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New Edinburgh News
AVRIL 2003
Official Plan – Last Call
Council is scheduled to make its final decisions on the Official
Plan (O.P.) at the end of April. I see from your responses on our
(your) web site, that most are generally pleased with the
direction that is currently indicated. Your last opportunity to
provide suggestions on the contents of the City’s new O.P. in
person is the week of March 31st to April 4th, 2003 at Planning
Committee. Alternatively, you can communicate your thoughts by
calling 580-2424 and speaking to Pat Jessup at # 13874 or Lesley
Patterson at # 21611. Finally, you could also write to either
person, or myself, at the City address below. I encourage everyone
to learn as much as possible about the direction in which this new
plan, dubbed Ottawa 20/20, intends for our new capital city. The
proposed Official Plan is available at branches of the Ottawa
Public Library and on the City’s web site at www.ottawa2020.com .
In particular, I encourage you to support the recommendations
contained in the “Beechwood Avenue Revitalization Project –
November 2002” (the document is available at both the Rockcliffe
and St. Laurent branches of the Ottawa Public Library and on the
web at www.rideau-rockcliffe.com - your web site). That study,
conducted under the sponsorship of the Rideau-Rockcliffe Ward
Council, recommended that the City develop a “Community Design
Plan” for this corridor such as described in Section 2.5.6 of the
draft O.P.. In that section, the City declares its intention to
undertake, over time, Community Design Plans for ‘… mainstreets
designated on Schedule B’. Beechwood is such a “mainstreet”.
Community Design Plans “will translate the principles and policies
of the Official Plan to the community scale”. Prior to
amalgamation it was difficult, if not impossible, to develop such
a strategic approach for this corridor as it was a boundary
between two municipalities. Not only is this now possible, it is
most timely when one considers the redevelopment potential of the
Canadian Forces Base - Rockcliffe site and the enormous impact
that redevelopment will inevitably have on this corridor
regardless of the use which is finally decided for CFB Rockcliffe.
Public Works in the Neighbourhood
- First, a correction
Acacia, from Beechwood to Maple, had been scheduled for sewer and
road rehabilitation this year. The work will now occur in 2004.
Community consultations will, however, be scheduled this year as
there are aspects of the corridor that may change as a result of
the works, e.g. the presence or not of sidewalks, the geometry of
the Montrose(Wood)/Acacia intersection.
It is also expected that works involving sewer, watermain,
sidewalks, road narrowing, curbs and gutters will be conducted,
beginning in July, on Queen Victoria Street (between Stanley and
Mackay) and on Avon Lane (between Queen Victoria and Union).
Good News! Please take note that Princess Avenue (from Lisgar to
Rockcliffe Parkway) will finally be resurfaced sometime before the
end of the season. It is also expected that John Street (form
Charles to Sussex) will be resurfaced this year. I would like to
remind you that completion of the Sussex Drive rehabilitation
involving the Bytown Bridges is schedule to begin on May 5th.
City Credit Cards
You will have heard that the Corporate Services Committee of
Council has annulled the “Corporate Card” portion of the City’s
credit card system. The recent media controversy was the result of
a very thorough report prepared by the City Auditor. It was clear
that everything was not functioning as intended in the system. The
required controls had not operated effectively in 2001 and 2002.
Overall management of the program needed to be improved to ensure
corporate-wide adherence with the existing policies. The program
itself had previously operated properly for years under the RMOC,
prior to amalgamation. It was a cost-effective payment mechanism
for the purchase of low dollar value goods and services. It is
important to remember that no fraud was indicated related to the
use of the credit cards. It is also important to remember that the
controversy called into question the appropriateness of some
expenditures. This aspect, however, was unrelated to the credit
card system. Audit Committee, in its consideration of the
Auditor’s report, had proposed vigorous corrective mechanisms to
ensure that the identified problems were not repeated. Those
measures included (but were not limited to): 100% vetting of every
transaction over a 3-month period with a follow-up report
identifying individual departmental performance; a review of the
number of cards outstanding and a review tailoring the spending
limit of each card to the card-holder’s responsibilities. Any
future breach of the financial policies would be considered a
serious performance issue. It is estimated that this program was
saving the City approximately $400,000 per year. The problems that
were identified were most certainly fixable. However, the storm of
controversy caused a serious loss of public confidence in the City
administration. The resulting premature cancellation of the
program will be costly for the City. One doesn’t shut down the
Queensway when accidents occur. Instead, one reviews the reasons
for the problems, including whether any modification of the
‘rules’ (e.g. speed limits) is required and whether enhanced
enforcement of those rules is necessary.
You can communicate with me at (please include a telephone
number):
City of Ottawa
110 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa ON K1P 1J1
Tel: 580-2483, Fax: 580-2523
e-mail:
jacques.legendre@ottawa.ca
Web Site:
www.rideau-rockcliffe.com
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