(The former historic Butler House, also known as Green’s Hotel, was built in 1894, and is located on Stittsville Main Street. Photo: Sleepwell)
The Labour Day long weekend has quickly come and gone, kids are returning to school and Councillor Gower provides us with another week of updates pertaining to news and issues affecting our community. One issue of concern to the Councillor is the lack of buses available for students attending Goulbourn Middle School and South Carleton High School. He highlights parking at École Paul-Desmarais on Abbott Street, development news, the Ottawa Police Service public survey, updates from Ottawa Public Health and more.
School bus shortage
I’ve been hearing from parents who have concerns about cancelled school buses. There are at least three routes serving Goulbourn Middle School and South Carleton High School that have been cut due to a lack of drivers. While I can understand the challenge that OSTA (Ottawa Student Transportation Authority) is facing this year due to the driver shortage, I’m struggling to understand why they decided to cut routes where there is no alternative OC Transpo service, or reasonable way to travel by bike or by foot. The cancellations mean a drive of 20 minutes each way to and from Richmond for high school students.
I’ve asked OC to see if any buses or drivers can be deployed to for a special shuttle route. I’ve also emailed OSTA looking for more info on how this can be resolved. If you know someone who may be interested in becoming a school bus driver, please visit http://ottawaschoolbus.ca for more information. There are several dozen routes cancelled in Ottawa due to a lack of drivers. That’s a big problem.
Iber Road commercial parking
A reminder to parents who are driving students to École Paul-Desmarais to park only in designated areas, and respect all “no stopping” and “no parking” signage. Parking is not permitted in the roundabout, nor is it permitted in private parking lots.
Coming soon: Ritual on Main
Stittsville will be welcoming a new coffee shop/restaurant this fall on Stittsville Main Street. Ritual will take over the bottom floor of the heritage brick building at the corner of Stittsville Main and Abbott. It’s owned and operated by Chinelo Houron, who also runs The Thirsty Maiden in Kanata.
DEVELOPMENT UPDATES
155 Iber Road: Site Plan Control
The City has received a Site Plan Control application to construct a single-storey warehouse at 155 Iber Road. More info…
UPDATE: Mattamy’s development at Brigantine/Khasmin
Mattamy’s development proposal for 21 Brigatine Avenue and 501 Khamsin Street goes to Planning Committee for approval on September 9. Mattamy has made several changes to their requested zoning change based on public feedback. More info…
Abbottsville Crossing Paving
Mattamy and Richcraft will be paving roads in the Abbottsville Crossing neighbourhood in the coming weeks. Richcraft’s streets are scheduled for late this week, and Mattamy’s streets are scheduled starting September 27. Weather permitting. Mattamy will also be paving the streets in Fairwinds Phase 6 the last week of September.
Road closures & construction
Palladium Drive will be closed between the Automall and the Queensway until September 17, for construction of a new roundabout at the future Robert Grant Avenue. More info…
OC Transpo Fall Service
OC Transpo is implementing service improvements, Stage 2 construction detours and seasonal adjustments, started Sunday, September 5. Before heading out, use the Travel Planner on octranspo.com to plan your trip. More info, including changes to routes 167 and 252.
Ottawa Police Service Budget Public Survey
The Ottawa Police are asking residents to provide their feedback in a public survey being launched today, to help us determine priorities in line with our annual budget. the survey will be issued in eight different languages: English, French, Arabic, Cantonese (Traditional Chinese), Mandarin (Simplified Chinese), Farsi, Somali and Spanish. More info…
Virtual Open House: New City of Ottawa Official Plan
Special Meeting: New City of Ottawa Official Plan6:30 pm, September 29, 2021
The City of Ottawa’s Official Plan provides a vision for the future growth of the city and a policy framework to guide the city’s physical development. The purpose of this meeting is to present the full revised draft of the New Official Plan. The meeting will take place virtually on Zoom. Residents are invited to register to participate and submit their questions via the project webpage at Ottawa.ca/newop or email newop@ottawa.ca.
NEW: List of blasting operations in Stittsville
We’ve set up a new web page so that residents can stay informed about blasting operations in the Stittsville area. Visit glengower.ca/blasting for a list of blasting projects, schedules, and key contacts. We’ll keep this updated whenever we’re aware of new blasting work in the community.
The latest from Ottawa Public Health
- “The Delta variant is presenting challenges, but we have learned a lot in the last 18 months. We have the tools, knowledge and resilience to get through this next phase.” Read the latest statements from Dr. Vera Etches and Dr. Brent Moloughney.
- Starting September 22, everyone in Ontario will be required to provide proof of vaccination to access certain businesses and settings. If you need your first or second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, all our clinics are open for drop-ins daily. No appointment needed! For more information visit COVID-19 Vaccine.
- Ottawa Public Health strongly recommends employers develop and implement workplace vaccination policies for their employees and encourages everyone that is eligible receive a complete series of a COVID-19 vaccine. Learn more about how to develop a workplace vaccination policy here.
- It’s important to screen your kids daily for COVID-19 symptoms. If they need testing, our partners have you covered! There are multiple options for getting kids tested. For more details, visit COVID-19 Testing Information. Be sure to check hours of operation as they may differ over the long weekend.
- Three new neighbourhood vaccination hubs opened this week! Drop-in to any location to speak to a public health nurse and get your COVID-19 vaccine. All locations and hours can be found here: COVID-19 Vaccine.
- ICYMI: the Ottawa Neighbourhood Study map showing COVID-19 vaccination coverage by neighbourhood was updated this week. These data help us address the barriers that prevent some members of our community from accessing opportunities for vaccination.
Get in touch!
My team and I are working every day to answer your questions and connect residents with the resources they need. If we can help in any way, please email me at glen.gower@ottawa.ca or leave a voicemail at 613-580-2476.