Sign Jihad Episode ?

It looks like the temporary signs at the National Bank Plaza have been reduced by 25%. Gone is the unlit Giant Tiger sign, and one of the other GT signs has been given over to the health clinic to advertise flu shots. Still, that's 3 signs on one block.

When I get a bit of time, a note will be sent to The Public Citizen. I like his style...

Benchmarks

Hibou corrects my assertion that there aren't any benches in Bells Corners (aside from the strange on in the middle of a parking lot), and has made this little video:

Nice little subliminal advertising at the end: the Bells Corners cleanup is on Oct 12. See you there!

Walking and sitting

Two things humans do a lot (besides eating and breathing) are walking and resting, neither of which is encouraged in suburbia. This month, Toronto is having a Walking Festival:

The Toronto Walking Survey conducted in November 2007 showed that 81 per cent of residents walk for recreation or fitness.

But short jaunts of two kilometres or less account for almost one-third of car trips we take.

With so many conveniences along the strip, I know I could walk a bit more.

And Montreal has a lot of benches:

Montreal goes even further and attaches benches to utility poles throughout the downtown core. Again, the message is clear: The street isn't just a way to get from A to B, but a place to be. ... At a time when the move to the city is gaining momentum, even in Canada, it's time to rethink basic attitudes to urbanity. This doesn't necessarily mean hugely expensive programs and grand projects; it can also include humble measures such as the lowly bench.

The only bench I know of along the strip is in the middle of the National Bank centre parking lot. Nice bench and all, but I don't know if anyone would actually sit on it:

Interlocking the strip

At some point, the city put a lot of money into "beautifying" the strip with interlocking bricks. I can see why this is a pragmatic choice -- the brickwork is nicer to look at than pavement, it doesn't need to be mowed, and initially requires little maintenance. It is a poor choice, though, in a couple of ways:

• interlock is not cheap, certainly more expensive than just grass or even modest flower planters.
• after some time, the interlock requires regular maintenance, which is fiddly and requires expertise (see photo 2 below).
• it's nicer to look at than pavement, but it's uglier than any of the other alternatives.

Let's see how the interlock is holding up:

I'll take "none of the above" please

Commenter hibou's signs of the times.

Planting a parking lot

Last weekend I ducked down one of Bells Corners' lesser known side streets, Northside Road, to check out a relatively new business, the Urban Terrace. It's located in the old Dindardo's building.

What most interested me was how the business was re-landscaping a non-descript (shall we say "barren") parking lot into something quite nice looking. With a couple of new flower beds against the curb, one against the building, and lots of planters (with a couple of impressively huge ones out front), the place is looking very nice. I went in a chatted with the owner, Rick Brown, who indicated that he's planning to do a bit more work on the place before he's done.

The business specializes in higher-end planters, garden sculptures, fountains, and other interesting items for landscaping and patio design ("outdoor living"). Rick also runs a landscaping company (Turf's Up), and does residential and commercial landscape design. I can think of at least a dozen buisnesses on the strip that could benefit from this company's expertise (Mort's Pub, anyone???). Let's hope the BCBIA becomes a frequent customer.

This seems to me exactly the type of business we need more of in Bells Corners, independently owned and run "high-end" stores that specialize in service and expertise. And they take pride in their premises, working to beautify the neighbourhood. Check them out.

Sign Jihad Episode 1, Act 2, in which 311 forwards my email

from: 311@ottawa.ca to: reburb@gmail.com cc: Bylaw Dispatch date: Wed, Sep 10, 2008 at 10:36 AM subject: 2008-334589 FW: Temporary signs at Stafford Road / Richmond Road

Good morning,

Thank you for contacting the City of Ottawa. With regard to your inquiry, we have forwarded your email to our By-Law Services Branch. Your service request number is 2008-334589.

For further information, or should you have any other issues that need to be resolved rapidly, we invite you to call us at 3-1-1, Monday to Friday, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. A Call Centre Agent will be happy to take care of your request immediately.

Yours truly,

The Vox: Two Views

I'm keeping an eye on this to see if/when it's going to be re-developed.

I received this in an email from our councillor Rick Chiarelli regarding this site:

We have managed to get a pronouncement as to the suitability, from both a safety and a property standards perspective, of the Vox building. Thankfully, we have won the decision that it cannot continue to function. The physical resolution to the matter is not too far off, but there is some sluggishness due to the complex legal battle that is associated with it. Having said that, we have met with a buyer who is set to activate a firm (forced) purchase of the property as soon as we get a final decision from a judge in a relation to financial issues for which a trial that has recently concluded. Following talks with us, that buyer has agreed to demolish the building as part of any purchase/ development proposal. My goal for the property was demolition and demolition is coming. We just have a little while to wait.

Sign Jihad Episode 1: Giant Tiger Is Killing Our Souls

to: 311@ottawa.ca date: Mon, Sep 8, 2008 at 1:13 PM subject: Temporary signs at Stafford Road / Richmond Road Hello, I'm writing to complain about the "temporary" signs on Richmond Road in Bells Corners, at the corner of Stafford Road. They belong to the Giant Tiger (address: 1 Stafford Road). I understand that the sign bylaw allows 1 sign, for 1 month, for 3 times a year. Giant Tiger has had at least one sign up at this location since it opened in the early summer, and now has three signs (photo attached). Secondly, I believe all the signs are in contravention of the regulation that they must be 23 m from other temporary signs. The first sign is certainly closer than that to the East Side Mario's sign (which has also been up all summer). Could you tell me: 1) what the permit situation is with these signs and 2) whether they are in contravention of the sign bylaw? Thanks, reburb@gmail.com

reburb gets comments

Our first commenter, hibou, takes a cue from John Lennon's Imagine and says:

In the future the strip might be a very different place indeed- a pedestrian/cyclist-friendly community hub where the car is no longer king. Many of the strip malls and vacant parking lots will have been converted to high-density housing. The mobile home park will be a green European-inspired cooperative with ample affordable housing and self-sufficient in energy needs. The existing rail line that traverses Bells Corners will be used for rapid transit, with stations on Moodie and Richmond.

He then paints a darker picture:

Another possible outcome: the strip becomes even more congested and ugly as suburban sprawl continues apace and desperate Kanata and Stittsville SUV commuters look for a route downtown that's slightly less congested than the Queensway. Some of them may stop at one of the numerous big box stores that the councillor has helped to bring in. The BIA will still be stringing up Christmas lights in winter and flower baskets in summer in an unsuccessful attempt to mitigate the ugliness of the strip. The trailer park will have been converted to a luxury gated community thanks to the developers and their friends on City Council. Barbed wire will keep out the rabble who are crammed into their Westcliffe hovels.

Two divergent futures for the community of Bells Corners, I couldn't have put it any better.

In some ways, our community is no different from thousands of other suburbs developed in the past 50 years, "anchored" to a strip of mini-malls along an arterial road. But Bells Corners is also unique, with the incredible advantage of being completely surrounded by NCC Green belt. It has the potential to be an oasis rather than a blight.

The good, the bad, and the WTF

So you've built a giant, desolate parking lot, and stuck a nondescript office building at the back of it. Why not? Everyone else is doing it. But then you discover that you can't rent all the space. For some strange reason, restaurants keep failing, companies keep moving out. It's not good for business. What to do, what to do? Then it hits you, let's embark on an ambitious beautification program! Give the place a total face lift! What you need is a plant. And not any old plant, but one with flowers. Put it right out there, on that tiny strip of grass between the 5 lanes of Richmond and the vast expanse of parking lot. Perfect! And to celebrate, put up a few signs advertising the new, beautiful business site.

Big poles, little signs

Planner A: Hey, I have a bunch of two-way lane signs I need to put up in Bells Corners. Planner B: Why? Planner A: Well, even though the centre lane is well marked, and painted with two-way signs, we have to consider the drivers who can't see the road. Planner B? What? Who would that be? Planner A: You know, the blind, children, small dogs, anyone who can't see over the dashboard. Planner B: Riiiight. [Sarcastically] I've got a bunch of giant old metal light posts you could use. You know, put one one either side of the road, and connect them in a grotesque arch with two more poles welded together. Planner A: Fantastic! Planner B: I was just kidding... Planner A: They'll blend in nicely with the rest of the poles, lightstands and wires I've put up!

Development Alert: 145 Robertson Road

This development (a four storey office building and self storage) isapplying for "minor variances" to 1) reduce the "landscape buffer" in front of the development and 2) allow parking in front. Although its obvious this has been the way things have been done the past 40 years,these are two things we don't want in Bells Corners any more. It also looks like the developer wants the road widened as well, but I'm not an expert. Here's the money quote from the application:

Robertson Road is characterized by automobile-oriented, small and medium scale commercial uses. A reduced landscape buffer should not negatively impact the surrounding area, nor is it generally inconsistent with existing landscape treatments along Robertson Road.

It's not inconsistent because no one has opposed variances in the past. The way to make "the strip" better is to improve greenspace, sidewalks, lighting, etc, one development at a time.

Here's a link to the city web site, where you can view the site planand application, and where (more importantly) you can send comments opposing the variances to the planner.

http://app01.ottawa.ca/postingplans/appDetails.jsf?lang=en&appId=__68T4IS

Our city councillor is Rick Chiarelli, you can also send comments to him at: Rick.Chiarelli@ottawa.ca