July 8, 2008

City of Ottawa invites public input into greenbelt debate

Final decision on development, however, remains with National Capital Commission

KORKY KOROLUK

correspondent

OTTAWA

A discussion paper circulating in Ottawa invites citizens to consider some limited development within the city’s treasured greenbelt.

The paper was commissioned by the city as part of its official plan review, even though the decision on whether to allow development or not lies with the National Capital Commission (NCC), the federal agency which owns or controls roughly three-quarters of the greenbelt’s 49,400 acres.

Most of the rest is held by various federal government departments, and accommodates the Ottawa airport and several clusters of research facilities.

When it was created in the 1960s, it was intended to curb urban sprawl. In that, it failed. The rapidly growing communities of Orleans to the east, Kanata to the west and Barrhaven to the southwest have all experienced their most explosive growth since the greenbelt was established.

But if it failed in its initial objective, the greenbelt’s existence has become one of the city’s distinguishing characteristics, one that many now regard as part of the local heritage.

The paper suggests that as much as 21,500 acres could be developed, but adds that only 13,700 could be developed without in some way compromising the greenbelt’s integrity.

Still, that smaller amount of land would be sufficient to meet development needs for more than 20 years.

There are two big questions involved.

One is the fact that the final call will be made by the NCC; the other is public opinion that presently favours keeping the greenbelt as it is.

While the NCC is currently performing its own review of its greenbelt master plan, the city expects to have its own review play a role the NCC’s decision.

The greenbelt is a treasure for environmentalists, since it contains significant woodlands and wetlands, many with well-developed recreational trails much loved by hikers, bicyclists and cross-country skiers.

These areas are environmentally sensitive enough to be considered virtually untouchable.

Some of the other undeveloped areas are simply unused scrubland. Several other areas are occupied by working farms, including market gardens that help feed the city.

The city has estimated the developable land in the greenbelt to be worth about $2.5 billion, based on current market values.

If some people are concerned by what’s in the greenbelt, others think of what’s under it.

The sprawl that leaped over the space requires servicing, which means there are 43 kilometres of water lines under it, and 39 km of sewer lines — a lot of pipes running under mostly open countryside. They are out of sight and largely forgotten, although they make up a significant part of the city’s infrastructure costs.

Also significant, and highly visible, are the 141 km of city roads that carry the 40 per cent of the city’s population that now live outside the greenbelt. The extra distance travelled has been estimated to cost drivers $60 million annually. It also costs the city an extra $10 million a year for the extra distance covered to serve riders.

Those cost estimates were made before the recent sharp upturn in gasoline and diesel fuel prices.

The discussion paper doesn’t suggest that the greenbelt be developed willy-nilly. Instead, it suggests development corridors along the three major highways that connect the city centre with its largest suburbs.

It also suggests that an alternative might be to allow high-density, mixed-use development along existing or planned rapid-transit lines. A third possibility might be to permit the few existing communities that already intrude upon the greenbelt slightly to increase that intrusion somewhat.

There have been a couple of signals that some greenbelt development might be allowed. Last year, NCC chairman Russell Mills suggested some strip development might be useful in reducing urban sprawl. And earlier this year, when CEO Marie Lemay announced the NCC’s review, she said that “everything is on the table.”

Although the working relationship between the city and the NCC has sometimes been thorny, the NCC has invited city staff to participate in a working group as part of the review process. This will give the city the chance to provide direct input into the review process.

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