Following the May 31, 2023 meeting held jointly with Councillor Jeff Leiper’s office regarding Golden Avenue and Richmond Road intersection improvements and the multi-use pathway, we are providing the following information in response to questions and comments made during the meeting.
If you were unable to attend the meeting, you can view the meeting recording HERE.
Consultation period ends June 21, 2023.
Please visit the City’s website to see plans, the meeting slides, and submit your feedback.
Thank you to all who came out to the meeting.
Ottawa Community Housing and residents at Golden Manor
Residents were consulted in advance of broader community consultation, as there is an impact on this property. The community presentation took place June 28, 2022, and based on the feedback received, the City redesigned the proposed multi-use pathway.
The redesign was shared with the community on August 9th, 2022. Those who had provided feedback were, according to OCH partners, largely satisfied that it addressed the concerns raised in June.
The largest change, based on resident feedback, was to change how the path ran off Richmond Rd, in order to ensure that it did not divide the building from the patio area, and building a new patio area was incorporated into the plan.
Including an outdoor mural to beautify the area by the garden, proposed for the wall near the garden was also discussed.
This wall belongs to another landlord, and the City is following up on this. The City indicated willingness to fund the mural as part of the overall MUP project.
Tree removal
I understand residents’ concerns here, and we can all agree the least amount of tree loss the better. Discussion for the trees has been under a bit of a question mark because the functional design stage does not fully address trees, sewer, drainage etc., and this happens during the next stage.
Here is what staff have stated regarding potential configuration and trees with the current design proposal:
- Only one or two healthy mature trees are being removed from the east side yard; most of the large trees being removed are in poor health and won’t last long
- Two large maples on the property line between 445 Richmond and 420 Berkley will not be removed as they are located on the latter’s property
- Trees at the south end of the property line between 445 Richmond and 420 Berkley will not be removed as the pathway alignment shifts west
- The large tree above the patio and sitting area in the side yard will be removed. The patio and sitting area would be relocated to the shade of a large healthy tree in the back yard.
- A number of small shrubs are being removed and they may have been included in the number ‘approximately’ 8 that was mentioned at the meeting
Golden Ave. and Richmond Rd. intersection improvement
The proposed changes to the intersection at Golden Ave. and Richmond Rd. are an opportunity to improve the safety for pedestrians in the area.
We heard from numerous residents in the meeting about “close calls” with motorists when crossing this intersection as a pedestrian, and the proposed design for the intersection is an important step in addressing the safety of this intersection for everyone, as it will reduce crossing distances and tighten turn radii for motorists.
The intersection improvements and crossing will also help people riding bikes because they will not have to share space with motorists, and they can use this low stress route, rather than needing to bike with motorists on Richmond Road to cross and make a left turn to Berkely, across Richmond Rd, or at the signalized crossing at Roosevelt, where both require people on bikes to take the lane with motorists, which many people are not comfortable doing. The crossing and pathway will be what the is considered “all ages and all abilities”, making this a family friendly connection.
Multi-use pathway connections and missing links
This project will fill in a missing link and offer a safe crossing and route for people riding bikes.
The pathway will provide direct access to the Kichi Sibi LRT Station, as well as Crosstown Bikeway #2 along Scott Street.
The construction of this pathway will provide people biking from the Bryon pathway, which is low volume and low speed, with a safe connection from the pathway to other routes, including the new Kichi Sibi LRT Station, which will have a bike through-fare, where pedestrian and people on bikes can bypass the station to access the Parkway on the north side. The new station plaza will connect to the existing sidewalk on Dominion, and the start of the new MUP could commence from here as well, detailed design stage will provide further discussion on the specifics.
Others may take this route to connect to the Scott Street bicycle lanes, which is considered the major east-west connector, and can offer people a safe way to reach destinations further from home, including the Trillium pathway further east.
