At a City of Ottawa Planning & Housing Committee meeting on Wednesday, committee members moved forward with a proposal to replace a proposed arterial road at the Lebreton Flats development site with a bridge that would be exclusively used by pedestrians and cyclists.
Should the amendment be carried at next week’s City Council meeting, this change to the City of Ottawa’s Official Plan would mean that rather than being paid for through development charges, which was the case when the extension was going to be a road, the NCC would pay for the bridge instead.
“Because this is an applicant-led and -initiated proposal to the amendment, the intent right now is that this will be applicant-paid for, -maintained, and -constructed,” explained City staff.
The reason for the change from road to pedestrian and cyclist bridge is attributable to a range of reasons, but City staff noted that the construction of the O-Train Line 1 was a key consideration when drafting the amendment.
“The entire Lebreton Flats area is within 400 metres of a transit station,” said City staff. “Constructing an extension as an arterial road in that location would require a bridge much higher and longer than Booth Street to clear the O-Train tracks.”
They pointed to a study that had found that such an arterial road would also increase traffic and bring about design issues, too.
“It would be a barrier,” they said, “and split the community in two, with retaining walls limiting access between the east and west parcels.”
Following a brief question-and-answer period, the committee carried the motion to amend the City’s Official Plan. The proposed amendment will be discussed at the next City Council meeting.
City staff explained that the next steps, coming out of the next City Council meeting, will be for the NCC and the City of Ottawa to sign a Memorandum of Understanding.
