Council approves 12 asset management plans

Council today approved the 2025 Asset Management Plans. Council today approved the 2025 Asset Management Plans (AMPs), ensuring the City’s compliance with provincial regulations. The City owns and manages more than $90 billion in infrastructure assets that support essential municipal services, including roads, water and wastewater systems, transit, recreation, libraries and emergency services. The City’s asset management plans show the City’s assets to be safe and functional, with no imminent risk to day-to-day service delivery. The AMPs are a strategic tool to help Council and staff understand the current state of infrastructure, forecast future needs and make informed decisions that balance cost, risk and service delivery. The AMPs forecast a $10.8-billion gap between projected infrastructure needs and planned funding. The AMPs offer a clear view of the current state of Ottawa’s infrastructure: it is safe, in good to fair condition, and continues to serve residents. The forecasted infrastructure needs reflect asset renewal, growth and enhancement, as well as climate change adaptation and mitigation costs. This mirrors challenges reported by other Ontario municipalities and underscores the long-term need for a new funding framework to support municipal infrastructure. The City will use its Long-Range Financial Plans and other strategic documents to manage its infrastructure so that it remains resilient and responsive to community needs. The City will continue to prioritize its highest risk assets and essential services while adapting to changing needs and relying on public input. Long Range Financial Plan gets approval Council approved the City’s Long Range Financial Plan for water, wastewater and stormwater rate supported programs. It provides a funding strategy that supports the operating and capital requirements for the water, wastewater and stormwater programs for the next 10 years. For these services, the AMPs identified a 10-year capital requirement of $4 billion, mostly for renewal. Another $234 million is required for growth projects while $158 million is needed for enhancements and regulatory requirements. To fund these needs, more than $3 billion of funding would be raised from water, wastewater and stormwater revenues, and more than $1.7 billion would be funded from issuing new debt. The revenues would be raised by increasing rates for the services. The City estimates that the average annual increase would be five per cent over the 10 years or about $5 more per month for the average residential property. New recreation membership and admission model gets approval Council approved a new membership and admissions model for City fitness and recreation activities. The proposed model would simplify memberships, set consistent prices and offer residents a range of affordable recreation options. Under the new model, residents will be able to select the service level they want from a streamlined, three-tier system, both for drop-in admissions and memberships. Most current members would see little change to fees. To make the transition easier for those with existing memberships, the City will phase in new prices, limiting increases to $5 per month for individuals and $10 per month for households. As an example, a parent who chooses an annual household membership could have all members of the household access swimming, skating and the drop-in gym activities at all 58 facilities citywide for as little as $11.58 a week for unlimited use. For access to higher tier activities, the price of membership increases but remains affordable at $22.15 a week for unlimited access to all membership programs and services.  New Parks and Facilities by-law Council approved a new Parks and Facilities By-law, which governs the range of permitted activities in parks and associated facilities and aims to protect and preserve them for safe public enjoyment. The by-law includes a new provision that allows personal consumption of alcohol in certain areas of designated parks, as part of a pilot project from July 1 to October 31, 2025. City staff will work with Ward Councillors to determine both the parks in which this would be permitted and the specific areas within those parks. Alcohol consumption would continue to be prohibited in non-designated parks and outside of indicated areas and times. Staff would report back on the pilot results by Q2 2026.  Strategic Priorities are trending well Council received an update on its 2023-2026 Term of Council Priorities and City Strategic Plan. Progress has been made in advancing the priorities, and of the 67 strategic initiatives identified, nearly 97 per cent of active initiatives are complete or advancing as planned. More than 85 percent of performance indicators with available data are trending positively. Several corporate risks have been identified, all of which are being mitigated, including:

• Residual economic and societal impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic
• Increased homelessness and lack of affordable housing
• Risk of not delivering on transit service commitments and transit financial sustainability
• Extreme weather, climate impacts and climate change GHG reduction targets
• Impacts of the hybrid work-model on downtown and anticipated reduction in federal spending

Audit of Supportive Housing is received Council received a report from the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) that examined supportive housing – long-term housing that integrates on-site supports tailored to the needs of residents who often have more complex needs. This form of housing is a critical component of the City’s strategy to offer a range of housing solutions to meet residents’ needs. Supportive housing is key in helping reduce chronic homelessness, particularly as residents often face complex health and social challenges. The audit noted that there is meaningful work happening at the City and among community-based service providers to find innovative solutions and support clients in need of supportive housing. City management agreed with each of the OAG’s four recommendations. Initial work to address the recommendations will start immediately with key deliverables anticipated over the next two years. The recommendations aim to address gaps and improve the delivery of supportive housing in Ottawa:

• Define the City’s overall approach to supportive housing and expected outcomes in the updated 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan.
• Create an integrated and collaborative workplan to more effectively guide supportive housing operations, new development, and the allocation of funding.
• Establish clear, consistent standards for supportive housing processes to ensure all residents receive high-quality care and to address potential inequities in accessing these services.
• Use insights from annual program reviews to formally assess progress towards supportive housing outcomes.

First steps taken toward proposed South March energy storage project Council granted a Municipal Support Resolution (MSR) for a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project in rural Ottawa, off Marchurst Road near Thomas A. Dolan Parkway. The facility would use batteries to store electricity coming off the power grid overnight and release it during the day to help meet demand and make the grid more reliable. While the Province is the regulator, municipalities have authority over where new renewable energy generating and storage projects can be located. Before such projects can proceed, Council must indicate support in the form of a MSR. The granting of a MSR is general in nature and the proposed project will need approval of a zoning amendment before it could proceed. Area residents will have opportunities to provide feedback on the project as part of public consultation for the zoning amendment. The project proponent has stated it plans to establish a Community Development Fund to support local projects. If the BESS project proceeds, the City will seek to enter into an agreement with the proponent, establishing funding for local projects of at least $250,000 per year for at least 20 years.