December 2009


Green bins set to make Ottawa debut

CBC News, December 31, 2009

Ottawa residents have a new bin to roll out to their curb in the new year.

In addition to regular garbage, blue and grey bins, the city will begin collecting organic waste from green bins on Jan. 4 in a program that will cost the city $13.6 million annually.

For residents such as Gillian Graham Bevan, who likes the idea of keeping organic waste out of the garbage stream more than the practice, the city's move is welcome.

"I'm really glad the city's doing it," she said. "It's been a long time coming. I have friends in Toronto and they're totally into it."

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2009/12/31/ottawa-green-bin-pickup.html

Councillor Wants to Hit the Brakes on Transit Cuts

CFRA, December 28, 2009
Josh Pringle

An Ottawa City Councillor is urging his Council colleagues to rethink proposed cuts to OC Transpo routes next year.

The Audit, Budget and Finance Committee approved a motion that calls for a $5.6 million cut in the 2010 Transit Services budget, including $3 million through a "reorganization" of bus routes.

But Councillor Rick Chiarelli says the proposed changes to 47 OC Transpo routes would be a bad move for customers.

Chirarelli tells CTV Ottawa that "Priority one has to be, look at the pain you are inflecting with these proposed transit route cuts.

http://www.cfra.com/?cat=1&nid=70216

Editorial: Progress on transit

Toronto Star, December 26, 2009

With just a few days left in 2009, transit officials managed to break ground on a project this week that heralds a dramatic change in the way Torontonians will travel across their city. And, as Mayor David Miller noted, "It's been far too long in coming."

Work has finally begun on the $1 billion Sheppard East light rail line - the first in a new network called Transit City, designed to reach into almost every part of the municipality by 2018. This first 14-kilometre stretch will run east from the Don Mills subway station, across Scarborough to Meadowvale Rd. This is especially welcome because, with only three subway stops, sprawling Scarborough has for years been poorly served by public transit.

Replacing an existing bus route, the Sheppard East line will run light rail cars on a separate, dedicated right-of-way, allowing faster travel times and a more convenient commute. The ultimate goal is to get more people out of their automobiles and into public transit, reducing gridlock and Toronto's carbon footprint.

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/742108--progress-on-transit

Les bacs verts sont prêts

Le Droit, le 22 décembre 2009
Dominique La Haye

Au cours des derniers mois, la Ville d'Ottawa a distribué aux ménages plus de 220 000 bacs verts, encore visibles à l'entrée des maisons. À compter du début de janvier 2010, la collecte des matières organiques débutera finalement.

La mise sur pied du nouveau programme de 17 millions $ ne s'est cependant pas déroulée sans controverse. Certains mécontents ont même choisi de ne pas participer au programme. En effet, quelque 1300 bacs verts ont été retournés à la Ville.

La question du financement du programme a surtout contribué à créer la polémique. Au départ, un comité municipal avait proposé des frais d'utilisation uniquement pour les résidants qui recevront le service. Cette méthode excluait donc notamment les secteurs industriel et commercial, ainsi que plusieurs résidants des secteurs ruraux.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/ottawa-est-ontarien/200912/22/01-933470-les-bacs-verts-sont-prets.php

Toronto promises to lead way for electric cars

CBC News, December 22, 2009

Toronto is joining 13 of the world's largest urban centres pledging to make their cities electric car friendly.

Toronto Mayor David Miller said the city is committed to working "with Toronto Hydro and the province to make sure the infrastructure is there for the charging of the vehicles."

There are plenty of gas stations for regular cars and trucks but nothing exists right now to recharge electric vehicles.

Miller says the plan - endorsed by Toronto and cities as diverse as Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Hong Kong and Los Angeles - will eventually mean charging stations conveniently located in places such as city parking lots and residential parking areas.

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2009/12/22/electric-cars.html

Editorial: Higher fares, fewer routes will drive people into cars

YourOttawaRegion, December 19, 2009
This Week staff

The city's draft budget calls for cuts to transit spending and fare increases.

Even if you never set foot in a bus, this decision should catch your attention.

A city statistic shows more than 500,000 annual bus trips will not be taken if the service cuts and fare hikes are approved in the final version of the budget.

Some of those 500,000 trips will simply disappear into thin air, Riders frustrated by longer waits, more circuitous routes and more costly journeys will stay home.

http://www.yourottawaregion.com/opinion/editorial/article/244992--higher-fares-fewer-routes-will-drive-people-into-cars

Ontario offers $600M for Ottawa light rail

CBC News, December 19, 2009

Ottawa's new proposed light rail transit line will get $600 million from the Ontario government.

City officials said they were pleased by Premier Dalton McGuinty's announcement Friday, billed as the province's biggest-ever single investment in Ottawa infrastructure.

"It is absolutely the best Christmas gift you could give the city this year," Mayor Larry O'Brien told provincial officials at a news conference.

To reporters afterward, he added, "On a day like today, 10 years from now, you won't be waiting up at curb level in the cold wind. You'll be down underneath the centre of the city with a hot coffee in your hand and the dry and the warmth, getting on your light rail train and that's what's important here."

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2009/12/18/ottawa-091218-lrt-money.html

Province gives $600M transit gift
Relieved city officials now await word on federal contribution

Ottawa Citizen, December 19, 2009, pages A1, A6
Mohammed Adam

The Ontario government on Friday gave the city's ambitious transit project a massive boost with a $600-million investment that puts enormous pressure on the federal government to match the funds.

Many city politicians have wondered if the province, the key to implementing the $2.1-billion rail-based transit plan, would ever back it. But on Friday, they heaved a collective sigh of relief as their prayers were answered with Ontario's largest single transit investment in the city.

The rapid-transit plan replaced one council killed in late 2006. The first phase includes a 12-kilometre light-rail project from Tunney's Pasture to Blair Road, including a 3.2-kilometre downtown tunnel. The work is expected to begin in 2012. The price tag has gone from $1.4 billion in early estimates to $2.1 billion as finer engineering work has been done. Serious doubts were raised about the feasibility of the project after Premier Dalton McGuinty said it was unaffordable.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Province+gives+600M+transit+gift/2360742/story.html

Ottawa Valley commuter train on track

CBC News, December 19, 2009

A commuter train linking Renfrew County, the Pontiac region of west Quebec and the city of Ottawa took a step closer to becoming a reality on Friday.

The federal government announced a $136,000 grant for a feasibility study into improving the existing railway connection between Ottawa and Pembroke. Currently, one freight train a week travels along the Canadian National-owned tracks west of the national capital.

Transport Pontiac-Renfrew, the group that's pushing for the railway improvements, would like to see the number of freight trains on the Ottawa-Pembroke line tripled and a five-day-a-week commuter service introduced within two years.

The trains would run along existing tracks through Renfrew, Ont., crossing into Quebec, with stops in Portage-du-Fort and Shawville, before crossing back into Ontario at Fitzroy Harbour and heading towards Kanata and Ottawa.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2009/12/19/ottawa-valley-commuter-train-grant.html

Transit plans add to strain on relationship of city, NCC
A polite but testy exchange in released documents reveals battles over mundane planning details in the region

Ottawa Citizen, December 18, 2009, page C2
Neco Cockburn

A major rail project would be difficult enough for most cities to plan. But in Ottawa, even minor details such as where to reroute traffic while work is done can require the approval of the National Capital Commission.

Documents released to the Citizen under access-to-information legislation reveal a polite, but testy exchange between the city's and the commission's top planners, even over whether the city should show a new road or two running across NCC land in its long-term "conceptual" transportation planning maps.

The battles can be even more mundane. City staff are looking at having OC Transpo buses run along an extended stretch of the Ottawa River Parkway while the Transitway is under construction. The city already pays the NCC so that OC Transpo can use the parkway between Lincoln Fields and Dominion stations, but plans call for buses to use the road closer to downtown, near the Canadian War Museum.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Transit+plans+strain+relationship+city/2354370/story.html

Oops: Emissions report flawed
Baseline calculations found to be inaccurate

Ottawa Citizen, December 18, 2009, page C3
Neco Cockburn

Although Ottawa city councillors voted earlier in the fall to set further targets regarding greenhouse gas emissions, it turns out the city has been working from faulty data.

The baseline used to measure the city government's greenhouse-gas reductions is now thought to be inaccurate, as are calculations that went into an inventory of the city's emissions in 2004.

The resulting errors are contained in documents that have gone before city council. A staff report earlier this fall said the municipal government had already slashed its greenhouse-gas emissions to 24 per cent below their 1990 level by 2004, for instance, prompting councillors to vote to cut the city's emissions to 30 per cent below 1990 levels by 2012.

However, because of calculation errors, the 2004 emission levels will be higher than reported, said David Miller, the city's manager of environmental sustainability.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/Oops+Emissions+report+flawed/2354374/story.html

Few bins being returned to city

Ottawa Citizen, December 18, 2009, page C3
David Reevely

Despite campaigns aimed at getting angry Ottawans to return their city-issued green bins, only about one per cent of the 222,200 bins the city has delivered have been returned, the co-ordinator of the distribution effort says.

Total "refusals" amount to 2,785, said Chris Wood, who oversaw the project to give out green bins to most Ottawa houses and small apartment buildings, which ended Dec. 11. Many of those came when contractors the city hired arrived in neighbourhoods and started depositing the bins on driveways and porches.

"Those are people who said, ‘I don't want one' or threw them at them or whatever," Wood said. More rejections came when a follow-up crew arrived with information booklets on how to use the bins, but Wood said the team was able to convince about half of those recipients to keep the bins.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/bins+being+returned+city/2354378/story.html

Transport en commun
L'Ontario délie les cordons de sa bourse

Radio-Canada, le 18 décembre 2009

Le gouvernement de l'Ontario accorde 600 millions de dollars à la Ville d'Ottawa pour la construction du réseau de transport rapide. Cette annonce est rassurante pour la municipalité, qui craignait d'être boudée par la province.

Pour la Ville, cet investissement marque le coup d'envoi de la première phase de son ambitieux projet de transport rapide, dont l'avenir était incertain puisque les engagements financiers tardaient à venir.

L'Ontario demande maintenant au gouvernement fédéral et à la Ville d'Ottawa d'offrir des contributions équivalentes pour cette première phase du projet, pour un total de 1,8 milliard de dollars. Toutefois, la première phase du projet prévu par la Ville s'élève à 2,1 milliards.

http://www.radio-canada.ca/regions/ottawa/2009/12/18/004-investissement-ont-ottawa.shtml

Projet de loi sur la CCN : Cannon aurait souhaité une adoption plus rapide

Le Droit, le 18 décembre 2009
Patrice Gaudreault

Plus de six mois après le dépôt de son projet de loi sur la Commission de la capitale nationale (CCN), le ministre Lawrence Cannon s'explique mal pourquoi il n'a pas encore été adopté.

« Ça progresse, mais malheureusement pas à la vitesse que j'aurais souhaitée. J'aurais vraiment pensé que ce projet de loi serait adopté avant la fin de la session », confie le ministre des Affaires étrangères, qui assume également la responsabilité de la CCN.

Présenté le 9 juin dernier, le projet de loi C-37 assure une protection accrue au parc de la Gatineau, sans pour autant lui accorder le statut de parc national. S'appuyant largement sur les recommandations du panel indépendant présidé par le professeur Gilles Paquet, de l'Université d'Ottawa, il introduit également un train de mesures pour rendre la CCN plus transparente.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/gatineau-outaouais/200912/18/01-932478-projet-de-loi-sur-la-ccn-cannon-aurait-souhaite-une-adoption-plus-rapide.php

Pontiac
L'idée d'un train de banlieue fait du chemin

Radio-Canada, le 18 décembre 2009

Un groupe d'élus et de gens d'affaires du Pontiac et du comté de Renfrew ont franchi un pas de plus, vendredi, pour améliorer le lien ferroviaire avec Ottawa. Le ministre des Affaires étrangères et député de Pontiac, Lawrence Cannon, a octroyé une subvention de 136 000 $ pour permettre la réalisation d'une étude de faisabilité.

Au total, 275 000 $ serviront à préparer un plan d'affaires dans le but d'acquérir un tronçon de la voie ferrée du Canadien National (CN). L'objectif est d'y faire circuler plus fréquemment de la marchandise et y ajouter des trains de banlieue, et ce, dans un avenir rapproché.

« On pense que pour avoir la synergie entre le train de marchandises, le train de banlieue et le tourisme, on est mieux de pas trop s'éterniser », soutient Harry Gow, porte-parole de l'organisme à but non lucratif Transport Pontiac-Renfrew. En cas de retard, les coûts pourraient augmenter, précise-t-il.

http://www.radio-canada.ca/regions/ottawa/2009/12/18/006-train-banlieue-pontiac.shtml

City closer to transit funding pitch
Council could advance light-rail plan Jan. 13

Ottawa Citizen, December 17, 2009, page C3
Neco Cockburn

Ottawa city council's transit committee has approved the functional plan for the city's new downtown lightrail transit system, moving the project one step closer to a formal request for more than $1 billion from other levels of government.

If full council approves the plan on Jan. 13, it's expected the city will formally ask the federal and provincial governments to provide two-thirds of the project's $2.1-billion budget.

The proposed rail plan includes about 12.5 kilometres of electrified light rail and 13 stations between Tunney's Pasture and Blair stations.

Deputy city manager Nancy Schepers said there have been several discussions between the city and officials from the provincial and federal governments, who "are waiting until they can see an approved project from council and then we can really get into negotiations with them."

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/City+closer+transit+funding+pitch/2349950/story.html

Tunnel dig: Three years for 3.2 km

Metro Ottawa, December 17, 2009
Tim Wieclawski

It will take up to three years to complete the 3.2-kilometre transit tunnel through Ottawa's downtown.

Most of the $735-million tunnel from Bronson Avenue and Campus Station will be dug out by a tunnel-boring machine.

The machine would likely be launched from the parking lot north of Scott Street and the tunnel liners could be fed in from that site. It would also be a temporary dump site for rock removed from the tunnel.

"There would be a fairly high level of activity in that area for likely two and half to three years for the construction of the tunnel and the underground stations," said project manager David Hopper, an engineer from Delcan Corp.

http://www.metronews.ca/ottawa/local/article/399687--tunnel-dig-three-years-for-3-2-km

Mayor vows lockout to prevent repeat of winter transit strike
Plans to decide over Christmas holiday whether to run in 2010 mayoralty race

Ottawa Citizen, December 16, 2009, pages C1, C8
Tom Spears, Dave Rogers and Zev Singer

Mayor Larry O'Brien is threatening to lock out OC Transpo drivers and mechanics during warm weather the next time they're without a contract, to prevent a winter transit strike.

"In straight talk to the people in the community, when they are in position to go on strike, we are also in a position to lock out," the mayor said Tuesday night on Mark Sutcliffe's public affairs show, Talk Ottawa, on Rogers TV.

He called last winter's strike "one of the worst experiences I've ever been through. And I know it was one of the worst experiences the city went through.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/Mayor+vows+lockout+prevent+repeat+winter+transit+strike/2345157/story.html

Cullen, Watson conflict over ban
Councillor, minister disagree on value, risks of corporate donations

Ottawa Citizen, December 14, 2009, pages B1, B3
Lee Greenberg

While the City of Toronto moves to ban corporate and union donations in municipal elections in that city, the rest of the province is unlikely to see a similar development.

At least as long as Jim Watson is Ontario's Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Watson, a rumoured candidate for Ottawa's 2010 mayoralty campaign, said he is against the ban Toronto city council voted in earlier this month. He argues that business owners will find ways around the law by making individual donations, which will then be harder to monitor.

"The challenge we have is that for those people that want a ban on corporation donations, all of a sudden the president and vice-president of every development corporation can give money personally," he said in an interview. "And unless you know who Mr. X or Mrs. Y is, you don't know what their connection is."

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Cullen+Watson+conflict+over/2337059/story.html

Groups see O-Train bound for Wakefield
Environmentalists urge extended links between Ottawa and Gatineau

Ottawa Citizen, December 11, 2009, page C1
Dave Rogers

Four environmental groups want O-Train or trolley service to Wakefield to get Gatineau Hills residents out of their cars and onto public transit.

Joseph Potvin, chair of Greenspace Alliance, said the plan would cost about $37 million, less than the $115 million the federal and Quebec governments will spend to extend the four-lane Highway 5 from Farm Point to Wakefield.

Greenspace Alliance, Transport 2000, Friends of the O-Train and the Conseil régionale de l'environnement et du développement durable de l'Outaouais have asked the National Capital Commission to do a feasibility study of the proposal that would examine Ottawa-Gatineau transit.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/Groups+Train+bound+Wakefield/2328027/story.html

Train à vapeur
L'idée d'une gare à Chelsea progresse

Le Droit, le 11 décembre 2009
Charles Thériault

Les touristes qui empruntent le train à vapeur Hull-Chelsea-Wakefield (HCW) pourraient faire un arrêt à Chelsea d'ici quelques années. L'idée de construire une gare à Chelsea est dans l'air depuis quelques années et elle a fait du chemin depuis le redémarrage du service cette année, après l'interruption de l'an dernier.

Hier, le député fédéral de Pontiac, Lawrence Cannon, a annoncé l'octroi d'une subvention de 206 550 $ pour la réalisation d'une étude de faisabilité. L'étude dont le coût total est de 275 000 $ est déjà en cours et elle est réalisée par la firme Kehoe et Ridley. Elle a pour but de déterminer s'il est possible et souhaitable de doter Chelsea d'une nouvelle gare afin que le train à vapeur y fasse escale en allant à Wakefield, de même qu'au retour. La voie ferrée qu'emprunte le train à vapeur traverse toute la municipalité de Chelsea, mais seules la Ville de Gatineau et la municipalité de La Pêche, profitent des retombées économiques.

Selon la nouvelle mairesse de Chelsea, Caryl Green, la construction d'une gare s'inscrit dans le cadre de l'aménagement du centre-village et compléterait bien le projet du Centre Meredith et le développement résidentiel dans le secteur.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/gatineau-outaouais/200912/11/01-930347-lidee-dune-gare-a-chelsea-progresse.php

Consultants to study plan for Chelsea stop on Wakefield stream train route

Ottawa Citizen, December 11, 2009
Dave Rogers

A group of consultants has been hired to do a feasibility study on a Chelsea station for the Hull-Chelsea-Wakefield steam train.

The federal government will pay $206,550 of the study's $275,400 cost. The study, to be completed by January 2010, will examine the impact of a proposed train station on the environment, local economy, drainage, water and sewer services and transportation.

Tim Kehoe, the study director, said the station could provide Chelsea with some economic benefit if passengers visit Old Chelsea shops and restaurants. Innovation Chelsea, a business group on Highway 105, has proposed locating a steam train station on a 50-acre site it owns that includes a medical clinic. Community Table Outaouais, a group that helps develop economic opportunities for West Quebec residents, is participating in the study.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Consultants+study+plan+Chelsea+stop+Wakefield+stream+train+route/2330990/story.html

Housing developments help reduce carbon footprint

Centretown News, December 11, 2009, page 20
Cayley Dobie

The cranes swing back and forth carrying materials like Lego blocks as the Beaver Barracks and LeBreton Flats developments grow piece by piece.

Greener, more sustainable urban developments are rising quickly in opposite ends of Centretown, and as the buildings begin to take shape, future homes are becoming visable.

Phase One of Centretown Citizens Ottawa Corp.'s Beaver Barracks is the construction of 195 units within two buildings.

The first at 160 Argyle Ave. is a four-storey building that combines apartments and ground level townhouses.

The second building at 464 Metcalfe St. is an eight-storey apartment building and will have a community garden on its roof for residents.

http://centretownnewsonline.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1258&Itemid=94

City's LRT plan on track
Land buying, environmental assessment next

Metro Ottawa, December 11, 2009
Tim Wieclawski

The city can begin buying property for its light rail rapid transit line as early as January.

The majority of the $2.1-billion, 12.5-kilometre electric light rail line from Tunney's Pasture to Blair Station will follow or run beneath the Transitway.

The city will have to acquire land around some transit stations in order to build. While the land around the stations is federally owned parkland, the maintenance yard near St. Laurent is privately owned industrial space.

If city council approves the planning and environmental assessment study, which was released Thursday, a six-month expedited environmental assessment would begin almost immediately.

Actual construction on the project is still a few years away. Deputy city manager Nancy Schepers said they are not expecting to break ground on a tunnel until late in 2012 or even 2013.

http://www.metronews.ca/ottawa/local/article/394244--city-s-lrt-plan-on-track

Transit work to redraw bus routes
Residents will accept 'short-term pain for long-term gain' when Transitway torn up to make way for light-rail, councillor says

Ottawa Citizen, December 11, 2009, page C1
Neco Cockburn

Some Ottawa residents could see a lot more buses going past their homes when OC Transpo diverts its routes during construction on the city's new transit system.

City staff are looking at Bronson Avenue and Kent and Lyon Streets in Centretown as potential bus routes when the Transitway is torn up to make way for light-rail.

Innes, Ogilvie, Coventry and Tremblay roads, along with Industrial Avenue and Riverside Drive, are listed as likely alternate routes on the city's east side.

Carling Avenue, Scott and Albert Streets and the Ottawa River Parkway will likely be used in the west. So would the shoulders and outside lanes of Highway 417.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Transit+work+redraw+routes/2328772/story.html

Train léger : plusieurs années de tracas pour les automobilistes

Le Droit, le 11 décembre 2009
Dominique La Haye

Les automobilistes et les usagers du transport en commun devront s'attendre à de grandes perturbations de la circulation s'échelonnant sur plusieurs années lors de la construction du projet de train léger, prévient la Ville d'Ottawa.

Les hauts fonctionnaires chargés du projet ont indiqué, hier, que différentes mesures seraient prises pour dévier le transport en commun durant la conversion du Transitway - le corridor pour autobus rapides - en circuit pour train léger sur rail électrique.

« Peu importe la façon dont nous analysons cela, il y aura des perturbations », soutient la gestionnaire municipale de la planification des transports, Vivi Chi.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/ottawa-est-ontarien/200912/11/01-930011-train-leger-plusieurs-annees-de-tracas-pour-les-automobilistes.php

Tunnel construction will cause headaches

Ottawa Sun, December 11, 2009
Jon Willing

Downtown traffic could be ugly for up to three years while workers construct a 12.5-km stretch of electric light rail.

"I think people are going to accept it's short-term pain for long-term gain," Bay Coun. Alex Cullen, chairman of the transit committee, said Thursday after a briefing on the downtown tunnel proposal.

After a series of public consultations, the committee is ready to approve the $2.1-billion rail route between Tunney's Pasture and Blair station and direct staff to pursue an environmental assessment. Committee members will consider the plan Wednesday and city council will get the final say on the 13-station route in January.

If all goes according to plan, the Ontario Ministry of the Environment will have a decision on the environmental assessment by May. City staff anticipate construction beginning in 2012 at the earliest.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/10/12112896.html

Bike couriers cruising through changing times

Centretown News, December 11, 2009, page 7
Mac Christie

It used to be common to see bike messengers flitting in and out of traffic on Centretown streets, but the rise of technology means that sight is getting somewhat rarer.

Increased use of e-mail and document transfer programs such as PDF files have meant that instead of sending small documents with bike messengers, the same files can be sent electronically.

The decline of bicycle couriers in Ottawa also has a lot to do increased security following the 9/11 terrorist attacks of 2001, says Gary Watson, a bicycle courier in Centretown for 20 years.

"It used to be that couriers could go into any building, onto any floor, meet any government official and deliver a package into their hands," he says. "Now most government buildings have scanners."

http://centretownnewsonline.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1263&Itemid=98

Get green-bin message out, councillors say
Rural Ottawans not being given full scoop on benefits

Ottawa Citizen, December 11, 2009, page C4
Neco Cockburn

A group of Ottawa councillors want the city to better communicate its green-bin strategy to rural residents who have protested the program.

Rideau-Goulbourn Councillor Glenn Brooks said the emphasis should be on promoting concisely the long-term benefits to all city residents of waste diversion achieved through the composting program.

The benefits include extending the lives of the city's landfills and saving future costs and difficulties that would come with opening new landfills or building transfer stations, staff told city council's agriculture and rural-affairs committee.

Brooks said he has read reports on the issue and thinks green bins are a good program, although "the funding I'm not so sure about."

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/green+message+councillors/2328036/story.html

Urban walkway: Everyone but the cabbies loves this
In a grand New York experiment, great swathes of Broadway have been closed to cars since May. Toronto, are you watching?

Globe and Mail, December 11, 2009
Lisa Rochon

here's a new kind of irreverence being paraded on Broadway these days. To see it and believe it, you have to adjust your eyes away from the colossal perfume and underwear billboards flashing nubility from on high. The unthinkable is happening down on the street in what used to be a traffic lane. Somebody is sitting in a chair. Somebody else is lounging on a bench. Where cars once dominated, there are people strolling along the road. It's consumption of the new delicious: walkable, rideable, lounge-able public space.

The taxi drivers hate it, naturally. But something of a revolution has been ignited in Manhattan. Broadway is getting a second chance as the main street that matters, that deserves to be honoured, seen and experienced. The change is happening on the streets in midtown and further north, on the fringes of Harlem where a major new student arts centre being built by Barnard College is turning a suave, open face to a street that was once shunned - specifically, fortified against.

In midtown, large planted pots have split Broadway in half: one half for cars, the other for people. Check it out: The car no longer gets to be king. The pedestrian-first program, launched one fine weekend in May, had the weather going for it. The city - its residents and tourists - were giddy as they paraded down the middle of the street enjoying the new freedoms and public amenities from 42nd to 47th Street, and from 35th to 33rd Street. So, I was curious to see how it was working in December during a trip to New York last week. Not even the winter could repress the crowd in the street. Though the space is rough and temporary-looking, a group of hip-hop dancers, including a convincing Michael Jackson look-alike, attracts a large, enthusiastic crowd. In front of the dazzling light display of Macy's front entrance on Broadway, dozens of café tables on the street are occupied by people sitting around in the evening. It's not about consuming food or drink. There are no waiters. It's simply people indulging in the public art of conversation.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/urban-walkway-everyone-but-the-cabbies-loves-this/article1397134/

Nouveau carrefour giratoire
On tournera aussi en rond sur Saint-Joseph... à Orléans

Le Droit, le 11 décembre 2009
Dominique La Haye

À l'instar de Gatineau, la communauté d'Orléans à l'est d'Ottawa aura aussi son rond-point dans le cadre d'un grand projet visant à embellir le boulevard Saint-Joseph.

La communauté d'Orléans a reçu récemment une somme imprévue de 2,5 millions $ des trois ordres de gouvernement dans le cadre du fonds fédéral voué aux projets d'infrastructure prêts à démarrer pour stimuler l'économie au pays.

Depuis plusieurs années, la Zone d'amélioration commerciale (ZAC) d'Orléans parle de revamper cette artère commerciale principale jugée ordinaire pour la rendre visuellement plus agréable.

« Actuellement, ce boulevard est très irrégulier et laid », estime Peter Stewart, de la ZAC d'Orléans.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/ottawa-est-ontarien/200912/11/01-930015-on-tournera-aussi-en-rond-sur-saint-joseph-a-orleans.php

Orléans looks at roundabout solution
$2.5M traffic feature best route for St-Joseph, BIA says

Ottawa Citizen, December 11, 2009, page C1
Ami Kingdon

Rather than spend a $2.5-million grant on several small projects to improve the streetscape in downtown Orléans, the local business group has decided one large roundabout is the way to go.

The Heart of Orléans Business Improvement Area plans to use the bulk of the federal and provincial grant to develop a roundabout at St-Joseph Boulevard and Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard. The hope is to make St-Joseph more walkable and pleasant.

"One of the things that the BIA, the community on St-Joseph, and the community of Orléans have always felt is that St-Joseph is a strip with no identity," said Councillor Bob Monette, who represents Orléans.

"It will be a new experience," Monette said.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Orl%C3%A9ans+looks+roundabout+solution/2328028/story.html

Transit routes remain in play
Draft budget sparks talk of Transpo cuts

Ottawa Citizen, December 10, 2009, page C3
Neco Cockburn

Potential transit route cuts are shaping up to be among the biggest issues facing city councillors as they prepare to hear from the public on proposed measures that would bring the municipal tax increase to 3.99 per cent.

The 2010 draft budget was tabled before council on Wednesday, and although debate on the issues will come at a later date, some councillors were keen to discuss issues such as the possible transit cuts and a proposed elimination of Crime Prevention Ottawa.

Mayor Larry O'Brien, chairman of city council's new audit, budget and finance committee -- which was tasked with cutting back budget requests from other committees -- introduced some of its recommendations, and identified transit as something he expects to be "much discussed."

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Transit+routes+remain+play/2323677/story.html

Tunnel construction will cause headaches

Ottawa Sun, December 10, 2009
Jon Willing

Downtown traffic could be ugly for up to three years while workers construct a 12.5-km stretch of electric light rail.

"I think people are going to accept it's short-term pain for long-term gain," Bay Coun. Alex Cullen, chairman of the transit committee, said Thursday after a briefing on the downtown tunnel proposal.

After a series of public consultations, the committee is ready to approve the $2.1-billion rail route between Tunney's Pasture and Blair station and direct staff to pursue an environmental assessment. Committee members will consider the plan Wednesday and city council will get the final say on the 13-station route in January.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/10/12112896.html

A year after Transpo strike, bus ridership down

CBC News, December 10, 2009

A year ago Thursday morning, OC Transpo drivers and mechanics took to the picket line - and stayed there for 53 long winter days, a strike that has reduced the number of people willing to use public transit.

When the strike ended, Emma King stopped getting a ride to work and reluctantly went back to taking the bus.

"If I had other means of transportation, absolutely not, I wouldn't bother," she says now.

OC Transpo has King back, but not everyone has returned.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2009/12/10/transpo-strike.html

E-Waste Banned from Curbside Trash Collection

CFRA, December 10, 2009
Josh Pringle and Stephanie Kinsella

Ottawa garbage collectors will stop picking up old electronic equipment with the regular garbage in January.

Starting January 1st, E-Waste, including TV's and computers, will be banned from curb-side garbage.

Changes to the City of Ottawa's Solid Waste Management Bylaw now excludes e-waste, including computers, keyboards, monitors, printers, fax machines and televisions.

Residents will be required to transport the electronic waste to a depot location.

Councillor Peter Hume says hazardous waste should not be going into the landfill, adding the Ontario Government will likely implement a ban on electronic items from landfills in 3 to 5 years.

Councillor Bob Monette doesn't support the new policy, telling CFRA News the city should offer the pick-up service, and transport electronic waste to recycling depots.

http://www.cfra.com/?cat=1&nid=69938

Mayor fails grade with green group

Metro Ottawa, December 9, 2009
Tracey Tong

A handful of local politicians - including Mayor Larry O'Brien - has received failing grades from Ecology Ottawa for impeding environmental progress, the group said yesterday.

Ecology Ottawa, which released its annual report card on the environmental performance of Ottawa's mayor and city councillors yesterday, awarded seven council members a grade of D or lower.

The report - which reviews 14 key environmental decisions made by council over the past year and assigns a grade to the mayor and each councillor based on the votes he or she cast - gave O'Brien and councillors Steve Desroches, Eli El-Chantiry, Jan Harder, Gord Hunter and Doug Thompson a D or F.

"Looking over the record since 2002, we can see several councillors emerging as stubborn impediments to environmental progress," the report stated.

Scoring a B or higher, the environmental leaders were councillors Michel Bellemare, Georges Bédard, Alex Cullen, Clive Doucet, Diane Holmes, Peter Hume, Jacques Legendre, and Christine Leadman.

http://www.metronews.ca/ottawa/local/article/391897--mayor-fails-grade-with-green-group

Design lost on city council, says architect
Resignations a wake-up call

Metro Ottawa, December 9, 2009
Time Wieclawski

When it comes to designing quality space, there is something broken at city hall, according to Rick MacEwen, one of seven architects who resigned from the city's Downtown Ottawa Urban Design Review Panel yesterday.

Imagine Ottawa without any of the property built and maintained by the federal government - Parliament Hill, the Rideau Canal, Vincent Massey and Gatineau Parks, the Experimental Farm, Rideau Hall and the River Parkways.

Now, remove any building older than 30 years old, the churches and the buildings in the ByWard Market. "The stuff you are left with is purely unremarkable. As an architect, that's a damning confession, but other cities do better than we do," said MacEwen, a partner with Watson MacEwen Teramura Architects.

http://www.metronews.ca/ottawa/local/article/391895--design-lost-on-city-council-says-architect

Frustrated architects dump panel
Hope en masse resignation will 'humiliate' City Hall into designing a better Ottawa

Ottawa Citizen, December 9, 2009, page C1
Kate Jaimet

All seven architects on the Downtown Ottawa Urban Design Review Panel resigned en masse Tuesday, having reached the conclusion that they are wasting their time in a largely fruitless effort to improve architecture in the city.

"This resignation is really a way, and the only way we're aware of, to bring attention to what is a pretty serious problem," said Rick MacEwan, one of the seven. "What we're trying to do is humiliate the city slightly with this resignation, to say: 'You're following a wrong path and you ought to change course.'"

MacEwan said the redevelopment of Lansdowne park -- where an international design competition was cancelled in favour of a business-driven proposal with only a secondary consideration of architecture -- was not the only reason for the resignation, but acted as the final straw.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/Frustrated+architects+dump+panel/2318919/story.html

Cities say they can cut emissions cheaply
Report urges federal investment in green projects

Ottawa Citizen, December 9, 2009
Mike de Souza

Municipalities can slash Canada's greenhouse gas emissions at a fraction of the cost of reducing pollution from large industrial facilities, says a new report released Tuesday.

"There is a large untapped potential to reduce municipal greenhouse gas emissions and these reductions can be achieved at a low cost compared to other mitigation options," said the report titled Act Locally: The Municipal Role in Fighting Climate Change.

The report, based on an analysis of federal statistics, was produced by EnviroEconomics, a consulting firm, for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

It estimated municipalities can deliver 15 to 40 per cent of the reductions required to meet the government's target of lowering emissions to 1990 levels by 2020.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/Cities+they+emissions+cheaply/2318868/story.html

OMB approves appeal of Fernbank subdivision

Ottawa Citizen, December 9, 2009, page C4
Neco Cockburn

An appeal of a major suburban development connecting Kanata and Stittsville is going ahead.

Kizell Management Corp. had argued the provincial board should dismiss the appeal filed by the Friends of the Greenspace Alliance. The appeal challenges the council-approved Fernbank plan and argues that construction could lead to more flooding on the city's west side.

Kizell, identified in OMB documents as part of major real-estate company Tridel, argued that the alliance's position didn't contain grounds under which the OMB could allow an appeal based on land-use planning and that the appeal was "frivolous and vexatious."

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/todays-paper/approves+appeal+Fernbank+subdivision/2318934/story.html

Pour maintenir la hausse des impôts fonciers à 3,99 %
« Le maire est prêt à tout sacrifier pour atteindre son objectif » - Alex Cullen

Le Droit, le 9 décembre 2009
Dominique La Haye

Le conseiller municipal Alex Cullen accuse le maire d'Ottawa de manquer de vision en se montrant favorable à
une réduction du service de transport en commun qui engendrera une diminution de 600 000 déplacements d'usagers.

M. Cullen, qui préside le comité de transport en commun d'Ottawa, a fait cette sortie, hier, alors qu'était déposé le budget 2010 de la Ville au conseil municipal.

Pour maintenir la hausse des impôts fonciers à 3,99 %, le directeur municipal d'OC Transpo, Alain Mercier, a indiqué que 47 circuits d'autobus qui desservent les différentes communautés seraient affectés, engendrant une réduction de 597 000 voyages par année.

« Couper le service d'autobus et hausser les tarifs d'autobus est une mauvaise combinaison à faire en année d'élections, d'autant plus après une grève du transport en commun », indique M. Cullen.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/ottawa-est-ontarien/200912/09/01-929576--le-maire-est-pret-a-tout-sacrifier-pour-atteindre-son-objectif-alex-cullen.php

Bus routes cuts go too far: Cullen
Route cuts and fare increase unfair: Transit chair

Nepean This Week, December 9, 2009
Margaret Sambol

Transit committee chair and Bay Coun. Alex Cullen isn't happy with cuts the City's audit, budget and finance (ABF) committee made to transit service in the proposed 2010 draft budget.

The committee voted to reduce service on 47 bus routes at the same time that it increases fare by 7.5 per cent. Cullen says the cuts will affect 974,000 riders and predicts the City will lose an estimated 597,000 riders.

"It's hard to reconcile cutting service and raising fares," Cullen says. "The reason why the City wants to increase ridership is because it is a cheaper alternative to building new roads and widening roads for more cars. We have a goal to reach 30 per cent of all transportation trips by transit and to get there we have to provide service."

http://www.nepeanthisweek.com/article/19418

Report advises cutting Kanata tower down to more manageable size

Ottawa Citizen, December 9, 2009, page C3
Neco Cockburn

A developer is planning what would still be one of the largest buildings in Kanata even after the city cuts its proposed height in half.

Richcraft is looking at building an office and hotel tower along with a retail building, apartment tower and above-grade parking garage at 143 Didsbury Rd. The 1.9-hectare site at the northwest corner of the Terry Fox Drive and Highway 417 interchange is now vacant.

The company had proposed a 30-storey office and hotel tower, which would have made it the tallest building in Kanata and one of the tallest in Ottawa.

However, a staff report approved by the planning and environment committee on Tuesday recommends that the building be limited to a maximum of 15 storeys, or 45 metres. That's the height of the Park Ridge Place apartment buildings, which are the tallest buildings in the Kanata town centre.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/Report+advises+cutting+Kanata+tower+down+more+manageable+size/2318932/story.html

Staff, councillors to debate sidewalks in the suburbs

Ottawa Citizen, December 9, 2009, page C3
Neco Cockburn

City staff and councillors will review development standards for sidewalks, lights and other aspects of suburban subdivision design.

The review stems from a discussion over sidewalks in a new Barrhaven subdivision that occurred during Tuesday's meeting of the planning and environment committee.

Barrhaven Councillor Jan Harder brought forward a report recommending that certain proposed sidewalks be cut from a Mattamy development in the Half Moon Bay subdivision.

The committee heard that the issue arose after a young boy riding a tricycle on the sidewalk was almost hit by a van pulling out of a driveway in a high-density area where there is little set-back between homes and sidewalks.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Staff+councillors+debate+sidewalks+suburbs/2318929/story.html

Ottawa mayor gets 'F' from enviro watchdog

Ottawa Sun, December 8, 2009
Jon Willing

An Ottawa environmental watchdog has graded Mayor Larry O'Brien and two other councillors an F based on a series of "environmental decisions" in the past year.

Ecology Ottawa released its annual report card on city council's environmental performance Tuesday, giving failing grades to the mayor and councillors Eli El-Chantiry and Rick Chiarelli.

On the other hand, councillors Alex Cullen, Clive Doucet, Diane Holmes and Georges Bedard received an A+.

Receiving an A were councillors Christine Leadman and Jacques Legendre, while Michel Bellemare and Peter Hume received a B.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/08/12078311.html

Attribué par l'organisme Écologie Ottawa
« F » pour le bulletin environnemental d'O'Brien

Le Droit, le 8 décembre 2009
Dominique La Haye

Le bulletin environnemental 2009 du maire d'Ottawa, Larry O'Brien, est plutôt vert-de-gris, alors que l'organisme Écologie Ottawa lui a attribué la note « F ».

Dans l'ensemble, le groupe estime que le conseil municipal a échoué sur le plan écologique cette année.

« Ces résultats médiocres sont typiques du conseil actuel. Si l'on tient compte de leur performance depuis 2002, certains conseillers ressortent comme des entêtés qui ralentissent les progrès environnementaux », est-il écrit dans le rapport.

Deux autres élus municipaux ont obtenu la même note que le maire. Il s'agit des conseillers Rick Chiarelli et Eli El-Chantiry. Les conseillers Doug Thompson, Gord Hunter, Shad Qadri et Steve Desroches ont pour leur part obtenu la lettre D.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/ottawa-est-ontarien/200912/08/01-929187--f-pour-le-bulletin-environnemental-dobrien.php

Environmental Report Card Day for Council

CFRA, December 8, 2009
Josh Pringle

Mayor Larry O'Brien and two City Councillors have received a failing grade for their environmental performance.

In a report card released today, Ecology Ottawa gave O'Brien and Councillors Eli El-Chantiry and Rick Chiarelli an "F."

Ecology Ottawa reviewed 14 key environmental decisions made by Council over the past year and assigned a grade based on their votes.

Four City Councillors received an "A plus", Councillors Alex Cullen, Clive Doucet, Diane Holmes and Georges Bedard.

The report says "the city remains trapped in destructive, business-as-usual approaches to urban growth, transportation, and infrastructure."

http://www.cfra.com/?cat=1&nid=69862

Proposed budget means cuts to transit, parks
Maintenance services, OC Transpo routes to be scaled back to save money

Ottawa Citizen, December 8, 2009, page C4
Kate Jaimet

Next year, the city's buildings will be dirtier, its parks weedier, and buses will leave many evening and weekend riders out of luck if Ottawa council agrees to proposed service cuts in an effort to keep the municipal tax increase to 3.99 per cent.

The tight budget means the parks and recreation department will have to reduce its proposed spending for next year by $1.5 million. While continuing to spend money on its planned bricks-and-mortar expansion, which includes community centres and splash pads in parks, the department proposes saving money by reducing maintenance services across the board.

That means libraries, fire stations, community centres, shelters and city offices will be cleaned only three times a week, instead of every day, according to a memo to councillors by John Manconi, the city's general manager of Public Works.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/travel/Proposed+budget+means+cuts+transit+parks/2315260/story.html

Transit Cuts Will Reduce Ridership by 597-thousand: OC Transpo

CFRA, December 8, 2009
Josh Pringle

OC Transpo warns proposed cuts to its 2010 budget will impact 47 routes and cost the Transit Service 597-thousand riders.

In a memo to Councillors, OC Transpo General Manager Alain Mercier says service would be eliminated at certain times, principally evenings and weekends, on local routes with relatively low ridership. Routes would also be paired in some areas where they provide parallel service.

The Audit, Budget and Finance Committee approved recommendations that call for a $5.6 million cut in the 2010 Transit Services budget, including $3 million through a "reorganization" of bus routes. $2.6 million in savings would be realized by capping service at November 2009 levels.

If the recommendations are approved by Council during budget deliberations, Mercier says some of the changes to OC Transpo routes would begin in April, with the remainder carried out in June.

http://www.cfra.com/?cat=1&nid=69859

Federation urges federal government to help cities control greenhouse gases

Metro Halifax, December 8, 2009
Canadian Press

A new report urges Ottawa to partner with cities to control greenhouse gases.

The report by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities says municipalities have direct or indirect control over about 44 per cent of Canada's overall greenhouse gases. That's because municipal governments wield much control over urban and rural development, transportation, economic activity and energy use.

"There is a large, untapped potential to reduce municipal greenhouse-gas emissions and these reductions can be achieved at a low cost compared to other mitigation options," the report says.

The federal government aims to reduce emissions 20 per cent from 2006 levels by 2020.

The report says municipalities could make up 15 to 40 per cent of that federal goal.

http://www.metronews.ca/halifax/canada/article/391123

Changements climatiques
Les municipalités veulent être partenaires

Radio-Canada, le 8 décembre 2009

Les villes et collectivités canadiennes pourraient participer plus activement à la lutte contre les changements climatiques au pays, avec des mesure peu coûteuses, mais elles ont besoin de fonds pour le faire. C'est ce qui ressort d'un rapport publié mardi par la Fédération canadienne des municipalités (FCM).

Partant du fait que les gouvernements municipaux influent directement ou indirectement sur des activités qui correspondent à environ 44 % des émissions de gaz à effet de serre au Canada, la FCM croit qu'Ottawa pourrait donner un « formidable élan » à sa stratégie sur les changements climatiques en s'associant aux municipalités.

« Quelle que soit l'issue de la conférence de Copenhague, les Canadiens veulent que des mesures concrètes soient prises ici même par leurs gouvernements », a déclaré Berry Vrbanovic, deuxième vice-président de la FCM et conseiller municipal de Kitchener (Ontario).

http://www.radio-canada.ca/nouvelles/environnement/2009/12/08/004-municipalites-lutte-ges.shtml

Architects resign from city's downtown design review panel

Ottawa Citizen, December 8, 2009
Kate Jaimet

All seven architects who sat on the city's downtown urban-design review panel have resigned, according to a news release.

The panel's job is to provide expert advice to the city on major downtown projects in an effort to make them more functional and aesthetically appealing. It was established in 2005. With the resignation of the seven architects, three landscape architects remain.

In their letter of resignation, the seven cite the city's lack of interest in pursuing its own downtown design objectives - of seven objectives laid out in the official land-use plan, only an awards program for good designs have been implemented, they say - and its handling of Lansdowne Park.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/Architects+resign+from+city+downtown+design+review+panel/2316477/story.html

Architects resign from city panel

Ottawa Sun, December 8, 2009
Jon Willing

Seven architects resigned Tuesday from a downtown design panel because they don't think the city is listening to them and because several capital projects were started without design competitions.

A letter signed by Rick MacEwen, Maurizio Martignago, Robert Matthews, Stephen Pope, Jane Thompson, Robert Webster and Ralph Wiesbrock details three main points of their discontent, including the "missed opportunity" with the Lansdowne Park redevelopment.

"The recent Lansdowne redevelopment has sent a strong signal to the architectural community about the city's attitude towards urban and architectural design," the architects say in the letter.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/08/12085991.html

City of Ottawa plans cut to buy-local program
Municipality tells farmers impact of budget reduction will be minimal

CBC News, December 8, 2009

Ottawa officials are telling farmers not to worry about a proposed spending cut to a program designed to promote locally grown produce because the rural affairs department has a plan to minimize the impact of the cut.

The city is considering a $10,000 cut to its "buy local" program. That's about one-fifth of the program's total budget.

The money has been used to train farmers, to fund the Ottawa Farmers' Market at Lansdowne Park and to help market local produce.

The president of the Farmers' Market, Andy Terauds, said Monday he was surprised to hear about the proposed reduction in funding for buy-local initiatives.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2009/12/07/buy-local.html

City used bad flood data when Fernbank plan approved

Ottawa Citizen, December 8, 2009, page C3
Neco Cockburn

Incorrect storm runoff information was used when plans for a major suburban development in Ottawa's flood-weary west side were brought before city council and approved.

John Dawson, a lawyer for Kizell Management Corp., said Monday during an Ontario Municipal Board hearing that an administrative error caused the amount of additional runoff after development to be underestimated.

Plans that went before council in June calculated runoff of about 30,000 cubic metres. The number should have been around 35,000 cubic metres, Dawson said.

Dawson said the error had to be looked at in the context of a watershed of 1.27 million to 1.44 million cubic metres.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/City+used+flood+data+when+Fernbank+plan+approved/2315257/story.html

Committee discusses unsafe sidewalks

Ottawa Sun, December 8, 2009
Jon Willing

Would parents want a sidewalk on their street if it might be a safety hazard?

It's a question city councillors on the planning and environment committee will consider in the coming months as staff review a policy that dictates when sidewalks should be installed in neighbourhoods.

The debate started Tuesday when a proposal to remove some sidewalks in a new Barrhaven subdivision was presented to committee members.

Staff told councillors a driver couldn't see a boy riding a tricycle on the sidewalk in the Half Moon Bay neighbourhood as the driver was pulling out of the driveway. As with many high-density subdivisions, there's a reduced setback of the homes, so the vehicles parked in driveways are closer to the sidewalks.

Barrhaven Coun. Jan Harder presented a motion to delete a requirement for sidewalks to be constructed in two areas of the subdivision.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/08/12083301.html

Orgaworld not ready for green-bin program

Ottawa Citizen, December 8, 2009, page C4

The city's new Orgaworld compost facility will not be ready to take Ottawa's kitchen scraps on Jan. 4, when the green-bin program is scheduled to start. However, the curbside collection of green bins will still go ahead as scheduled, and organic waste trucked to composting facilities at Kingston and Moose Creek. The temporary contingency plan will not increase the program's costs, the city says.

The Orgaworld facility on Hawthorne Road is aiming to begin operation Jan. 27. Orgaworld has a 20-year contract to accept 80,000 tonnes per year of Ottawa's organic waste.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/Orgaworld+ready+green+program/2315261/story.html

Committee recommends rezoning Kanata land to allow commercial, residential towers

Ottawa Business Journal, December 8, 2009
Peter Kovessy

The city's planning committee opened the door on Tuesday to a proposed 30-storey office/hotel tower, immediately west of the Kanata Centrum shopping centre, after unanimously endorsing a rezoning application and official plan amendment.

The 4.7-acre property is located at 143 Didsbury Rd., at the northwest corner of Terry Fox Drive and Highway 417, and would also include a 24-storey apartment tower and a single-storey large-format retail store if the development proceeds according to plans.

The owner of the property is not explicitly identified in a staff report, but a conceptual site plan includes a Richcraft logo.

http://www.ottawabusinessjournal.com/296069990807008.php

Vélo en ville
Une leçon des Pays-Bas

Radio-Canada, le 7 décembre 2009

Une spécialiste des infrastructures cyclistes de La Haye, aux Pays-Bas, rencontre les 13 maires des municipalités de la région, lundi à Ottawa, pour leur expliquer comment rendre une ville « vélosympathique ». L'experte Inge Molennar leur expliquera comment rendre une ville attrayante pour les cyclistes.

La municipalité de La Haye est devenue un chef de file mondial en matière de transport en vélo. Selon Inge Molennar, avec une volonté politique réelle, une ville peut se transformer en un endroit où il est agréable de choisir le vélo comme mode transport, et ce, en toute sécurité.

La Commission de la capitale nationale (CCN) participera à cette rencontre. Marie Lemay, première dirigeante à la CCN, soutient que si les planificateurs urbains sont sérieux, il faut prendre les moyens pour rendre le vélo attrayant en aménageant des voies cyclables sécuritaires.

« L'idée première d'avoir cet échange, c'était simplement d'apprendre. En fait, de comprendre comment eux font les choses et voir ce qui peut s'appliquer ici », explique Mme Lemay.

http://www.radio-canada.ca/regions/ottawa/2009/12/07/001-velo-la-haye.shtml

Transit route cuts will erode ridership: Cullen

Ottawa Sun, December 7, 2009
Jon Willing

Nearly 600,000 transit users will stop taking the bus if 47 routes are downsized in 2010, the chairman of the city's transit committee warns.

"My prediction is people are not going to like it," Bay Coun. Alex Cullen said yesterday, and he anticipates delegations during city budget talks will make their voices heard.

The city's audit, budget and finance committee has recommended a "reorganization" of bus routes to help save $3 million in the transit budget. The committee has also suggested a planned fare increase next July should be advanced to March.

The average fare increase has been set at 7.5%.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/07/12073736.html

OMB motion paves way for Fernbank
Company asks board to refuse appeal on Carp River project

Ottawa Citizen, December 7, 2009
Neco Cockburn

A company wants the Ontario Municipal Board to dismiss an effort to block a huge suburban development connecting Kanata and Stittsville, an appeal that argues the construction could lead to more west-end flooding.

A notice of motion from Kizell Management Corp. -- identified in OMB documents as part of major real-estate company Tridel -- seeks dismissal of the appeal filed by the Friends of the Greenspace Alliance in part because it is not made in good faith "or is frivolous and vexatious."

The appeal challenges the Fernbank plan that city council approved and argues piecemeal development along the Carp River could lead to flooding problems.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/motion+paves+Fernbank/2311044/story.html

Tribunal rejects attempt to halt composting plant
But second appeal to close Orgaworld could still go ahead

Ottawa Citizen, December 4, 2009, page C3
Kate Jaimet

The Ontario Environmental Review Tribunal has struck down one attempt by a Ramsayville farmer to shut down the new Orgaworld composting facility in Gloucester.

But a decision is still pending on a second appeal by Mark Scharfe, chairman of the Ramsayville Community Association, who fears that bacterial contamination from organic matter at the compost plant could seep into the groundwater, polluting the wells and soils of nearby farms.

If that second appeal is allowed, it could throw a monkey wrench into Orgaworld's plans to begin accepting Ottawa's organic waste in January as part of the citywide green-bin program.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/Tribunal+rejects+attempt+halt+composting+plant/2301055/story.html

Editorial: Water protection

Ottawa Citizen, December 4, 2009

When raw sewage spills into the Ottawa River, as it has on several occasions in recent years, it creates a yuck factor that gets the public's attention.

That's a good thing, because it reminds people in the capital region just how important the river is, and visions of e-coli can help city officials sell a multi-million dollar solution that will ensure the healthy survival of our waterfront.

The Ottawa River Action plan, now the subject of public meetings across the city, offers three possible proposals to clean up and protect the river. The proposals range from not-so-expensive to hugely expensive, and involve a range of measures from minimal compliance with provincial regulations to total separation of all combined and partially separated sewers in the city.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/opinion/Water+protection/2301011/story.html

L'infrastructure est à l'origine de plusieurs déversements d'eaux usées
Le régulateur Keefer dans la mire d'Ottawa

Le Droit, le 4 décembre 2009
Dominique La Haye

La Ville d'Ottawa songe à devancer le début de ses travaux de réparation du régulateur Keefer, à l'origine du déversement de près d'un million de mètres cubes d'eaux usées dans la rivière des Outaouais en 2006.

Le régulateur situé près du 24 Sussex, la résidence du premier ministre du Canada, a fait une fois de plus défaut, jeudi, engendrant un autre déversement dans la rivière. Ce même appareil avait aussi fait défaut l'été dernier.

La Ville souhaitait attendre la venue des températures plus froides, lorsque le débit des eaux pluviales et sanitaires est plus faible, avant d'entreprendre des travaux de réparation du puits défectueux.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/ottawa-est-ontarien/200912/04/01-928177-le-regulateur-keefer-dans-la-mire-dottawa.php

Décontamination des lagunes de la CIP
Dalton McGuinty sommé d'intervenir à Hawkesbury

Le Droit, le 4 décembre 2009
Jean-François Dugas

Un conseiller de Hawkesbury prend les grands moyens pour renverser la vapeur dans l'affaire de la décontamination de l'ancien bassin artificiel de la papetière de la Canadian International Paper (CIP).

Gilles Roch Greffe promet d'envoyer sous peu une lettre, en son nom, au premier ministre de l'Ontario, Dalton McGuinty, pour lui demander d'intervenir directement dans le dossier.

« La population de Hawkesbury est maintenant en droit d'exiger de M. McGuinty que son gouvernement répondre à sa demande légitime de vouloir arrêter un projet de dépollution partielle qui ne répond pas aux besoins de la population et qui diminuera la qualité de vie des citoyens de Hawkesbury à jamais », implore M. Greffe.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/ottawa-est-ontarien/200912/04/01-927790-dalton-mcguinty-somme-dintervenir-a-hawkesbury.php

Couper dans les arbres

Radio-Canada, le 3 décembre 2009

La Ville d'Ottawa étudie la possibilité de couper près de 2 millions de dollars dans son budget d'entretien des arbres à la suite d'une recommandation du comité des finances.

Si la recommandation est acceptée par le conseil, les inspections et l'émondage des arbres dans les rues et les parcs ne se feront que tous les 32 ans. Actuellement, l'émondage se fait à tous les cinq à sept ans.

Les spécialistes craignent qu'un tel délai pour les inspections et l'émondage cause un risque pour la santé des arbres. Il pourrait également y avoir, selon eux, davantage de blessures causées par la chute de branches.

De plus, ils se disent inquiets qu'une baisse des inspections ralentisse la détection et la prévention de parasites, comme l'agrile du frêne.

http://www.radio-canada.ca/regions/ottawa/2009/12/03/003-ville-ottawa-arbres.shtml

City crews stop sewage flow

Ottawa Sun, December 3, 2009

City crews successfully removed a blockage that was causing raw sewage to spill into the Ottawa River Thursday evening.

An undisclosed amount of sewage flowed into the river after the Keefer St. sewage regulator jammed open.

The blockage was the result of one of the steel plates that line the shaft the regulator sits in falling inside. City staff returned the regulator to operation Thursday night after inspecting the other steel plates in the shaft.

Last August, city crews discovered another two-foot-by-four-foot steel plate that prevented the same regulator from working, resulting in sewage pouring into the river.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/03/12027191.html

Troublesome sewage gate allows another spill into Ottawa River

Ottawa Citizen, December 3, 2009
Neco Cockburn

City crews were sent Thursday afternoon to stem a sewage spill from the troublesome Keefer regulator into the Ottawa River.

Dixon Weir, the City of Ottawa's general manager of environmental services, told councillors that crews at the scene were trying to determine the cause and stop the spill. The size of the spill was not immediately released.

The Ontario Ministry of the Environment's Spills Action Centre, along with the Public Health Branch and downstream water system operators were told about the spill, which is said to have no impact on the city's drinking water. The intakes for Ottawa's water-treatment plants are upstream of the spilling pipe, which is in New Edinburgh.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Troublesome+sewage+gate+allows+another+spill+into+Ottawa+River/2299885/story.html

Sewage flowing into river

Ottawa Sun, December 3, 2009

Undisclosed amounts of sewage are currently flowing into the Ottawa River.

The sewage is flowing into the river from the Keefer Regulator site located in the New Edinburgh area.

"City crews are on the scene trying to determine the cause and stop the spill," Dixon Weir, the city's general manager of environmental services, told councillors this afternoon.

Last August, city crews discovered a two-foot-by-four-foot steel plate that prevented the same regulator from working that resulted in sewage pouring into the river.

The pipe where the blockage occurred carries 20% of the city's sewage before it's treated at the city's east-end wastewater treatment facility.

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/12/03/12027191.html

Toronto: City clamps down on election donors
Limiting campaign contributions to individuals `revolutionary,' Toronto council reformers crow

Toronto Star, December 3, 2009
Paul Moloney and Vanessa Lu

Toronto city councillors have decided they will no longer accept campaign donations from corporations or unions, putting pressure on the provincial government to ban the practice in all municipalities across Ontario.

"This is kind of a revolutionary day," Councillor Michael Walker, who pushed for the reform, said after the 29-12 vote. "We've broken the dam of resistance."

The decision, which came after a daylong debate, sends a message to other governments, said Robert MacDermid, a York University political science professor and advocate of campaign finance reform.

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/733949--city-clamps-down-on-election-donors

Ottawa tree budget faces cut

CBC News, December 2, 2009

Ottawa residents may need to watch out for falling branches in coming years if proposed cuts to the city's tree maintenance budget go through.

The city's budget, audit and finance committee has recommended a $2 million cut to the $11.4 million the city's forestry program requested.

If city council passes the recommendation, regular trimming of Ottawa's 310,000 trees would happen just once every 32 years. In the past, the city set a target of proactive trimming every five to seven years - a generally accepted standard it has not yet reached.

"We're moving away from what they say is a best practice," Alta Vista Coun. Peter Hume, chair of the city's planning and environment committee, said Wednesday.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2009/12/02/ottawa-tree-budget.html

Négociations entre la Ville et des propriétaires de terrains dans la forêt Boucher
Gatineau tentera d'acquérir 400 acres

Le Droit, le 2 décembre 2009
Patrick Duquette

Des négociations pour acquérir plus de 400 acres de terrains dans la forêt Boucher s'amorceront bientôt entre la Ville de Gatineau et une douzaine de propriétaires fonciers de plus en plus impatients.

Le responsable des dossiers environnementaux à la Ville de Gatineau, le conseiller Alain Riel, s'attend à ce que les négociations débutent dans les prochains mois.

« Il est minuit moins une. Le dossier est mûr, il est documenté et on va devoir se prononcer incessamment sur nos intentions par rapport à l'avenir de la forêt Boucher », a dit M. Riel.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/gatineau-outaouais/200912/02/01-927353-gatineau-tentera-dacquerir-400-acres.php

RCI Environnement de Montréal veut construire trois usines au Québec, dont une en Outaouais
Des déchets transformés en biogaz à Gatineau?

Le Droit, le 2 décembre 2009
Louis Lafortune

Les déchets de table de l'Outaouais pourraient bientôt être transformés en énergie s'il n'en tient qu'à RCI Environnement, une entreprise montréalaise qui veut construire trois usines au Québec, dont une à Gatineau.

Détenue par la famille Rémillard, propriétaire de la station de télévision V, l'ancien réseau TQS, RCI Environnement a dans sa mire Montréal, Longueuil et Gatineau.

L'entreprise veut y construire trois usines de biométhanisation. Le procédé permet de transformer en gaz les déchets organiques comme les restants de table, incluant les graisses et les viandes, ainsi que les feuilles et le gazon. Ce gaz peut ensuite être transformé en électricité ou utilisé directement comme carburant.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/economie/200912/02/01-927329-des-dechets-transformes-en-biogaz-a-gatineau.php

Denise Laferrière se demande si les camions ont toujours leur place sur la rue Montcalm

Le Droit, le 2 décembre 2009
Patrick Duquette

Denise Laferrière se demande si le camionnage a toujours sa place sur la rue Montcalm, une artère appelée à devenir le haut lieu culturel du centre-ville de Gatineau.

La conseillère du district Hull-Val Tétreau souhaite que cet enjeu soit abordé lundi soir lors d'une consultation publique sur le réaménagement de la rue Montcalm.

L'occasion sera idéale, selon elle, pour examiner toute la question de la cohabitation entre camions, autobus, piétons et cyclistes.

« Je crois qu'actuellement, il est toujours prévu d'avoir des autobus sur Montcalm, mais aussi du camionnage. Selon ce qu'on reçoit comme information de la part des citoyens, ça va peut-être nous donner des façons de travailler pour amener le ministère des Transports (MTQ) à modifier la route des camions. »

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/actualites/gatineau-outaouais/200912/02/01-927331-denise-laferriere-se-demande-si-les-camions-ont-toujours-leur-place-sur-la-rue-montcalm.php

Staff Support Calls to Delete Sidewalk Requirement for Subdivision

CFRA, December 2, 2009
Josh Pringle

City Staff are supporting calls to delete sidewalk requirements in the Mattamy's Half Moon Bay Subdivision in Barrhaven.

In a motion for next week's Planning and Environment Committee, Councillor Jan Harder asks Council to approve the "deletion" of the requirement to construct sections of sidewalks in parts of Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the project.

Harder says that given the density and reduced building setbacks in the community may result in increased concerns regarding the location of some sidewalks relative to the location of vehicular driveways, the sidewalks should be deleted from the plan.

http://www.cfra.com/?cat=1&nid=69727

Vélo: la ministre pour le port obligatoire du casque chez les jeunes

La Presse, le 2 décembre 2009
Tommy Chouinard

La ministre des Transports, Julie Boulet, veut obliger les jeunes de 12 ans et moins à porter un casque à vélo, à partir de 2011 au plus tôt. Divisée sur la question, la Table québécoise de la sécurité routière n'a pas recommandé cette mesure dans son rapport rendu public lundi.

Vélo Québec, qui a quitté la Table avec fracas, condamne les intentions de la ministre Boulet.

Lundi, lors d'une conférence de presse monopolisée par la baisse du taux d'alcoolémie permis de 0,08 à 0,05, Mme Boulet a indiqué que son projet de loi attendu cette semaine comprendra un pouvoir réglementaire permettant au gouvernement d'obliger le port du casque chez les 12 ans et moins au moment jugé opportun.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/actualites/quebec-canada/national/200912/02/01-927022-velo-la-ministre-pour-le-port-obligatoire-du-casque-chez-les-jeunes.php

Editorial: A fine bridge

Ottawa Citizen, December 1, 2009

While governments in the capital region study and review and stew over a location for an interprovincial bridge, one is already built, sitting idle but very ready to be used.

It's called the Prince of Wales Bridge and, invariably, locals scratch their heads when it is mentioned. "Where is the Prince of Wales Bridge?" everyone asks.

That the bridge is virtually unknown testifies to the omnipresence of the car. Most everyone can locate the Champlain Bridge because people drive across it. But the Prince of Wales Bridge is for trains, or at least it was before being abandoned.

For the record, the Prince of Wales Bridge is the continuation of the freight-train line from the Bayview O-Train station. The line skirts the edge of Lemieux Island and travels north through Gatineau from the foot of Boulevard St.-Joseph.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/opinion/fine+bridge/2288075/story.html

Mayor, manager met before Lansdowne consultation nixed

Ottawa Citizen, December 1, 2009, page B4
Kate Jaimet

Mayor Larry O'Brien met three times with city manager Kent Kirkpatrick and his staff to discuss Lansdowne Park, shortly before the public consultation process on the redevelopment was cancelled in favour of the Lansdowne Live proposal, city documents revealed Monday.

In response to a written question by Councillor Clive Doucet, an opponent of the Lansdowne Live redevelopment proposal, city staff said O'Brien met with Kirkpatrick on April 2, April 10, and May 8, 2008. The public consultation process was cancelled May 16 to allow the city to consider a bid put forward by Ottawa businessmen Roger Greenberg, Bill Shenkman, John Ruddy and Jeff Hunt, to redevelop the park and bring back CFL football.

"The purpose of these meetings was to inform the Mayor of the evolving situation regarding the structural considerations of the Civic Centre and Frank Clair stadium, the Lansdowne Live proposal and of the decision to suspend the design process," the written response from city staff said.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/Mayor+manager+before+Lansdowne+consultation+nixed/2288102/story.html

Planned Halifax farmer's market building earning 'worldwide' attention

Metro News, December 1, 2009
Canadian Press

The scent of Bavarian sausages mixes with that of pine boughs and freshly pressed cider as people snake through the year-round Halifax Farmers' Market one typical Saturday morning.

Customers wait in lines or steer their way around bottlenecks that have become an endearing - to some, annoying - trademark of the venerable old haunt. The low din of casual greetings and the invariable "I'm sorry" and "Excuse me" fill the brick-walled rooms as shoppers negotiate their way down the lanes.

But the lineups that clog the warren of alcoves and nooks are likely to become a thing of the past when the market leaves its home next year and settles into an ecologically state-of-the-art facility on Halifax's waterfront.

http://www.metronews.ca/halifax/canada/article/383770--planned-halifax-farmer-s-market-building-earning-woldwide-attention