NEWS ARCHIVESSeptember 4, 2009 Preliminary flooding report fails to address concerns Staff recently made a series of presentations to Council attempting to outline the preliminary findings of what caused the major flooding on July 24. Unfortunately, there are still many questions that remain unanswered following the presentation. Staff determined that the amount of rain exceeded the capacity of the system, ultimately leading to the flooding. It’s awfully disconcerting that a month-long report concluded that it rained a lot. According to Staff, some of the communities affected by flooding were built before current design standards were implemented; 2004 standards are applied to subdivisions that have already been approved. City Staff will explore options to strengthen sewer infrastructure across the City. The City has also retained Greenland Engineering to undertake an independent review of the July 24 flooding. Council approved waiving the sewer surcharges on residents’ next water bill for homeowners who experienced flooding as a result of the rainfall event. Charges for replacement copies of bills, statements or documents damaged in the flood issued by the City have also been waived. May I also remind you about the City’s protective plumbing
devices and the Residential Protective Plumbing Program. I encourage you to
visit www.ottawa.ca or call
311. Lansdowne Live headed for public consultation Following a healthy debate at a lengthy Council meeting, the City accepted the Lansdowne Live report as tabled, and it will now be headed to public consultation, followed by an official vote by Council. I appreciate and support letting the public review the proposal and provide their feedback. This is a significant investment for the City and a major redevelopment of a key City asset. Snuffing out public consultation on this proposal, as was attempted by some members of Council, would be unfortunate. Phase 1, to be completed by 2013, includes the refurbishment of the stadium and the arena, the construction of an underground parkade, the development of retail shops, the removal of asphalt to be replaced with a 'front lawn’ and other additions. Phase 2, at present, is still conceptual, but it includes the development of residential, office and hotel space. The proposal brings together the City, the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group, the National Capital Commission, Parks Canada and the Ottawa International Airport Authority. Negotiations are still on going with the NCC, Parks Canada and the Airport Authority. During September and October, the City will be welcoming public comments on the proposal. A series of open houses will also be scheduled. Specific dates, times and locations will be forthcoming. I encourage you to submit your thoughts to me by e-mail to Shad.Qadri@ottawa or by phone to 613-580-2476. You can access the detailed proposal through my website at
www.shadqadri.com or by logging onto the
City's website at www.ottawa.ca.
Fringewood Drive roadwork set to begin I am happy to announce that the long-await revitalization of Fringewood Drive is set to begin in the coming weeks. Staff has informed my office that the roadwork should be completed by the end of the month. The project includes repaving Fringewood Drive between Hazeldean Road and the north end of Pool Creek and replacing damaged culverts. I look forward to this project commencing. I thank the
residents of Fringewood for their continued patience and understanding. Ward boundary changes approved At its July 8 Council meeting, City Council revised the ward boundaries of Ward 21, redistributing the Fernbank lands to Wards 6 and 23. This process was followed by a comment period that expired on August 24. No appeals to the proposal were filed, so the lands will be redistributed effective December 1, 2010. However, for the purpose of the administration of the 2010
municipal election, it will be conducted as if the amended ward boundaries are
already in place. OC Transpo improvements take effect On September 6, the new west transitway corridor opened between Bayshore and Prinecrest, reducing travel times for those using public transit. The dedicated bus lanes along the 417 still remain. The 417 expansion from Eagleson to Highway 7 will further improve transit times for residents using public transit in Stittsville. The revised fall schedules also went into effect on September 6 on most routes and new printed timetables are available. Students are reminded to get their new transit photo ID card ($5.75) before last year’s card expires on September 30. Special photo ID sessions will be available at many schools, so check www.octranspo.com for locations and times. To help alleviate line-ups at OC Transpo Sales Centres,
photo IDs will also be taken at Ottawa City Hall, 110 Laurier Avenue West, and
the Kanata Client Service Centre, 580 Terry Fox Drive, weekdays from 8:30 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. until September 11 and again from September 21 to October 2. Update of work taking place at Carp landfill Construction work at the Carp landfill site has been ongoing for the past few weeks. The placement of topsoil and seed has been completed on the south side and the west slope. Half of the north slope has also had topsoil and seed applied. The west end of the landfill has had the first phase of
the beanie cap completed. This consists of horizontal gas collection, a PVC
membrane, compacted clay and topsoil. I will provide more details as they emerge. Traffic calming measures implemented on Abbott The City’s traffic department has implemented a new series
of traffic calming measures across the region, including the markings that you
may have seen along Abbott Street. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not
hesitate to contact my office. STEP program takes aim at school bus safety School zone, school bus safety and speeding are the focus of September’s Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP), operated through the City’s Integrated Road Safety Program (IRSP). In 2008, 3,592 reportable collisions occurred on Ottawa roads as a result of drivers exceeding the speed limit or driving too fast for conditions. These collisions resulted in nine deaths and 990 injuries - including 55 serious injuries. School zone and school bus safety are also serious issues. Over the past five years, 40 collisions occurred on Ottawa roads involving school bus traffic control violations, resulting in 13 injuries - one of which involved a school-age child exiting the school bus. The penalties for a driver passing a stopped school bus with its upper red lights flashing include fines ranging from $400 to $2,000 and six demerit points for a first offence. A second offence yields the driver a fine between $1,000 and $4,000, six demerit points and a possible jail sentence of up to six months. Penalties may not be limited to the driver. The vehicle owner may also be charged for school bus traffic control violations, with fines ranging from $400 to $2,000. Police officers are not required to witness the vehicle
passing a stopped school bus with its upper red lights flashing in order to lay
charges against the vehicle owner. Citizens who witness such occurrences can
contact the police and provide the make, model, colour of vehicle; license
number; location, date and time of the incident; and, if possible, a description
of the driver. Ottawa Public Health launches autumn school immunization clinics On September 8, Ottawa Public Health (OPH) launched its Fall School Immunization Program. The vaccines included in the 2009-2010 School Immunization Program are given to students to protect them against Human Papillomavirus, Hepatitis B virus and Meningococcal Disease. The human papillomavirus vaccine protects against four strains of the HPV virus. This year, the Meningococcal vaccine program for Grade 7 students to include protection against four strains of Meningitis: A, C, W, and Y (MenactraTM). Only students with signed consent forms will receive a vaccine at the school clinics. For information about the School Immunization Program,
visit the City’s website at
www.ottawa.ca/health
or speak with a public health nurse by contacting Ottawa Public Health
Information at 613-580-6744. Always listening and acting on your concerns As your Councillor, I always welcome your keen input and ideas on how we can sustain and improve Stittsville. Please contact our office anytime by phone at 613-580-2476 or by e-mail at Shad.Qadri@ottawa.ca. My ward office is located in the Goulbourn Recreation Complex, located at 1500 Shea Road. The hours of operation are Mondays 9-2pm, Wednesdays 3-8pm, Fridays 9-4pm, and Saturday 9-1pm. Please do not hesitate to pay us a visit. I welcome your call or e-mail to arrange an appointment. If you are not part of my electronic outreach list and would like to be added, please contact my office to ensure you receive pertinent information concerning our community. |