City of Ottawa

[Proof Sheet]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

One proposal was for a parking lot at 1111 Prince of Whales Drive, needed in case Ashcroft redevelops the parking lot next door at 1107 PoW Drive. New tree plantings will "contribute to the entry route along PoW Drive"

From what I understand, they want approval now in case, but will only build if. It's a contingency plan.

I think it was approved.

I think actually that they accepted the staff recommendation which was a refusal. I'm sure it is on the LPAT.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Proof Sheet

I think actually that they accepted the staff recommendation which was a refusal. I'm sure it is on the LPAT.

Yes, that's right. Sorry for the confusion.

I wish they would outline everything during the vote. So not just "is it carried", but "on the rejection of the parking lot at 1111 PoW Drive, is it carried".

[J.OT13]

Mathieu Fleury lists his accomplishments:

• Video Link

Last City Council meeting. Of note is another 90-day penalty to Rick Chiarelli, which will come out of his golden handshake. Departing Councillors had a chance to share parting words. Once Chiarelli starting speaking, many Councillors walked-out, losing quorum. He wad not allowed to finish his speech before the meeting was ajourned.

Honestly, I think he should have sat this one out considering the things he's done and the fact that he was once again in front of disciplinary action.

• Video Link

[J.OT13]

Fleury's Thank You message.

• Video Link

[J.OT13]

Swearing-in ceremony at 10am.

• Video Link

[rocketphish]

'A gross abuse of democracy': Some Ottawa city councillors slam province's bylaw plan
Mayor says he won't pass bylaws with as few as 9 of council's 25 votes

Joanne Chianello · CBC News
Posted: Nov 17, 2022 7:43 AM ET | Last Updated: 4 minutes ago

The surprise move by the provincial government to allow the mayors of Ottawa and Toronto to pass certain bylaws with just over one third of council's support is being called undemocratic by some members of city council.

"What board, what council, what democratic body operates with one-third as a vote required to make things go through?" said Stittsville Coun. Glen Gower.

"That would mean you would only need nine votes to pass something in a city council of 25 people … That's an incredibly low threshold for getting approval on something."

Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper agrees.

"It's counter to everything that we know about how decisions get made in democracies. Democracies based on majority rule, for the most part, and on really sensitive decisions, sometimes require even greater thresholds."

He said the legislation will have some councillors questioning why they just ran for office, as "What is our role in a city in which we can be out-voted with just one-third of council?"

On Wednesday afternoon, Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark tabled new legislation called the Better Municipal Governance Act that, among other things, expanded the previously announced strong mayor legislation.

The priorities under which it can be used will only be spelled out in the regulations after the legislation is passed, but Clark has singled out the province's aim to have 1.5 million new homes built in Ontario in the next decade and to build infrastructure, such as transit and roads, to support new growth.

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe was not available for comment, but in a statement Wednesday, he reiterated his promise not to use any of the strong mayor powers.

"I'm focused on ensuring that thousands of new homes are being built in Ottawa, including affordable and supportive homes," said the statement.

"The new city council is ready to work together to address barriers that prevent the building of more new homes throughout Ottawa."

This week's proposed legislation is just the latest in a series of moves to steamroll over city and council member powers by a provincial government that says the measures are needed to build more homes faster.

The day after the Oct. 24 municipal election, the province introduced Bill 23, which will remove the city's ability to charge — in some instances — fees that pay for infrastructure and parks, as well as its ability to regulate issues like architecture, scale, appearance or sustainable design features or environmental design rules.

The following week, after a yearlong delay, Clark approved the city's official plan — but unilaterally, and with no option to appeal, added almost 50 per cent more land to the urban boundary than council had approved.

Now, the province is upping the ante on what it would take for the mayor to pass or amend a bylaw.

Both Gower and Leiper are alarmed that there is no prescribed list of priorities.

Leiper wants to know if the new rules are for straightforward issues such as rezoning for subdivisions or "something as complex as putting a municipal subsidy into a project like Lansdowne Park."

The timing of these provincial announcements in the past few weeks, with the province giving every indication that it plans to approve Bill 23 by the end of the month, is not lost on some council members.

"I have to assume that Premier [Doug] Ford is well-aware that the election was just held, that councils are probably at their weakest right now, and is seeking to move these changes through before councils can catch their breath and mount an effective opposition," Leiper told CBC.

"It is a gross abuse of democracy to move these changes through in the fashion they are being moved through."

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/mayor-powers-ontario-housing-bylaw-strong-ottawa-1.6654262

[J.OT13]

First City Council ongoing. Special on O-Train legal update.
• Video Link

[J.OT13]

Steve K is leaving City Hall. Good riddance.

[J.OT13]

Ottawa city manager announces retirement just days before LRT report released

Ted Raymond, CTV News Ottawa
November 28, 2022


Ottawa city manager Steve Kanellakos has announced he is leaving his role, effective immediately.

In a letter released Monday, Kanellakos said he informed Mayor Mark Sutcliffe of his decision.

“I’m sure there will be speculation about the reasons for my departure at this time. This decision is mine and mine alone. No one asked me to leave. I’ve always deeply believed in leadership accountability. As City Manager, I am ultimately accountable for the performance of the organization. I have always deeply believed that my role is to have your backs and that it is my duty to accept ultimate responsibility for our performance,” he wrote.

The announcement comes just after an in-camera meeting of the new city council discussing legal updates regarding the light rail transit system. It also comes two days before the final report from the public inquiry into Stage 1 of LRT is released. The inquiry looked at the issues that plagued the line and the municipal decisions that led to its launch.

Kanellakos referenced the LRT report in his departure message, saying he suspects it will be critical of the city.

“On Wednesday, November 30th, the LRT Public Inquiry Commission report will be released publicly. I don’t know what the report findings or recommendations will be as we will not receive an advance copy. I do believe, based on the line of questioning and approach taken by the Commission, that the report will be critical of the City of Ottawa and City staff. Despite this, I know that City staff did their best under very difficult circumstances to ensure that the Light Rail System would meet all of our expectations,” he said.

“It is my belief, that this is the time to do the right thing and allow the organization to find a new leader who can deal with implementing the recommendations from the Inquiry unfettered from the long complex history of the project or the findings of the Commission report.”

Kanellakos has been the city manager of the City of Ottawa since 2016. Prior to that role, he served as deputy city manager of operations, and general manager of community and protective services. He also briefly served as city manager for the City of Vaughan in 2015 before becoming Ottawa’s city manager. Prior to his roles within the City of Ottawa, Kanellakos was director of the Gloucester Police Service in the early 1990s and later became Director General of the Ottawa-Carleton Regional Police Service in the years before amalgamation.

The city manager is the city’s chief administrator, and oversees the city’s multi-billion dollar operating budget. In 2021, Kanellakos earned a salary of more than $370,000.

Details about a search for a new city manager have yet to be announced.

https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/ottawa-city-ma...ays-before-lrt-report-released-1.6171915

[J.OT13]

City manager Steve Kanellakos steps down, effective immediately

The city's top bureaucrat leaves suddenly, just days before the LRT inquiry findings are released

Joanne Chianello · CBC News
November 28, 2022

Just two days before the report for the LRT public inquiry is to be released, city manager Steve Kanellakos announced he is leaving his job as Ottawa's top bureaucrat Monday, effective immediately.

In a memo to city employees, Kanellakos acknowledged there would be "speculation" about the timing of his departure.

"This decision is mine and mine alone," he wrote."No one asked me to leave. I've always deeply believed in leadership accountability. As City Manager, I am ultimately accountable for the performance of the organization. I have always deeply believed that my role is to have your backs and that it is my duty to accept ultimate responsibility for our performance."

The city does not have an advance copy of the report, but Kanellakos said based on the line of questioning from commission lawyers, he believes "the report will be critical of the city of Ottawa and city staff."

"Despite this, I know that City staff did their best under very difficult circumstances to ensure that the light rail system would meet all of our expectations."

More to come...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/city-manager-kanellakos-steps-down-immediately-1.6666894

[rocketphish]

Steve Kanellakos resigns as city manager, issues preemptive defence of city staff ahead of LRT inquiry report

Taylor Blewett, Ottawa Citizen
Nov 28, 2022 • 8 minutes ago • 3 minute read

Veteran city manager Steve Kanellakos resigned his post at city hall on Monday.

It’s an abrupt departure that follows decades of work in the municipal bureaucracy, and one that Kanellakos says he’s deemed appropriate ahead of the release of the findings of the provincial inquiry into Ottawa’s LRT system.

In a letter to all city employees, released to the media, Kanellakos said he informed the mayor Monday that it would be his last day in the role he’s held since 2016. His exit was entirely of his own choosing, Kanellakos wrote.

“I’m sure there will be speculation about the reasons for my departure at this time. This decision is mine and mine alone. No one asked me to leave.”

Kanellakos’s departure comes two days before the first regular meeting of the new city council, as well as the release of the final report by the commission leading the inquiry, initiated by the province, into the first, problem-plagued phase of Ottawa’s LRT system.

“I’ve always deeply believed in leadership accountability. As city manager, I am ultimately accountable for the performance of the organization. I have always deeply believed that my role is to have your backs and that it is my duty to accept ultimate responsibility for our performance,” Kanellakos wrote to staff, going on to note the LRT report’s upcoming release.

While he didn’t have advance knowledge of what it would find or recommend, Kanellakos said, “I do believe, based on the line of questioning and approach taken by the Commission, that the report will be critical of the City of Ottawa and City staff.

“Despite this, I know that City staff did their best under very difficult circumstances to ensure that the light rail system would meet all of our expectations.”

Kanellakos returned to Ottawa to take the city manager’s job in 2016, after roughly a year away in the same role at the City of Vaughan. Prior to leaving for the GTA job, Kanellakos held deputy city manager roles between 2004 and 2015.

In his departure letter, he stated his belief “that this is the time to do the right thing and allow the organization to find a new leader who can deal with implementing the recommendations from the inquiry unfettered from the long complex history of the project or the findings of the commission report.”

Kanellakos was among those who testified before the LRT commission during televised public hearings that stretched from mid-June to early July, as part of its probe into the circumstances that led to the derailments and breakdowns along the Confederation Line.

As city manager, Kanellakos’s authority extended to making decisions on the project, including negotiating, approving, executing, delivering, amending or extending the agreement.

In his departure letter, Kanellakos reflected on the numerous crises staff have navigated over his seven years in the top municipal job as well as their “remarkable achievements.”

“The people who work at the City of Ottawa are the reason I got up every day to come to work. For me it’s always been about serving our people so that they could provide the best possible service to our residents. My respect and admiration for all of you is endless.

“Thank you for the support you have given me over so many years. I’m deeply grateful for that gift. After almost 38 years of service, it’s time for me to be a friend to me.

I’m going for a long walk….”

A graduate of Carleton University, twice over, with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in public administration, Kanellakos got his start as director of the former city of Gloucester’s police service in 1989. He then became director-general of the Ottawa-Carleton Regional Police Service in 1995 and moved into the role of general manager of emergency and protective services at the City of Ottawa in 2000. He’s remained part of the city’s leadership, apart from his Vaughan sojourn, ever since.

[email protected]

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-new...f-city-staff-ahead-of-lrt-inquiry-report

[McKellarDweller]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

I’m going for a long walk….”

..because the train isn't running and the bus didn't come

[Richard Eade]

Touché

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by McKellarDweller

..because the train isn't running and the bus didn't come

Tbf, train seems to be working well now. Minor issues here and there. Delays are often just caused by medical issues.

[J.OT13]

I’ve always deeply believed in leadership accountability.

He dared Council to fire him twice (once through Moffatt). He carries a great deal of responsibility for the screw up that was the Confederation Line construction and operational issues. He's only now resigning days before the release of the inquiry report. That's not being accountable for his own actions, that's holding on as long as possible until he has no choice but to run away from his responsibilities. He doesn't have Watson sticking up for him anymore, many of his allies are now gone.

[rocketphish]

Council to vote on Sutcliffe's promised 2.5 per cent tax increase cap as part of budget directions
It's a figure that Sutcliffe committed to during the election campaign, and one that departs from former mayor Jim Watson's recent practice of three per cent annual increases.

Taylor Blewett, Ottawa Citizen
Dec 05, 2022 • 15 hours ago • 4 minute read

City council members will vote Wednesday on directions for the crafting of Mayor Mark Sutcliffe’s first budget, including a property tax increase between two and 2.5 per cent.

It’s a figure that Sutcliffe committed to during the election campaign, and one that departs from former mayor Jim Watson’s recent practice of three per cent annual increases — leaving more money in residents’ pockets and less coming in to city coffers, as the municipality contends with what staff say are “unprecedented inflationary pressures” and lingering financial impacts stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

A staff report to council on the budget directions also says that a transit fare increase of 2.5 per cent will be included in the 2023 budget “for consideration,” because it’s consistent with what council directed through a 2017 long-range financial plan for transit.

If ultimately approved, this would seemingly go against a Sutcliffe campaign commitment to freeze transit fares at current levels for at least one year.

Staff are recommending a two to 2.5 per cent increase for each levy that makes up residents’ municipal tax bills.

At two per cent, for the average urban home, that works out to an $82 increase, with the city-wide levy rising by $52, the police levy going up by $13 and the transit levy increasing by $16. A 2.5 per cent tax increase, in comparison, would add another $22 to the total for the average urban home, assessed at a value of $415,000.

Kitchissippi ward Coun. Jeff Leiper has already said he would vote against the recommended property tax increase.

“It is irresponsible to target such a low tax increase when inflation is running so high and staff already struggle to deliver the services we expect,” read an email from his office to constituents distributed last weekend.

If the directions are approved, council would ask the police services board, transit commission, Ottawa Public Library and Ottawa Public Health board to draft their respective budgets based on this two to 2.5 per cent tax increase, which will also guide staff work on the development of the overall 2023 draft budget, scheduled for tabling at council on Feb. 1.

In their directions report, staff write that the budget will reflect post-COVID pressures, such as reduced transit fares, with ridership still not expected to fully rebound next year. Apart from Ottawa Public Health, there’s currently no confirmed funding from upper levels of government to offset these pressures.

“Staff will prepare mitigation measures that could include the deferral of capital projects and a discretionary spending pause, further efficiencies and wherever possible one-time reduction in expenditures and various additional mitigation measures for consideration by Council as required.”

After revealing his taxation commitments and financial plan during the mayoral campaign, Sutcliffe stated unequivocally that he would not cut any programs or services. He did, however, promise to oversee a “full strategic review of all city operating and capital spending” before the tabling of the 2023 budget, and that he would find $35 million in efficiencies to support his platform commitments, including through attrition and elimination of vacant non-essential staff positions, reduced work with consultants and using technology to “better serve residents.”

Staff wrote in their report that a list of “efficiencies and opportunities” will be included in the draft budget.

They also noted that “current external economic conditions and supply chain pressures have resulted in unprecedented inflationary pressures impacting all city services” and that “significant increases on fuel, construction indices, parts and supplies will have a significant impact to the 2023 budget pressures.”

His promised 2.5 per cent cap on property tax increases would apply for at least 2023 and 2024, Sutcliffe said ahead of the Oct. 24 vote, and he would target the same for the third and fourth years of his mandate.

When council votes on the budget directions Wednesday, it will kick off a budget process that they’re also scheduled to sign off on at the same meeting.

The process sees the mayor and city manager work on developing a draft budget aligned with the budget directions approved by council, consulting with councillors during its preparation.

The public will have an opportunity to weigh in through the city’s consultation website, Engage Ottawa, and through any consultation opportunities their ward councillor decides to arrange.

After the draft budget’s tabling, council committees will meet to consider the parts of the budget they’re responsible for and hear public delegations. Council would meet March 1 to consider budget recommendations from committees and boards, and vote to adopt the budget.

Staff also noted that a climate lens will be applied for the first time to projects in the capital budget, to provide a better understanding of city spending towards the implementation of its climate change master plan, greenhouse gas emission reductions and climate change resiliency.

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-new...-at-council-as-part-of-budget-directions

[rocketphish]

Ottawa council backs pitch for new LRT committee at first meeting after public inquiry report
Interim City Manager Wendy Stephanson told council the city's senior leadership team "is taking lessons from the inquiry to heart"

Taylor Blewett, Ottawa Citizen
Dec 07, 2022 • 1 hour ago • 4 minute read

Ottawa city council is getting a new sub-committee dedicated specifically to the light-rail transit system, following the tabling of a public inquiry report last week that raised concerns about how the troubled Stage 1 project was stickhandled at city hall.

Council members also decided, after considerable debate, to not include citizen members on its transit commission in this new council term, and instead have staff work to establish a civilian advisory body.

Questions of public trust, citizen engagement and accountability when it comes to the city’s transit system dominated the early discussion at council Wednesday, which was the first meeting since the LRT report was released. Council members were deliberating on a hefty report called the governance review, with sets out structural and procedural changes for this term of council.

Before discussion got underway, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe told his council colleagues that he’d spoken with Interim City Manager Wendy Stephanson “about the critical importance of improving accountability to the public in everything we do.”

Stephanson was tagged to take on the role that former city manager Steve Kanellakos abruptly walked away from last week, resigning two days ahead of the unveiling of the report that would find an “egregious” violation of the public trust in the lack of information shared with council by senior city staff and former mayor Jim Watson about the trial running of the Confederation Line.

Stephanson made some remarks of her own to council Wednesday, saying the city’s senior leadership team “is taking lessons from the inquiry to heart.”

They are actively looking at “practical ways to enhance our processes, change any parts of the culture that lessen accountability and to take council’s direction to show the public that their public service is trustworthy and transparent as we move forward,” said Stephanson.

Riverside South-Findlay Creek Coun. Steve Desroches brought forward a motion, seconded by Sutcliffe, to establish a sub-committee of councillors to provide oversight over “non-operational matters” related to the existing Confederation Line (council’s transit commission handles operational oversight) and the construction of Stage 2 in the east, west and south.

City Clerk Rick O’Connor said he expects he could come back to council with draft terms of reference for the sub-committee in the first few months of 2023. Council directed that its domain includes regular staff reporting on how they’ve used their delegated authority when it comes to light rail, reporting by an independent safety commissioner monitoring the Confederation Line and issues related to the public inquiry.

The chairs of the transportation and transit commission would sit on the sub-committee, alongside three other council members.

Sutcliffe told his colleagues the rationale is to have a committee “that has accountability for the light rail projects going forward, to create oversight and to take one step toward rebuilding the public’s trust in the light rail project.”

The motion passed with no objections. It was a different story for the proposal in the governance review to have the transit commission consist only of elected officials, after three terms of civilians sitting and voting alongside council members appointed to the commission.

Instead, the public members would sit on a transit advisory body, which Sutcliffe has directed staff to get moving on as quickly as possible, reporting back to council on specifics to come no later than the second quarter of next year.

The group is to include at least one Para Transpo user, as well as an active member from an OC Transpo union, and have a membership that is 50 per cent plus one non-male. Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper also directed staff to look at some kind of role for the advocacy group Ottawa Transit Riders.

Sutcliffe confirmed with O’Connor that this type of change was something the majority of members of the last council supported.

O’Connor told councillors that when the civilian membership on the commission was set up, staff recommended it based on “successful bodies” such as the built heritage sub-committee, where heritage experts, planners and architects sat alongside elected representatives, who could benefit from their expertise.

The proposal for transit commission had been to do the same thing with engineers and transportation experts, said O’Connor, but what they found was that people retiring from these positions were not putting up their hands to join, and were instead becoming transportation consultants. What they ended up with, said O’Connor, was shifting the model for civilian transit commissioners from experts to transit riders — and the thought now is to put those citizen members on an advisory body instead.

Most councillors ultimately supported this proposal, following a robust debate.

In her comments, Alta Vista Coun. Marty Carr drew a line between citizen engagement and governance.

“With respect to governance itself, it’s the officials that are elected to represent the citizens that should play that role,” said Carr.

Somerset Ward Coun. Ariel Troster said she thinks the advisory body is a better choice from an equity perspective, allowing meetings to be held at times that work for families with young children or transit users from low-income backgrounds, as transit commission typically meets during weekdays.

Knoxdale-Merivale Coun. Sean Devine led an unsuccessful attempt to postpone the decision to eliminate citizens from transit commission until later in the term, warning that to do so now would be a blow to public trust at a critical time and create a gap in citizen engagement until the new transit advisory body is stood up.

A majority of councillors ultimately voted down Devine’s motion, with councillors Shawn Menard, Stéphanie Plante, Jessica Bradley, Laine Johnson and Rawlson King voting in favour of Devine’s proposal.

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-new...irst-meeting-after-public-inquiry-report

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Tbf, train seems to be working well now. Minor issues here and there. Delays are often just caused by medical issues.

Yeah, the "train doesn't work" thing needs to die. Service disruptions now are, at worst, at the same background levels you'll find anywhere else with rail transit.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Staff wrote in their report that a list of “efficiencies and opportunities” will be included in the draft budget.

They also noted that “current external economic conditions and supply chain pressures have resulted in unprecedented inflationary pressures impacting all city services” and that “significant increases on fuel, construction indices, parts and supplies will have a significant impact to the 2023 budget pressures.”

His promised 2.5 per cent cap on property tax increases would apply for at least 2023 and 2024, Sutcliffe said ahead of the Oct. 24 vote, and he would target the same for the third and fourth years of his mandate.

Here are the two options:

- a slash and burn budget.

- the 2.5 thing is fiction and everyone who can do basic arithmetic knows it.

[McKellarDweller]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Yeah, the "train doesn't work" thing needs to die..

Sorry the bad/late joke didn’t meet your curmudgeonly tastes.