|

Calming coyote concerns
Coyotes are once again front and center as concerns
expressed by residents about the increasing presence of
coyotes across the City lead to a debate at Committee.
The City’s Emergency and Protective
Services Department is approaching the issue with the
mindset of public awareness and education, and will respond
to some of the so-called myths about human safety.
We need to temper our reactions to
what has unfolded. To put in perspective, on average, there
is one domestic animal bite that occurs daily in our City –
far outweighing the risk of confrontation with a coyote.
According to staff, the true threat of danger is
exceptionally rare.
Staff will develop a report concerning
potential education and awareness campaigns and associated
expenses and will present the matter to the City’s Community
and Protective Services Committee.
Crime flyer
provides faulty data
Recently, a flyer designed to solicit
business for a security system company has been distributed
within the community. The flyer notes rather alarming
statistics about crime rates in Stittsville.
My office provided a copy of the flyer
to the Ottawa Police for their investigation. The review
revealed inaccuracies in the information and the Police have
spoken with the company in question. The Police are
preparing a summary of the 2009 data and will make it
available to my office and the community shortly.
Please note the Ottawa Police website
is a bridge to the actual crime statistics contained in
their annual Police Crime and Traffic Statistics report. It
is the belief of Police that the information contained on
the flyer was derived from the Police’s website and may have
been blended with other sources. There appears to have been
accidental misinterpretations or misunderstandings of the
police data, which has contributed to the faulty
conclusions.
Winterfest
blowing into town
Seasonal favourite Winterfest is just
around the corner and you are your family are invited to
celebrate the festivities.
Hosted by the Stittsville Village
Association, Winterfest will be held on February 28 from
noon until 4pm at Ralph Street Park located on Ralphpark
Avenue, two streets east of Stittsville Main Street between
Orville Street and Carleton Cathcart Street.
Once again the popular bed races will
make an appearance, and there will be a broomball game
between the Stittsville Volunteer Firefighters and the
Ladies Team.
There will also be plenty of
entertainment for kids and adults, including hockey games,
chicken and jam-can curling and horse-driven sleigh rides.
For more info, please contact Marion
Gullock at
marion.gullock@sympatico.ca or at 613-836-5254.
Test your
mental strength
Your brain deserves a good sweat, too.
Trivia Night, organized by the Ottawa-Stittsville Rotary
Club, will be held on February 19 at the Lions Club Hall on
Stittsville Main Street.
Doors will open at 6:30pm and the
trivia will start at 7:30pm. At a cost of $160 for groups of
8, there are a limited number of tables, so act quickly. For
tickets and more information, please contact Theresa Qadri
at
theresaq@rogers.com or at 613-620-6245.
Trivia Night fundraising will go
directly to the West Ottawa Drug Treatment Centre. Your
support is appreciated by the many volunteers who are
working to make this event successful.
City seeks
young artists for Young at Art 2010
For the fifth consecutive year, the
City of Ottawa invites young artists between 12 and 19
years-of-age to enter Young at Art 2010.
Works selected for Young at Art 2010
will be displayed in Ottawa community galleries and will be
recognized at award presentations. Three Young at Art
exhibitors will be awarded studio space at the Nepean
Creative Arts Centre for the months of July and August.
Application forms are now available at
secondary schools across the city as well as Ottawa Public
Library branches. Application forms and guidelines can also
be obtained by visiting
www.ottawa.ca/youngatart or by contacting Mike Taylor,
Young at Art Co-ordinator at 613-580-2424, ext.
29288 or
mike.taylor@ottawa.ca. The deadline for Young at Art
2010 submissions is March 5.
Family Day
schedule changes
The City of Ottawa would like to
remind residents of the following schedule changes for
Family Day, which occurs on February 15.
The City’s Client Service centres and
Government Service Centres will be closed; however, 3-1-1 is
still in operation.
There will be no curbside green bin,
garbage or recycling collection on Family Day. Family Day’s
pick-up will take place on the Tuesday. In addition, the
collection of garbage and recycling materials will be
delayed by one day for the week of February 15.
OC Transpo will offer a revised
weekday schedule with minor reductions. Call 613-560-1000
plus your four-digit bus stop number for schedule
information or visit
www.octranspo.com.
Most recreation facilities will be
maintaining regular operating hours on February 15, and most
instructional programs will run on their normal schedule for
the day. Additional swimming and skating sessions will be
offered at many sites. Please contact the facility of your
choice for more information.
All branches of the Ottawa Public
Library are closed on Family Day.
|