The past week has certainly measured the resilience of Stittsville residents. With less than a year between two devastating storms, our community again came together to help one another. Councillor Gower thanks those who have been working around the clock to restore our power, responding to damage caused by the freezing rain and his staff. He also reminds residents to register for his next speaker – Stephen “Buddha” Leafloor on April 18 – in the next edition of the Councillor’s Speakers Series. Nominations are also open for the Stittsville Volunteer Awards with a deadline of April 21st for residents to name the volunteer or group who makes a difference in our community. Have you registered for the 2023 Cleaning the Capital? You have until May 1st to do so.
Cleaning up after the storm
Most of our attention over the past week has been on the clean-up from the freezing rain storm last Wednesday. Many homes in Stittsville lost power, including some for up to five days.
Thank you to the many people who helped in our community: The hardworking crews from Hydro Ottawa, first responders, City staff (particularly in forestry and public works), staff at CARDELREC, neighbours and volunteers, and Catherine & my team who have been responding to calls and emails since the freezing rain began on Wednesday morning.
Emergency preparedness: This is the second major storm in less than a year to cause significant damage to our community and in particular our tree canopy. Is your family ready for an emergency? Check out these great resources from the City about emergency preparedness: https://ottawa.ca/en/health-and-public-safety/emergency-preparedness.
Hydro Ottawa resiliency: Many of you have questions about how Hydro Ottawa will improve infrastructure and communications, in light of the extreme weather that is becoming more and more common. Some of the measures they’re undertaking are outlined in a report released last fall called “After the Storm”. You can read it here: https://powerasone.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/After-storm-report.pdf.
Trees & branches: Our forestry team is responding to more than 2,250 calls for service received since Wednesday. Roads and Parks teams continue to address fallen trees and debris that affect our parks and transportation network, followed-up by concentrated street sweeping. Trees, limbs and brush remain a priority. As identified hazards, streets and pathways are cleared, staff and contractors will turn their attention to broken limbs, non-hazardous removals, re-inspections, pruning and brush/wood cleanup.
Collecting and/or chipping all this debris will be a multi-week effort – but residents can help:
- Tree cuttings, branches and brush may be placed at the curb for chipping or collection, separate from non-organic waste. (To allow collection, we encourage branches to be tied with twine in bundles of less than 1.2 m (4 ft.) in length and 60 cm (2 ft.) in width, and that bundles or containers weigh no more than 15 kg (33 lb.). Individual branches should be less than 10 cm (4 in.) in diameter.)
- Larger tree cuttings, branches and brush may be brought to the City’s Trail Waste Facility at no charge until further notice. Otherwise, these may wait, curbside, for chipping or collection by specialized City and contracted crews. There is no need to call 3-1-1 at this time.
Councillor’s Speaker Series
Join us for our Councillor’s Speaker Series, featuring Stittsville residents sharing their experience and knowledge. The next one is on Tuesday, April 18 and features Stephen “Buddha” Leafloor. He has a Masters Degree in Social Work, with over thirty-five years of front line experience working with families and youth living with mental health, trauma and addiction. Stephen will share his journey and his experiences using hip hop and traditional culture to promote healing. Admission is free but advanced registration is required through Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/600719557367.
Nominations are open
Do you know a person, business or community group going above and beyond to make a difference in Stittsville? We want to hear about them! The Stittsville Volunteer Awards are an opportunity to highlight and celebrate the dedication of volunteers in our community. Nominations must be received by email at the end of day on April 21, 2023, and the awards celebration will take place May 31. More info here…
Registration is open
Twice a year, thousands of residents help keep our community spaces clean and green through Cleaning the Capital and you can join them by registering for the spring 2023 campaign. To learn more about the campaign or to register your project, visit ottawa.ca/clean.
Get in touch! Écrivez-nous!
If we can help in any way, please email me at glen.gower@ottawa.ca or leave a voicemail at 613-580-2476. Please call 3-1-1 if you require immediate assistance. – Councillor Glen Gower