Attendees:
John Sankey: He asked everyone to introduce themselves. He presented the agenda and asked for approval.
Minutes
Motion: To approve the September minutes. Moved by Peter Foulger, seconded by Fred McLennan, carried.
John Sankey: From the previous minutes: Does the City charge for the commercial shopping carts that it collects?
Maria McRae: No it doesn't. There is a new by-law which is now in effect.
Pedestrian bridge over the Airport Parkway
Maria McRae: The most pressing business is the pedestrian bridge over the Airport Parkway so she discussed only briefly other items in the Councillor's Report. She brought three City staff to the meeting to address the issue of the bridge and asked to preside over their presentations. Her role is to hold everyone accountable. The City Manager Kent Kirkpatrick is responsible for delivery of this project. In order to protect the City's interest there will be legal action. Public discussion is constrained as a result. She has asked for a third-party arms-length review of the project.
Fred McLennan: Does this review involve a change in the bridge design?
Nancy Schepers: There are two independent reviews now underway: the first is a review of the bridge design. This review is strictly an engineering analysis of the existing structure with the goal of designing the completion of the bridge and a contract has been awarded to Delcan to complete it. The Delcan review should be ready by the end of November. The second review is a third-party review of the internal decisions and processes and will be presented to Councillor McRae and Mayor Jim Watson and to the FEDCO Committee of Council.
John Sankey: The bridge consists of a deck attached to a tower. Usual practice is to attach the deck to the tower by cables. Instead the design calls for rigid stays. He was unable to find any other bridge like this.
Nancy Schepers: Delcan is completing an engineering review of the existing built elements with the goal of completing the design.
Leslie Saunders: So the process review is separate from the Delcan review? It's a debacle. Why should there be such a fancy design? She would like to see it finished.
Nancy Schepers: The final bridge must be fully functional and be able to be maintained with minimum cost as part of the City's infrastructure.
Leslie Saunders: Right now construction is stopped so can we expect everything to stay as is?
Nancy Schepers: Yes
Maria McRae: There were many open houses where input from the community was solicited. A common theme was that the bridge should express its role as a gateway to the City. There is a 2010 report which summarizes these open houses. She and city staff are trying to move the project along. The design must meet the City's life-cycle expectations.
Leslie Saunders: At least she knows that Nancy Schepers and Kent Kirkpatrick are responsible. There is also the Strandherd Bridge which is a mess.
Kent Kirkpatrick: There are three factors which have impeded progress: a design concern, the supply of the concrete and staff performance. We were late in identifying problems in the construction and concerns about the design. We need to look at the processes. The project has failed to meet any reasonable expectation. Construction on the bridge has been halted and must wait for the Delcan review to be restarted. On Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge, problem was the contractor going bankrupt. Mr. Kirkpatrick acknowledged it has taken a long time to get the Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge project restarted. He apologizes on behalf of the City. On Airport Bridge, Councillor McRae was the first one to bring concerns to our attention. She has made us responsible.
John Sankey: There seems to be no recognition that Ottawa residents with relevant training could alert officials about problems. He knew of the problems but there was no route for his warnings.
Kent Kirkpatrick: We will consider them in the future.
Michael Dunlop: Everyone in Ottawa is aware of the project. He would like to thank Councillor McRae and city staff for making it a priority.
Maria McRae: She expects to receive the Delcan review by the end of November. The second review is a third-party review of the internal decisions and processes and will be presented to Councillor McRae and Mayor Jim Watson and to the FEDCO Committee of Council. The speed limit on the Airport Parkway has to stay at 60 kph because of the form work.
Nancy Schepers: The Delcan report is subject to legal review. Delcan will redo the design and then the City will approach Bray construction to complete it.
Christine Johnson: She appreciates the presentation by the three city staff. She would like to thank John Sankey who watched over this project so carefully.
John Sankey: He expressed his thanks to Kent Kirkpatrick, Carina Duclos and Nancy Schepers for their presentations tonight.
Newsletter
Christine Johnson: There are six sponsors for the December issue. She is waiting for confirmation on two articles. She would like to publish a question that invokes community involvement. Which question would be the best:
? who is responsible for keeping the walkway between the sidewalk and your house clear of snow?
? Do you use the green bin, when and how often?
John Sankey: On the green bin, he did his own study: 30% of residences on Uplands use the green bin but 100% on Rhapsody Lane use them. We should use Rhapsody Lane's example to encourage others. He feels the city advertising could be more effective.
Treasurer's Report
Peter Foulger: Presented the Treasurer's Report. He must pay suppliers connected with the newsletter and there is just barely enough money from the sponsorships. He would like a float to better manage the account. John Sankey has loaned the HCCO $500 to cover the cost of printing our newsletter when payment for sponsorships has not been received in time to coincide with our payment for the printing.
Motion: The HCCO accepts a loan of $500.00 from John Sankey which would be repaid from the Alterna term deposit due April 2014. Moved by Peter Foulger, seconded by Christine Johnson, carried.
Windsor Park
Leslie Saunders: She lives in the Windsor Park area. The area is south of Hunt Club Road, west of the Airport Parkway and east of Uplands Drive. It is in Diane Deans' ward. Leslie Saunders would like to join the Hunt Club Community Organization. She has contacted Diane Deans and would like her blessing.
Christine Johnson: That would be a perfect fit! Windsor Park is right next to Wisteria which has already joined the HCCO. There are many similarities.
Maria McRae: The interests of Windsor Park align with the HCCO. For example redevelopment of Hunt Club impacts the traffic on both sides of the Road.
Annual General Meeting
John Sankey: The next meeting Monday November 4 will be our Annual General Meeting. Fred McLennan will conduct selection of the Board.
Paul Landry Park
Peter Foulger: Reported on the clean-up: Turnout was light with only
three people attending. The tally was 12 bags of garbage, another bag of recyclables plus two smaller bags of metal items. The worst areas are the two hangout sites. The one in the centre of the park is on an eroded rock outcrop that
has many crevices. It's impossible to clean up the broken glass that has fallen down the crevices. In addition brush has been piled up for campfires. The other problem area is along the north side where residents of the townhouses are dumping trash, sweepings, dead shrubs and waste gravel at the entry points. Several heavy items left over from last year remain to be picked up on the south side near the midpoint of the trail: an old doghouse and a roof truss. The City-supplied kit includes plastic gloves that are very small and not suitable for the broken glass we encounter. The kit doesn't have enough small Glad bags but has too many yard waste bags.
Christine Johnson: Paul Landry Park is located on Uplands Drive east of Paul Anka Drive. It connects the Metro Plaza with Uplands Drive. The HCCO has adopted the Park and we have cleaned it up. She sees Paul Landry Park as a mini Central Park. She thinks the Park could be spruced up. People should feel comfortable and safe to use it. She is looking for support to improve it particularly grant money.
Maria McRae: The Park extends to the Metro Plaza. She agrees that people should feel comfortable and safe in it.
Marilyn Koch: She was part of a group that recently cleaned up the Park. There were beer bottles and the usual garbage.