The Planning and Housing Committee today approved changes to the Official Plan that will help reduce delays in new housing construction. The changes will allow the City to approve new subdivisions faster while still making sure water, sewer and stormwater systems are in place before people move in. Right now, an area must have water, sewer and stormwater systems fully in place before the City can approve a subdivision layout. This step, called draft approval, is needed befo

We’ve been sharing regular West Carleton Spring flooding updates here to keep residents informed on conditions, along with the City's response and information. On Thursday May 14, 2026, the City shifted from response activities to recovery operations. May 14, 2026. Conditions along the Ottawa River continue to improve overall, and water levels are gradually receding. While local rainfall this week may temporarily slow the current decline in river levels, current forecasts con

Today at Council, we carried the report from our last ARAC meeting which includes the new Economic Development Rural Plan. Importantly, this plan reflects input from the 2024 Ottawa Rural Summit, and also provides a refreshed, evidence-informed framework to support rural economic growth. It builds on previous initiatives and aligns with municipal, provincial, and federal priorities. I am very excited that the Rural Plan includes the City's first-ever dedicated rural economic

The Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee, of which Councillor Kelly is Vice-Chair, today approved a new rural economic development plan to help rural businesses grow, create jobs and strengthen Ottawa’s rural economy. The plan sets out actions to support rural businesses directly and to foster more collaboration between them. It includes a new rural business liaison who would provide dedicated, one-on-one support and help rural businesses navigate City and partner servic

If you are planning to visit City Hall or are just in the area, take a journey back in time and explore Ottawa’s farming history at the City of Ottawa Archives latest exhibit, Cultivating Community: Agriculture Rooted in Ottawa’s History – now open at the Barbara Ann Scott Gallery. The exhibit offers a dynamic and engaging experience for visitors of all ages. Interpretive panels, display cases with artifacts, and archival photographs will guide visitors through Ottawa’s agr

I am very proud of the two motions that I have been working on that were both carried at Council today. In 2022, the City of Ottawa took down their public-facing staff directory, citing cyber security concerns as the reason for doing so. I believe this approach was more forceful than necessary, ultimately leaving residents without a directory to consult, and feeling like their city is less navigable and open. My motion will re-establish a public-facing staff directory and org

April 2, 2026 The Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee today approved renewing the Ottawa Rural Clean Water Program for another five-year term. The program would continue to provide cost-share grants to farmers and rural landowners for projects that protect surface and groundwater quality. With an annual budget of $200,000, applicants are eligible for grants of up to $15,000 for 19 different types of projects. In the last five years, the program supported 271 projects w

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

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:

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

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

It is with great sadness that I share the loss of another great West Carleton-March resident, Jack Shaw. He was the last Reeve in Fitzroy Township before its amalgamation to West Carleton Township. At that time, he became a Councillor in the newly created Township. Over the years, I have had the privilege to get to know Jack and to see his dedication to this community. Even in retirement, he continued to be involved and engaged, and we are grateful for his service. He will be

I was pleased to be on hand on Wednesday Feb 4 to help present awards at the annual Ottawa Sports Awards. It was a proud night for West Carleton-March with some outstanding local athletes and teams recognized for their incredible achievements over the past year. Ski Cross athlete Hannah Schmidt enjoyed another strong season on the world stage. She opened 2025 with a gold medal at the FIS Ski Cross World Cup in Austria. Returning from injury in September, the 2022 Olympian cla

An error was identified in the 2025/2026 paper version of the Collection Calendar Schedule B that was mailed in Spring 2025. The month of March 2026 has set-out dates that are incorrect and may cause confusion for residents with curbside waste collection. The digital calendar available at Ottawa.ca/CollectionCalendar and the mobile waste collection app show correct set outs. If you typically reference the mailed Calendar for Schedule B (indicated in the top right corner)

Yesterday evening, I got home from 3 days in Toronto, representing the City of Ottawa at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association Conference (ROMA). This is something I do each year as the City’s official delegate for this term of council, and given that so much of what we do as municipalities is directed or driven by the province and its policies, it is an important opportunity to learn and advocate on behalf of rural Ottawa and the people of Ward 5. My main focus for the c