Minutes
of
Greenspace Alliance of Canada’s Capital
General Meeting of March 21, 2001
Honeywell Room,City Hall, 7:30 p.m.
Documents available: Revised proposed Agenda; Minutes of February 14, 2001.
| Time | Agenda # | Item | Disposition / Action |
| 19:50 | Call to Order
Attendance: Bill Royds; Mary Hegan; John Almstedt; Juan Pedro Unger; Bryan Hawley; Arthur Mathewson; Amy Kempster; Erwin Dreessen; Barbara Barr Regrets: Albert Dugal Mail file: Erwin noted news item on page C1 of The Citizen today, that Leamy Lake Golf Course has been ordered delayed indefinitely by federal Environment Canada officials. |
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| 19:51 | 1 | Approval of the agenda
Moved Bryan Hawley, Seconded Mary Hegan; Carried |
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| 19:55 | 3 | Report on the Corporate Services and Economic Development meeting of March 21, and next steps
The meeting was still ongoing as our meeting started. Several items of interest to GACC:
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Action: Mary will contact staff on next steps and work with the GACC’s committee |
| 20:25 | 4 | New Members / Renewals /Treasurers Report
No new members, although ACRE may join. Erwin, Bill and Amy visited the group on March 19. Moved (M/S/C Barbara Barr, Bill Royds): To Pay Erwin $80.04 for expense for PEN advertisement and photocopying |
Action: Barbara Barr |
| 5 | New business | ||
| 20:31 | City of Ottawa Development Approval Process report: follow-up
Need to urge Council to open up approval to other than staff and clarify Councillors’ role in delegated authority. Not yet facing Council {Post-meeting note: A Public Notice in the print media of March 23 offered an information package, available on the City’s web site or from Francoise Jessop at 244-5300, ext. 1-3862, e-mail francoise.jessop@city.ottawa.on.ca. Deadline for comments to staff is May 11; intended for Planning and Development Committee’s Agenda of June 28, 2001.} |
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| 20:40 | Heron/Walkley (“2930 Albion Road”)
Meeting March 22 sponsored by Councillor Stewart but seen as a “Done Deal” by her. Erwin, Bryan and Barbara will attend and circulate a revised draft letter. |
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| 20:45 | Earth Day Kiosk
Offer by Sierra Club to allocate space for a table at Earth Day activities on April 20 at Sparks Street Mall. Bill Royds and Amy Kempster offered to look after table |
Bill, Amy to run booth on April 20 | |
| 20:50 | 2 | Approval of the Minutes of February 14, 2001
M/S/C Arthur, Barbara |
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| 6 | Business Arising / Brief Reports / Items Deferred | ||
| 20:55 | June 3 Run for Clean Air: update
Will take place in C.E.F. Arboretum. Meeting March 22, Bldg. 72 CEF 7:00 |
Amy will attend.
Others asked to seek sponsorships |
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| 20:59 | Expanding the use of our flora web site: proposal
Policy question as to whether email items of special interest should be added. Also add members area It was agreed to write to Council and selected staff, informing that Agenda and Minutes of GACC meetings are available on our web site, and offering to e-mail the Agenda on request. Discussed formats for email |
Action: xxx re notice on Agenda and Minutes.
Bill to investigate further re suggestions made by Joseph Potvin and others |
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| 21:10 | Moved (M/S/C Barbara, Amy): Write letter to City Clerk to have all Official Plans available on City web site | Action: Barbara will draft | |
| 21:20 | Speakers’ list for monthly meetings: report
Gord Hunter, chair of Planning and Economic Development Committee: Ask for April with suggested topic “Scope of Greenspace and Environmental Considerations in City Planning and Economic Development, and role of public participation in the process” Heather Hamilton, Eastern Ontario Bio-Diversity Museum and Canadian Biodiversity Institute: Not yet prepared to speak but interested in future; see info on Chicago Wilderness in mail file for one model for her ideas John Taylor, History Dept. Carleton University: Ask for talk (June?) on “Greenspace in Historic Planning” — further to his posting of February 14 on “NCC Plans.” |
Action: Bill Royds to phone Gord Hunter and ask whether he can attend. | |
| 21:30 | Leitrim Wetlands: update and action items
Need for lobbying campaign to prevent funding of waste water Pumping and forcemain plant approved by Corporate Services March 6. Working with North American Wetland Conservation Council to ask DFO for full studies on Leitrim |
Action: Bill Royds to circulate budget items and overview. Others are asked to lobby councillors etc. | |
| 21:35 | Ottawa River project: update (John Almstedt)
Meeting in April of River Keepers working group |
Action: John Almstedt to notify us of meeting time and place. | |
| 21:42 | Sussex Circle
Letters still pending |
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| 21:45 | Mayor’s Summit: report
Inquiries still continuing. Former Regional Clerk has been hired as facilitator. |
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| 21:50 | Poets’ Pathway: update
After article in Citizen, Erwin was asked to write an article in Riverview Park community newspaper. Riverview Park is key location for connection to Rideau River and Beechwood Cemetery. Suggest forming Working Group on Poets’ Path |
Action: Bill Royds to take next step in forming working group | |
| 22:00 | Priority list of greenspaces (deferred item) Inquiries with former regional staff had turned up no priority list of greenspaces as referred to in the recent Quarry Forest pamphlet. |
Action: Juan Pedro to verify with source of reference | |
| 22:09 | 7 | Adjournment |
In the Mail file:
- “Casino golf course on hold – Federal officials say two holes threaten wetland,” The Citizen, March 21, 2001 4page C1 (Business)
- “North American Wetlands Conservation Council – Canada (NAWCC – Canada) celebrates a decade of influencing change.” Also “A Wetland Conservation Vision for Canada.” The Council’s “Wetkit: Tools for Working with Wetlands” is at www.wetkit.net. Its web site is www.wetlands.ca/nawcc . The Secretariat is at Suite 200, 1750 Courtwood Crescent, Ottawa, ON K2C 2B5, tel. (613) 228-2601, e-mail nawcc@igs.net
- selected pages from documents published by Chicago Wilderness, A Regional Nature Reserve – “Great Lakes Forests,” Vol. XII, Issue One, 2000 – serving Michigan, Minnesota, Ontario and Wisconsin. The focus of this issue is on Urban Forestry
- King Edward Avenue Renewal – City of Ottawa Information Bulletin, Planning and Environmental Assessment Study, March 2001. The Planner is Barry Townsend; he is at 580-2424, ext. 21284, e-mail Barry.Townsend@city.ottawa.on.ca
- Urban Forum – “How Safe are our Roads and Streets?”, Monday, April 9, 7 – 9 p.m., Champlain Room, new City Hall
- Shaping Ontario’s Urban Neighbourhoods 2001 – Symposium, May 5 – 6, 2001, Hamilton Convention Centre, Hamilton, Ontario. Registration fee of $50.00 includes materials, lunches and refreshments. For further information, call Janice Brown at (905) 523-8737. RSVP by April 4, 2001
- e-mail from Mike Christie on “Evergreen’s Common Grounds,” March 6, 2001. It is about a Toronto initiative to build a case book on networks of green infrastrucrure. Call Stewart Chisholm at (416) 596-1495 (toll free fax: 1-888-426-3138), e-mail stewartc@evergreen.ca web site www.evergreen.ca. NOTE: This is just one of several e-mails the GACC has been receiving from Mike Christie, generally on pesticide issues. Occasionally, one has been posted as of possible immediate interest to GACC members. Anyone wishing to be on Mike’s mailing list, please contact him directly at mike_christie@attglobal.net
- “Climate Change Solutions” from the Pembina Institute for Appropriate Development