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Many residents have begun receiving letters from the City of Ottawa about the current water rate review and have been reaching out with questions and concerns about what this could mean for rural residents. The first thing I would like to do is reassure residents that I am hearing your concerns and share many of them. When I ran to be your representative at City Hall, the one promise I made was that I would listen to constituents and that my position as your Councillor would be informed by you. That is something I remain fully committed to.
This is a review of an existing program. The new water rate structure came into effect on April 1, 2019, after being approved in 2016. Although this charge was instituted before my time as Councillor, I do remember the strong feelings and resentment it caused amongst rural residents when it was first implemented back in 2019. What angers residents even more is the fact that this charge has been implemented while rural ditches continue be neglected. Ditches, lack of maintenance, and issues with drainage are the most common complaints for which my office is contacted. I am actively working with other rural councillors on solutions to this issue, including a motion that I am working on that would establish clear standards for rural ditch maintenance.
I would like to make clear to people who have concerns that there will be many opportunities to make your voice heard before a debate and before any decisions are made at the Council table in 2025. I encourage all residents to be a part of the conversation by filling out the survey or reaching out to my office directly at 613-580-2475 or Clarke.Kelly@Ottawa.ca.
There will be an in-person public consultation meeting held at the West Carleton Community Complex on June 17th at 6:30pm. You can register here:
We will work together to ensure the rural voice is heard on this issue and that any changes to the program are with the best interests of Ward 5 residents in mind.
Feedback from the public is how I formulate my positions and it is an important part of the debate at the council and committee tables. A reminder that feedback shared on social media cannot be captured and shared with City staff and it is incredibly difficult to track comments across multiple social media platforms, all of which have many different groups in various neighborhoods across the ward. While I do pay attention to what is being said on social media when possible, I always prioritize the feedback provided through official channels and that is the only way I can promise it will be captured.
I look forward to hearing from you on this matter over the coming months.
Kind regards,
Clarke Kelly