Council, on a 19–4 vote, has approved
moving forward on the recommended plan for the downtown Ottawa transit tunnel (DOTT) planning and environmental
assessment study.
This means that staff can move forward on
the final steps of the environmental assessment (EA) over a maximum of six
months, including approval by the Ministry of the Environment.
The next steps include acquisition of
property, undertake preliminary engineering, determining the procurement
process to be followed and undertake an urban design study and a transportation
study for the downtown that includes pedestrian and cycling facilities as well
as surface bus routes to feed into the system.
One major concern that has been expressed
relates to funding the DOTT.
The estimated cost is $2.1 billion.
So far the province has agreed to provide
$600 million and the federal government is expected to announce a similar
amount soon.
The city has approved $700 million (from
sources other than property taxes). To deal with the shortfall, I presented two
motions to council, both of which were approved.
The first was to have staff identify those
parts of the project that would be ineligible for cost sharing with other governments
so that the city would be required to pay 100 per cent of those items.
We need to have that information. The
second was for staff to explore methods to reduce the cost and to provide a
list of options, including cost estimates, so that the city’s portion of costs
eligible for federal and provincial funding would not exceed one-third of the
cost.
Council has not yet given final approval to
the project nor approved a total budget. The information from the reports
arising from my motions will enable council to make prudent decisions without
having excessive costs borne by the city.
I do support having a tunnel through the
downtown and using light rail (LRT) as the means of transport with bus
transitways feeding into it. Most major cities now have a mixture of rail and
buses – and this is the system that Ottawa
will start to see evolving over the next few years.
The study for a western route is now
commencing with consideration being given to using the parkway, Byron Avenue or Carling Avenue.
It will take two to three years to complete
during which time the DOTT will commence construction. Several important bus
transitways, including the piece form Bayshore to Moodie Drive will be built during this
period.
The LRT system will cut the number of buses
traveling through the city’s downtown core in half. Green house gases will be
reduced as well fuel consumption. Overall operating costs of the transit system
will be reduced by up to $100 million per year starting in 2019, once the DOTT
and related busways are completed.
GREEN BIN CONTENTS
There is one correction on what can be put
in the green bin. Dog feces are not permitted under the license approved by the
province.
You will need to put your bag in the
garbage or better still, flush the contents down the toilet. Contents of litter
boxes from cats and small animals can still be put in your green box.
OFFICIAL PLAN APPROVED
The province has approved the city’s new official
plan that council approved last year. Anyone who put in a submission on the plan
has the right to appeal.
Details on how to appeal are on the city
website, but any appeal must be sent to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and
Housing for receipt by Jan. 25.
COMING EVENTS
* Jan. 25-plus – Public delegations on city
budget, City Hall (see www.ottawa.ca for more information).
* Jan. 30 – Hockey Day in Ottawa at outdoor rinks – plan something for
your rink.
Jan. 31 –Family Fun Day at Klondike Woods Park,
Morgan’s Grant, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
* Feb. 1 – WOCRC Meet & Greet for
neighbourhood friendly organizations to
launch Ottawa Neighbourhoods Study Website,
5-7 p.m., presentation 5:30 p.m.. RSVP to hayes@communityresourcecentre.ca
Serving the residents and businesses in
Kanata North
To receive the Kanata North Newsletter, to
deal with a concern or make a suggestion contact me at 613-580-2474, e-mail
Marianne.Wilkinson@ottawa.ca or through www.mariannewilkinson.com.