O•S•C•A•R© Fida's Pizza Changes Hands - Old Ottawa South

MAY 2010
OSCA PRESIDENT’S REPORT
The OSCAR - OUR 37 th YEAR
OSCA Annual General Meeting -- May 4, 7 pm in the
Ladies Parlour at Southminster United Church
By Michael Jenkin
As the OSCA Annual General
Meeting is coming up at
about the time you read
this column, I thought it would
be a good opportunity to reflect
on what we have achieved over
the last year as a community and
on the challenges that lie ahead.
Many good things happened in our
neighbourhood this past year. Perhaps
the most noticeable is the significant
level of public investment in our
community services that is taking
place.
With both the community
centre and our public library branch
undergoing extensive renovations,
representing in total about $5 million
Brief Notes
From the Firehall
MAY at the ‘Firehall’
By Deirdre McQuillan
Watch out for OSCA’s NEW LOGO – a
new logo has been developed and will
be part of our new look in our NEW
FIREHALL Community Centre.
SPRING PROGRAMS are up and running –
although many programs are sold out some are still
available.
SPRING SOCCER in Brewer Park for 4 different
age groups will start in May - here’s hoping for a
warm sunny season.
OSCA AGM – Tuesday, May 4 at 7:00 PM in the
Ladies Parlour at Southminster United Church–
annual reports from OSCA committees, followed by
Wine & Cheese – all are welcome.
AFTER FOUR 2010/11 - Online
REGISTRATION will begin on Tuesday, June 1
at 8:00 PM. Two payments of $155 are required at
registration – the first will pay for September 2010,
the second pays for June, 2011 and can be made
as a deferred payment – payable for September 1,
2010.
…..and NEW! NEW! NEW!–SUNNYSIDE UP
BREAKFAST CLUB at the NEW FIREHALL
- 7:30 am to 9:00 am including breakfast and
walkover to Hopewell School or placement on a
school bus – registration date is the same as After
Four. Cost: $145 a month.
in investment, we are seeing an
unprecedented improvement in our
community institutions. In addition,
the City has launched the Sunnyside
traffic study to look at ways to improve
safety on one of the main connector
streets in the community.
All of these developments are
welcome and will make a significant
contribution to improving the quality
of life in Old Ottawa South. And
I think it is safe to say that none of
these things would have happened
if it were not for the level of
community activism we have shown
in demanding improvements to our
community infrastructure and actively
fund raising towards that goal.
We have also managed as a community
association to maintain a fairly high
level of community programming
and community events even though
we have been operating in temporary
facilities while our community centre
is being renovated.
Indeed, we have managed to
keep our operating costs sufficiently
under control so that, despite a
more expensive operating structure
necessitated by renting facilities,
we have not suffered any of the
financial losses that had been forecast.
So we are starting off a new year in good
financial shape and with major new
facilities in the community opening
up. The challenge we will face will
be to capitalize on these opportunities
to deliver more and better community
programming for our residents.
But there are clouds on the horizon.
SUMMER CAMP Registration is ongoing – check
out our many exciting camps for preschoolers,
children and youth – register early as a couple of
camps are already sold out.
MOVING BACK TO THE FIREHALL - the City
is still telling us we will be in for summer – stay
tuned!!
INFORMATION and REGISTRATION for all
OSCA programs at: www.oldottawasouth.ca - just
follow the RED registration signs or call us at 613-
247-4946 or drop by Southminster Church at 15
Aylmer Avenue.
Page 5
As I have outlined many times
since last summer in this column,
the impacts on this community
of the potential redevelopment of
Lansdowne Park are likely to be
very negative. The potential for
consistent traffic congestion and the
impact on our local merchants are
major concerns. Council will review
the project in June when critical
studies on traffic and retail impacts
will need to be carefully assessed.
The irony we face is that the very
substantial progress we have made
over the past few years in improving
our community could be negated by
an ill considered and inappropriate
commercial development on one of
the City’s largest public spaces.
OSWATCH
By Brendan McCoy, OSWATCH
Co-Chair
At its April 20 meeting the OSCA Board
reiterated the community’s interest
in doing a Community Design Plan
(CDP) and again asked the City to fund this
study, as the Board did two years ago. There
was also discussion of other measures which
could be pursued in the interim to ensure infill
development is reflective and considerate of the
existing neighbourhood context. OSWATCH
will be speaking to City staff and looking into
these interim measures while planning for an
eventual CDP.
The OSCA President will be writing to each
of the 5 short listed Lansdowne design teams,
and Mr. George Dark and his design panel. They
will all be offered a tour of the neighbourhood
by me, OSWATCH Co-Chair Brendan McCoy
based on my Janes’ Walk tour. All will be
invited to the OSCA AGM on May 4 to meet
our membership. Finally, the 5 design teams
will be invited to a dedicated public meeting to
meet the community and learn more about us
and our ideas for a sustainable, affordable and
flexible public space at Lansdowne.
In March OSCA passed a motion indicating
that it believed that more civic representation
was needed on the Lansdowne Urban Park
Jury, and questioned whether two federal
representatives are required when one (the
NCC) has a mandate to represent all land-use
decisions affecting federal interests. OSCA’s
Vice President brought this resolution to the
Federation of Community Associations and
they supported this resolution with one of
their own to press the City to increase civic
representation on the Lansdowne Jury.
Councillor Doucet held a meeting for
neighbours on a proposed development at 71
Hopewell which OSWATCH had commented
on. An alternative to the original garage fronted
design design was shown. Most neighbours
were not happy with either design, but many
thought the second design, based on a carriage
way with rear parking and suggested by City
staff, was an improvement.