Residents who reach out to municipal government through letter-writing, phone calls or other means are often ignored. I want to change that.
In the early days of the not-for-profit organization Synapcity, senior leadership met with a senior municipal political leader to talk about our work.
The organization’s goal is to increase civic engagement between Ottawa residents and the city government. A sincere commitment to civic education and building authentic relationships between a city and its communities will improve public participation and help residents develop a voice that can meaningfully inform decisions in the city.
The elected politician’s answer was curt. “We don’t need more activists,” he said.
Since then, and especially since being elected the councillor for College ward, I have been standing up for informed public participation in decision-making. Residents who attempt to reach out through letter-writing, phone calls, meetings, social media and especially through protests, can too easily be dismissed as noisy or messy — undeserving of serious consideration.
Since elected, I have heard from City View residents and the local community association about limited access to City parks close to home.
Given the neighbourhood, a new park or green space can only be created if we reclaim land. The dead ends along the back of Merivale's commercial strip have long been considered a natural place to convert into useable green space.
The eastern segment of St. Claire Ave between 14 St. Claire Ave and Starwood Rd has been screened in by city staff as a potential location for conversation to a greenspace that can be used for passive recreation. Please note, that there are no residential properties fronting onto this segment.
While we are in the earliest phases of investigating this possibility, should we proceed, formal approval from key City stakeholders (emergency response, public works, utilities, etc) and an Environmental Assessment would also be required. Costs are yet to be determined. But my office is prepared to do what it can to understand if this idea can become a reality!
This past summer, I offered a survey so I could hear your thoughts about the matter. As promised, here's a link to the As We Heard It results of that survey.
Fill out the surveySince elected, I have heard from City View residents and the local community association about limited access to City parks close to home.
Given the neighbourhood, a new park or green space can only be created if we reclaim land. The dead ends along the back of Merivale's commercial strip have long been considered a natural place to convert into useable green space.
The eastern segment of St. Claire Ave between 14 St. Claire Ave and Starwood Rd has been screened in by city staff as a potential location for conversation to a greenspace that can be used for passive recreation. Please note, that there are no residential properties fronting onto this segment.
While we are in the earliest phases of investigating this possibility, should we proceed, formal approval from key City stakeholders (emergency response, public works, utilities, etc) and an Environmental Assessment would also be required. Costs are yet to be determined. But my office is prepared to do what it can to understand if this idea can become a reality!
Please complete this survey to share your thoughts. Responses will be collected until August 30, 2024. My team will create a summary of the findings which will be shared in a report in September.
"We've chosen a nuclear option, one that can tie our hands and prevent us from working on behalf of our communities," argued Coun. Laine Johnson. "It shifts us from actors to audience. We've reached this point in a hurry."