Ottawa city council asks province to reinstate nine-storey building heights on minor corridors

Written by Moyra Lauzière on November 27, 2023

By Blair Crawford, Ottawa Citizen, November 25, 2023

In a head-spinning move that has angered some community groups, Ottawa is asking the province to reverse its decision to override the city’s official plan on building heights.

A motion, approved by council this week in a 19-2 vote, instructs city officials to ask Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Paul Calandra to reinstate rules allowing higher buildings heights along minor road corridors. It’s something the city’s planning committee rejected two years ago, when it approved Ottawa’s new official plan.

At the time, city staff had recommended higher buildings, but council bowed to pressure and limited buildings along minor corridor roads to four storeys.

Find the whole article here.

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November 27, 2023

Auditor slams City of Ottawa officials over handling of Barrhaven housing development

By Randy Boswell, Ottawa Citizen, November 24, 2023

The City of Ottawa’s auditor general has slammed municipal officials for mishandling a major housing development in Barrhaven that involved extensive alterations of the Jock River floodplain to accommodate a sprawling new subdivision with nearly 1,000 new homes.

Auditor General Nathalie Gougeon has released a scathing, 14-page report detailing her team’s investigation into the project after allegations of mismanagement were made through the city’s fraud and waste hotline. The report has been tabled for discussion at the city’s audit committee meeting on Monday.

...The plan involved cutting away more than 100,000 cubic metres of soil along the north shore of the Jock and depositing more than 400,000 cubic metres of soil on adjacent land immediately to the north so houses could be safely built there, beyond any flood risk.

Find the whole article here.

November 27, 2023

Pellerin: Speak up for the glorious, badly under-used, Rideau Canal

By Brigitte Pellerin, Ottawa Citizen Op-Ed, November 24, 2023

The City of Ottawa, the National Capital Commission and Parks Canada are launching a consultation on the Rideau Canal, and they want our opinions.

What they hope we do is complete a survey, attend a virtual meeting, visit a pop-up kiosk at Landsowne Christmas Market on Nov. 25 and send our comments. I’m going to skip right to the last step.

...Around here, we only think of roads for commuting. Everything else — even a lovely gem like the Canal — is for recreational purposes. It’s a failure of imagination that deprives everyone, residents and visitors alike, of truly magnificent public spaces in the nation’s capital.

Find the whole article here.

November 23, 2023

Consultant cited by airport authority says he never recommended cutting entire forest

By Nicole Williams, CBC News Ottawa

The author of one of several reports cited by the Ottawa International Airport Authority as justification to cut down an entire forest on Hunt Club Road says he's never made any such recommendation.

On Monday, the authority announced it would be clearing the entirety of the red pine forest at 400 Hunt Club Rd., which covers approximately four hectares of land, as soon as possible.

Forester Fraser Smith said that's not true. His consultancy firm was hired by the city this year to conduct an assessment of the forest and submit a report.

It included six recommendations on how to move forward with the red pines — ranging from "do nothing" to significantly thinning out the woodland but still leaving roughly 120 trees. None of the recommendations included clearing the land entirely.

Find the whole article here.