflow Brewing celebrated their sixth anniversary. Located at 2477 Kaladar Avenue in Heron Park, Overflow has been a wonderful addition to the ward during the past six years.
Congratulations! Here’s to many more years.
Light Up Old Town Hall 2024
Celebrate the holiday season with your Old Ottawa East community on Saturday December 14 from 3:00 to 5:00 pm at Old Town Hall (61 Main Street)!
Kid's Movies and Crafts will be upstairs, while Adult Crafts, Social and Holiday Cookie/Treat Exchange will take place downstairs.
Snacks and drinks (hot chocolate, warm apple cider, tea, juice and water) will be provided!
This will also be an opportunity to bring your donations for the Ottawa East Holiday Food Drive.
Everyone is welcome!
For more information, including a schedule of events, visit the CAG website.
Your Capital Ward
Photo by Janet Stephens
If you have a photo you’d like to share in an upcoming bulletin, please send it to [email protected], with the subject line Your Capital Ward. Please give us your name for attribution…or tell us if you’d rather not have your name shared.
Stormwater tree trenches installed on Bank Street
In November, city staff met with CAFES Ottawa and interested residents to give a presentation on the stormwater tree trenches recently installed on Bank Street. Around 20 people from across Ottawa attended to learn how the trenches work and to direct their questions to staff.
Stormwater tree trenches are structures built to contain an adequate volume of soil to support tree growth to maturity under a paved road or boulevard. This experimental approach to tree planting aims to manage stormwater and runoff during rain events in heavily developed areas, reducing strain on city infrastructure while also increasing tree canopy.
The installation was completed in mid-November when two new honeylocust trees were planted in the structures. Each tree is situated in a 30-cubic metre soil cell. In total, the cells hold 57 cubic metres of rich, organic sandy soil and 3 cubic metres of structural soil, which is well-draining and will provide enough nutrients for the trees.
The connection from these trenches to the road catch basins will allow the trees to access the water they need while excess water infiltrates into the ground or is returned to the sewer, as is the case with large storm events.
A multi-year monitoring plan will be implemented post-construction to assess the performance of the tree trenches in terms of water levels, soil moisture, and tree growth. The trees are expected to grow to full size and live at least 75 years or more. A key objective of the project is to collect data that will inform future lifecycle cost estimates for similar projects.
Residential Boulevard Gardening
In 2023, the City updated the Use and Care of Roads By-law to allow residents the opportunity to undertake a residential gardening project, including a naturalized garden, within the City-owned boulevard abutting their property.
Following resident and Council feedback, staff have been reviewing options to allow edible plants (fruits, vegetables, herbs) and readily moveable containers in residential boulevard gardens. There are several factors to balance including food security, the suitability of the boulevard for growing food, as well as operational and safety issues.
Your opinion matters, and City staff value your insights! An online survey has been launched to get resident feedback on potential updates to the by-law. The survey is available at engage.ottawa.ca/residential-boulevard-gardening and will be open until the end of the year.
O-Train Lines 2 and 4 open for weekday service on Monday, January 6
The City of Ottawa will open O-Train Lines 2 and 4 for weekday passenger service starting on Monday, January 6. Construction of the project was jointly funded by the Government of Canada, Province of Ontario and City of Ottawa.
Lines 2 and 4 are part of the O-Train South Extension that will extend Ottawa’s rail network from Bayview Station to Limebank Station in Riverside South and will include a link to the Ottawa International Airport on O-Train Line 4. This is a significant expansion of OC Transpo's transit system and will greatly enhance connectivity in the south of the city. The project also includes:
- Eight new stations on the South Extension at Corso Italia, Walkley, South Keys, Leitrim, Bowesville, Limebank, Uplands and Airport.
- Extension of five station platforms at Bayview, Dow’s Lake, Mooney’s Bay, Carleton and Greenboro to accommodate longer trains.
- Seven new Stadler FLIRT vehicles and the refurbishment of six existing Alstom LINT trains that will nearly double the capacity of the system.
- A new Albion Yard Maintenance and Storage Facility (MSF).
- Numerous active transportation improvements such as new multi-use pathways and pedestrian bridges at the Rideau River and Hunt Club Road.
Phased Opening
Lines 2 and 4 will open in three phases to ensure reliable service, allow customers to become familiar with the new system, and provide time for additional staff training.
Phase one will start on Monday, January 6, where Lines 2 and 4 will operate five days a week, Monday through Friday, for a minimum of two weeks. In phase two, service will expand to six days a week, Monday through Saturday, and will run for a minimum of two weeks. In the third and final phase, service will expand to seven days a week.
Existing bus service will continue to run alongside Lines 2 and 4, providing parallel bus service options for customers. This parallel service, which includes B2 buses (formerly known as Line 2 buses), and Route 97 and Route 99 will be available for customers every day of the week.
The phased approach to opening with the support of parallel bus service was informed by the Public Inquiry report, lessons learned, and third-party recommendations.
O-Train Line 2
Line 2 will provide service approximately every 12 minutes during weekdays and take 35 minutes to travel the 19 kilometres from Bayview Station to Limebank Station. The Line 2 extension features 11 stations and three Park & Ride lots at Greenboro, Leitrim and Bowesville stations. Stadler FLIRT diesel trains will operate along the track and can carry up to 420 passengers comfortably. Alstom LINT diesel trains, coupled together to match the capacity of the Stadler FLIRTs, can also operate on Line 2.
O-Train Line 4
Line 4 will provide service to the Ottawa International Airport with a connection to Line 2 at South Keys Station and a station at Uplands Drive, conveniently located near the EY Centre. Line 4 will provide service every 12 minutes and take approximately seven minutes to travel between Airport and South Keys stations. Line 4 will be served by Alstom LINT diesel trains which previously operated successfully along Line 2 for several years. Each train will be able to carry up to 260 passengers comfortably.
