Benn ‘Spot On The Mark’: Community Group

We are very lucky to have financial executive Ron Benn at The Bulldog.

The city-wide community group Your Applewood Acres (And Beyond) Neighbours email list appear to agree.

This from their list:

Hi all,

Ron Benn is back on the Bulldog: Where Ottawa Matters site today raising more questions about the conclusions Kitchissippi Ward Councillor Jeff Leiper,

Chairman of the city’s planning and housing committee, and other councillors have reached on housing issues-density goals and offers a bit of historic context to Alta Vista’s housing pool — and raises questions about how ready the city is for the levels of density they’re pushing for (including infrastructure needed and transit options linked to higher population).

Benn’s points are “spot on the mark”, says one list member, and for others it offers some historic context to how Alta Vista became the community it is — and how it might even serve as an example of what is possible elsewhere.

Go to the Bulldog site to see comments below the piece for more context and/or to add your own questions/insights.

We have been hearing more from neighbours since Leiper’s comments at planning committee warnings that “Change is going to come to the bungalow belt”, a point that was supported by Alta Vista Councillor Marty Carr’s previously shared comments at zoning breakout session about how “Alta Vista Ward has not really had significant intensification relative to the entire city…” with the clear idea that we need to do much more (and we continue to look into the numbers being used to support these conclusions).

Many are noting that talking like this at meetings about Alta Vista as if it was nothing more than a sleepy (underdeveloped) bunglow belt is wrong and ignores the mix of dwellings across the ward and how they believe this could serve as an example of how other Ottawa neighborhoods can be developed to offer great neighbourhoods and housing options to a wide range of residents.

And, say observers, Applewood Acres is a great example. It is already a 15-minute neighbourhood — something the city’s says is a major goal of its proposed new zoning bylaws for neighbourhoods city-wide — and already offers a full range of housing options (including, by quick example: two high-rises on Bank Street across from Billings Shopping plaza, with two more coming; four three-storey low-rise buildings on Blossom Drive; and many multi-units, semis and townhomes all along Kilborn Avenue with even more high-rises on Kilborn etc.

And, yes, there are many bungalows in Applewood Acres (most built in the 1950s — and we know of some where four-to-six kids were raised) built on medium-sized lots (much smaller than many of the much deeper lots on Pleasant Park that pro-density advocates often reference).

And what does that mean? It means we have some green spaces (needed permeable soil), trees in front and back yards (back yards able to fit a badminton net/play space) and safe spaces and streets for children and enough space between houses to reduce the kind of noise and light pollution that comes with super dense neighbourhoods (something never mentioned in the zoning meetings).

Bottom line for those living here: Applewood Acres and other Alta Vista pockets are great, healthy places to live, and should serve as examples of the kind of mixed neighbourhoods the City needs to make available to more to protect (and replicate) rather than forcing more and more density on every lot with every family given next to no other option than to live into multi-unit dwellings.

For You:

Crunch The Numbers On Tewin, Councillor: THE VOTER

Terminate The Tewin MOU: BENN

Remember Transit Come Election Time: MULVIHILL

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