By Sarah Anderson, CFRA News, December 3, 2013
Dozens of residents are expected to attend an information session and protest Tuesday night against the proposed landfill in Carlsbad Springs that would be privately owned and operated by Taggart Miller.
The company held open houses in February to explain why they wanted to build a 400 acre landfill at the site, saying they valued the proximity to the highway and they say the area already has an industrial feel.
By Sarah Anderson, CFRA News, December 3, 2013
While many middle-income families worry about trying to tighten belts to accommodate a challenging rise in hydro rates those living on fixed incomes because of disability, age or circumstance face an even greater challenge of simply making ends meet.
There are systems in place for crisis situations, for example, the City and the Salvation Army have programs to pay bills before someone loses a home but Councillor Mark Taylor said those are Band-Aid solutions.
By Lauren Davis, CFRA News, December 3, 2013
Energy Minister Bob Chiarelli insists the provincial government is managing Ontario\'s electricity prices well and consumers won\'t be paying all that much more over the next two decades.
He says the province\'s new energy plan will see electricity rates increase by an average of 2.8 per cent over the next 20 years, but he admits the short-term hikes will be painful, a 42 per cent jump over the next five years.
By David Reevely, Ottawa Citizen, December 2, 2013
OTTAWA — A damning report laying out the many ways Ottawans feel their city government ignores them has officials rushing to improve how they engage the public in important decisions.
“What it’s about is, how do you move from being that collection of small little villages and move to being a city and having a conversation and consultations as a city?” said Aaron Burry, the senior city manager in charge. “Smaller-tier municipalities had councils that were involved in every single little issue. ... We have to get better about having the conversations that are important to people without it being process-laden.”
By Elizabeth Payne, Ottawa Citizen, December 3, 2013
OTTAWA — With two cities, two provinces, the federal government and the National Capital Commission involved, plans to redeveloped the Chaudière Islands will be “administratively, very difficult to manage,” Gatineau Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin said Monday.
But the newly elected mayor said redeveloping the site on the islands in the Ottawa River is so important that there must be political will to think outside the box to make it happen.
By David Reevely, Ottawa Citizen, December 2, 2013
OTTAWA — OC Transpo is ready to spend as much as $25 million to revamp its system for collecting transit fares once the new light-rail system opens.
The plan, to be debated by the city’s transit commission next Monday, includes new fare gates at all of the LRT stations and vending machines selling tickets, passes and Presto cards at each gate. The idea is to make transfers from buses to trains and back as smooth as possible by minimizing the number of times any rider has to prove he or she has paid to get into the system, and that means adopting a system that looks a lot like the one Toronto’s transit commission uses, but with elements borrowed from Montreal’s and Vancouver’s.
By Mai Habib, CFRA News, December 1, 2013
Starting Sunday there will be off peak lane reductions on Highway 417 in both directions between Parkdale Avenue and Walkley Road and on Highway 174 between Montreal Road and the Hwy 417/174 split. Lane reductions between Parkdale and Rochester include 2 closed lanes in each direction, overnight during the week and also during the day on the weekend.
In addition to lane reductions, full closures will occur at 15-minute intervals between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m. on the following dates:
By Mel Hahib, CFRA News, December 1, 2013
Environment Canada says our region will likely be getting dense fog patches and freezing drizzle Sunday night and Monday.Their weather alert includes Ottawa, the Valley and Gatineau.The weather system is moving in from Southern Ontario and should be here by Sunday evening. Visibility could be reduced to 100 metres or less through Monday morning.
By Laura Mueller, Ottawa Community News , November 28, 2013
News -The city\'s environment committee reconfirmed a planned seven per cent hike in water and sewer rates, but not before much discussion on forestry services.
A spotlight is being shone on the department as the city grapples with losing a large number of trees to the emerald ash borer beetle.
By Victor Pilieci, Ottawa Citizen, November 27, 2013
As brewers everywhere work to build better ties with their communities, many are creating environmental responsibility programs to lower their environmental footprints.
Kichesippi Beer Co. has, for example, hired a full-time “sustainability officer” to take a fine comb through its day-to-day operations and try to figure out how and where the brewery can do things better.
By Joanne Chianello, Ottawa Citizen, November 29, 2013
Faced with having to approve a whopping 16-per-cent fare increase for the so-called Community Pass at last week’s transit commission meeting, public commissioner Blair Crew asked a very reasonable question: how much would other OC Transpo fares have to increase in order to keep the passes for disabled residents at the same rate?
Turns out, not that much.