Month: October 2009

Bayview-Carling CDP, intensificatioin

East Side of Champagne Avenue

Westsideaction

The park at the corner of Beech and Champagne. It has bocce courts, playing fields (shown with ice-rink boards just delivered), a bicycle-polo park, and on the far side a play structure. The line of trees in the background is along the OTrain cut. Most of these trees will be lost when the cut is widened for the second phase of LRT construction, should the SW LRT service actually get built. This park could easily be expanded to the east by covering the cut with concrete girders and a playing field. The area on the other side of the cut … Continue reading East Side of Champagne Avenue

little Italy, Preston street

Another house becomes a “cafe”

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The conversion of residences to commercial continues in Little Italy. This house has had its front yard blown out and an enlarged basement put in. Presumably some new building will appear on top of the new foundation. I hear it will be another “cafe”, a number of which exist already on Preston Street. I am especially amused by the cafe’s that do so little visible business during the day but draw curtains over the windows and seem to be busy well into the night. In the picture above, the black landscaping fabric is being installed in excavations being dug for tree planting … Continue reading Another house becomes a “cafe”

855 Carling, Bayview-Carling CDP, infill, intensificatioin

Champagne Ave condo site on the market

Westsideaction

The Acquerello condo was in pre-sales several years ago but did not sell enough units to go ahead with construction. It was located at  the corner of Hickory Street and Champagne Avenue, one block south of the Carling Avenue O-Train station. The proposed building was quite large and offered nice layouts with views of Dows Lake and the downtown plus easy access to rapid transit. The lot is now back on the market. Domicile has proved there is a market for condos at this location, with his first tower at “Merion Square” built, and another two condo towers nearing construction. … Continue reading Champagne Ave condo site on the market

little Italy, Preston street, streetscaping

More Concrete Progress on Preston Street in Little Italy

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On the residential portions of Preston Street the streetscaping is less fancy. A monolithic (one piece) concrete sidewalk + curb is poured in one go using wooden forms that were pegged in place a few hours before. The old lampposts are now in the middle of the new sidewalk. They won’t be pulled out until the new lamp posts with efficient “shoebox” overhead light fixtures and lower level decorative lighting fixtures are connected and working. Until then, the missing concrete squares will be filled with temporary asphalt patches. Then in Spring 2010, at the same time as the crosswalks are … Continue reading More Concrete Progress on Preston Street in Little Italy

little Italy, Preston street

Preston Street

Westsideaction

Until those new sidewalks are completed, pedestrians take their life in their hands to pick their way through the muddy construction sites to reach their homes or schools. I am constantly amazed at how fast drivers go through the utter chaos that is Preston Street — one lady I saw yesterday was actually dialing her cell phone while driving too fast through the Gladstone-Preston intersection which was being dug up for the 45th time this year. Continue reading Preston Street

oc Transpo, Transit

Goodbye Baseline Station

Westsideaction

The old Baseline transitway station has been retired, replaced by one immediately to the west. The old location will become the site of new building with the transitway underneath it. The glazing was removed from the station shelters and the steel is being scrapped. The shelters are 25+ years old and not worth relocating. Demolition of the concrete central structure at the station. Steel and concrete and asphalt are separated for recyling. The new station has side platforms rather than a centre-island design. A regular user of the station told me this morning that she much prefers the new side … Continue reading Goodbye Baseline Station

little Italy, Preston street, streetscaping

Concrete Progress on Preston Street in Little Italy

Westsideaction

In the commercial parts of Preston Street the sidewalks will consist of pavers and concrete squares, so curbs are poured first and the walks built later. Where parking insets are provided, the drainage continues to catch basins along a “flat curb” that helps define the travelled portion of the street (sometimes streets with bulb outs get visually confusing to motorists), and keeps water accumulation away from the sidewalks and snow-blocked road edges. Metal stakes with a string are placed with the aid of survey equipment. The curb placement will be about 2m outside the string line. The new streetscaping will provide … Continue reading Concrete Progress on Preston Street in Little Italy

Ottawa

Main Stream Media (MSM) and Blogging

Westsideaction

I received one email and one phone call from readers yesterday. Both were excitedly telling me that info I had blogged on had been picked up by MSM without credit to me. I tried, somewhat inarticulately, to explain why that didn’t bother me. Since I started blogging last April, several stories I wrote about promptly appeared in MSM, twice as headlines. I like to think my content is useful and fun, maybe that’s why the site gets more than 3000 hits a month ( I want it to be higher, recommend the site to your friends !!).  I have a … Continue reading Main Stream Media (MSM) and Blogging

bixi bike, Cdn War Museum, cycling in Ottawa

Bixi Bike Service Expanding in Ottawa

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  The experimental bike share/rental system in Ottawa-Gatineau will expand next year. There are currently 4 stations – including the NAC, Musee de Civilization, and ByWard Market. The sleek bikes have 3 speeds in an internal hub (protected), an internal chain (no greasy stains on your pants or sox), adjustable seats, head and tail lights, and of course a distinctive shape. The system will be expanded to 50 sites, but whether this is all next year or over several years is not yet clear. Sites have to be reasonably close together to be useful, frequent, and at desired destinations. Presumably the operators want … Continue reading Bixi Bike Service Expanding in Ottawa

Albert St, Booth St, Dalhousie, DOTT, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (xii): Booth Station

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The Booth Street station is location directly under the new elevated Booth Street overpass. The overpass crosses over the station and the aquaduct. The new LRT alignment is a few meters south of the current transitway which is closer to the aquaduct. Most frightening about this drawing is the abundance of car traffic lanes on Booth, the awful manoevering required to get buses from the Booth St bus stop over to the centre lane to turn onto Albert to go uptown, and the generous addition of lanes to Albert Street in both directions. Somehow, a transit project is providing lots … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (xii): Booth Station

Booth St, Chinatown, Dalhousie

New Residential Building, Booth near Somerset

Westsideaction

Shown is a interim elevation of the new senior’s residence building proposed for the corner of Booth and Eccles Street, just south of Chinatown’s main drag: Somerset Street. It has 42 residences, common facilities, a brick and well-detailed exterior finish. It complements the Somerset West Community Health Centre across the street. It should give a real boost to the appearance of Booth Street and the Dalhousie neighborhood as a whole. Anthony Leaning is the architect. Construction beings in 2010 for completion in 2011. Continue reading New Residential Building, Booth near Somerset

Bayview, bike path, bikewest, DOTT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (xi): BikeWest

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The city cycling plan includes conceptual improvements for cyclists heading west from the core towards Westboro. Councilor Leadman is fighting for improvements to the ill-designed Scott Street mixed-use path and a connection to the downtown. Cycling advocacy groups want better cycling facilities. The BikeWest plan proposes a segregated bi-directional cycling path on the north side of Albert and Scott from the downtown (Bronson Ave) to Westboro. One of the original purposes of the BikeWest plan was to tie into all the construction projects planned along the Albert-Scott corridor. It is important not to construct anything that permanently blocks cycling improvements, … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (xi): BikeWest

DOTT, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (x): Campus Station

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The Ottawa U station on the new DOTT system will be located near the location of the current surface transitway Campus station. Recall that early plans had a new surface station here, but it made more sense to keep the LRT service in the tunnel longer to avoid having the trains climb to the surface and then descend again towards Lees Avenue, and the underground option also facilitates surface car traffic on the roads. This logical change to a better plan is, of course,  headlined as an example of wildly escalating DOTT costs, overruns, etc.  (Note that this and other benefits to … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (x): Campus Station

Albert St, DOTT, downtown

DOTT plans affect west side residents (ix): downtown west station

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The western most downtown station would be located deep under Albert Street * in the block between Kent and Bay. There will be two major entrances for the “base” station design. If developers wish to tie in, there could be more. One entrance will be right where the CS CoOp building is now. The entire block housing the CoOp is to be purchased by the City for the new library project. If the library is under construction at the same time as the DOTT, then the station will be incorporated into the Library. If the Library is to be constructed … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (ix): downtown west station

DOTT, hintonburg, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (viii): Tunney’s station

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At Monday’s public open house, city planners will unveil the final system plans for the DOTT and LRT facilities to be constructed as the first phase of a city-wide sytem. The western terminus of the LRT will be at Tunney’s until the LRT is extended west. A major bus transit to LRT facility will be constructed at Tunney’s. The current bus station is in the cut immediately west of Holland Avenue. The new station will be in the same place. The earlier plans for a centre platform LRT station have been scrapped, to avoid having to widen the cut under … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (viii): Tunney’s station

Bayview, Bayview Otrain, bike path, bikewest, City Centre, DOTT, interprovincial transit study, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (vii): Bayview Rapibus Station?

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The City has been evaluating the structural soundness of the historic Prince of Wales Railway Bridge over the Ottawa River to Gatineau. The City bought it a number of years ago for transit. Friends of the OTrain and  LRT transit proponents have long viewed the POW bridge as a great solution for taking transit across the River. The interprovincial transit study offered renewed hopes for extending LRT service from downtown Ottawa to Gatineau over the POW as the first phase of a loop system serving the two downtown employment centres and to alleviate bridge congestion. Alas, logic may be loosing … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (vii): Bayview Rapibus Station?

Bayview, Bayview Otrain, bikewest, DOTT, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (vi): Bayview Station revised

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Currently the transitway passes over the railway tracks at Bayview with a simple high level overpass. At the east side, it widens for the Bayview station, which is built on a downslope into the LeBreton Flats area. The only access to the Bayview transit station or OTrain station is from the east side of the overpasses. Passengers can transfer to the OTrain tracks which are on the east side of the railway right of way, simply by walking down the sloped asphalt paths (being careful not to fall off the broken up edges of the path). Recall that the OTrain service north … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (vi): Bayview Station revised

Albert St, DOTT, LRT, Scott street

DOTT plans affect west side residents (v): when the transitway ends at Tunney’s

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The first phase of the LRT system extends as far west as Tunneys Pasture. It may always terminate there, or may be extended further west as phase two of the LRT system. Until it is extended, a major transfer facility is required at Tunney’s for bus users from the west who need to transfer onto the LRT vehicles for the continued journey through the downtown. (The design of that station will be subject of another post.) Most of the users of the 95 and similar buses from the west will get off their vehicles at the new transfer station to … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (v): when the transitway ends at Tunney’s

Albert St, Bayview, DOTT, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (iv): closing the transitway during construction

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The new LRT line runs along the existing transitway alignment, with some slight variations. During the construction period of 3-5 years that transitway will have to be closed to buses to permit construction of the new LRT stations and tracks. Where will the buses go? Earlier plans by the city to move all the transitway buses onto Scott and Albert, starting at Tunney’s Pasure, have been abandonned. Thankfully. The additions of 1000 buses per day per direction on Albert and Scott would have horrendous social and environmental impacts. Instead, the City is proposing to totally rework the bus routes that … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (iv): closing the transitway during construction

Booth St, Dalhousie, DOTT, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (iii): Albert Street widening planned

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tailback of cars on Booth going to Gatineau, evening rush hour at 3pm tailback of cars extends back to Gladstone, every single vehicle had only one person in it The intersection of Booth / Albert fails for several hours a day. Mostly this is due to our city policies of catering to single occupancy vehicles. Drive them by the thousands,  and we will widen the roads for you! Right now the “tailback” or long queue of vehicles trying to get onto Booth to go to Gatineau extends back to Preston on the west (often blocking that intersection) and back to Empress … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (iii): Albert Street widening planned

Dalhousie, DOTT, LRT

DOTT plans affect west side residents (ii): Tunnel entrance

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 The new LRT  LeBreton Station is to be located roughly where the current transitway station is at Booth. The entrance to the tunnel portion of the new LRT service under the downtown core will be immediately east of the station. Its location and design is in accordance with the Escarpment Plan that outlines how the adjacent lands are to be developed. During the tunnel construction period of 2-3 years, tunnel boring machines will eat their way through the limestone bedrock six to ten stories down under the street level of the core. All this chewed up rock has to come … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (ii): Tunnel entrance

DOTT, LeBreton Flats, little Italy, LRT, Preston street

DOTT plans affect west side residents (i): Preston St

Westsideaction

The city will hold an open house on Monday afternoon for the “final” recommended plan for the downtown Ottawa transit tunnel and LRT line from Tunney’s to Blair. It has a number of modifications and changes from previous editions of the plan. As somewhat expected but never expressed in previous versions of the plan, it has proven too difficult to keep the Booth/transitway intersection open during the construction period. Recall that the new station will be directly under Booth Street. The new Booth  will be elevated onto an overpass that crosses the LRT line and the aquaduct. It is simply not … Continue reading DOTT plans affect west side residents (i): Preston St

bikewest, cycling in Ottawa

Roger Geller, Portland’s Bike Experience

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Roger Geller, cycling coordinator for the city of Portland, OR spoke last evening at the CfSC meeting held at Tom Brown arena. Here are some of the points he raised in his PPT presentation on cycling in Portland. 1. There is a continuous interplay of facilities, ridership, politicies/politics, and funding. It is akin to a virtuous cycle, with any improvement to cycling facilities leading to increased ridership, more political support, then more funding of improved facilities, etc. The most common spot for the cycle to be broken is the policies/politics phase. He advises cycling advocacy groups to go for simple, … Continue reading Roger Geller, Portland’s Bike Experience