Published in The BANAR November 2012
by Councillor Rainer Bloess
There is change in the air throughout the city as Ottawa grows in all directions. Attention has been focused on new high-rises in the downtown and in the condo developments in the Westboro area and on rezoning around future light rail stations. However, even Blackburn Hamlet is not immune from this intensification, albeit on a lesser scale.
Generally, our City is growing in every possible direction—south, east, west and even straight up and higher. Denser projects and higher buildings are being approved in numerous neighbourhoods.
Here in the Hamlet, due to our natural greenbelt boundaries, the potential for significant new development is limited. There are, however, three projects currently in the works that are noteworthy and will change the face of Innes Road. The first is occurring at the former Wally’s restaurant/bar location at 2530 Innes Road. The initial phase consists of the existing commercial building being renovated and converted to a 12 unit residential building with a second three and a half storey 24 unit building planned to follow at a later stage.
The next project is a new building to be erected at 2744 Innes Road (just east of Orient Park). The zoning plans allow a three and a half storey, 14 unit condo building with the main building entrance fronting onto Innes Road and parking at the rear of the building. On the other side of Innes, across from Wally’s, two semis are planned in the short term on the corner of Gravelle Crescent with additional semis to follow.
While the reaction to increased density in our established neighbourhoods is often to protest either because of a number of legitimate concerns and/or just the time-honoured “not in my backyard” defense, this type of infill development is encouraged by the Provincial Planning Act and the City’s Official Plan.
Making the best use of available urban land effectively limits suburban sprawl and lowers the burden on local taxpayers by providing new housing without the expense of extended roads and pipes (both water and sewer if capacity exists).
All city residents can and should be a part of land use planning by keeping informed about what’s going on in our community and participating in public meetings to share your views and concerns with me and with city staff before decisions are made at City Council.
With our population growing, change and intensified development are inevitable throughout the city. In my years on City Council I have seen many proposed developments modified in response to criticism, comments and suggestions brought forward by involved residents. As always, your input is important and ultimately can help Council make better decisions for our community and our City.