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If we are serious about 15-minute communities, we need successful businesses and jobs to be spread throughout the city.
Originally published in the Ottawa Citizen on January 6, 2023
New year, new councillors: We asked the new members of city council to lay out some of their priorities for 2023. Today: Barrhaven West Coun. David Hill.
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In my first term on city council, I am keen to work with other councillors to find a balance that focuses on core city businesses while striving to improve our local economy.
We need to be a competitive, attractive market for businesses to start up and to thrive. A healthy economy provides opportunity and resources for broader programming to our citizens, and if we are serious about modelling our city as a series of 15-minute communities, as the Official Plan indicates, we need those businesses and jobs to be spread throughout the city. The suburbs, at present, are not reflective of this model. During my time on council, I aim to help correct this.
So, for instance, I will push for investments in a balanced infrastructure plan, such as the Barnsdale interchange and the multimodal Greenbank Road realignment. These are high priorities and benefit the entire city.
We need to address the suburban infrastructure imbalance with a multi-year, deliberate “get well” plan for our aging roads, walkways and pathways — lest we create more expensive capital expenditures down the road.
Our transit system is also not aligned with the needs of our future economy, including the hybrid work model in the federal public service. We need a revisioning of transit to include a review of local route options and a more reliable communications system so that transit riders can depend on their bus showing up when it is scheduled. I plan to work on this as well.
Suburban growth will also come with concerns about security: changing traffic patterns, stunt driving, increased criminal activity. I want to revisit the mandate and resourcing of the Ottawa Police Service in order to better situate it for operational success everywhere in the city. If the police lack the specializations and capabilities for our needs, then let’s address this head-on.
Increasing our housing supply is critical to affordability within Ottawa and will enable further action on our deficit of deeply affordable residences. That growth needs to be balanced such that the quality of life allows our residents to live, work and play across the whole city.
I could not be more enthusiastic for investment from all three levels of government in a downtown for Barrhaven, situated along both North-South and East-West transitways, with a library, performing arts, ethnic and senior centres and green space connections to a Jock River park system. This space would also be a prime location for a secure Federal Remote Work facility, and, once Greenbank Road is realigned, would transform Barrhaven into a community fit for multimodal transportation.
I look forward to working with the residents of Ottawa, my council colleagues and the staff at the city of Ottawa in order to make all of Ottawa an affordable, safe and desirable place for our next generations to live.