Every year, the City of Ottawa (the City) hosts drop-off events to ensure that residents’ hazardous waste is safely collected, transported, and appropriately recycled or disposed of. This helps to protect the environment and decreases the risk of toxic materials ending up in the City’s collection vehicles and landfills. The events are planned and executed by trained and certified waste management professionals in accordance with applicable laws. Any collection, handling and t

Easter Weekend schedule changes The City of Ottawa would like to remind residents of the following schedule changes and City service impacts on Good Friday, April 3, and Easter Monday, April 6.   Client Service Centres The City’s 3-1-1 Contact Centre will be open for urgent matters only. Please visit  ottawa.ca/311  to submit a service request online. ServiceOttawa’s Client Services and Provincial Offences counters and phone lines will be closed. Counters are located at Ottaw

It's time to launch Season 2 of the City of Ottawa’s official podcast and we OttaTalk about the City’s Spring Freshet Taskforce.   What’s a freshet? It’s the annual spring snowmelt and rainfall that flows into rivers and creeks, raising water levels and increasing flood risk. Listen now to find out how the City works to monitor, prepare, inform and respond during the spring freshet. Listen now: Spotify   Apple Podcasts YouTube Today, we’ll talk with Jim Lethbridge, Area Mana

With a new collection contract in place, the collection days have changed for a number of residents in Ward 5. All of Ward 5 is now set to be collected on Mondays . The recycling collection calendar will remain the same, with green bin and paper and cardboard one week, and garbage collection, recycling, and green bin pickup the next week. You may have already seen information about these changes over the past several weeks through my office's social media, website and newslet

Before planning your next landscaping project, property owners and landscaping contractors should understand the City’s by-laws and their rules. Landscaping Education Guide Whether you’re working with a contractor or tackling this project yourself, read through the City’s Landscaping Education Guide  before you start. This guide is a comprehensive overview of the City’s requirements for driveways, hard and soft landscaping, drainage and grading plans, protecting trees, fences

Statement from Councillor Kelly: I know how important the Corkery Community Centre expansion project is to so many residents, and I truly appreciate your patience and continued interest. Given the number of inquiries my office has received, I will now be sharing weekly updates in this space to keep you informed on the progress. I fully understand the frustration that can come with delays, especially when the goal is something as meaningful as a place for the community to gath

The City is developing a new pilot program to improve local communities’ ability to prepare for extreme weather events and we’re looking for your input! A link to the survey is at the bottom of this page and will take approximately 15-20 minutes to complete. Proposed Pilot Grant Program Details Goal : Build capacity of local community organizations to help them prepare for and recover from extreme weather events. Objectives: Provide funding to acquire emergency equipment, se

The Ottawa Police Service (OPS) is upgrading its online incident reporting system to make it easier and faster for residents to report non-emergency incidents in multiple languages from their computer or mobile device.     This modernized tool allows community members to report incidents like property theft, vandalism, driving-related complaints and the newly added report option for cryptocurrency fraud, a growing concern in the Ottawa area.     The system is designed to:    

I’d like to extend my sincere condolences to the family and friends of Norm Ross, who passed away on Friday at the age of 71 following a brief illness. Norm spent 35 years as an OC Transpo bus driver, and eventually he and his wife, Barb, moved to Galetta to embrace rural life. Norm became a familiar, beloved presence in the community, and for over two decades, he contributed in so many ways. He served as both a dedicated volunteer and a key leader on the Galetta Community As

Environment Canada has issued a significant freezing rain warning, expected to begin either tonight (March 10) or early Wednesday morning (March 11) and lasting through Wednesday or Wednesday night. It may come with an ice buildup of 10 to 20 mm. Given the potential for significant ice buildup, Hydro Ottawa says there is a risk of downed tree branches and localized power outages. They’re encouraging residents to be prepared in case of interruptions and to have supplies on han

A Flood Watch Statement indicates that flooding is possible in specific watercourses or municipalities. Municipalities, emergency services and individual landowners in flood prone areas should prepare. This is an update to the Flood Outlook released on March 4, 2026. Weather Forecast: Warmer temperatures and rainfall over the weekend have resulted in rising water levels within the Carp River watershed. Above-freezing temperatures are expected to continue, with rainfall fore

Background Spring freshet refers to the annual increase of water discharged to rivers as the weather warms and snow melts. Spring freshets are heavily influenced by the amount of available water in the snow, the rate of snow melt, and type of precipitation events. The Ottawa River watershed conveys water from many rivers including the Rideau River. We can anticipate some level of flooding and resulting risk from fast moving waters each year. The increase in flow along the Rid

Beginning on Monday, March 9, seasonal load restrictions  will be in effect.   Commercial vehicles or trailers with a gross vehicle weight in excess of five tonnes or 11,000 pounds per axle will be prohibited on roads where restriction signage is posted, and on all truck routes identified as restricted on the Urban Truck Routes  and Rural Truck Routes  lists. These restrictions also apply to all non-truck routes.   During the spring thaw period, some roads cannot withstand he

The City of Ottawa is carrying out an Environmental Assessment (EA) Study in support of the functional design and options analysis for modifications to the intersection of Dunrobin Road and Constance Bay Road to address safety concerns. You're invited to participate in the Public Information Session that's being held on Wednesday, March 4th, 2026, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM at the Constance and Buckham's Bay Community Centre (Main Hall) 262 Len Purcell Drive. View official public n

Council today adopted  updated population, household and employment projections  to 2051. The projections will serve to guide Ottawa’s Growth Management Strategy as part of the ongoing Official Plan update.     The Province requires municipalities to use population forecasts from the Ministry of Finance as the basis for long-range planning. Because the Ministry does not provide direct housing or employment projections, the City analyzes how the provincial estimates translate

The Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority (MVCA) recently completed regulatory flood and erosion hazard mapping for four important tributaries to the Carp in the vicinity of: Village of Kinburn, Village of Carp, Diamondview Estates, the Carp Airport, and the intersection of Donald B Munro Dr & Thomas Argue Rd. Draft maps will be presented at an Open House on Monday, March 16 from 4-8 p.m. at the Huntley Community Mess Hall (2240 Craig’s Side Road, Carp). MVCA staff will

The Fitzroy Harbour Winter Carnival got off to a great start Thursday night with a busy (and delicious) spaghetti dinner followed by the annual City vs Country hockey game. The game was close but the country boys came out on top this year. A really fun night and it’s just getting started with more fun over the next two days. Councillor Kelly returned on Saturday morning to help the hardworking crew from Ottawa Fire Station 62 serve breakfast to members of the community and th

During soil testing in late 2025, the City found that some deeper soil in Baird Park contains higher levels of metals and other materials. These results suggest that older fill may have been used in parts of the park many years ago. Because of this, the City needs to complete more detailed environmental studies across the entire park in 2026. The park remains safe to use. Ottawa Public Health has confirmed that everyday park activities do not bring people into contact with t

Starting Monday, March 30, your waste collection day may change due to the City’s new curbside collection contract.   This will affect about half of Ottawa households, but there is no change in pickup frequency or what will be collected on your assigned day.  In Ward 5, West Carleton-March, waste is generally picked up on Monday or Tuesday ( see current collection map ). If your collection day is currently Tuesday, it will soon be changing to Monday as well ( new collection m

Another great loss to our community last week. Anton Reitsma, a 50-year rural sector firefighter at Station 62 in Fitzroy Harbour, passed away on Feb. 4, 2026, at the age of 85. For five decades, Anton served with distinction as a volunteer firefighter, always ready to answer the call. He also gave generously of his time as a member of the Softball Umpire Association and through his contributions to Silver Stick hockey. Our sincere condolences to his family and friends. For f