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A promising compromise on Western Light Rail
On Friday, the City and National Capital Commission announced an agreement in principle on a plan to bury the Western LIght Rail Route through our ward, stacked under a re-aligned parkway. There's lots of details to be considered, but broadly speaking it's a very positive step forward. My thanks to residents who insisted that the old plan could be made better. Read my initial reaction by clicking below. There is a public open house planned for March 30 to get more info and provide input,
and full materials are available at http://ottawa.ca/en/city-hall/public-consultations/transit/100-day-working-group.
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Wellington West Winter Bike Day - March 8
Join me and other all-season cyclists tomorrow for Wellington West Winter Bike Day! We'll be clearing some perpetually snow-covered bike racks along the way, and more. Full details are at http://ottawacyclist.com/wellington-west-winter-bike-day/.
March 18 Committee of Adjustment look-ahead
There are applications before the Committee of Adjustment on March 18 for Westhaven, Cole, Evered, Byron, Ladouceur and Manchester. Click through for more details.
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Construction blogs
A very positive trend associated with development in our ward has been the launch of construction blogs to help residents stay informed about construction that, let's face it, is noisy and disruptive. I'm asking developers to do a better job of reaching out to residents about their projects. Thanks to Broccolini/Bridgeport for leading the way with its McRae Avenue blog at westboroconnection.blogspot.com where it posts news about concrete pours and more (which I've been
pleased to make a condition of its noise exemptions). I've asked Tamarack to do the same for its Rosemount/Wellington development at tamarackwellington.com/blog.php. Both make it possible to sign up for email updates, and I encourage everyone in the vicinity of those developments to take advantage of those. Taking off my councillor hat for a moment, may I say as a resident that I appreciate the detail that went into Tamarack's March 2 update - seems like we'll see an increase in activity on Monday.
National Access Cannabis
There was significant media attention paid recently to plans by medical marijuana consultation chain National Access Cannabis (NAC) to move into the space being vacated by Heavens to Betsy at 1111 Wellington West. The chain offers consultations including by teleconference with health professionals about medical marijuana. There have been some concerns expressed by neighbouring businesses about the potential for re-stigmatizing a part of our ward that has in past experienced
challenges. I've been meeting with those businesses, as well as chatting with residents. It's important to note that the federal government's current rules prohibit retail sales (prescription marijuana is delivered by courier only). And, the City's by-laws and zoning permit the kind of business NAC is proposing. NAC has been clear in the media that it hopes to eventually retail medical marijuana. Initial resident feedback has been mixed, but attitudes about marijuana have evolved significantly in just the past few years. For the time being, I'm just listening to that evolving conversation. Of course, I'd be grateful for your thoughts.
Hintonburg Street Hockey - April 18
An event near and dear to my heart, the annual Hintonburg Community Association's Street Hockey Tournament, takes place April 18 this year. New categories have been introduced this year. Even bigger news is that Beyond The Pale has come on board as a title sponsor! It should be an awesome day. Read more at hintonburg.com/hockey15.html. Or, follow it on Twitter at @StreetHockey15.
Ward "pop-up" office hours
Since taking office, I've been pleased every week or so to host "pop-up" ward hours. What are they? I don't have a ward office since we're so close to City Hall. My daily meeting schedule is a grind and many residents don't want to go through the hassle of setting up a time and making their way downtown to see me to chat about what's on their mind. At our pop-ups, we visit a community centre, store, coffee shop, or places such as the Parkdale Food Centre and invite everyone to drop by. We're scheduling evening, weekdays, weekends and
hitting every part of the ward. Each one is slightly different! Usually, people come chat with me one-on-one. On Thursday, I was at the Churchill Seniors Centre; everyone came at the same time and pulled up chairs for a mini-town-hall. Dozens have taken advantage of these pop-ups, and I hope I'll eventually see you all! See below for the latest schedule.
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