Rideau Canal biking news

Work is progressing well on the new bicycle lanes along the Colonel By Drive and Queen Elizabeth Driveway, the National Capital Commission (NCC) reports. “Mobilization is expected to begin this summer, starting on Colonel By Drive. The impact assessment review process for this proposed project is currently underway.”

As reported in the February issue of The Mainstreeter, the NCC is creating a northbound bike lane on Colonel By Drive and a southbound bike lane on Queen Elizabeth Driveway with the goal of diverting fast cyclists and e-bikes off the pathways bordering the Canal, thus making the pathways safer for pedestrians and slow cyclists.

Work will soon resume on the new “armour-stone” retaining walls of Colonel By Drive near Bank Street with targeted completion this fall. Traffic disruptions range from periodic single-lane closures of Colonel By to full closures in certain areas. Pedestrians and cyclists will maintain access throughout most of the project although there may be temporary detours.

Springhurst upgrade

Springhurst Park is getting some much-needed amenities, funded from Councillor Menard’s Capital Ward share of cash-in-lieu of parkland funding.

Two new picnic tables will be located in shaded areas and there will be three Muskoka chairs near the dock. The specific locations will be established in consultation with prime users of the park, including Rick Burrowes, the park’s foremost proponent.

In addition, Springhurst will get a set of three-stream garbage/recycling bins. The funding for the amenities is generated by new developments and is “the payment of funds equivalent to the value of the amount of land that the City would otherwise have been entitled to require to be conveyed for park purposes as part of a development.” A certain portion of these development-generated funds goes to city-wide projects, but the rest goes to parks in the wards where the developments were built.

When will Highway 417 bridge replacements begin?

Seems Old Ottawa East may catch a bit of a break before our next megaproject disrupts traffic and local businesses. The road and infrastructure rebuilding north of Highway 417 (417) is essentially complete so no major traffic detours are forecast until the 417 bridge replacement project begins in 2029, as reported by the CBC.

Both the 417 bridge over the Rideau Canal and the bridge over Main Street must be replaced because of their age. The 417 bridge replacement project for all of the old Queensway bridges has been underway for years – and now it’s almost time to replace the ones downtown.

The difficulty is that the Canal bridge is a massive project, spanning not just the Canal but also two Canal parkways and pathways. To the extent possible, the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO) has attempted to minimize disruptions to 417 drivers.  However, to do so, in the case of the Canal bridge, means considerable disruptions to those using the Canal parkways, and local streets.

The Mainstreeter has repeatedly attempted to get updates from MTO but the ministry’s responses are generally late and vague. Specifically, MTO has not given The Mainstreeter a sense of when the massive bridge projects will begin although somehow the CBC received related information.

Further, MTO has not given details on the fate of the old Shell gas station on the northwest corner of Main and Hawthorne Avenue or whether MTO is going to proceed with its plan to detour all motorist, cyclist and pedestrian traffic onto Hawthorne and Main during the Canal bridge replacement.

Lastly, MTO says” Business owners are actively engaged throughout the duration of any project,” but, during the six years of bridge planning so far, no business owner canvassed by The Mainstreeter had been approached by MTO to discuss impacts of the bridge replacement project.

Future of Greystone Village shoreline?

The OOE Community Association (OOECA) planning committee is developing options for the future of the 30-metre-wide river shore strip in front of Greystone Village. Currently, the nature trail, the Rideau River Western pathway, and a major City sewer line run through this 500-metre-long riverfront property.

With The Regional Group’s planned completion of the last phases of the Greystone Village, issues of the long-term ownership and ongoing management of the naturalized area require attention. Regional owns the property although the City has both the pathway and sewer easements through it.

Volunteers have worked for years removing invasives but Regional has not allowed any significant removal of larger vegetation (e.g., Manitoba maples and buckthorn) which are threatening the native trees that Regional planted.

In the past, Regional suggested that they would be willing to divest itself of ownership but neither the City of Ottawa nor the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority (RVCA) was interested because of operational costs, liability and contamination issues.

The planning committee intends to engage the community, Regional, Councillor Menard, the RVCA, and others to develop options.

Spring potholes abound

Potholes have popped up all over Old Ottawa East with some of the deepest ones being on Graham Avenue and Echo Drive.

Pothole repairs remain a key priority for road crews, especially during peak pothole season when freeze-thaw cycles place added stress on roads, sidewalks, and the winter cycling network,” says Bryden Denyes, the City’s area manager of road services.

 “In addition to City and contracted crews, two Python 5000 machines operate in different areas to further support repair efforts during peak season,” says Denyes. “Residents are encouraged to report potholes by submitting a service request online which helps crews identify and respond to issues as quickly as possible.”

Forecourt Park planning

City of Ottawa staff have prepared the “charter” for the new park in front of the Deschâtelets Building and draft designs will be completed in April with public consultations in June, Capital Ward Councillor Shawn Menard’s office has reported. Indigenous consultation is also planned for this period. “Implementation expected to begin in 2027,” City staff say.

The park will be at the eastern end of the Grande Allée and will serve both the community and the new Au Coeur d’Ottawa School in the Deschâtelets Building.

The new park was conceived in the original plan for Greystone Village and, although initial consultations were held 10 years ago, the project has been delayed until The Regional Group completes its nearby construction activity, specifically the Forecourt Towns portion of Greystone Village.

Brantwood dock accessibility

The City has approved and funded the construction of an accessible asphalt pathway that will connect to the existing Brantwood Park dock.

“This work has been coordinated with the planned lifecycle renewal of play equipment in the park,” says Dan Chenier, general manager of recreation, cultural and facility services. “Design for the pathway improvements and connection to the existing dock is expected to take place in 2026, with construction scheduled for 2027.”

The newer dock at Springhurst park has several accessibility issues but because of the slope there and underground services, the City was unable to improve accessibility. However, the Brantwood site is more conducive to building an accessible pathway to the dock.

Stellar Canal Skateway season

The 56^th season of the Rideau Canal Skateway had 56 days of great skating with more than 1,065,900 visitors. The world’s largest skating rink opened in December and didn’t close until March 4^th with closures during this period of just eight days.

 The NCC says its maintenance crews and contractors are the reason why the Skateway was so successful this year. “Through overnight shifts and harsh weather, they kept the ice pristine, ensuring skaters enjoyed some of the best conditions this season,” a post by the NCC reads. Old Ottawa East, with its six access points to the Skateway, continued to attract lots of skaters, particularly at the Clegg Street stairs.

Brantwood Park resident Jim Fraser managed to skate 45 times this year. Typically, he did two full circuits, each circuit 14 kilometers. Some days he did three or more circuits. His best day was six circuits – 84 kms. “And not on speed skates! Not bad for an old guy, eh?” he says. Sort of puts the rest of us to shame.

Aside from the length of the season and the limited closures, the remarkable quality of ice was noteworthy. Even in narrow areas – between Bank Street and Bronson Avenue being one example – the NCC is now able to maintain a high-quality surface with few cracks. The improvements result from a better flooding technique and ensuring run-off from the adjoining lands is directed away from the ice.

The Brantwood Park outdoor rink also had a great season. “We have a strong and dedicated core group of volunteer hosers which includes two new rookies,” reports Louis Denis, co-coordinator of the rink. “We had an awesome season!” The rink opened in December, the earliest opening in years.

Riverdale Avenue rehabilitation

 As previously reported, the City is advancing an integrated road, sewer and water rehabilitation project along Riverdale Avenue to replace aging underground infrastructure while also improving surface features such as sidewalks, cycling facilities, and traffic calming measures.

“The project will enhance the corridor as a complete street, supporting safer travel for pedestrians, cyclists, transit users and drivers, while connecting to planned cycling routes and protected intersections in the area,” says Elizabeth Murphy, the project engineer.

“Staff are currently refining the functional design for the Riverdale Avenue rehabilitation project based on feedback received during the first round of public consultation. A second round of consultation is anticipated in spring 2026 to share project updates and gather additional feedback from the community. The project remains in the planning and design phase. Construction is not anticipated to begin this year.” At this writing, the City had not set a time for the second consultation.

New community garden proposed

Catherine Gucciardi Garcez is seeking support of the OOE Community Association for an application to the City to apply for funds to build a new community garden with raised beds for food production. She envisions “…a place that can promote community involvement, food security, environmental stewardship.”

OOE currently has two community gardens, one in People’s Park and the other on Saint Paul University lands, but both have waiting lists to secure a plot. The OOECA positively welcomed the initiative and advised that further investigation and consultation with those involved in OOE’s existing community gardens is needed.

One of the challenges in creating a new community garden is finding a suitable location. For instance, although Ballantyne Park is underused and might be a good location, it will be out of commission for the foreseeable future because of the MTO’s planned use of it as a staging area for the bridge replacement project.

Impact of eliminating speed cameras

When The Mainstreeter asked the City about the extent of speed limit enforcement on Main Street by Immaculata High School now that the speed camera has been removed, the City responded that they are “evaluating the impacts of the new provincial legislation on the City’s road safety action plan and other applicable road safety programs.” 

   Premier Doug Ford legislated the removal of the cameras because he saw them as a “cash grab” and unfair to motorists. Neither the provincial government nor the City of Ottawa has provided information on how much speed enforcement is now done without the cameras or on how the number of speeders has changed.

   One key benefit of the speed cameras was that any revenues in excess of the cameras’ operational costs were used for community read safety programs, and each ward received road safety funding from the cameras’ profits.