Community safety, hotel acquisition for family housing, public consultation for Bronson/Laurier, and more!

Community security and the impact of the homelessness and addiction crises are the most urgent issues that I hear about every day. We all see the uptick in public drug use and the escalating mental health issues that have changed the character of the streets we walk on every day. And I have heard your demands for more help – whether from community workers, Bylaw officers, or police.

I have spoken extensively about the context in which we are experiencing this crisis – more people are experiencing homelessness than ever before, the toxicity of the street drug supply is worsening, and the province is insistent on closing supervised consumption sites and crucial harm reduction programs.

Without the federal and provincial funding needed to make a significant dent in chronic homelessness, the city is doing what we can with the resources we have available. After years of community advocacy, I am glad to see some action to address the very real crises on our streets. Here is some of what’s coming:

• The ANCHOR program has now expanded into the western part of Little Italy, as well as Hintonburg. The 2026 city budget also includes funding to extend the program into one more urban neighbourhood. This non-police, 24/7 crisis service can be accessed by calling 211 and is designed to intervene in mental health and substance use crises. In the first year of this pilot program in Centretown, ANCHOR answered 4,464 calls and in 92 percent of cases, there was no need for police back-up.
• The CORE hot spot policing program will extend into Centretown and Chinatown, focusing on adding patrols to areas with significant safety concerns. I have heard your concerns about a lack of prompt action from police and have been working with the OPS to address this very important issue. The new district policing model will mean that more neighbourhood officers will stay in our communities and not get pulled out as often to manage protests (a new unit is focusing on issues on or near Parliament Hill). I did a walk-about yesterday with OPS members, discussing areas where we need more support, particularly in Chinatown. Ensuring safe conditions for the walk to and from school is a top priority and we can expect to see more resources deployed to make this happen.
• A new downtown outreach partnership will make help available 24/7. Right now, there are outreach workers from dozens of organizations that help resolve conflicts and offer assistance to people on the street. But they currently provide a patchwork of services that overlap, accessible from a long list of phone numbers. The new downtown outreach strategy will ensure 24/7 coverage, available from one phone number. It will make sure that these workers will be visible (wearing a purple vest) and walking regular routes in downtown neighbourhoods. This will help resolve day-to-day conflicts involving encampments, public drug use and loitering, while working to help street-involved neighbours access the housing and help they need.

Community safety takes all of us – residents, businesses, outreach workers, and police. Thank you to everyone who continues to write to me about this important issue. I will keep advocating until we all feel safe where we live and work.

Warmly,

Ariel

Ariel with Justice Rosalie Abella, at the International Women’s Day breakfast at City Hall

City to acquire hotel at O’Connor/Gladstone for family housing

This week, the city’s Finance and Corporate Services Committee voted to purchase the former Sonder Hotel at O’Connor and Gladstone, to use as transitional housing for families with children. The city’s family shelter system is currently at more than 300 percent capacity, with more than 500 families living in cramped motel rooms. This building includes full kitchen with every unit and can eventually be converted into permanent housing. The federal government will pay 95 percent of the purchase price, and buying this building will save the city $2.5 million a year in operational costs.

City staff will set up a community meeting after the purchase is complete, to answer any questions from residents and ensure that these families can integrate harmoniously into the nearby neighbourhood.

You can listen to my interview with CBC radio to learn more.

Public consultation on 593 - 601 Laurier

Join Councillor Troster and representatives from Fotenn for a public consultation on 593 - 601 Laurier. The proposed development is a 28-storey apartment building that would include 394 units.

You can learn more about the development here. The "Planning Rationale" document provides an overview of the project.

RSVP online here.

Your waste collection day may change starting March 30

Starting Monday, March 30, your waste collection day may change due to the City’s new curbside collection contract. All your waste including garbage, organics, leaf and yard waste, and recycling will still be picked up on the same day but about half of Ottawa households will have a new collection day. 

To see if this impacts you, view your collection calendar online or in the Ottawa Waste Collection Calendar app. If you are affected by this change, you will see your updated collection day on the week of Monday, March 30 and beyond. 

St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Celebrate Irish pride in Ottawa with the 2026 St. Patrick’s Day Parade, transforming downtown into a vibrant sea of shamrocks, music, and community spirit. Families, performers, and local groups come together for an unforgettable afternoon of pageantry, marching from the Supreme Court of Canada along Wellington Street, up Sussex Drive, and concluding in the lively ByWard Market.

More details are available online here.

Attention musicians: #ottmusic applications now open to feature your music tracks

If you are an Ottawa-based musician and you want your original tracks to be heard by residents, applications are now open for 2026 #ottmusic programs, which include Music on Hold, City Sounds and O-Buskers.

The Music on Hold program plays select local music whenever you phone the City, like 3-1-1, and are put on hold. This year, 25 songs will be selected by a committee of musicians and industry professionals. In addition, a playlist of this program is available each year on ottawa.ca/ottmusic for those who want to listen uninterrupted.

Music tracks will take on a whole new meaning with OC Transpo’s O-Buskers program, anticipated to start in 2026. This program will help bring local musical entertainment to create a vibrant environment and community spirit to select O-Train stations.

Applications for all #ottmusic programs close at 1 pm on Wednesday, April 1.

To be eligible, applicants must be 18 years or older and Ottawa artists. You can learn more about how to apply by visiting ottawa.ca/ottmusic. For O-Buskers application information, visit octranspo.com.

Plant Your Place 2026

The Plant Your Place! program is starting up again this spring, which means more free trees in the ward! Households located in the ward's two priority planting areas (Dalhousie-Rochester Heights and Bank Street Centretown) can receive a site visit from an urban forestry professional who can assess the property and arrange tree planting at no cost. Residents in the Dalhousie-Rochester area will be able to register for a site visit starting April 8, while residents in the Centertown Bank area will be able to register starting May 4. Read more here to see if you are eligible.

Trees will also be available for pickup at 300 Coventry Road. Priority area residents are now able to register on a first-come-first-serve basis, while all other residents can register starting March 9th.

Find out more and register at plantyourplace.ca!

Complete your Vacant Unit Tax declaration before March 19

It’s Vacant Unit Tax (VUT) declaration time again. Complete your online declaration for the 2025 occupancy year for each residential property that you own before the March 19, 2026, deadline. A $250 late fee applies to all late submissions.

Submitting your declaration online is simple and takes less than a minute.

• If you have a Ottawa.ca account:
  Log in and submit your declaration through your property tax account.
• If you do not have an account:
  Visit ca/vut and select Submit Declaration using your roll number and secure access code (found on last year’s property tax bill or notice).

Notices will be sent to property owners in January, with email delivery used whenever possible. Please also check your junk-mail folder.

Who to Call list

The Somerset West Community Health Centre has put together a “Who To Call” list for residents.

You can view the list and find a copy to print and share with neighbours online here.