Capital Ward Bulletin: Election Season in Ottawa, Trees on Bank Street and Construction Updates

Future Seniors Affordable Housing Being Planned in Capital Ward and Old Town Hall Saved

On Monday, Capital Ward Councillor Shawn Menard joined councillor Mathieu Fleury, le Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est (CECCE) and Ottawa Community Housing (OCH) representatives on a tour of the Deschâtelets Building in Capital Ward. This heritage building is being refurbished to house a new elementary school, a community centre, new daycare spaces and affordable housing. Through an innovative partnership between le Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est, Ottawa Community Housing and the City of Ottawa, we are working towards the Deschâtelets Building becoming an intergenerational hub to serve the growing community of Old Ottawa East.

The purchase of the 100,000-square-foot Deschâtelets Building by CECCE provided the opportunity to collaborate on a city-run community centre with a brand new attached shared gym amenity space. This summer, Ottawa City Council approved moving forward with a lease for the community centre, including funding for the core components and a direction to develop an annual operating budget as part of the 2023 budget. It also includes brand new city-run park space in front of the building.

“It’s great seeing this project come together,” said Councillor Menard. “We commend the residents and community groups, including the Old Ottawa East Community Association and Communities Activities Group, who have been pushing for a new recreation centre and for affordable housing in the community for a number of years. We were also able to invest enough Cash-in-lieu of Parkland funds for the new community centre and parks which allowed for the Old Town Hall on Main Street to remain public and saved from selling off.

“We appreciate the collaboration between CECCE and the City of Ottawa who, through creativity, have sorted through the challenges of shared space, ownership, timing and heritage preservation to arrive at this proposal which will provide residents in this rapidly densifying community a place to gather, learn and play.”

Construction continues, and CECCE and OCH are currently working through the contractual details, but both OCH and CECCE are committed to ensuring the successful delivery of affordable housing for seniors. As this year progresses, designs will be refined and a timeline for the completion of these new housing units will be set.

Glebe Collegiate Heritage Designation

City heritage staff are recommending that Glebe Collegiate receive heritage designation under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act. The building, significant to the history of public education in Ottawa, is an excellent example of school buildings constructed in the Collegiate Gothic style, a style popular for academic and institutional buildings throughout North America from the late 19th to mid-20th century.  

This is wonderful news for our community, especially as it comes just as Glebe Collegiate celebrates its 100th anniversary this fall. You can learn more about those celebrations on the Glebe 100 website.

Brewer Rink Update

After a long pause while the facility was being used as a COVID-19 testing centre, staff have begun re-installing the ice at Brewer Arena. This is a popular rink in the community and for the city, and it’s great to see it returning to use.

Lycée and Frobisher Update

City construction work was delayed earlier this summer due to a strike, but we’re happy to announce that the re-paving of Lycée Place is beginning this week. Work will begin on Frobisher Lane on August 29.

Belmont/Fairbairn/Willard/Bellwood Project Update 

Work was deemed complete on this project, but our office was concerned with the Bellwood/Belmont intersection, the height of the speed humps and the lips on the sidewalks which meet the road for accessibility purposes. After an on-site meeting, the Bellwood intersection will be raised appropriately, the lips will be fixed and the city is doing a review of the speed hump standards city-wide. 

We have secured a temporary crossing guard to continue at Belmont and Bank for September and October. Staff assessed the intersection and found that it does not meet warrants for a permanent crossing guard at this time. However, after speaking with the guards and families who cross here, there have been concerns raised which we will take to Transportation Committee in the new term of council seeking a permanent guard.

Climate March

Fridays for Future Ottawa are holding a climate march on Friday September 23:

12:00-1:30: Start at Confederation Park
1:30-2:00: March from Confederation Park to Parliament Hill
2:00-3:00: Rally at Parliament Hill

This is an important issue to the residents of Capital Ward and the city, and I look forward to seeing you there.

Public Bike Parking Program

Parking Services has been hard at work with expanding its Ottawa Public Bike Parking Strategy and are excited to announce a new program that will feature several initiatives that benefits cyclists of our city. Hello Vélo, a program geared towards cyclists will begin by offering bike racks at a reduced cost to eligible businesses, non-profits, schools, and multi-unit residential properties.

While quantities last! Black four-ring “hanger” bike racks are available to be purchased by eligible institutions for $400 plus tax, which is 50% of the city’s bulk purchase cost. Do you own a business or know of a great institution that could benefit from bike parking on their property? For more information, please view the attached poster or visit www.ottawa.ca/helloveloprogram.

Celebrating Ottawa's School Bus Drivers

A video created by EnviroCentre and the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority highlights the many positive impacts that school bus drivers bring to our communities. Of course, they ensure that our children get to school safely, but did you know they also help keep our air clean and reduce traffic too? 

This two-minute video collects incredible facts in a fun format that will engage parents and students alike. Learn how many cars every bus driver helps take off the road, how much GHG they avert and how they help to build a sense of community. Watch it now to discover all the reasons we have to thank school bus drivers!

Lansdowne Tree Update 

Recently, OSEG has been working on a remediation strategy to enable trees at Lansdowne to finally establish and thrive. They have now engaged CSW Landscape Architects Ltd. who have analyzed why the trees have failed to flourish along Exhibition Way and Marche Way. Based on the current design and industry standards for urban trees, they have proposed the following improvements:

• Planter boxes to offer better protection
• Increased soil volume to maximize root growth.
• Improved drainage for water and air to circulate through the soil will improve the growing conditions for tree roots.
• Multiple urban tolerant tree species will be planted to maximize diversity, aesthetics, and growing conditions.

Work will start this year with a pilot project at both Bank Street entrances.  The work will be carried out over a 12-week period and is expected to be completed by the end of October.  There may be small periods during installation when the right turn lane to Exhibition Way and Marche Way will be temporarily closed. Sidewalks will also be partially impacted while the work is underway. All work will be conducted during daytime hours.

Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc. Launches Net Zero Public Engagement Survey

Earlier this week, Hydro Ottawa Holding Inc., launched Enabling Net Zero; a public engagement survey designed to inform our sustainability action plan to become the first municipally-owned utility company to achieve net-zero operations by 2030 in Canada.

A public engagement survey, which is open to all residents of Ottawa and Casselman, regardless of whether they are current Hydro Ottawa customers or not, is being conducted by Innovative Research Group, an opinion research firm, until September 12, 2022, on Hydro Ottawa Holding’s new website.

Kaladar Park and Splash Pad Update

The new splash pad at Kaladar Park is up and running…or spraying! This is a great improvement to the quality of life in the Heron Park community, and our office was glad to provide some Cash-in-lieu of Parkland funds to provide some extra features.

Next up will be the upgrade to the community building in Heron Park, which we have fully funded after many years.

Eugene Forsey Park

A new and improved basketball court is going in at Eugene Forsey Park. The court will be expanded, providing greater use to the community, and none of the trees in the park will be lost.

The play structure and other park amenities are remaining open throughout construction.

Traffic Calming Installations

Our office has made every residential street in Capital Ward 30km/hr and added new traffic calming to complement it. We’ve seen significant results on streets like Riverdale, where the new speed limit combined with the calming measures made for a much safer environment with a lower achieved speed.  Some of the new measures this year have been slightly delayed but most remaining measures should be implemented this week.

New Speed Humps in Capital Ward

Following requests from residents, we have gained approval for new speed humps to be installed on Broadway and Sunnyside. To ensure there was sufficient support, door-to-door work must occur with a city petition, and 2/3 support from residents on the blocks where the speed humps will go. There is very limited funding for these types of initiatives in the city, something that needs updating.

On Sunnyside, there will be a speed hump installed between Bellwood and Riverdale, to pair with the speed hump currently near the Fairbairn intersection. On Broadway, we will have two speed humps installed between Findlay and Torrington to help with frequent cut through traffic. Speed humps are more effective in sequence, so it made sense to implement these in sets of two.

Finally, we’re happy to announce that the new school safety zone on Fourth Avenue, between Lyon and Percy, will be implemented this year. The work will include two speed humps and a raised crosswalk between Mutchmor and the school yard.

Lighting on Colonel By

The NCC continues to work on a plan to install a new streetlighting plant in 2023. In the meantime, temporary street lights are being installed along Colonel By Drive at various locations. This should be completed by the end of September.

Crossing Guard at Belmont and Bank

We have secured a temporary crossing guard to continue at Belmont/Glen and Bank for September and October only. Staff assessed the intersection in May of 2022 and found that it does not meet warrants for a permanent crossing guard at this time. We secured this guard for the past two years while construction on Belmont was ongoing.

Belmont/Fairbairn/Willard/Bellwood Project Update

Work was deemed complete on this project, but our office was concerned with the Bellwood/Belmont intersection, the height of the speed humps and the lips on the sidewalks which meet the road for accessibility purposes. After an on-site meeting, the Bellwood intersection will be raised appropriately, the lips will be fixed and the city is doing a review of the speed hump standards city-wide.

Your Capital Ward

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.

Cleaning the Capital Fall campaign

This year’s Cleaning the Capital fall campaign will proceed with registration starting August 15, for cleanup projects taking place between September 15 and October 15.

Participants can register their cleanup projects by using the online registration form available at www.ottawa.ca/clean or by calling 3-1-1. The registration form populates an interactive map, showing which locations have been chosen for cleanup projects. Cleanup kits, which include garbage bags, recycling bags, and gloves, will be made available for pick-up by registrants at one of seven City of Ottawa facilities across the city.

Key Fall campaign dates:

August 15: Registration begins

September 15 to October 15: Cleaning the Capital fall campaign

September 30: Deadline to register

October 31: Deadline to submit online cleanup reports

Expanded Monkeypox Clinics

Ottawa Public Health (OPH) has expanded Monkeypox clinics across Ottawa. Some of our COVID-19 clinics are now offering Monkeypox vaccinations including Centretown Community Health Centre, the OPH Sexual Health Clinic, the Tom Brown Arena, the Orléans Ruddy Family YMCA-YWCA and the Richelieu-Vanier Community Centre. OPH has also worked closely with community partners such as MAX Ottawa to add more vaccine locations and appointments.

Please visit OttawaPublicHealth.ca/Monkeypox for eligibility and booking a vaccination appointment.

Your Opinion Matters! Your Library, Your Needs, Your Branches! 

Ottawa Public Library (OPL) is conducting a public consultation until September 15, 2022 to confirm that its draft Facilities Framework reflects the needs of the community. The Framework will serve as a roadmap to ensure more equitable coverage to Library branch services across Ottawa. The Facilities Framework will allow OPL to identify gaps in terms of access to Library branches and to determine how to address these gaps.  

To this end, a survey is available online and in branch, in English and French, to gather input from the public. This survey invites Ottawa residents to share their thoughts and views on access to physical library services. Your input will help finalize the Framework and make decisions regarding future OPL facilities.  

The survey and all related information and documents are available on the Library’s public engagement web page. A hard copy of the draft framework is available in branches, in English and French, for consultation. A video is also available online to explain the key points of the draft framework.  

Additionally, a virtual, bilingual open house will take place on Tuesday, August 23 from 7 pm to 8 pm to give residents an opportunity to ask questions specific to the framework to help understand the document, the approach, and the intended use. Participants can register to this event on Eventbrite.   

The Library’s draft Facilities Framework was received and tabled by the OPL Board (“the Board”). June 14, 2022. The guiding principles were approved by the OPL Board in 2021.  

The Board will receive the outcome of the public engagement and the final Facilities Framework for discussion at its meeting of October 11, 2022.  

Could Your Property be Subject to the Vacant Unit Tax in 2023?

The City has a new online questionnaire on ottawa.ca/VUT where residents can find out whether their residential property could be subject to the new Vacant Unit Tax on the 2023 final property tax bill. The questionnaire is easy to use and will only take a couple of minutes to complete.

Between January and March 2023, all property owners will be required to complete a mandatory declaration online on www.ottawa.ca/VUT or through MyServiceOttawa. The declaration will take less than five minutes to complete and will be based on your property occupancy status during the 2022 calendar year. It will be an annual requirement.

This new tax serves as an incentive to ensure secondary or other residential investment properties – which are not the owner’s principal residence – remain occupied either through renting or placing it on the real estate market.

Vacant Unit Tax revenues will help fund affordable housing initiatives, in accordance with the City’s Ten-Year Affordable Housing and Homeless Plan, which commits capital funding for the construction of up to 500 new affordable units annually.

Visit www.ottawa.ca/VUT to get more information about the Vacant Unit Tax, including exemptions for vacant properties, deadlines, and frequently asked questions.

Derecho Storm Response Update

Since the beginning of distribution on July 8, 1,750 cubic yards of woodchips have been delivered to seven city sites. Residents have picked up the equivalent of 64,545 standard garden mulch bags, creating a beneficial re-use of tree debris from the storm on May 21.

On August 5, the full log auction closed with 7,371 cubic meters of logs sold from the 16,628 cubic meters posted on the site. The remaining logs will be repurposed as firewood and block wood for distribution to the public.

Firewood and pieces of block wood from city trees damaged by the storm will also be available for residents to pick up at no cost beginning Wednesday, August 17. This material can be picked up at the City of Ottawa site located at 4061 Strandherd Drive (snow dump facility off of Dealership Drive at the end of Philsar Street).

Residents are urged not to move the wood outside City of Ottawa limits. For more information on the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s (CFIA) rules and regulations for moving firewood, and regulated areas please visit the Government of Canada website.

Curbside Debris Collection

Public Works has been continuing to collect large storm related debris on a service request basis and we are seeing fewer service requests. As the demand is much lower and we need to start preparing for fall and winter operations, as of September 16, the removal of tree debris and organic waste will return to regular leaf and yard waste collection and we ask residents to bundle and bag their leaf and yard waste appropriately as identified on the City of Ottawa website. Public Works also encourages residents to explore other beneficial re-use of their tree logs or firewood, such as posting on public sites.

Damage to City Right of Way

The City has received some reports of damage to lawns on the city right of way adjacent to some homeowner properties as a result of the clean up efforts. Staff are working on addressing the reinstatement of these lawns promptly. If residents notice damage from the storm clean up on the ROW adjacent to their property, we ask that they please notify 3-1-1 so staff can attend. If there is damage to the private portion of the lawn, homeowners are asked to submit a claim through the city’s claims process.

Stump Removal

Forestry Services continues to work on the process for the removal of approximately 450 uprooted stumps and the reinstatement of the leftover portion of the lawn on city right of ways. In the coming weeks, residents with uprooted stumps on the city right of way adjacent to their properties can expect to receive a letter from the city to notify them that their stump is on the list for planned removal and expected next steps.

There are over 2,000 intact stumps remaining after storm related tree removals. As priority is being given to uprooted stumps, intact stumps will be addressed in 2023, from Spring to Fall. The process for removal of an intact stump involves getting utility locates, grinding the stump, backfilling with soil and overseeding.

Residents can visit the city’s storm recovery webpage for up-to-date information on what supports are available.