Ottawa City Council

Minutes

Meeting #:

6

Date:

Wednesday, February 01, 2023

Time:

10:00 A.m. - 1:00 P.m.

Location:

Andrew S. Haydon Hall, 110 Laurier Avenue West, and by electronic participation

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1.

Call to order and moment of reflection

The Council of the City of Ottawa met at Andrew S. Haydon Hall, 110 Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa, on Wednesday, February 1, 2023, beginning at 10:00 a.m. The Mayor, Mark Sutcliffe, presided over the meeting from Council Chambers with some Members attending in person and the remaining Members participating remotely by Zoom.

Mayor Sutcliffe led Council in a moment of reflection. 

2.

Public notices and meeting information

Notices and meeting information are attached to the agenda and minutes, including: availability of simultaneous interpretation and accessibility accommodations; in camera meeting procedures; information items not subject to discussion; personal information disclaimer for correspondents; notices regarding minutes; and remote participation details.

Accessible formats and communication supports are available, upon request.

3.

Roll Call

All Members of Council were present.

4.

Declarations of Interest Including Those Originally Arising from Prior Meetings

No Declarations of Interest were filed. 

5.

Regrets

No regrets were filed. 

6.

Mayor's Budget Address

The Mayor provided the Annual Budget Address to Council prior to the tabling of the 2023 Draft Budget. 

7.

Motion to Introduce Reports

• Motion No. 2023 - 06/01
  Moved by L. Dudas
  Seconded by G. Darouze

  That Transit Commission Report 1 be received and considered. 

  That the following reports related to the 2023 Draft Budget be received and tabled:

  1. The report from the Finance and Corporate Services Department, entitled “2023 Draft Operating and Capital Budgets”;
  2. The report from the Committee of Adjustment entitled “Committee of Adjustment – 2023 Draft Operating Budget”; 
  3. The report from Crime Prevention Ottawa entitled “2023 Draft Operating Budget – Crime Prevention Ottawa”; 
  4. The report from the Ottawa Police Services Board entitled “Ottawa Police Services Board - 2023 Draft Operating and Capital Budgets”; 
  5. The report from the Ottawa Public Library Board entitled “Ottawa Public Library: 2023 Draft Budget Estimates”; 
  6. The report from the Ottawa Board of Health entitled “2023 Draft Operating     Budget for the Ottawa Board of Health”; and

  That the Rules of Procedure be suspended to receive and consider the following reports from the Finance and Corporate Services Department, as they provide information supplemental to the 2023 Budget Reports being tabled at this meeting:

  1. The report from the Director of Fleet Services, entitled “2023 Fleet Vehicle and Equipment Plans – Information Supplemental to the Budget Estimates”; and
  2. The report from the Director of Human Resources, entitled “2022 FTE Analysis Report – Information Supplemental to the Budget Estimates”.
  Carried

8.

Finance and Corporate Services Department

8.1

2023 Draft Operating and Capital Budgets

• Report recommendation

  That City Council:

  1. Receive and table the Draft 2023 Operating and Capital Budgets at its meeting of February 1, 2023 for subsequent consideration by Council sitting in Committee of the Whole to be held March 1, 2023.
  2. Refer the relevant portions of the 2023 Operating and Capital Budgets to each Standing Committee of Council and the Transit Commission for their consideration and recommendation to Council sitting in Committee of the Whole to be held March 1, 2023.
  3. Receive the service review framework as outlined in this report for subsequent consideration by Council sitting in Committee of the whole to be held March 1, 2023

  Received and Tabled

9.

Committee of Adjustment

9.1

Committee of Adjustment - 2023 Draft Operating Budget

• Report Recommendations

  That City Council receive and table the Committee of Adjustment 2023 Draft Operating Budget at its meeting on February 1, 2023, for subsequent consideration by Council in Committee of the whole to be held March 1, 2023. 

  Received and Tabled
  
  

10.

Crime Prevention Ottawa

10.1

2023 Draft Operating Budget - Crime Prevention Ottawa

Citywide

• Report Recommendation(s)

  That City Council receive and table the Crime Prevention Ottawa Draft 2023 Operating Budget at its meeting of February 1, 2023 for subsequent consideration by Council in Committee of the Whole to be held March 1, 2023.​

  Received and Tabled
  
  

11.

Ottawa Police Services Board

11.1

Ottawa Police Service Board - 2023 Draft Operating and Capital Budgets

• Report Recommendation

  That City Council receive and table the Ottawa Police Service 2023 Draft Operating and Capital Budgets at its meeting on February 1, 2023 for subsequent consideration by Council in Committee of the Whole to be held on March 1, 2023.

  Received and Tabled
  
  

12.

Ottawa Public Library

12.1

Ottawa Public Library : 2023 Draft Budget Estimates

• Report Recommendation

  That City Council receive and table the Draft 2023 Ottawa Public Library Board Operating and Capital Budget on February 1, 2023 and for further consideration by Council in Committee of the Whole on March 1, 2023.

  Received and Tabled
  
  

13.

Ottawa Board of Health

13.1

2023 Draft Operating Budget for the Ottawa Board of Health

• Board of Health Recommendations

  That City Council receive and table the 2023 Draft Operating Budget for the Ottawa Board of Health at its meeting on February 1, 2023, for subsequent consideration by Council in Committee of the Whole on March 1, 2023.

  Received and Tabled
  
  

14.

Finance and Corporate Services Department

14.1

2023 Fleet Vehicle and Equipment Plans - Information Supplemental to the Budget Estimates

ACS2023-FCS-FLT-0001 - Citywide

• Report Recommendation

  That Council receive the 2023 Municipal Fleet Vehicle and Equipment Replacement Plan and the 2023 Municipal Vehicle and Equipment Growth Plan as described in this report as supplemental information to the Draft Budget 2023

  Received

14.2

2022 FTE Analysis Report - Information Supplemental to the budget estimates

ACS2023-FCS-HRS-0001 - Citywide

• Report Recommendation

  That Council receive the FTE Analysis Report as supplemental information to the 2023 draft budget. 

  Received

15.

Transit Commission Report #1

15.1

Financial Update for Zero-Emission Bus Program Funding

ACS2023-FSD-FIN-0001 - Citywide

• Commission Recommendations

  That Council approve:

  1. Additional budget authority for the Zero-Emission Bus (ZEB) Program in the amount of $425 million; $350 million from the Infrastructure Canada (INFC) grant and $75 million drawdown on the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) credit facility. 
  2. The budget adjustment of $55,015,000 transferring funding from the existing 2022 approved Bus Replacement budget to the ZEB Program Budget.
  3. That the General Manager, Transit Services, as part of the annual budget process, request the City’s share of the ZEB funding requirements and accompanying CIB financing amount for each subsequent tranche of the ZEB purchases required from 2024 to 2025.
  4. That the Chief Financial Officer/Treasurer be authorized to establish a ZEB Program Reserve, as described in this report, to facilitate the repayment of the CIB loan and replacement batteries from accrued savings, as required by the CIB loan agreement.
  Carried as amended (19 to 6)
• Motion No. 2023 - 06/02
  Moved by G. Gower
  Seconded by S. Menard

  WHEREAS at its meeting on February 1, 2023, Council will consider a report titled, “Financial Update for Zero-Emission Bus Program Funding”; and  

  WHEREAS information pertaining to accessibility was inadvertently omitted from the report’s Accessibility Impacts section;  

  THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the report’s Accessibility Impacts section be amended to include the following:

  Accessibility has been integral to the procurement process for zero-emission vehicles. Staff have considered the concerns expressed by the Accessibility Advisory Committee and other accessibility stakeholders about the low levels of noise produced by electric vehicles and the increased risk this poses to pedestrians, particularly those who are blind or partially sighted.
   
  Staff mitigated this risk by outfitting the City’s first four pilot battery-electric buses with sound-emission technology. This technology emits a sound from an exterior speaker at the front of the bus, which is intended to mimic that of an internal combustion engine. The sound is generated when the bus is idling, and when it is moving at 32 km/hour or less, for example, when it is leaving or approaching a bus stop or intersection. In addition, the battery-electric buses included the same accessibility features as the fleet's newer bus models, including allocated spaces for customers using mobility devices equipped with “theatre-style” flip-down seats; an additional visual next-stop-announcement sign mounted at the rear entrance; and interior and exterior speakers with improved sound quality.
   
  Once the pilot buses entered service in early 2022, two orientation sessions were coordinated by OC Transpo staff to familiarize accessibility stakeholders with the buses’ sound-emission technology and other accessibility features. Representatives of the Accessibility Advisory Committee, CNIB, Alliance for the Equality of Blind Canadians, Canadian Council of the Blind, Vision Loss Rehabilitation Canada, CNIB Guide Dogs and the City's Accessibility Office participated in the 1.5-hour sessions, which included testing the sound-emission technology on-street in different locations and under different scenarios. The feedback from participants was positive: indicating that the sound generated by the bus's sound emission system was clearly audible, distinct and identifiable, and was useful to customers in identifying that a bus was passing or approaching a stop or intersection. In addition, stakeholders were supportive of the existing on-board accessibility features.
   
  Based on the feedback received, OC Transpo will: equip all future zero-emission buses with the equivalent sound-emission technology; ensure consistent sound, where possible, and volume of sound emission across all zero-emission buses; continue to equip all new battery-electric buses with the same on-board accessibility features; and, monitor new developments in legislation, regulations and emerging technology in sound-emission. OC Transpo will also continue to monitor and respond to feedback from accessibility stakeholders and customers with disabilities as the buses enter service.

  The item was CARRIED as amended on a division 19 Yeas to 6 Nays:

  For (19)	L. Dudas, G. Gower, T. Kavanagh, T. Tierney, R. King, J. Leiper, R. Brockington, C. Kitts, S. Menard, C. Curry, D. Hill, L. Johnson, S. Devine, J. Bradley, S. Plante, A. Troster, M. Carr, S. Desroches, and M. Sutcliffe
  Against (6)	M. Luloff, G. Darouze, A. Hubley, C. Kelly, D. Brown, and W. Lo

  Carried (19 to 6)
• Direction to Staff (Councillor Hill)

  That staff be directed as follows: 

  1. That staff report to Transit Commission annually, with timing to be determined in consultation between the Transit Commission Chair and the General Manager of Transit Services, on the use, reliability, and cost savings of the City’s fleet of zero emissions buses (ZEBs), with a recommendations as to whether the plan Council has approved should be maintained or adjusted;
  2. That staff provide explanatory information to Transit Commission annually, in the context of the annual capital budget approval process, to outline the numbers and types of buses that are planned for acquisition in the upcoming year; and,
  3. That staff continuously review industry trends, available technologies and energy supply options for zero emission buses, and that staff report to the Transit Commission as soon as is practical when there are major changes in the marketplace, along with recommendations as to whether the plan Council has approved should be revised.
  Carried

16.

In Camera Items

There were no in camera items.

17.

Motion to Adopt Reports

• Motion No. 2023 - 06/03
  Moved by L. Dudas
  Seconded by G. Darouze

  That Transit Commission Report 1, the report from the Director of Fleet Services, entitled “2023 Fleet Vehicle and Equipment Plans – Information Supplemental to the Budget Estimates”; the report from the Director of Human Resources entitled “2022 FTE Analysis Report – Information Supplemental to the Budget Estimates”; be received and adopted as amended.

  Carried

18.

Notices of Motion (for Consideration at Subsequent Meeting)

18.1

Councillor S. Devine

• Moved by S. Devine
  Seconded by R. Brockington

  WHEREAS Ottawa has been hit with destructive weather events, including the tornados in 2018 and the derecho in 2022, causing extensive and lengthy power outages; and

  WHEREAS weather experts, as confirmed in the Official Plan, project that Ottawa will continue to experience severe, destructive weather events on a more frequent and basis; and 

  WHEREAS in the 36 hours following the derecho of May 2022, approximately 150,000 Hydro Ottawa customers were without power, and many Ottawa residents went without power for over 10 days; and

  WHEREAS many Ottawa residents living in apartment buildings and condominium buildings were without power for over 10 days, without access to basic necessities such as elevators, emergency hallway lighting, and running water; nor access to emergency resources the city had set up for residents; and

  WHEREAS access to an elevator is essential to the personal autonomy, dignity, and safety of persons with disabilities and persons with mobility challenges living in apartment buildings and condominium buildings; and  

  WHEREAS the Supreme Court of Canada has said that “one must be wary of putting too low a value on accommodating the disabled. It is all too easy to cite increased cost as a reason for refusing to afford the disabled equal treatment.”; and 

  WHEREAS the Accessible Housing Network urges that the Government of Ontario require that every apartment building have a generator capable of powering elevators and emergency lighting; and 

  WHEREAS Ottawa Fire Services has stated a need to shift priorities in their post-storm response to attend to residents living in apartment buildings; and 

  WHEREAS Toronto City Council has recommended that such residential apartment and condominium buildings have backup generators; and

  WHEREAS the Protecting Human Rights in an Emergency Act, 2022, as brought forward by Ottawa West-Nepean MPP Chandra Pasma, seeks to amend the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, and the Condominium Act, 1998, to ensure that all apartment and condominium buildings have a back-up emergency generator capable of running an elevator, emergency hallway lighting, and water pumps for a period of two weeks;

  THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT Ottawa City Council request that the Mayor write a letter addressed to the Premier of Ontario and all Ottawa MPPs expressing City Council’s support of Bill 47, Protecting Human Rights in an Emergency Act (Emergency Power Generators), 2022, and asking the Government of Ontario to approve this legislation, and that this letter of support be sent to local MPPs, the Premier, and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO).

18.2

Councillor D. Brown

• Moved by D. Brown
  Seconded by C. Kelly

  WHEREAS the Independent Electricity System Operator has released an Expedited Procurement Process to procure 1.5 gigawatts of electrical capacity by mid-decade and has been engaging with municipalities with respect to Requests for Proposals for a significant number of new projects for energy generation, storage, and infrastructure; and

  WHEREAS the Expedited Procurement Process (the E-LT1 RFP) closing February 16, 2023 includes three (3) of thirteen (13) Rated Criteria Points for municipal council support resolutions; and 

  WHEREAS after February 16, 2023 the Independent Electricity System Operator is planning two more procurement phases totalling 2.8 gigawatts of capacity to be available mid-decade; and 

  WHEREAS the Independent Electricity System Operator requires a Municipal Support Resolution from the municipal council no later than sixty (60) days after the eighteen (18) month anniversary of the Contract Date; and 

  WHEREAS some Independent Electricity System Operator resources participate in the Ontario electricity market without contracts; and

  WHEREAS it is not clear that the inability for a project to receive a “Municipal Support Resolution” will necessarily lead to the revocation of a proponent’s contract; and

  WHEREAS Ottawa must decrease its reliance on greenhouse gas-emitting sources of energy, including by increasing local renewable energy generation and battery storage, to achieve its greenhouse gas emission reduction targets; and 

  WHEREAS the City has received a request for a Municipal Support Resolution for a 5-megawatt/20-megawatt hour battery energy storage system using lithium-ion battery technology at 650 Upper Dwyer Hill Road, Ottawa that is expected to occupy approximately 0.3 acres (0.12 ha) of land, including all required setbacks and spacing; and 

  WHEREAS municipalities, namely through land use policies in the Official Plan and provisions in the Zoning By-law, set their own priorities with respect to where energy generation, storage, and infrastructure may be permitted; and

  WHEREAS increased energy generation, storage, and infrastructure can have significant impacts on local residents that are worth due consideration by Council under a framework in the Zoning By-law that reflects the City’s Official Plan; and
   
  WHEREAS staff will bring forward an amendment to the City of Ottawa’s Zoning By-law that implements the intent of the policies in the Official Plan with respect to renewable energy generation facilities and storage by Q4 2023 that is in advance of the municipal Comprehensive Zoning By-law update; 

  THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Mayor, on behalf of Council, write a letter to the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Independent Electricity System Operator to formally request confirmation that projects approved through the E-LT1 RFP and future procurements shall not proceed without a Municipal Support Resolution from municipal council in the form of an approved motion; and 

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that staff be directed to come forward with a complete set of regulations in advance of the new Zoning By-law to regulate energy generation, storage and infrastructure as a deliverable project in the 2023 Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development Department Workplan; and 

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the appropriate Standing Committees evaluate current and future requests for Municipal Support Resolutions, including for the proposed battery energy storage system at 650 Upper Dwyer Hill Road, using current Official Plan renewable energy generation and storage policies until amendments have been made to Zoning By-law 2008-250 in Q4 2023; and 

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that until such time as amendments have been made to Zoning By-law 2008-250 in Q4 2023, staff be directed to advise any proponents seeking a Municipal Support Resolution through the E-LT1 RFP and future procurements that staff will not bring such requests to Council unless such requests were made prior to February 8th, 2023, or are considered through the relevant Standing Committee as described in this Motion.

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this motion be sent to the Premier of Ontario, the Ontario Minister of Energy, and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario.

18.3

Councillor C. Kelly

• Moved by C. Kelly
  Seconded by D. Brown

  WHEREAS Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) is undertaking a competitive procurement process for Long-term Reliability Projects to ensure reliability in Ontario’s electricity grid; and

  WHEREAS Solar Flow-Through Funds (SFF) is proposing to add a 5-megawatt/20-megawatt hour Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) using lithium-ion battery technology at 650 Upper Dwyer Hill Road in Ward 5 – West Carleton-March; and 

  WHEREAS the BESS supports the intent of the policies in the Official Plan with respect to renewable energy generation facilities and storage; and

  WHEREAS the BESS is expected to occupy approximately 0.3 acres (0.12 ha) of land, including all required setbacks and spacing; and

  WHEREAS the BESS will be charged by the local grid overnight when there is low electricity demand and will supply power to the grid at times of high demand, providing benefits to grid reliability; and

  WHEREAS a rated criteria of the IESO procurement process is formal support from the municipality in which the Long-Term Reliability Project is proposed to be located; and

  WHEREAS the deadline to submit proposals to the IESOP is February 16, 2023;

  THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that City Council provide a Municipal Support Resolution for the Solar Flow-Through Funds’ proposal to the Independent Electricity System Operator to develop a Battery Energy Storage System at 650 Upper Dwyer Hill Road.

19.

Motion to Introduce By-laws

• Motion No. 2023 - 06/04
  Moved by L. Dudas
  Seconded by G. Darouze

  That the by-laws listed on the Agenda under Motion to Introduce By-laws, Three Readings, be read and passed.

  Carried

19.1

Three Readings

• A by-law of the City of Ottawa to designate certain lands at croissant Wabikon Crescent on Plan 4M-1618 as being exempt from Part Lot Control.

20.

Confirmation By-law

• Motion No. 2023 - 06/05
  Moved by L. Dudas
  Seconded by G. Darouze

  That the following by-law be read and passed:
  To confirm the proceedings of the Council meeting of February 1, 2023.

  Carried

21.

Inquiries

There were no Inquiries.

22.

Adjournment

• Motion No. 2023 - 06/06
  Moved by L. Dudas
  Seconded by G. Darouze

  That the proceedings of the City Council meeting of February 1, 2023, be adjourned.

  The meeting adjourned at 12:54 p.m.

  Carried