Rick's speech on the main motion supporting the new Lansdowne Partnership Plan at Council, June 28, 2010
I want to thank our residents for really tuning into this subject and participating -especially people like Alison Comrie and Spencer Callaghan for their strong input.
I want to thank our private sector partners for believing in their vision and enduring through this journey. And I want to thank the Mayor, Councillors Monette and Hume for their important persistence. Also, all of staff, but especially Kent Kirkpatrick, Dave Donaldson and Graham Bird for their unsung heroic performances in this important part of city building. more
A day in the life of Councillor Rick Chiarelli
Recently, I was "shadowed" by M.J. Deschamps, a rep orter for the Metro Ottawa Newspaper. She followed me and my team as we spent the day touching base with our community, speaking to the media and fulfilling our daily schedule. Her article on her experience with my team and I appeared this season in a full page story. Read more of the unedited version of what she wrote. more
Wage Freeze
I recently brought a proposal to Council to implement a wage freeze at City Hall.Â
The proposal would have frozen wages for all municipal government pay cheque earners over which Council has the legal authority to impose a freeze. It would have frozen wages for City Councillors, management and non-union staff. more
Faith & Respect
The annual general meeting of Interfaith Ottawa was held just outside my Ward office at Ben Franklin Place. As one of the original signatories to the Interfaith Ottawa Charter in 2003, I was on hand on the 1st of this month as awards were presented to Mr. Ponnambalam Adcharamoorthy and the Very Reverend Shane A. D. Parker, Dean of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa, recognizing their contributions toward the organization's primary objective to promote interfaith harmony and respect among all people in Ottawa:more
The Mad Hatter's Tea Party
On June 6th I my daughter and I went over to Nepean Museum in our Ward to take part in the annual Mad Hatter Tea Party - its best attended one yet. One of the true pillars of Nepean's history, Dr. Ruth Bell joined my daughter Natalia and I for tea...more
Welcoming New Canadians
I joined over 250 Ward residents last week as part of the thank-you celebration at the brand new house established to assist refugees in their first weeks in Canada. The home provides short term accommodation and support for up to 10 people who have legal, bona fide refugee status, along with assistance in settling into life in Ottawa. I assisted some very dedicated Ward residents through their nearly two years of dedicated hard work on this project. But they deserve all of the credit for helping make Canada a welcoming new home for some members of our community.
Canadian National Education Conference
Last week I was honoured to be asked to speak at the opening of the Canadian Catholic School Trustees' 50th Anniversary Convention held here in Ottawa. Ironically, when I was a rookie politician elected to the school board in my teens: more
Ward Residents Recognized
Congratulations to Ward residents Tom Wyatt, Catherine Gardner and Bill Armstrong. more
Group Hug!
About seven years ago, I was one of the originals involved in organizing the first attempt at setting the record for the World's Largest Bear Hug. The effort was conceived by Monique Amyot and Leo Lafreniere who were inspired by Eliane Amyot's best friend, Karine Chartrand's personal struggle with cancer. During her illness she inspired everyone around her to live life to the fullest. In her honor and in the memory of many loved ones the-Force was born and sought the support of the larger Ottawa community to both raise funds for cancer care and to break the Guinness World Record for a continuous-chain-hug of people. more
A Skateboard Park for Bells Corners
Last week we had a very successful meeting as dozens of young people of Bells Corners gathered to begin the process of establishing a real youth oriented recreational facility in the neighbourhood. Participants were nearly unanimous that they want a real skateboard park and they made that decision after learning it will take a lot of work and that they, themselves, will need to do that work.
It will mean spending long hours contributing to design ideas, fundraising and even political lobbying. Selection of a potential site will happen only after consultation with the broader community, but even that will require youth involvement: more
Intensification, Growth, Urban boundary
We need to control growth. But we also need to be cautious with intensification, to stop it from causing over-sized buildings in established neighbourhoods.
I made my point in a recent Ottawa Citizen publication. Here is what I said:
As you know, I was the person who submitted the motion last month to
re-open the urban boundary issue. I said from the beginning I was
doing so for two reasons: more
"O-Card" to reduce City payroll, save you money and deliver simple convenience
Why do people still have to leave a business meeting, or dinner at aÂ
restaurant in order to find a store that will make change for them so they can pump quarters into a parking meter? Why do parents have toÂ
fill out extensive forms to register their kids for some City
programs?more