Latest news with #Barrhaven
CTV News
9 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
City of Ottawa spending $10 million for land to build new Barrhaven community facility
The City of Ottawa is spending $10 million to purchase land for a new cultural and civic hub in Barrhaven and a future LRT station for the O-Train. A report for the finance and corporate services committee meeting on June 30 recommends the city purchase a 4.18-acre parcel of land at the north-west corner of the future intersection of Chapman Mills Drive and Riocan Avenue. The land will be purchased from the South Nepean Development Corporation. Staff with Parks and Facilities Planning Services, the Recreation, Cultural and Facility Services Department, and the Ottawa Public Library are planning to design and build a new facility in the Barrhaven Town Centre. The project will include a 15,000 sq. ft. cultural centre with performance and event space, a 3,000 sq. ft. seniors' space, a library branch, a councillor ward office and an urban plaza with a possible water and ice feature. Barrhaven land The City of Ottawa is buying a 4.18-acre parcel of vacant land at the north-west corner of the future intersection at Chapman Mills Drive and Riocan Avenue. (City of Ottawa report) The land could also be a future site for an LRT station if the city expands the O-Train into Barrhaven. 'The new civic hub will become a valued community asset, focal point and destination that will resonate with the people of Barrhaven and instill a sense of civic and cultural pride,' staff said in the report. 'The district library branch will serve residents in the South Nepean communities of Riverside South and Barrhaven.' Staff say the proposed civic complex is in the preliminary design stages and the LRT design will 'follow in the coming years.' There is no word on when construction will begin on the new complex. The City of Ottawa received funding under the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program for the new facility.
CTV News
a day ago
- CTV News
Bylaw Services officers return to problematic neighbourhoods to enforce parking rules: City of Ottawa
Bylaw Services insists parking enforcement in Ottawa's suburbs is complaint driven, but officials say officers will return to problematic neighbourhoods to ticket repeat parking offenders. The City of Ottawa has received 2,800 complaints about parking issues in Barrhaven so far this year, up from 1,600 complaints in the first five and a half months of 2025. Two Bylaw Services officers are assigned to enforce parking rules in the Barrhaven area. Bylaw Services public information officer Jonathan Walden told Newstalk 580 CFRA's Ottawa Now with Kristy Cameron, officers are responding to a lot of calls in the suburbs about vehicles parked on city streets. 'We're definitely getting a lot more calls that are going to result in a lot more officers attending, potentially streets that people aren't used to seeing officers on and that will, unfortunately, result in parking tickets as well,' Walden said. Walden insists ByWard Services is not 'targeting a neighbourhood' with parking enforcement, but will return if they receive multiple complaints or an ongoing complaint about vehicles parked on streets for extended periods of time. 'Unfortunately, it can be just one neighbour calling in a complaint. If one neighbour sees a car that's been parked there for too long and they call us, an officer is going to attend,' Walden said. 'Unfortunately, we can't just ticket the one car potentially that they're calling about because that would be targeted enforcement. So, we have to proactively patrol the whole block and make sure that every vehicle is moved on that street.' The City of Ottawa's bylaw says vehicles may not be parked for more than three hours on unsigned streets between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Monday to Friday, and no more than six hours during the same period on weekends and statutory holidays. Bylaw Services told CTV News Ottawa last week that 20,010 tickets have been issued to drivers parked in excess of the permitted time on an unsigned street so far this year. In 2024, officers issued a total of 35,453 tickets for similar violations. 'It is not a cash grab. We are enforcing the traffic and parking bylaw,' Walden said. 'These are mostly driven by complaints, especially in rural areas. We're not proactively going out and chalking vehicles in Barrhaven just to get cash – we are responding to complaints.' With files from CTV News Ottawa's Natalie van Rooy
CTV News
7 days ago
- Automotive
- CTV News
Bylaw officers stepping up parking tickets across Ottawa
More parking tickets are being handed out in Ottawa this year compared to last and it's not just happening downtown. CTV's Natalie van Rooy reports. It appears bylaw officers are stepping up enforcement in the capital. New data obtained by CTV News Ottawa shows more parking tickets are being handed out this year compared to 2024. It's not just downtown, drivers in the suburbs say they're finding more and more unwelcome pieces of paper on their windshields. Armaan Bhir and his brother have received hundreds of dollars worth of parking tickets on Via Verona Avenue in Barrhaven. 'I was parking right outside my house. I think I might have probably put it on about $400 to $500 in just the last two years,' said Bhir. He said that includes tickets for both himself and his brother. They've been fined for different reasons, whether parking too long on the street or a tire touching the curb. It's frustrating for the Barrhaven resident who shares the driveway with his family. 'They can at least knock on the door if it's half a curb or something,' he said. 'I've never gotten a warning or a knock on the door.' Bhir said he warms his friends before they visit to be mindful of street parking and offers space on his driveway if there is any. Bylaw officers are on track to issue more fines for time limit parking infractions in 2025 compared to last year. In 2024, officers handed out 35,432 tickets to vehicles parked in excess of the permitted time on an unsigned street. So far this year, officers have issued 20,010 tickets for parking in excess of the time limit on streets without parking limit signs. 'I'm allowed to park for three hours, I may have been a little bit over it, but again, it's absurd around here,' said John Eaton, who received a ticket on Via Verona Avenue a few weeks ago. Whether or not there's a sign posted, the rules for street parking in Ottawa are consistent across the downtown core and in the suburbs. During the week, you can't park more than three hours from 7 a.m. to 7p.m. in one place. On weekends, it's six hours. The fine for parking more than posted time limits is $70. It's $50 if you pay right away. 'My parents extended the driveway, so we'd have more room to park and not have to worry about that, but it does become like a bit of a concern when we have visitors over and stuff like that,' said Lara Simard, who lives in Barrhaven. Simard says parking tickets all along Via Verona Avenue happens all the time. 'My boyfriend was parked for a little over three hours in the winter and got a ticket,' she said. 'Bylaw comes here all the time, my grandma got one a few times as well.' Bylaw was not available for an on-cameras interview, but in a statement to CTV News said in part: 'Bylaw is not currently conducting a targeted parking enforcement blitz; however, officers continue to proactively and reactively enforce overtime parking regulations to support parking turnover and maintain traffic flow in residential areas.
CTV News
13-06-2025
- Automotive
- CTV News
Should Ottawa tow all vehicles from streets during winter parking bans? City staff say no
A ticket is tucked under the windshield wiper of a vehicle buried in snow that is parked illegally during a winter parking ban in Ottawa on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. (CTV News Ottawa) City of Ottawa staff are burying the idea of towing vehicles from city streets during winter parking bans, saying there would be insufficient space in impound lots and a lack of staff and towing resources to tow all vehicles. Bylaw Services officers issued 10,678 parking tickets for failing to observe winter weather parking bans between Feb. 12 and 18. That resulted in more than $1.1 million in fines. The City of Ottawa issues parking bans to allow crews to clear snow during heavy snowfall events, and only vehicles with an on-street parking permit are permitted to park on city streets. Barrhaven Coun. David Hill asked staff what would it cost if 'a more aggressive policy was taken to proactively tow vehicles' that are currently fined for violating parking bans during snowstorms. In response to Hill's inquiry for the emergency preparedness and protective services committee, staff said that for 'various reasons,' it would not be recommended to implement a policy to proactively tow all vehicles violating a winter weather parking ban. Staff say there would be a lack of available tow trucks because collisions are treated as a priority for towing companies over an illegally parked vehicle. The City of Ottawa contracts towing services to private companies. 'Based on the number of parking tickets issued during the Winter Weather Parking Bans in February 2025, there would be insufficient space in the designated impound lot in the east end of the city to store all impounded vehicles,' staff said. 'Further, significant time would be lost physically moving vehicles from their current location to the impound lot and then returning to the area where tows would be required.' The report notes a Bylaw officer would be required to remain at the scene until each vehicle is towed, 'which further delays Bylaw and Regulatory Services' response to subsequent illegal parked vehicles.' Other issues flagged by the staff include: On-street parking permits : Staff say it would be necessary to 'rescind' the policy allowing vehicles with on-street parking permits to park on streets during winter weather parking bans. : Staff say it would be necessary to 'rescind' the policy allowing vehicles with on-street parking permits to park on streets during winter weather parking bans. Resourcing and scale : 'Due to the vast scale of the operations and geographic size of the city there would not be sufficient resources, both within RPS and BLRS, to provide adequate coverage of the city if a towing model were to be implemented,' staff said. : 'Due to the vast scale of the operations and geographic size of the city there would not be sufficient resources, both within RPS and BLRS, to provide adequate coverage of the city if a towing model were to be implemented,' staff said. Liability to the city : 'Each time a vehicle is towed, particularly in adverse weather conditions, there is a risk of accidental damage. This increases the risk of liability and claims to the city,' the report said. : 'Each time a vehicle is towed, particularly in adverse weather conditions, there is a risk of accidental damage. This increases the risk of liability and claims to the city,' the report said. Impact on residents and businesses: 'A model whereby all vehicles were to be towed would significantly affect residents and local businesses who may not have access to private parking. It would also greatly affect the ability of businesses to conduct deliveries and of parents to drop off and pick up their children from school,' the report says. If the City of Ottawa implemented a towing policy, staff say the winter weather parking bans would need to be 'expanded to several days' to effectively tow all vehicles parked in contravention of a parking ban.' The report concludes 'it would not be recommended to implement a policy' to tow all vehicles violating the winter weather parking ban on City of Ottawa streets. 'Concerns regarding specific problematic streets will continue to be addressed on a case-by-case basis,' the response said.
CTV News
06-06-2025
- CTV News
Ottawa police seeking to identify man accused of exposing himself on OC Transpo bus
Ottawa police are asking for the public's help identifying a man accused of exposing himself on an OC Transpo bus May 2, 2025. (Ottawa Police Service/handout) The Ottawa Police Service is asking for the public's help identifying a man accused of exposing himself and performing a lewd act on an OC Transpo bus in early May. Police say the incident happened at around 11:30 a.m. May 2 on a Route 75 (Cambrian) bus. The suspect got off the bus near Dundonald Drive and River Mist Road in Barrhaven, police said. Police describe the suspect as a 'South Asian or East Indian man in his early 20s, with a slim build and a full black beard.' Anyone with information regarding the identities or knowing this individual, please contact West Criminal Investigation at 613-236-1222 or email westcriminalinvestigations@
