Report of January 19, 2015 Kanata North Town Hall Meeting

Kanata Seniors Centre, Owen Prince Room, 7 9 pm

1. Welcome and Announcements:
- Sun., Jan. 25th is the Briarbrook-Morgans Grant Community
Association carnival
- The Kanata Beaverbrook Community Association has its 50th
anniversary this year, and they will do a week-long carnival in
mid-February, including an outdoor curling bonspiel; see
www.kanatabeaverbrook.ca.
- The Kanata Lakes Community Association will have Kids Day in
the Park in June.
2. Community Policing Report:
- There have been a couple of break-ins in the Kanata Lakes area;
residents should keep doors locked and eyes open. Many breakins happen during daylight hours.
- There have been more instances of the granny scam, whereby
the scammer contacts a senior either posing as the seniors
grandchild or purportedly speaking on his behalf, saying the
grandchild is in urgent need of money, to be sent or given to a
courier that comes to the seniors residence. Arrests have been
made for this type of crime in Ottawa, but the scamming has not
been completely stamped out.
3. Development:
a) Hilton Hotel on Canadian Shield in Kanata Town Centre
Presentation by Robert Woodman of Robert Woodman Architects and
Dennis Jacobs of Momentum Planning & Communications:
- The proposal has not yet been submitted to City Hall, but will be
soon. Once submitted, residents will be able to see this on
Ottawa.ca/devapps.
- The development will be just off Campeau, near The Royale
retirement residence. The building will be towards the south end
of the property. It will be 6 storeys with Homewood Suites (an
extended stay hotel) at one end and a rental apartment building
(one and two bedrooms) at the other, with a two-storey
recreational link in middle. There will be some meeting spaces as
well as a breakfast room in the Homewood Suites end. The
fitness facility will be about four times the size of whats in most
hotels.
- The project will have insulated concrete form construction, as
currently laid out. One wall of the corridor is load-bearing, so it
gives flexibility in what you do with it.
- The hotel will have about 101 units and the apartment building
105.

The aim is to start construction in June 2015, and it will take at

least a year to build.
Parking will mainly be surface parking, although discussion is
ongoing with the Hilton re: the possibility of some underground
parking; this would allow for more landscaping on the property.
Parking is 3 metres back from the edge of the property. The
requirement is a 6 m setback for buildings from Campeau and
buildings within 2 5 metres of Campeau cant be more than 3
storeys so the building is set back more than 25 metres from
Campeau. This is primarily a business district, so there are not
large amounts of retail.
The development will generally stay within the existing zoning, so
a site plan application will be submitted soon.
The grade drops almost a storey on the south side of the
property. From Campeau it will look like a 4-storey building,
although it will be 6 storeys at the back.
Concern was expressed re: the view from Campeau being a
potentially ugly parking lot. Marianne said that the City will
probably require landscaping, possibly with a berm, along
Campeau to screen the parking lot. Also, if they put in some
underground parking, it will allow for more green spaces in front.
Hilton by Homewood mandates a certain proportion of green
spaces, and thats not yet built into the design. Marianne pointed
out that some outdoor space will be needed for the people living
there, and there isnt yet any in what is currently being shown.
Marianne and various residents indicated a desire for more
innovation than what is so far seen in the plan, e.g., softening the
appearance of the development from the street, making the
development more inviting, as it currently looks somewhat
boring. This will be right next door to the 20-acree urban park
and a somewhat upscale neighbourhood.
This is not a LEEDS building. The project is somewhat constrained
by the Hiltons prototypical model. Residents were told by the
presenters that the project had had good feedback from Urban
Design Review Panel.
It has not yet been determined whether traffic lights will be
required anywhere near the site.
A resident posed the question as to whether Kanata can support
more rentals. Marianne stated that there is a move to rentals
downtown, as well as among a lot of seniors. Condo projects
have not been selling so well recently.
A resident queried the demand for hotels in this area, when most
of the employment is up March Road. The presenters indicated
that Hilton is comfortable that this is a good location.

b) Tanger Mall development, Phase 2: There is a plan for another hotel

and 6 pods for restaurants between the outlet mall and the 417.
There will be an entrance from Huntmar very close to the bridge.
They were talking about a Four Seasons, although Marianne cant
confirm that thats it. Nearby, the Carp River restoration is starting,
which will bring the waterway back into a meandering formation
with pathways beside it, plus a pedestrian bridge. Ruins of an 18 th
Century homestead are being preserved as an outdoor space.
c) Rezoning application for 1314 Klondike Road: This is very close to
Second Line. There is a large house on a large lot, and approval has
been granted to create 4 lots beside the house. These lots are
similar to existing ones in the area and will accommodate single
family homes. Two of the lots will face onto Klondike and two onto
Abbeydale.
d) Lands north of Beaver Pond: Drainage studies and approvals to start
construction in that area are almost done. Marianne doesnt know
where the outflow will be. She hopes to have a public meeting to
show what theyre doing for drainage. The City is still awaiting the
high level drainage plan from KNL. Close monitoring will be needed
to make sure things are done right.
e) A resident asked whether the Bas Pro Shoppe is going in, and Marianne
indicated that she doesnt know. However, the fishing/hunting/camping
retailer Cabelas is moving forward with their plans for a store along
Highway 417 across from the Tanger Mall.

4. Councillors Report:
a) Report on recent meeting with OC Transpo re: Routes 60, 64 and 68
and upcoming meeting with OC Transpo on Feb. 3: OC hasnt been
given any more money over a 4-year period, so, to try to fix the
problem in Kanata North, they shortened Routes 60 and 68 and put
in a 64, while keeping the number of buses the same. Consequently,
the wait time between buses is longer. In early January the weather
complicated things across the city, and in cold weather people suffer
when bus service is bad. At Mariannes recent meeting with OC
Transpo staff, she presented all the issues, but they have not yet
determined what adjustments to make. Buses typically connect
from one route to the other rather than deadheading, so if you have
a delay, it affects many routes. This is the problem of having a
growth area and not having any more funding. Marianne is having a
meeting with the Mayor to push the point that there has to be

b)

c)

d)

e)

f)

growth in transit. A public meeting with OC Transpo staff will be

held on Feb. 3 in the RRCK Minto Room.
Eagleson/March Rd. closed to pedestrians: The province built the
sidewalk too narrow for a snow plough, and put a channel in it for
drainage. The province said they couldnt put sidewalk on both
sides, but the one side they put in was inadequate. To use shovels is
too dangerous for employees. Meetings are underway to work out a
solution so that pedestrians can cross it. The Huntmar bridge has
also been closed to pedestrians and is too narrow for any sidewalk.
City Budget: It will come out in draft form on Feb. 4. The tax
increase is limited to no more than 2%. Consultations are being held
to hear from residents on what we need to spend money on, and
what could be cut. Marianne welcomes suggestions by email. A
public meeting will be held at Holy Trinity on Feb. 10 for whole west
end. At the next Town Hall meeting Marianne will have the budget
for discussion.
Tanger Outlet Mall shooting and follow-on measures: Tanger
management was very pleased with the police response. Marianne
has met with them to discuss how they deal with emergency
situations. Every major shopping centre has to have an emergency
plan, but, through this experience, mall management learned some
ways to make improvements. Police are very much on top of this
situation, which happened on a really busy day. The important thing
is to stop such things from happening in the future. Youth
unemployment is an issue, and programs for youth can be helpful.
Even in Kanata there are kids involved with gangs. Residents are
reminded of the importance of reporting problems when they are
seen. A resident talked about the advantage of having small police
stations at various places around the city. Marianne stated that
these dont improve response times by much, although they put
police in touch with the people in the area.
Winter snow issues: The situation hasnt been too bad this year.
The biggest issue is that people park their cars in the street during a
winter advisory when they are to be off the street. Some streets
permit parking on one side only during the winter. Usually Bylaw is
not patrolling during night, but if residents see illegal street
parking, they should call 311. The issue was raised of private snow
clearers blowing snow onto the street. That is illegal. Theyre
supposed to put the snow on the property that theyre taking it
from, so, if they put it on the street, residents should get their name
and number and report them.
Energy East Pipeline: The Ontario Energy Board,will share their
position on the pipeline at a meeting on Thursday, January 22, at the
Brookstreet Hotel. The pipeline is to go through West Carleton and

g)

h)

i)

j)

k)

the Stittsville Ward. However, it if pollutes the waterways, it

becomes a broader issue. The conversion from gas to oil requires
more pumping stations because oil is heavier to move. The OEB is
looking at safety issues.
Radon Gas meeting on Jan. 26: Radon is widespread everywhere in
the country, but particularly high if you have natural uranium in the
rock, which is the case in Kanata North. Its easy to deal with if you
know its there. You have to test it over a 3-month period, and a
test kit costs $60. The kit can be purchased through the City.
Kanata Estates particularly has had high readings, but it also
depends on how your house is ventilated. For many of the newer
homes, remediation is covered by the Tarion warranty program.
Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer.
Head Start Program meeting on Jan. 22: The Head Start for Young
Women Program for 16-24-year-olds is a leadership development
program to more actively engage young women in public/political
life. Those involved in the Ottawa group have wanted to keep on
doing things beyond the core program, so Marianne is having some
events. Beyond the January 22 meeting, which is for women of all
ages, there will be a public speaking workshop in February.
Kanata History Project: Marianne is collecting stories about past
and current Kanata, which she will compile and contribute to the
Kanata Room in the Beaverbrook Library. Publication as a book is a
possibility. Marianne is seeking a broad range of little stories from
residents. She received one today from a scientist about
innovations that were developed in his house in Kanata North. She
suggests that Mario Poirier write about the arboretum. Stories can
be written anonymously or have the author identified, as the writer
wishes.
Kanata North app: This has been developed, but is not yet
operational, as it still needs to be populated with content. It will
show when meetings and other events are happening. Residents are
encouraged to let Marianne know what things they would like to see
in the app.
Stoop and Scoop: Marianne is seeking 3 or 4 volunteers to help
develop a plan for how to dissuade people from leaving their
messes. She commented that the problem seems to be worse in
winter.

5. Questions/discussion:
a) Question re: dog park in Kanata North: Marianne indicated that
the City has not yet identified a park to be fenced for a dog park.
b) Possibility of Ottawa Senators moving their arena to LeBreton
Flats: A resident commented that a best use of LeBreton Flats
would be for a science museum, and Marianne agreed with this.

The Terms of Reference indicate that there should be something

public there. The current Museum of Science and Technology is
somewhat out of the way, and it has had structural problems,
costing about $80M to fix. It was suggested that perhaps high
tech companies could be convinced to contribute to a new science
museum, since we want to give good science formation to youth.
c) Resident concern re: congestion on Kanata Ave. with people
turning into Centrum: During winter, snow takes up part of the
street, and turning into Centrum is therefore more difficult.
Marianne commented that the City is loathe to put in additional
turning lanes.
d) Campeau Drive: The sidewalk issue is going to be more pressing
with the addition to Earl of March, as there will be more
pedestrians. The City is looking at all aspects of this situation.
Dates to remember:
- Jan. 26, 6:30 pm, Beaverbrook Library: Radon gas meeting
- Feb 3, 7 pm, RRCK Minto Room, Public meeting on bus routes with OC
Transpo
- Feb 10, 7:30 pm, Holy Trinity, Public meeting on City Budget
- March 10, 7:00 8:30 am, Mlacak Centre: International Womens Day
Breakfast