City need’s to look inward to fund infrastructure renewal

It was a blink and you missed it moment in the news cycle, but the implications will shape Ottawa for years to come.

City Council recently received an update to the
Long-Range Financial Plan. If you have followed my updates over the past eight years, you will know I have often spoken about Ottawa’s infrastructure deficit and the need for greater investment. This latest report was sobering. It did not introduce a new problem, but it confirmed, with clear figures, what many of us have been saying for years.

The reality is straightforward: Ottawa has a significant infrastructure gap. Ottawa is facing a multi-billion-dollar shortfall over the next decade to maintain existing assets, with roughly $120 million per year unfunded after planned investments. Properly maintaining our roads, water systems, parks, and community facilities will require difficult decisions from the next term of Council.

This work cannot be delayed. At the same time, we must recognize the pressures residents are facing at home. Families are making careful financial decisions, and the City must do the same. Ottawa residents are not a bottomless resource. The City must look inward. It means separating needs from wants and being prepared to make, at times, very hard decisions about how we prioritize investments.

There are some positive steps. The long overdue return of Hwy. 174 to the province, will free up tens of millions of infrastructure dollars, and the uploading of the LRT will do likewise for transit. But those measures alone will not solve the challenge ahead.

The City must approach this challenge with honesty and discipline and ensure that investments are focused on protecting the infrastructure residents rely on every day..

 

Community invited to attend Canada Day fireworks display

What better way to celebrate Ottawa’s 200th birthday than with a spectacular fireworks show in your own backyard?

Many Ottawa residents flock downtown for Canada Day festivities, but this year, east-end residents won’t have to travel far to celebrate their Canadian pride. Instead, they can stay close to home and enjoy an evening of family-friendly fun.

TOn July 1, I invite families to attend the Canada Day fireworks show in Beacon Hill–Cyrville, hosted by yours truly. This year’s event will take place behind the Richcraft Sensplex, located at 813 Shefford Rd.

The celebration officially begins at 8 p.m. with a dance party, followed by a spectacular fireworks display at 9:15 p.m. by Capital Pyrotechnics.

Attendees are encouraged to walk, cycle, or take public transit. Parking will be available in the nearby business park, with limited parking on site. We’re expecting a very large crowd for Ottawa’s 200th birthday, so if you can avoid driving, I recommend leaving your vehicle at home. If driving is necessary, please consider carpooling.

And if you do decide to drive, please remember to be responsible and never drink and drive.

Be sure to wear your red-and-white attire as we celebrate Canada and Ottawa’s milestone birthday. We’ll provide the glow sticks, but don’t forget to bring lawn chairs, blankets, and anything else you need to stay comfortable while enjoying the show.
Let’s make this a memorable birthday celebration for Ottawa and Canada. I know east-end residents are proud of our city and country, and I can’t wait to celebrate with everyone on this historic day.

This event was made possible through the support of my fellow east-end council colleagues: Matt Luloff (Orléans East-Cumberland), Catherine Kitts (Orléans South-Navan), and Laura Dudas (Orléans West-Innes).

 

Financial plan finally confronts lack of infrastructure spending

For years, I’ve been sounding the alarm that while Ottawa has become effective at approving growth, we have not been nearly as effective at delivering the infrastructure needed to support it. In fast-growing communities like Orléans South-Navan, residents experience the consequences every day through congestion, inefficient transit, and delayed road projects.

What was often dismissed as anecdotal frustration now has proof behind it.

Following years of advocacy and calls for a closer look at growth-related infrastructure, the City’s new Tax Long Range Financial Plan confirms what we have been experiencing. Over the last decade, only 58% of approved growth-related capital budgets were spent, compared to between 80% and 96% for other project categories.

That means while new homes continued to be approved and built at a rapid pace, many of the transportation and growth-supporting projects intended to serve those communities never materialized as planned.

The encouraging news is that this report does not simply identify the problem, it begins to outline solutions.

Several initiatives I have championed since joining Council are reflected in the plan, including recommendations to accelerate transportation projects, improve how growth infrastructure is financed, and a new Agile Capital Budgeting Pilot to get projects funded faster, and address project delivery bottlenecks.

I also directed staff to review all Transportation Master Plan road capacity projects and report back with a prioritized ranking based on existing congestion, growth pressures, roadway constraints, and connectivity needs. Staff will also identify projects that may be suitable for acceleration through the new agile pilot.

If we are going to celebrate housing acceleration, we must also champion infrastructure acceleration. Building homes is only part of building a community. Orléans South-Navan deserves both.

 

Paying tribute to the life of a true force of nature, Sue Guarda

Last week, I attended the celebration of life for Sue Guarda, and I left with a full heart and a deep sense of gratitude for the life she lived and the community she helped build.

Sue was bright, colour-ful, caring, and full of love. She was also a doer. When something mattered to her, she showed up. She gave her time, her energy, her creativity, and her heart to the people and places she loved.

What struck me most was the number of people whose lives she touched. Through the Big Sisters program, Sue offered mentorship, kindness, and steady support. In Queenswood Heights, she was a true community leader, helping bring neighbours together and making sure local stories, local needs, and local people were never overlooked.

Through her work managing the Friends of the Ottawa Public Library Association’s Bookworm, she helped turn donated books into support for our public library system, extending the life of each book while strengthening literacy and community connection.

Sue also understood the importance of memory. Her work helping preserve the history of Queenswood Heights was a gift to all of us. Com-munities are built by people, but they are sustained by the stories we choose to remember. Sue helped make sure those stories would endure.

She faced cancer for 37 years with courage, honesty, humour, and strength. But cancer was never the measure of Sue’s life. Her life was measured in service, friendship, laughter, family, generosity, and the count-less people who were better because she was part of their lives.

My heart is with Bob, the Guarda and Tweddle families, and everyone mourning this tremendous loss. We mourn with you, and we also give thanks with you.

Sue made Orléans stronger, kinder, more connected, and more colourful. Her legacy lives on in the people she loved, the organizations she strengthened, and the community she helped shape.