Leiper Is Part Of His Planning Problem: BENN
The city is suffering the consequences of “… generations of wrong-headed planning …”. So says Kitchissippi councillor and planning committee chairman Jeff Leiper in his response to an open letter from a couple of Alta Vista residents.
That is quite the condemnation of his predecessors and those who populated the planning department.
Let me set the context for those who haven’t been paying attention to this tempest in a teapot. After all, how can you understand a statement without understanding the context in which it was given. Or, for that matter the “wrong-headed planning” decisions made by generations of highly qualified planners. As in what was the context of these “wrong-headed planning” decisions.
The bungalow belt was built in the decade or two that followed the end of the Second World War. Soldiers returning to Canada married and started families. Their children becoming the baby boomers. Families with three, four, five children needed space. This after more than half a decade of a much lower birthrate, what with many of the younger men being deployed overseas.
The space required by much larger families took the form of predominantly single-storey, single-family dwellings on, relative to today, wide lots. Like the neighbourhood that I was born into Fisher Heights. Seventy-five-foot wide lots, 105 feet deep. On the outskirts of the then Township of Nepean. Oh, and with an elementary school that was walking distance for everyone.
The context being that there was lots of land back in the early 1950s. The context being that families were much larger than today’s standard 1.3 to 1.6 children per household. The context being that the automobile became a common family asset, as contrasted with pre- Second World War.
Put another way, in response to an unexpected uptick in the demand for housing, the market actually delivered affordable housing. But, apparently, with the benefit of seven decades of hindsight, these decisions were “wrong-headed”. Why? Because these houses represent very low density, by today’s standards.
Let’s flash forward to a few decades ago. The late 1990s saw the Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton contemplating an LRT system. It took more than a decade to get shovels in the ground on the ‘award-winning’ Confederation Line. Within a few months of it being put into premature revenue service, the pandemic hit. And working from a desk in a downtown office became an anachronism.
Leiper was elected in 2014, so he should get a pass on what future generations will surely declare to be a “wrong-headed” decision. But he was on council that voted for Stage 2 of the Confederation Line. Oh, and he also voted to award the Trillium Line extension to the SNC Lavalin-led consortium. The consortium that two of his colleagues were asking very embarrassing questions about. Embarrassing as in whether the winning proponent had failed to meet the technical standards. Questions that, in the fullness of time, were accurate.
It would appear that Leiper was part of the current generation of “wrong-headed” planners. However, being the level-headed individual that I am, I will give you a mulligan on Stage 2, because no one should be condemned for not expecting the pandemic. The official scorer is still pondering whether only an experienced industry expert could have predicted that selecting a European train-provider, with heavy modifications, running on tracks designed to American standards, with a software system provided by another group would be a nightmare, especially for city staff that had never done it before. But that was for Stage 1, so I will give Leiper a pass on that “wrong-headed” decision. Because context matters.
On to a few examples of “wrong-headed planning” decisions that do rest on Leiper’s shoulders.
In response to the concerns expressed by the Alta Vista residents regarding the aging infrastructure and recreational facilities, Leiper deflects the discussion to the allocation of development charges. Deflects because maintenance of existing infrastructure is supposed to come out of operating and capital budgets. Budgets that are funded by property taxes. Budgets which, during his 10 years on council have woefully underfunded these recurring, city-wide requirements. This qualifies as “wrong-headed” planning. Not zoning planning. But planning in its broader meaning.
Two years ago Leiper supported, and continues to support now, the decision to approve a truly aspirational Official Plan without knowing, and still not knowing, how much it would cost. What will it cost to bring the existing infrastructure inside the Greenbelt communities up to a standard to support the designated density? What will it cost for the city to provide the transportation infrastructure to handle the increased density? Aside from a rough order of magnitude several billion dollars, give or take a few billion dollars? Stunningly brilliant decision making. No mulligan there councillor.
A key subset of the Official Plan that Leiper cannot stop drooling endlessly about is the 15-minute neighbourhood. These are really wonderful concepts, no sarcasm intended. How will the city ensure that the bungalow belt gets converted to 15-minute neighbourhood status? How will the city retrofit the street after parallel street of residences to accommodate the missing grocery store? Or create centres of employment that go beyond the existing retail and personal services shops in a local plaza? The Official Plan, along with the bylaw amendments under consideration, the bylaws that implement the Official Plan are silent on the practical aspects of how to create this aspirational concept. A plan that cannot be implemented is not a plan. It is just a bunch of words with pretty pictures.
Leiper voted for this Official Plan with no idea of how much it would cost, or how the most attractive elements would be implemented. Talk about “wrong-headed planning”.
And that is why I am taking yet another run at Leiper. He is oblivious to his own short comings. Yet he has the audacity to give condescending lectures to the great-unwashed about the failures of prior generations of planners. Get a mirror councillor. Get a mirror.
Ron Benn, a finance executive, has been a member of the Centrepointe Community Association for the better part of three decades.
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I think Jan Harder would still give Leiper a good battle for being the most wrong-headed planner-politician.
You’ve raised several important points about City of Ottawa zoning. There is no urban planning, just building by building permissions and restrictions. And there is more.
Economic Impact of Sports Arenas
Numerous studies have shown that municipal support for professional sports arenas result in financial losses for cities. These facilities rarely deliver the promised economic benefits, such as job creation and increased local spending. Instead, they often become financial burdens, diverting public funds from essential services and infrastructure. We will have two in one city?
Urban Density and Development
The increase in urban density, from 3-4 units per lot to potentially over 20 units per lot, will significantly alter the character of neighborhoods. While higher density can support more efficient public transportation and reduce urban sprawl, it also raises concerns about the availability of affordable housing, green spaces, and community amenities.
Affordable Retail and Public Amenities
Cities often struggle to enforce affordable retail spaces in new developments. Without strong policies or incentives, our developers prioritize high-rent commercial tenants, making it difficult for small businesses to thrive. Additionally, the lack of funding for parks, recreation centers, and affordable housing initiatives will negatively impact community well-being. Schools are getting larger (800) minimum. Taken together, the 15 minute neighbourhood is unattainable.
Parking and Traffic
Reducing parking in new developments can encourage the use of public transportation and reduce traffic congestion. However, given the disaster of our transit systemm we are already seeing increased street parking and traffic issues in residential areas as well as main streets. It will only get worse.
Lansdowne and Tewin Projects
The Lansdowne and Tewin projects are significant developments that will cost each taxpayer hundreds for years to come.
It is not just the Council’s fault that we are in this mess. Ottawa’s citizens are strangely complacent. Have we all just given up?
Dan, in fairness to Jan Harder, she her track record as a “wrong-headed” planner is based on a career that went on and on and on and on … well past its best before date.
On to my philosophical question of the day. When it comes to ‘worst’ contests is the winner the worst or the least worst?
Thanks for documenting how planning effectively worked when neighbourhoods like Alta Vista were built. Now Mr. Leiper is chair of Planning Committee where the city has a new zoning by-law in the works that will transform Alta Vista into what effectively may be a spot zoned intensification program converting existing lots with from 6 to well in excess of 20 dwelling units with no minimum parking required. So any land owner can do this sort of thing pretty much anywhere sort of thing. Wrong headed planning indeed.
Ottawa is roughly the same size as metropolitan Buffalo, New York. I wonder when Ottawa’s zoning ends up taking on the same flavour as Buffalo’s in which they have a rundown 2-storey house, a rundown 2-storey liquor store, a rundown 3-storey apartment, a steel mill, a run-down 2-storey house, etc, etc. We’ll be the pride of Canada.
We met online with 2 city planners (or more? it was a zoom meeting) and our councillor Cathy Curry. They expected 14% of neighbourhoods to have those higher density units by 2040, 16 years from how. Some more, like Alta Vista, and less in the newer neighbourhoods. However, the developer has to figure out how to get around the impermeable structures as they have to put in cisterns, either in the roofs of buildings or in the ground, to make up for the groundwater that would have otherwise gone into the lawns/land of the homes instead of house and asphault Also I asked about the 15 minute neighbourhoods and the city has no ability to direct what goes into each neighbourhood – it could be a massage parlour (the allegedly named Happy Endings?), tatoo parlours, or pot shops. The romantic ideal of the 15 minute neighbourhood is a scam – you are not going to get the cute bakeries and coffee shops