2022 City budget, secondary plan for Bank Street, and a big welcome

Budget

Noted Canadian urban planner Brent Toderian said, “The truth about a city’s aspirations isn’t found in its vision. It’s found in its budget.” The City of Ottawa’s approach to the budget needs improvement. Consultations occur after the majority of the budget has already been decided; more participatory budgeting would be desirable.

I’ve previously written about several ideas to ensure city budgets use our tax dollars efficiently and fund the services, projects and infrastructure that residents need and care about. For example: not expanding the urban boundary; retrofitting our older buildings to reduce emissions and save money; investing in ending homelessness which would save on social costs; helping to induce more trips by walking, biking and transit; and ending subsidies to wealthy developers.

That being said, our approach to the budget this year has had a hyper local focus, delivering what we can on residents’ priorities in our ward.

In the Glebe, we have secured funding for the reconstruction of the Bank Street canal bridge. Last year, a redesign of the bridge passed unanimously at City Council. Last spring, we worked with the community and staff to settle on a new accessible design to provide separate, safe facilities for drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists. We now have sufficient funding in the proposed budget, and construction is expected to start this spring.

There’s also funding in the draft budget for improvements to Fourth Avenue between Lyon and Percy. This is an important project to make the street safer for students going to Mutchmor and Corpus Christi and for everyone else who uses the street. This project will include traffic-calming measures, speed humps and a raised crosswalk between Mutchmor and the field behind Corpus Christi.

Elsewhere in the neighbourhood, we will see road and sewer work on Ella and Ralph, the continuing design work for Pretoria, resurfacing on Carling between Bronson and Preston, and the replacement of streetlight poles on Dow’s Lake Road and Kippewa Drive.

A new park will take shape next to the Firehall in 2022.

Finally, we worked to see one million dollars budgeted to begin the design work for the reconstruction of Bronson Avenue between the canal and Arlington Avenue. This will be an important project for the community, as we need to see significant improvements to Bronson to make it a safer and more comfortable street for residents. Two years ago, we held an initial visioning session for Bronson Avenue, and we will continue the consultation process by hosting a public meeting in the New Year.

For a full list of proposed projects in Capital Ward, you can visit our website at shawnmenard.ca/2022Budget.

A Welcome to the new executive director of the Glebe BIA

I wanted to give a big welcome to the new executive director of the Glebe BIA, Patrick Burke, a Glebe resident with an impressive background. We’ve had a chance to sit down to discuss the historic nature of the Glebe and the future needs for the area. We committed to working together closely for the betterment of the community and small businesses.

New Bank Street

Height and Character Study passes Planning Committee

I’ve been enjoying my new role on the Planning Committee, and one of the more rewarding moments was working with the community to see through the new Height and Character Study. It preserves much of the character of Bank Street while adding density in suitable locations, with each lot considered for its context. I am very grateful to Carolyn Mackenzie, the GCA and Glebe residents who ensured this plan mitigated concerns while accommodating new growth. It also includes a provision for affordable housing in the city-owned parking lot at the north end of the Glebe.

Thank you for reading this.