Building on the 2024 Rural Summit: Improving Rural Services

In December of 2022, I initiated and championed the City of Ottawa's 2024 Rural Summit, our first in over 15 years. The goal was to improve services and investment in our rural communities. We held multiple Summit workshops to address rural concerns, culminating in a November 2024 summit with City leadership.

On Tuesday, at the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee meeting, we received an update on the work the City has been doing since the 2024 Rural Summit to support our rural communities.

To deliver on commitments made at the Summit, the City has hired a new lead for its Rural Affairs Office to advance rural priorities. Each City department now has a rural lead as well, improving coordination and helping the City respond more effectively to rural needs and concerns.

Since the Rural Summit, the City has also made progress in several key areas.

• Improvements to rural roads and drainage: Ditch maintenance funding doubled in 2025, helping to improve safety and resolve issues with local flooding. The City also resurfaced about 75 kilometres of rural roads in 2025.

• Managing future growth: The City is continuing to review how villages will grow over the next decade. That includes developing recommendations around growth opportunities in Ottawa’s smaller and mid-sized villages.

• Protection for rural lands: The City continues to protect and restore hundreds of hectares land, supporting the City’s role as a steward of the environment and of local wildlife. The City has acquired 134 hectares of land for conservation, supporting restoration and stewardship activities on 68 hectares. The City also helped conservation partners acquire an additional 191 hectares.

• Upgrades to parks, recreation and culture: Park improvements have been completed in several rural communities, with additional work already in the design stage. Several community centres have also been upgraded or expanded.

• Support for rural businesses and the local economy: The City adopted a new Economic Development Rural Plan, which is helping create jobs and support local businesses. A dedicated Rural Business Liaison is now in place as well, to connect businesses with City services.

• Review of city planning policies: The City is continuing to review its planning rules to better reflect rural realities and allow more flexibility for development across rural Ottawa.

• Better access to social services and supports for seniors: The City is working to adapt how it delivers social services in the rural areas to help ensure services are easy to access and navigate. New supports are also helping seniors stay active and connected, recognizing the distinct needs of older adults living in rural communities.

• Safer and more connected transportation options: Nearly 41 kilometres of paved shoulders have been added to rural roads, making travel safer for cyclists and drivers. New sidewalks and pathways are also being added in growing communities, and the City has updated rules to improve safety at rural intersections.

• Stronger emergency preparedness: The Ottawa Alert system now provides real-time emergency updates to residents. The City also adopted a new climate strategy along with a grant program to help communities prepare for extreme weather emergencies.

• Reliable emergency response: The City hired 141 new paramedics since the end of 2022, along with dedicated Paramedic response units in Kinburn, Richmond and Metcalfe. A new Paramedic dispatch system is further helping with response times.

While there is still more work to do, these updates demonstrate the value of working together to address the unique needs of our rural communities and build a stronger future for residents, businesses, and families across West Carleton-March and all of rural Ottawa.

Clarke

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If you have questions about this issue or any other City matter, my team and I are always happy to assist. You can contact us at:

Email: Clarke.Kelly@Ottawa.ca

Phone: 613-580-2475

Office of Councillor Clarke Kelly

5670 Carp Road

Kinburn, ON

K0A 2H0