Good morning, K-Warders. It was a delight to see many of you out at yesterday's community events - it's been too long. By now the splash pads are open and I haven't heard of any that require repair due to winter damage. We've already experienced a lot of hot weather this week, and there's more to come for sure. Ottawa Public Health has information and guidance on extreme hot weather that you might find helpful here. The City is currently doing a deep dive on how it will handle heat emergencies moving forward, and I'm looking forward to their report soon.
On another OPH note, the pandemic is still ongoing, but I take some encouragement from the steep drop in covid levels measured in the city's wastewater. See the latest poop meter numbers here. View all the latest statistics on Ottawa's cases, vaccination rates and more on the Ottawa Public Health site here.
Pop-up office hours Wednesday May 18
I'll be holding some pop-up office hours on Wednesday, May 18, from 2:30-4 pm. Pop-ups are an opportunity to join me by video to chat one-on-one without an appointment about whatever's on your mind. Email us at jeff.leiper@ottawa.ca for the Zoom login details.
Committee of Adjustment May 18
The Panel 1 meeting of the Committee of Adjustment on May 18 has the following ward applications on the agenda. View the full details of these here.
- At 430 Mansfield, the owners are seeking a lot line adjustment. No development is currently proposed.
- The applications at 256 Northwestern, 284 Churchill N., 501 Cole, 1089 Gladstone and 1091 Gladstone are all scheduled to resume hearings after being adjourned.
I also have the decisions from the May 4 meeting. At 432 Avondale, the Committee approved the variances for a reduced lot width to build two detached dwellings as well as the consent to sever. But variances for reduced side yard set-backs and front-facing garages were refused having lost on a tie. The decision is now in its appeal period. At 681 Tweedsmuir, the owners were refused a variance to double the height of a proposed coach house. At 117 Carruthers, an application for consent to sever the lot and for variances was granted. At 11 (13 & 15) Sherbrooke, the application for consent to sever and variances were granted. At 35 Kenora, the application for a variance to allow a front-facing garage as part of a proposal to build a new detached dwelling was granted.
At 501 Cole on the next agenda, the community asked the City last fall to designate the property with heritage protection. That was put in the queue, but now that the owner has filed a notice of intent to demolish, Council has a little under 60 days to either proceed with a designation or not. Heritage staff are working on that and I have asked that they bring a recommendation to be voted on whether that position is in favour or not. I expect that Built Heritage sub-committee vote in later June. I have also noted to staff that I don't consider the City's process to allow developers to file a notice of intention to demolish ahead getting the necessary severances or variances to be inappropriate. It won't make a difference in this case, but the clock should not start ticking until a demolition permit is filed for. Given how late in the term of Council we are, this is something we'll need to pursue in the next term of Council.
Tunney's Pasture consultation
Registration is now open for two virtual workshops to gather the public’s input on the transformation of Tunney’s Pasture from a single-use employment centre into a vibrant transit-oriented and sustainable mixed-use community that is integrated with surrounding neighbourhoods while maintaining a strong federal presence.
Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) and Canada Lands Company are collaborating to develop the long-term plan that will guide the implementation of the approved 2014 Tunney’s Pasture Master Plan.
At these virtual workshops, participants will be asked to help Canada Lands and PSPC develop a set of community values that reflect the community’s vision for this mixed-use development, and current views on things such as climate change, affordable housing, and community building in a post-pandemic Ottawa. These values will complement the guiding principles already included in the Tunney’s Pasture Master Plan.
Two identical bilingual virtual workshops are planned:
- Wednesday, May 25, 2022, from 6:00 to 8:30 pm
- Thursday, May 26, 2022, from 1:00 to 3:30 pm
Participants can register at here. To allow as many people as possible to participate, the public is asked to register for one session only.
For those who cannot participate in the workshops, there will be an opportunity to provide input via an online questionnaire from May 27 to June 12.
Community organizations and individuals that represent community interests will also be invited to apply to take part in a new Communities Perspectives Group. The group’s role will be to ensure a variety of interests and perspectives are considered throughout the redevelopment phases of the non-federal development blocks. Details on how to apply will be provided at the workshops and on the project website after May 25.
For more information, to register for the workshops, and to sign up for updates, visit the Tunney’s Pasture redevelopment website here.
Tom Brown arena
Residents likely recently saw the media around the extended use of Tom Brown as an emergency overnight shelter. While it was supposed to revert to respite use at the end of April, and then back to an arena use at the end of the summer, continued outbreaks in the single adult shelters led the City to announce its intention to keep the shelter open until no later than the end of May. Since then, outbreaks in the single adult shelters have been lifted, and the residents using Tom Brown have been moved back into the regular shelter system. As of May 12, Tom Brown is being used only for daytime respite. I wrote some time back about the City's plan to continue respite services at a new permanent centre on Catherine Street. In response to my inquiries, Rec staff say they expect to get control of the ice pad back in early August, with respite operations moved upstairs but with continued access to showers. That will provide sufficient time for cleaning and prep for skating in September.
Kitchissippi garage sale June 4
Kitchissippi's community associations and I have teamed up to resume the neighbourhood garage sale to be held this year on June 4 with a June 5 rain date. Put your table out with neighbours and I'll be advertising it in the Kitchissippi Times! Check you local community association's Facebook, web site or other channels for all the details. Take a gander at the poster here.
Plant Pool health and fitness day June 4
On Saturday, June 4, the Plant Pool Recreation Association invites you to National Health and Fitness Day at the Plant Recreation Centre, 930 Somerset Street. FREE activities include a soccer tournament (10 am - 2 pm), scavenger hunt, relay races and storywalks starting at 11 am. Registration is required for the soccer tournament at https://.go.teamsnap.com/forms/316333 by May 21. Tournament is open to persons ages 4 to 12. The Plant Recreation Centre will offer a 2-for-1 admissions for swimming and access weight/cardio room.
Ottawa Centre Provincial election debate
Local community associations are organizing an all-candidates debate for Ottawa Centre. This will be a virtual event taking place on Tuesday May 17 at 7 pm. To learn more, please visit the McKellar Park Community Association here.
At City Hall
Environment Committee
The next Environment Committee will be held on May 17 with a short agenda that includes a verbal update on the Ottawa Climate Action fund, as well as a motion by Councillor Kavanagh to find three roofs on which we can put solar power generation, as well as to accelerate our efforts to increase the use of renewable energy including with the creation of a staff position to work on it. Find the full agenda here.
Transit Commission
The Transit Commission meets on Wednesday May 18 with an agenda that includes verbal updates on bus, para and train service, as well as the Q1 operating results and 2021 performance reporting. I haven't looked at any of it yet, but there is never a shortage of headlines from the Transit Commission. See that agenda and related material here.
Community and Protective Services Committee
CPS meets on Thursday May 19 with an agenda that includes a proposed new vacant property by-law. The by-law is intended to help us better manage boarded up properties including, as I understand it from my briefing with them, with a new permit system. We face several challenges in the ward from properties that are vacant both because of renovictions and a few homes lost to fire and not subsequently re-built. The by-law appears to be a strong step forward in addressing those. There are also items on the agenda including a report on how the electric Zamboni trial went, taxi drivers' ask for higher permitted fares and lower insurance requirements, and the Crime Prevention Ottawa annual report. There is also an update on the community partnership capital grants with a list that, I'm sorry to say, didn't include any in our ward. I'm not aware of what asks there might have been from Kitchissippi, but I invite applicants to let me know if they were unsuccessful.
Team Kitchissippi
I like the look of my week which right now is relatively light. There are a few files that have been languishing on my desk for a while, and the community insurance program is one that I expect will take up a chunk of my time. I will also need to start talking to Minto. As many of you read in the media, my Planning Committee colleagues last week were as uncomfortable with approving a 16-storey building at Parkdale and Wellington as I and the community were. Consideration of the item was adjourned indefinitely, but I know the developer will be keen to start moving ahead on a new iteration. I do not believe that can be a quick process. The secondary plan would allow for nine storeys at the corner, and six on the adjoining lots. With a 16-storey tower identified by the committee as inappropriate, Minto will need to take some time to re-design the building. I expect that will take several weeks at least. Whether the application comes back in the late summer/early fall or in the next term of Council isn't immediately evident, but I'll do my best to keep you in the loop.
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday, Kitchissippi.
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