Uncategorized5 Comments

Ross Avenue reno (ii)

Westsideaction

More photos of a reno on Ross Avenue, in Westboro, this time of the inside. First, the front entry. The designers view, of course, is that two small spaces in a cut-up front entry have been consolidated into a single larger open space. It sure makes a great first impression when showing the home, but someone the open space with a few hooks on the wall will be a lot less practical when all our junk moves in. Definitely a great look for those who can live minimalistly: The kitchen was formerly a separate room off to the right of the dining … Continue reading Ross Avenue reno (ii)

500 Preston, Carling Ave, Claridge, condos, Dows Lake, Experimental Farm, intensificatioin, Soho Italia, Uncategorized13 Comments

Sim Preston: Claridge strikes again

Westsideaction

The Soho Italia project by Starwood Mastercraft has been controversial since it first became public knowledge through this blog early in the year. The + or – 35 storey condo tower put a major hole in the established urban plan for the neighborhood and multi-year traditional main street plans. The tower, a short block north of Carling Avenue, is aggressively positioned to maximize views. Not being in the “first row” along Carling, it runs the risk of being blocked by competing towers should ones be built where the CIBC is, or Dow Motors (whose site has NO height limit on it) or other vacant … Continue reading Sim Preston: Claridge strikes again

Uncategorized1 Comment

CFNM in Ottawa

Westsideaction

This past year has been a busy one in our west side abode. One daughter got married. This necessitated a lot of preparation on the parents’ part. A significant chunk of this was watching wedding videos: My Big Fat, Mama Mia, etc. I must confess that Mama Mia was the better choice (thank god, as it was screened numerous times). I also went off to the NAC to see it last fall, just in case the live show had additional hints for the parents that weren’t in the movie. And this brings us to the CFNM promised in the title. No, it’s not the … Continue reading CFNM in Ottawa

design, Uncategorized6 Comments

I know it when I see it …

Westsideaction

 I attended a planning course at the City a short while ago and part of it was a presentation from the public arts people. The question came up about a large rock placed in front of a transit station somewhere. Apparently, it is much beloved. Is it art? The answer from the City was if a landscape architect put it there, NO. If an artist put it there, YES. Alas, no one asked about a landscape architect who also produces city-sanctioned ART. Maybe in that case it depends on which budget envelope the rock came out of. Mind, all this … Continue reading I know it when I see it …

Albert St, Bayview Otrain, bike path, bikewest, Carling Ave, City Centre, cycling in Ottawa, cyclopiste de preston, design, Gladstone, LRT, NCC, O-Train, oc Transpo, OLRT, parks, Scott street, surface water, Uncategorized6 Comments

Planning the O-Train bike path

Westsideaction

Okay, so it’s not really a “bike path”, the City doesn’t have any of those. We have MUPs, or Multi User Paths, which are shared by cyclists, dog walkers, parents with wailers, grannies with yappers, kids alone,  etc. (It makes an interesting contrast: on roads, cyclists are told to play nicely with cars, buses, and tractor-trailers going 70km; off road, cyclists are sent to play with various pedestrian folks). I’m on the PAC (public advisory committee) for the O-Train path that will eventually run from the Ottawa River pathways south to Dow’s Lake. The City will construct the section from Bayview Station to Somerset (or maybe … Continue reading Planning the O-Train bike path

downtown1 Comment

Hotel guests in a sandwich

Westsideaction

It’s easy to watch the construction at the base of the Delta Downtown hotel. It is a delight to see the driveway ramp gone, although they are simply replacing it with a flat one at grade. Nonetheless the awkward ground floor arrangement needed major surgery. Only apparent from a distance: the top floors are also being renovated, as evidenced by the plan sheets taped to each window on the top four floors. Continue reading Hotel guests in a sandwich

City Hall, parking9 Comments

Sidewalk parkers move on!

Westsideaction

A reader responded to a previous gripe here about motorists that park on sidewalks. He suggested I conspicuously take a picture of the scofflaw. So when I came across this car on Preston Street, I first noticed that there were abundant on street parking spaces, and off street ones too in the Preston Hardware lot across the road. I stopped in front of Mr Motorist and spent a little bit of time setting up the picture. With a little squeak of the tires (sort of an attempted squeal, but he wasn’t going fast enough) he pulled out and parked legally in space fifty … Continue reading Sidewalk parkers move on!

Chinatown, Preston street, somerset street3 Comments

Progress on Somerset

Westsideaction

It seemed for a while that Somerset, running up from Preston, would never get finished. Would Chinatown be left with craters and a war zone all winter? Deadlines seem to have focussed the contractor’s mind. On Thursday, curbs were laid east of Preston, and by Friday the road base was largely in place. Can the paving crews be far behind? Alas, the sidewalks and landscaping will not be installed this year, that will have to wait for spring. Provided the contractor can assign a crew to do it. Continue reading Progress on Somerset

Albert St, Booth St, Bronson, Preston street1 Comment

City counts cars

Westsideaction

  It took numerous calls and some arm twisting by the Councillor, but the City is now conducting traffic counts on Preston, Bronson, and Albert.  The unique value of these is to count cars while Booth Street south of Albert is closed due to construction. The City always says it cannot close Booth south of Albert to through traffic because, like dammed water, it would flow around and flood the adjacent streets with cars. And push those streets to the breaking point, resulting in traffic chaos. To anyone who bothers to go out on the streets at rush hour (and that is all … Continue reading City counts cars

Cdn War Museum, Dalhousie, Elm Street, Uncategorized4 Comments

Noble residents

Westsideaction

The modest house shown above on Elm Street is typical for the neighborhood. West Side homes have seen many stories played out. But this story is far from typical. This is the home Joseph Guillaume Laurent “Larry” Robillard and his brothers grew up in. On Nov 8, 1941, 70 years ago, Sgt. Robillard of the Royal Canadian Air Force was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal. He downed two enemy aircraft while protecting a descending parachutist. Then just 20 years old, the resident of 15 Elm Street had already shot down a Messerschmitt 109 on 22 June . During a patrol over Lille, France, on 2 July 1941, then a … Continue reading Noble residents

design15 Comments

Updating older houses

Westsideaction

Older homes can sometimes look rather sadly outdated. Exterior renovations sometimes look a bit too much like lipstick, that soon wears off or smears badly. And then we regret the new updated look. But some old houses are just so butt ugly … Here is a neighborhood house that the owner transformed from a rather plain box with a minimally sloped roof, into something that certainly catches the eye. In addition to the vertical wall solar panels on the front and side, there is an array of low-slope panels on the roof. Presumably if the wall solar panels are removed, the reddish faux … Continue reading Updating older houses

Booth St, Dalhousie, Gladstone, parks2 Comments

Complementarity in sculptures

Westsideaction

The City recently reopened Piazza Dante, a small urban parkette in front of St Anthony Church, corner of Booth and Gladstone. Two carved granite pillars flank the main entrance to the piazza from Gladstone. If they look familiar, well, they should. Their cousins mark the entrance to Preston Street at Primrose: When the Preston Street sculptures — Postcards from the Piazzas, by c j fleury –were being made, the granite carvers misread the order and produced four columns instead of two. With some quick thinking by the City, the artist, and Preston BIA, the additional columns were purchased, finished,  and used as gate … Continue reading Complementarity in sculptures

Uncategorized19 Comments

Planning Committee to set new low standard

Westsideaction

At its Tuesday meeting, Planning Committee will have the golden opportunity to set new low standards for infill housing. Yup, right after a lengthy consultation and report process on making infill housing more compatible with the neighborhoods, right after the Mayor tells developers to obey the rules, and Councilor Hume says Amen to That… we have committee ready to approve an infill project that will lower the bar. The proposal is for 23 infill townhouses at the corner of Rochester Street and Balsam. The proponent, Fanto Group, came to the City a few years ago proposing a bunch of seven (+ … Continue reading Planning Committee to set new low standard

hintonburg, little Italy, pedestrians, Preston street, sidewalks, streetscaping, Trees6 Comments

Controlling creepy car lots

Westsideaction

One of my pet grievances is parking lots on the edge of the sidewalk. Too often motorists or the lot owner “creep” all the time onto the sidewalk. In the streetscaping treatment of West Wellington the City employed portable planter boxes, planted with currant bushes, to keep the cars back. They didn’t do this for every parking lot. But now, a few years on, I saw these planters being installed in front of yet another used car lot. Bravo! When the lot is redeveloped for urban purposes, the planters can be redeployed. I delighted in noticing that the lot owner was not moving his cars … Continue reading Controlling creepy car lots

Uncategorized7 Comments

Cost of commuting

Westsideaction

One of those irritating rationales I hear all the time from people who commute to far suburbs or adjacent towns (or too often, towns really far away…) is that they can afford more house out there. I don’t believe it, not for one second. There’s the cost of commuting, the value of time to commute, the risk to your own health and life by all that additional road pollution and traffic danger… and then by time you get to Merrickville or wherever its time to go to bed so you can get up earlier to drive back in to beat the traffic, … Continue reading Cost of commuting

Uncategorized4 Comments

Collective wisdom …

Westsideaction

Let’s see, there’s a gaggle of geese, a school of fish, a pack of dogs, a cabal of politicians, a pack of thieves, a swarm of ants, a shoal of bass, a sloth of bears, hive of bees, flock of sparrows but a murder of crows, a wake of buzzards, army of caterpillars, a clowder of cats, brook of chickens, bed of clams, pack of dogs, gang of elk, charm of finches, bank of gorillas, mob of kangaroos, a barrel of monkeys, dray of squirrels, murmuration of starlings, and now … a waste of safari of plumbers. Continue reading Collective wisdom …

little Italy, Uncategorized10 Comments

An Excess of Moral Equivalency

Westsideaction

Dear gentle reader: this post may offend some of you with tender sensibilities, so do not read on if you are sensitive about Italians, Catholics, Afghanis, Muslims, Fascists, Tamils, Tamil Tigers, the War Measures Act, moral equivalency, PC, are Liberal, or liberal, or easily offended in any way. You were warned. And then I ask of the reader some latitude, since I am unsure myself what I think of the situation described below:   First, to get us warmed up, some satire: ThePublic Citizen, October 21, 2070: Mo Kadr stood beside his father’s name today at the unveiling of the Muslim-Canadian … Continue reading An Excess of Moral Equivalency

Bayview, Bayview Otrain, bike path, cycling in Ottawa, DOTT, LRT, O-Train, oc Transpo, OLRT5 Comments

Bike shelter at Bayview Station

Westsideaction

OC TRANSPO has installed the new bike shelter at Bayview Station. It does not have a glass wall on the “back” side of it, but nor is the back side readily accessible for cyclists while there is loose dirt/mud. Presumably, if no glass back wall is installed, and the grass grows, some cyclists can use the rack from the back side but at the cost of losing out on the roof. Is it safe to suggest this is another one-sided front-in only bike shelter? In which case, it holds six bikes. After we spend millions on the new Bayview LRT and indoor-transfer-by-escalator to the … Continue reading Bike shelter at Bayview Station

design, hintonburg, housing policy, infill, intensificatioin12 Comments

City awards prize, whilst frowning on the design

Westsideaction

The above house near the Parkdale market got an award of merit for urban design in the City’s recent competition. Frankly, I was surprised, and bit annoyed too. The upper deck, which doesn’t relate to the street so much as soar above it, does have a neat angled sun roof. The exterior materials are well handled, and the design is  neat. But only neat in an architectural way. I don’t think it is good urban design. First, the entire front yard of these two houses is gravel. Is it really a xeriscape garden? Fess up, it’s two car parking spaces taking up 100% of … Continue reading City awards prize, whilst frowning on the design

design, pedestrians, streetscaping13 Comments

NYC new standard bench

Westsideaction

This is a new bench for New York City. Designed by Ignacio Ciocchini, it is of powder-coated steel. It is designed to dissipate heat and shed snow. I was surprised by the very small side arm rests. By dividing it up into individual  seats, it prevents both sleepers and cuddlers (unless two people can fit onto one 26″ seat). In contrast, recent benches selected in Ottawa are divided into a 2:1 ratio with a single off-centre armrest, so that people can choose to sit touching if they wish. While Ottawa is struggling to find a suitable set of designs for its standardized street furniture, mainstreet rejuvenations continue … Continue reading NYC new standard bench

condos, design, Gladstone, housing policy, infill, intensificatioin, Uncategorized8 Comments

The Thinest of the Thin Houses

Westsideaction

Very narrow houses are perfectly livable, if well designed. There are about 25 across the street from me on 12′ lots, which means they are  a bit more than 11′  wide inside. I think CCOC has a bunch a few blocks over, off Rochester. Nonetheless, very thin houses make City regulators expand with worry. A new group of thin houses is under construction at Gladstone and Cambridge. They replace the famous “yellow house” with its Charlie Brown zig-zag brown stripe. I have been anxiously awaiting their construction because they are thin – on 12′ lots. But the end unit, along Gladstone, is even thinner, being … Continue reading The Thinest of the Thin Houses

Bayview, bike path, cycling in Ottawa, DOTT, LeBreton Flats, LRT, NCC, O-Train, OLRT, pedestrians, Richmond road, sidewalks11 Comments

How “secure” (or disruptive…) will the OLRT be?

Westsideaction

        We are in the process of replacing the transitway with LRT. In the Scott Street cut, this won’t matter much. But at either end of the cut, it matters a lot. The City is preaching two totally opposed messages on how the track will interact with the community.  On LeBreton Flats, they claim that anyone getting near the tracks will be imminent mortal danger so great that six foot high chain link fences will be constructed on both sides of the tracks. For pedestrian safety, of course. So there will be no crossing of the tracks through the Flats.  City staff … Continue reading How “secure” (or disruptive…) will the OLRT be?

Uncategorized

A reader dies …

Westsideaction

I regret to inform readers of this blog that one of their number has died rather violently. . Hopefully, the cause of death was not from reading this blog or acting on its advice. . This reader several times contacted me asking me to borrow my bank account numbers, just for a few days, in order to shift large sums of wealth to Canada. With a suitable share for me (last offer was $4 million dollars for my share). .   Alas, being independently wealthy and of modest needs, I had to decline. .   Bye bye colonel:   Continue reading A reader dies …

Bayview, bike path, cycling in Ottawa, DOTT, LRT, oc Transpo, OLRT, parking8 Comments

OC Transpo provides better bike parking

Westsideaction

Users of the main transitway stations will have noticed that some bike parking racks have been shoved aside from their usual locations. Then concrete pads have been poured. Only at Baseline Station did I notice a sign identifying what is going on: new bike racks. Kudos to OC for providing better bike parking. In the pic below notice the new shelter, the moderately strong bike racks, and in the distance, the numerous bikes attached to the shoved-aside racks that are no longer bolted to the ground (and the background, the free employee parking lot attached our municipal office building). And here is a … Continue reading OC Transpo provides better bike parking