was hoping this was going to be a quiet summer and my president's column would be a short one. Neither wish has been fulfilled it seems! The upside is that a number of community issues have been moving on in a positive fashion and we should be well positioned in the fall to get some closure on them.
I am glad to be able to report that the Transit and Traffic Committee of the city approved the overall design of the proposal. The committee made no changes in the recommendations from the working group with respect to the design of intersections, the proposals for street furniture and sidewalks and the landscaping elements. Both OSCA and the Old Ottawa South business community made presentations in support of the project. The meeting was a formal public hearing as well for the project and its approval by the committee means essentially that all the regulatory and approval hoops have been gone through and the project should proceed next spring, provided, it is included in next year's city budget - something that we have now been promised by city officials. As about two-thirds of the money is now allotted for the project it only requires an additional $1.8 million from next year's city budget to proceed.
As you will see in an article by Don Cummer in this issue of the OSCAR, the community working group was successful in convincing the city's Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee to make a formal expression of interest in the property from the Ottawa-Carleton Catholic School Board. This motion was approved by council a few days later and city officials are now in discussion with the Catholic School Board to see if time can be found to allow a proper business case to be made for a private-public partnership to develop the site with some community uses included in probably what will be a residential development. The core of that public use will probably be a daycare and play yard and discussions are proceeding with potential developers. The situation is very fluid and could change significantly over the next few weeks, but so far at least things are moving in the right direction.
Our end of soccer season OSCA BBQ at Brewer Park was again a hit with a huge turn out and lots of musical entertainment. We sold out of all our food and drinks and it appears that we at least broke even on the event. Our first annual spring auction to raise funds for the Firehall renovation was also a stunning success. Not only was it well attended but the auction raised over $12,000 for the fund! Special thanks to the organizing committee and all the volunteers who helped out with the event - and, of course, to all the individuals and organizations that offered so many wonderful items that tempted people to open their wallets!
Finally just a reminder that one of the most important neighbourhood events - the annual Old Ottawa South Porch Sale - will be taking place on Saturday, September 14. This is a major opportunity to clean out the basement, the attic or the garage and make some spare cash while you are at it. There is nothing so satisfying as getting money for something you don't need any longer! OSCA volunteers will be coming around on the day to ask for a contribution (the norm is 10% of the value of what you have sold) to help defray the marketing costs and to help us finance OSCA events and programs.
Well that's it for this time, I hope you and yours are having a safe and enjoyable summer!