MINUTES
GCA Board Meeting
Tuesday, November 22, 2022
7:00 – 9:00 p.m. via Zoom
Chair: John Crump, President
Secretary and timekeeper: Janet Mayhew
Board members present: John Crump, Janet Mayhew, June Creelman, Colette Downie, Angus McCabe, Janna Rinaldi, Rochelle Handelman, Deborah Long, James Stuewe, Steve Ball, Dan Chook-Reid, Maggie Gorman, Laura Smith, Christina Honeywell-Dobbin, William Price, Johanna Pershon, Judy Wilson, Vaughn Guy, Sue Stefko, Carolyn Mackenzie, Carol MacLeod, Angela Keller-Herzog, Della Wilkinson, Catherine Waters
Others present: Shawn Menard, Jonathan McLeod, Liz McKeen, Nicole Allen, Jason Vallis, John Haysom, Jane Bower, Angela Milne, Basia Vanderveen
Welcome and approval of agenda and draft minutes from October 25, 2022
John Crump opened the meeting with an Indigenous land acknowledgement.
A motion to approve the agenda was put forward by Carolyn and seconded by Colette.
Motion carried. Agenda was approved.
A motion to approve the minutes from October 25, 2022 was put forward by Angus and seconded by Della.
Motion carried. Minutes were approved.
Report from the City Councillor
Shawn Menard provided an update on the following topics:
- Holiday party being planned by his office. More details to follow.
- National Housing Day – announcement re: Carling development (John Howard Society)
- Affordable housing initiatives
- Airport Parkway widening
- Lansdowne: conversations to continue. GCA position will be helpful to provide to new council members.
- Glebe Avenue redesign – Jonathan McLeod provided a brief overview of the plans for Glebe Avenue redesign.
Q&A:
- Question was asked about resurfacing Glebe Avenue. Jon to look into this.
- Concern was raised about erosion of pavement
- Questions about one-way bicycle lane
MOTIONS
Motion 1: Be it resolved that the GCA allocate $175 to update our corporate records with the Ontario government business registry.
The motion was presented by June and seconded by Judy.
Approved. Motion carried.
Motion 2: Be it resolved that the GCA allocate $73.40 to renew our domain name.
The motion was presented by June and seconded by Della.
Approved. Motion carried.
COMMITTEE MOTIONS:
Motion 3: Be it resolved that GCA contribute $1,100 towards maintenance of the Mutchmor outdoor rink.
Context: $100 would go towards POD storage and $1,000 would go towards repairing the snow blower. This amount was allocated in the GCA budget which was approved at the October meeting. It was suggested that for future years, the GCA might consider seeking a sponsorship to help cover the costs.
The motion was presented by Dan and seconded by Janna.
Approved. Motion carried.
Motion 4: that the GCA provide comments on the Bill to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and other political leaders, substantially in line with the draft comments below:
Whereas the GCA believes Bill 23 to be deeply flawed in its singular focus on creating supply of for-profit, market-rate housing while ignoring affordable and deeply affordable public housing and/or non-profit housing needs;
Whereas Ontario’s Bill 23 will negatively impact the environment, parkland dedication, heritage and local level control of planning decisions among other important issues,
Be it resolved that the GCA will provide comments on the bill to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and other political and community leaders, substantially in line with the draft comments below:
DRAFT Comments:
We agree that there is a housing supply and affordability issue in Ontario and support the broad goal that new housing should be built and be available across a spectrum of incomes and needs. However, the focus should be on liveable communities where all residents can thrive and grow, not simply a “numbers game” that focuses almost solely on increasing for-profit, market-rate housing, while gutting environmental protections, provisions for greenspace, and appropriate public engagement and consultation in the evolution of communities. We have significant concerns Bill 23 will be counter-productive to achievement of this goal. The following is a discussion of our concerns.
“Growth needs to pay for growth”
Roads, transit, sewers, fire stations, and libraries in new neighbourhoods are funded through development charges. These charges are paid by developers on all new homes and businesses built in the community. Bill 23 restricts the City in its ability to charge developers for infrastructure. Cities will fall further behind in installing the infrastructure required to support new growth/homes, which will have a serious impact on communities and their livability.
Environmental and ‘green’ considerations
Ottawa declared a Climate Emergency in 2019. We are deeply concerned about proposals to reduce environmental oversight, which will lead to negative impacts on environmental well-being and access to green space in our communities. Proposed measures – such as gutting the role of Ontario’s 36 conservation authorities, and limiting Ottawa’s ability to implement newly-created High-Performance Building Standards – work against responsible, sustainable development and increase the risks of flooding, erosion, drought and compromised water quality. The proposals are regressive and short-sighted – when what we need to be is clear-eyed and bold to address the climate crisis, the increasing threats to natural habitats and biodiversity, and the environmental determinants of human health.
Parks and Greenspace
The Province proposes to cut in half the amount of parkland that developers are required to allocate to support new developments. It is well-documented that greenspace enhances the livability of our communities and plays a significant role in our physical and mental well-being. Yet the province is imposing strict limits on funds the city can accumulate year-over-year for larger projects, which will make it very difficult to set aside money for needed amenities like recreation centres or district parks. In addition, the determination of the parkland dedication location needs to remain with the municipality, not passed to the landowner, to ensure a comprehensive municipal parkland strategy.
Site Plan Control
We support looking at ways to streamline the Site Plan process to reduce costs and time to move building projects forward. But Bill 23 proposes to reduce the ability to regulate a building’s materials, scale, character, appearance, and site design features. The ability to regulate the appearance of landscape elements and other works, important elements to ensure that a development “fits well” within a community, would also be greatly reduced. These reductions will lead to greater disparities between the qualities of design and materials as presented at the consultation stage of a development proposal, and what actually gets built, leading to greater conflict, poor development outcomes, and degradation of communities.
Cultural Heritage Protection
The GCA supports the comments submitted by Heritage Ottawa regarding Bill 23 (attached). Changes to the Ontario Heritage Act and the Provincial Policy Statement and Ontario Regulation 9/06 in Bill 23 will significantly impact a municipality’s ability to manage growth while conserving its built heritage and the important contribution that it makes to neighbourhood character.
Affordable Housing
The bill does not commit any direct investment to incentivize the development of deeply affordable housing (housing suitable for households living on fixed or lower incomes). This limits any new deeply affordable public housing or/and non-profit housing.
The definition of affordable housing as 80% market rent is not affordable to the individuals and families who need affordable housing most. The definition should instead reflect a geared to income approach.
The City will now only be able to mandate a maximum of 5%, rather than 10%, of units built around transit for affordable housing, which will reduce the number of affordable units.Bill 23 will limit municipalities from funding affordable housing units and services with revenue from development charges. Removing development fees will limit municipal services and money that can be used for deeply affordable housing.
Tenant Protection
Cities will no longer have the ability to protect affordable housing at risk of being demolished. Many renters in Ottawa will be at risk of losing their homes.
Summary
Beyond these substantive concerns, Bill 23 was introduced immediately after the municipal elections and may be passed into law before our new Mayor and council can properly consider it. We find it incomprehensible, and undemocratic, that the Standing Committee of the Legislature is not holding any public meetings outside of the GTA; the deadline to provide feedback to the government is extremely limited – less than a month after this legislation was first introduced.
We respectfully request that the Bill be withdrawn and deadlines extended to allow for a proper consultation with residents and stakeholders in Ottawa and analysis that addresses the issues highlighted above. What is needed is legislation aimed at addressing affordability, liveability, and sustainability to meet our housing needs. And it needs to be undertaken with full regard for democratic best practices.
Questions:
- What is the official definition of ‘affordable housing’ and the difference between that, and ‘deeply affordable housing’?
- Considerations re: inclusionary zoning, attainable housing
- Need to ensure that GCA feedback/input is submitted in a timely manner
- Some suggestions were made to make friendly amendments to the motion
The motion was presented by Carolyn and seconded by Rochelle.
Approved. The motion was carried.
Committee updates:
- The Environment Committee provided a brief update, in addition to their written update which was included in the agenda. Della informed members that an event took place recently at which presenters outlined tips for preparing our homes and community for the weather that we can expect with a +1.5 ⁰C warmer planet. A recording of the event will be posted online.
- The Transportation Committee indicated that they will continue to build upon work that has been done on school zones and increased safety measures. They have submitted an application for a grant in the amount of $50,000 to Infrastructure Canada.
- The Health, Housing & Social Services Committee indicated that they will provide an update on Aging in Place at the next GCA Board meeting.
President’s Report:
John Crump provided an update on the following topics:
- Committee meetings: John encouraged committee chairs to invite him to their meetings so that he can get a better idea of the work they are doing and their priorities.
- Code of Conduct: members were reminded of the Code of Conduct which was approved by the Board in October 2021 and were encouraged to share it with their committee members.
Items for Discussion:
- Colette notified Board members that more information would be shared soon about the upcoming GCA Board retreat. It will likely be held in late January, based on the feedback received from the survey. Location and other details to be confirmed.
- Janet reminded members that a personalized letter from MP Yasir Naqvi can be picked up at the GCC.
Issues from the Community:
- Concerns were raised about a draft motion by the Parks Committee to ban dogs from Brown’s Inlet Park. Community members expressed a need for consultation with those in the community before any decisions are made. The Chair of the Parks Committee encouraged people to share their feedback with him and/or attend the next meeting in January where they would be discussing next steps and how best to consult on this issue. Further discussion with the City of Ottawa and/or City Councillor may be needed.
Motion to adjourn: moved by Janet and seconded by Carolyn. Meeting was adjourned.