Hi neighbours!
To kick things off this week, I’d like to extend a warm welcome and congratulations to my new colleague, Councillor Isabelle Skalski. Councillor Skalski was officially sworn in yesterday as Councillor for Ward 20 (Osgoode), after winning the by-election earlier this week. Welcome to City Hall! I’m looking forward to working with you.
Comprehensive Safety Audit of Ottawa Beaches
With summer just around the corner, all Ottawa Beaches (including Britannia) will be open for supervised swimming starting this Saturday, June 21st. Lifeguards will be on duty Monday to Sunday, noon to 7 pm, from June 21 to August 24. The 2025 operating budget also includes funding to extend beach lifeguard supervision until Monday, September 1 if there are enough staff. Ahead of the beaches’ opening, the city has shared the recommendations from last year’s Safety Audit conducted by the LifeSaving Society. This is crucial work, with the purpose of the audit being to identify additional steps that can be taken to minimize the risk of drowning or serious water-related injuries at Ottawa’s beaches. The audit made 2 priority recommendations that apply to Britannia Beach, all of which have been implemented for the 2025 Swimming Season. These recommendations were:
- Posting lifeguard positioning charts in all lifeguard offices for the 2025 season.
- Installing a new buoy line at Britannia Beach, and a new flag system and signage at all supervised beach sites for the 2025 season.
In addition to these priorities, the audit recommended 74 primary and 27 secondary recommendations for consideration. 86% of all recommendations have either been adopted, applied with a slight modification, or are being explored further through a feasibility assessment this summer. I welcome the recommendations made in this audit to make our beaches safer for everyone and will work with City staff to ensure they are implemented as quickly as possible. For more information, you can review the full memo online. (aussi disponible en français).
At City Hall this week: Incinerators, Airplanes, and Housing
There were some interesting discussions in committee this week. Notably, on Tuesday, the Environment and Climate Change Committee heard presentations from City staff and delegates on an updated Household Hazardous Waste Strategy. I welcome the plan to introduce more household hazardous waste drop off events in 2026, including smaller, local events to help folks who might not have a car. A reminder that there are 9 large drop off events scheduled every year. The full list with event dates, locations and times is available on the city’s website.
Committee also heard from staff about a Waste Management Technologies Feasibility Study, to look at the city’s long-term waste management and diversion plans. The report recommends developing an in-depth evaluation of 3 scenarios for Ottawa’s long term waste management. These scenarios are: 1) continuing with land fill and private facilities, 2) building a waste to energy incineration facility, and 3) constructing a new landfill. I have concerns about the option of building an incineration facility, both because of the substantial cost to the city, as well as the prospect of incineration disincentivizing other forms of waste reduction and diversion, as outlined in the City’s Soild Waste Master Plan. I will be following this item closely when the business case comes to Council, and will ensure the perspectives of Bay Ward residents are taken into account.
At Planning and Housing committee this week, there was a lot of discussion about a proposed new housing development near the Ottawa Airport. I’ve heard from some residents with concerns about the location of this development and also listened to delegates from the Hunt Club Community Association who welcome it as providing much needed housing. It was not an easy decision to make, but I ultimately decided to support this development, given that more housing is needed in our city. The committee was also advised that as the area was already zoned for residential development, blocking any development at the municipal level would likely be appealed and overturned at the Ontario Land Tribunal. I strongly support the developer working with the Ottawa Airport Authority to ensure adequate signage is in place to warn people of aircraft noise in the community, and to forewarn any potential residents.