Are old convents the answer to Ottawa’s emergency housing crisis?

Sponsored by

Good morning! 

Is it Friday already? I am not sure where this week has gone. I’m looking forward to the weekend and throwing my first-ever Halloween party. As someone with no life, this should certainly be an adventure. 

Earlier this week, the federal government announced it was going to reduce the number of permanent immigrants allowed into the country. Part of the reason? They can’t find housing. To deal with the demand, the city has purchased two former convents which will be converted. The Lookout spoke to two city councillors about the plans. 

On Wednesday, the Greenboro Community Centre was officially named after former city councillor Diane Deans. We spoke to current Gloucester-Southgate representative Jessica Bradley about the honour.

— Charlie Senack, [email protected].

PS - If you find this newsletter valuable, please consider forwarding it to your friends. New to the Lookout? Sign up for free.

WEATHER

Friday: 12 🌡️ 6 | 🌤️

Saturday: 10 🌡️ -3 | 🌤️

Sunday: 7 🌡️ -6 | 🌤️

Monday: 8 🌡️ -1 | 🌤️

CITY HALL

Are old convents the answer to Ottawa’s emergency housing crisis?

A crisis situation: Ottawa is in the middle of an affordable housing crisis. According to data from this August, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Ottawa climbed above $2,000 compared to $2,577 for a two-bedroom. That was a 3.3 per cent increase compared to the year before. 

In 2017, the waitlist for rent-geared-to-income housing sat at over 10,500. A study produced in 2023 found that for every unit of affordable housing built, 31 are being lost due to rising rents, demolition or renovation. During the 2024 budget process, city council approved a $30 million one-time funding deal for more affordable housing.

To deal with this influx, the city is exploring alternative options to house people either temporarily or permanently — and fast. There is also a push to spread such facilities out across the city, instead of in just the core, which has predominantly included any kind of shelter. 

Temporary housing coming to Orleans 

Housing newcomers: On Wednesday, the city of Ottawa officially purchased a 25-acre parcel of land in Orleans to be used for transitional housing. The former Sisters of Charity of Ottawa convent, where nuns lived, will remain on the site and could provide accommodation for about 150 clients. 

The Sisters announced a few years ago they were looking to sell off the property after it was no longer required and fears started to spread over what that could mean. The property at 1754 St. Joseph Boulevard sits in a more secluded area and is surrounded by sprawling forests of trees. While it’s now being celebrated as a win for the community, it wasn’t always that way. 

• “This is an interesting initiative. The community and I were actually caught off guard by this. I’d heard in passing and I held my own reservations about what it would mean for the community. It’s a difficult site to develop because of clay and it's next to a creek,” Orleans Innes Coun. Laura Dudas told the Lookout. “But with the Sisters' intentions for it to be used as a charitable mandate, they approached the city and started talking about turning it into transitional housing.”

Dudas said she’s happy to see the building remain as it holds historical charm and should open in early 2025. Before that happens, an open house will be held so nearby residents can check out the facilities and ask questions about the programming that will be offered. 

The residents' stay will only be temporary and will house mainly asylum seekers. 

• “I had a lot of people speaking about concerns about this not being a shelter space because there are very few supports in the east end for that kind of function. Then we discovered it was going to be predominantly for newcomers. They make up 60 per cent of the single adults in the shelter system,” said Dudas. “This will help take some of these folks out of shelters where they don’t belong. They don’t have the same type of needs as someone with mental health issues or drug or alcohol addictions. They are just facing where do you live until federal support kicks in?”

An overloaded system: Currently, over a thousand asylum seekers are staying in city-run community centers, which have been converted into temporary lodging accommodations. This has put a strain on neighborhoods which have been without the use of their amenities or recreational programming. The Heron Road Community Centre, as an example, currently houses 230 asylum seekers who share six showers. 

Quick action: The city is getting ready to open two federally-funded sprung structures which would house 150 people each. They would include private rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, and spaces for social services to be delivered. City staff said their target would be to house the residents for no more than 90 days before they find permanent accommodation, but recent statistics suggest the average stay at another Ottawa-run site is 184 days.

City purchases former Alta Vista church lands for $18.5 million 

Fair and reasonable: In August 2023 it was unveiled that three hectares of church lands in Alta Vista were purchased for affordable housing. With a cheap price tag of $18.5 million, the former 8.7 acre seminary lands were bought for a “fair and reasonable” price, a staff report read. 

• "The site would facilitate co-location of community and health services, development of a range of new housing options and offer options for systems and resource coordination," the report said.

Renovations needed: Sitting vacant since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 65-year-old building is showing its wear, with extensive repairs would need to be undertaken.

While one side of the building has seen new windows installed and brickwork repaired, the other side would still need to be replaced. A portion of the building also has asbestos, though Carr said it’s not as invasive as initially thought. 

Alta Vista ward councillor Marty Carr said it’s a rare opportunity to acquire a property already set up for housing. 

• “The city is aware there is significant investment that will need to be made in terms of repairs. The boiler needs to be turned back on, and there is some structural work,” she said, adding graffiti in the basement would need to be removed after a recent break-in. 

The former seminary would add another 90 beds. 

The dilemma: Hydro has been turned back on at the site, and city staff have been reviewing the best course of action. It’s still unclear if they plan to retain the current building — an option preferred by the community — or if they will tear it down and build something new. Concerns are it would most likely cost more to restore what’s there, but that option could also house people sooner — and time is of the essence. 

Next steps: Carr stresses that no final decisions have been made for the Kilborn property. The city continues to undertake tests and will be drilling boreholes on the site from Oct.  29 to 30. A planning and urban design consultant will be hired to prepare a Concept Plan and lead engagement efforts with the community.

• The first public engagement session is now expected to begin in September 2025 which will include visioning and the development of a draft concept plan. The second public engagement session is expected to be done in January 2026 with a refined concept plan and an implementation plan.

SPONSORED BY ALIMENTS FARMHOUSE FOOD

Buying local supports farmers and producers, and helps food security in our region

If you only shop at chain grocery stores it can be hard to find locally produced foods that support food production in the National Capital Region. But our region is full of sustainable agriculture and production and you can help it thrive!

 Aliments Farmhouse Food brings together farmers, meat producers, bakers, grain millers, makers of preserves and more to provide weekly or bi-weekly grocery items for you. 

The farmers and families involved live and grow their items within 150 kms of Parliament Hill. All the farmed vegetables and fruits are organic or pre-certified organic, wild foods are all harvested in a sustainable manner, pasture-raised animals are given grass or organic feed, and kept free of hormones and prophylactic antibiotics.

Try a weekly or bi-weekly subscription and get to know the families who are keeping our region green and fruitful. Eat locally and deliciously and help strengthen our region.

OTTAWA BY THE NUMBERS

🛑 20%: The level of permanent immigration Canada is cutting. The decision comes as the federal government struggles to keep pace with the Influx of new temporary and permanent residents coming to Canada. [CTV]

🏗️ 22-storeys: The height of a new mixed-use tower proposed for near Westboro’s light rail station. [Ottawa Business Journal]

CITY

Greenboro Community Centre officially renamed after Diane Deans

A fitting tribute: On Wednesday night, the Greenboro Community Centre was officially named after Diane Deans, the longtime city councillor who passed away in May after a long fight with ovarian cancer.

Deans served the Gloucester-Southgate ward for 28 years, from 1994 until 2022. At that time, she announced a run for Mayor, but dropped out before officially campaigning. Jessica Bradley, the current ward councillor who used to work in Deans’ office, said the community centre renaming was both emotional and a fitting honour. 

• “It felt like an end of a chapter and a new beginning. Diane for the recognition she deserved,” Bradley told the Lookout. “The love and support in the room was overwhelming. It was a testament to how well-loved she was and how hard she worked for the community. The centre wouldn’t be what it was without her.”

Bold and powerful: During Deans’ reign, she was a bull on council, constantly pushing for transparency and accountability. In her first four years, she established a local safety council, a business parks association, and a library advocacy committee. In 2006, the Greenboro Library opened in the building that would later bear her name. 

• “It was really difficult, even back then, to secure funding for a centre when it’s not tied to development charges. Diane was like a dog with a bone when she had an idea,” said Bradley. 

The first library after amalgamation: The library was designed to resemble what you might see in Chapters or a video rental store (it was the early 2000s after all) and cost $7.7 million for the 29,0000 square-foot facility to be built. There were environmental impacts, too. Furniture was made from strawboard so it could be composted later in life. The urinals in bathrooms were waterless and the lights went off when a person left the room. in just its first 17 days, 46,000 items were borrowed, reported the Ottawa Citizen. 

• A critic of the mayor: It’s no secret that Deans and then Mayor Jim Watson were not friends. She was a thorn in his side on many issues, including the revitalization of Lansdowne, the building of the Confederation Line LRT, and her role as head of the Police Services Board. 

In 2022, Deans was removed from the board by the mayor and her council colleagues in a no-confidence vote after she went and hired Matt Torigian to replace Peter Sloly as police chief. It was during the so-called freedom convoy and Watson was disappointed Deans did not consult him on the hiring. 

THE AGENDA

🏪 Ottawa’s Shaw Centre is being renamed the Rogers Centre Ottawa. The change comes as the convention center reached a 10-year deal with the telecom giant. Signs inside and outside the building will be changed in the coming months. [CTV]

🚊 Testing is well underway on the city’s light rail Trillium Line and drivers will have to deal with real-life situations during mock simulations. Those have included soiled trains, broken rails, and smoke in the tunnels. Passengers could start riding the rails in mid-November. [Ottawa Citizen]

🏢 Developer Sam Mizrahi has been given creditor protection for its luxury Wellington St. West condo which still isn’t completed.  The order doesn’t mean bankruptcy or receivership, but gives time for the developer and company to get the project near Island Park Drive back on track. So, far 72 of the 93 units have been sold. [Ottawa Citizen]

🎤 The family of Friends star Matthew Perry were in Ottawa on Thursday to officially launch a foundation in his honour. Perry, who grew up in the Capital, was 54 when he suddenly died last year. Among those in attendance were Dateline’s Keith Morrison — his stepfather — and sister Caitlin Morrison. [CBC]

❤️ A park in downtown Ottawa is now home to one of the city’s first outdoor defibrillators. The life-saving machine is located in St. Luke’s Park near tennis And basketball courts. [CBC]

In your neighbourhood 

🍽️ Kanata‘s D'Arcy McGee's Pub has shut its doors over unpaid franchise fees. The eatery on Terry Fox Drive allegedly owes $73,000 in arrears. [Ottawa Citizen]

🍭 Ottawa police say a suspicious incident which occurred Involving a child in Orleans on Oct. 6 has been deemed not criminal. Details of what happened are mostly unknown, but police initially reported the suspect approached children in his vehicle and offered them candy. When a parent approached, they quickly drove away. [CTV]

💰 It was 11 years ago when the City of Ottawa tore down a fence in Orleans, which they said was on right-of-way property. The fence cost about $13,000 when it was installed in 2013. Then property owners Mo Haider and Nitin Datta — who are located on both sides of the fence — said they have had to deal with multiple lawsuits and $43,000 in penalties. [CBC]

👮‍♂️ Ottawa Police say a woman is dead after being stabbed to death at Paul Landry Park on Uplands Drive. The incident occurred just before 11:30 a.m. on Thursday. The 36-year-old, identified as Brkti Berhe of Ottawa, was with her two children when the incident unfolded. A witness said a man repeatedly stabbed the woman before slashing her neck. A suspect has been arrested. [Ottawa Citizen]

🚗 Ottawa Police are looking for the public’s help in identifying a car linked to a homicide in Metcalfe. At a press conference, officials said 66-year-old Dale Lusk was stabbed moments from his home on Sept. 23 and later died in hospital. [Ottawa Citizen]

EVENTS

A Tribute to Taylor Swift with Simply Spice | TD Place at Lansdowne, 1015 Bank St | Oct. 26 | An affordable way to get that Taylor Swift experience. Secure your spot now and "spice up your life" with a night full of music, dance and memories. | Ticket prices vary. 

Urban Art Collective Saturday Themed Market | 1088 Somerset Street W | Oct. 26 | A Halloween-themed market for all art lovers out there! Stroll through the Hintonburg Night Market to pickup local eats, treats and all things handmade. | Free. 

Halloween Howl Market | Shenkman Arts Centre, 245 Centrum Blvd | Oct. 26 | Enter the Halloween Howl Market where the spooktacular entry is free, bewitching door prizes await and local vendors conjure up a cauldron of delights. | Free. 

Halloween Bar Crawl: Walking Dead - Ottawa Bar Crawl | Various locations |  Oct. 26 | For one night only, you’ll haunt the city's hottest spots, indulging in exclusive drink specials, spine-tingling entertainment and a night of unforgettable thrills. | Tickets are $19.56. 

Pumpkin Fest | Proulx Maple & Berry Farm, 1865 O'Toole Rd | Until Oct. 26 | Pack a lunch and bring the whole family down to the Annual Pumpkin Festival featuring a petting zoo, corn maze, wagon rides, pick-your-own pumpkin and more. | Prices vary. 

Halloween Heist | Billings Estate National Historic Site, 2100 Cabot St | Oct. 26-27 | Explore the museum grounds in a fun, self-guided adventure while completing games and activities. | Admission is $33.66 for a group of up to six people. 

Halloween in the forest | Richelieu Park, 300 Des Pères-Blancs Ave | Oct. 27 | The Vanier Museopark, in collaboration with the Vanier Optimist Club, invites kids and grown-ups to take a stroll in the Richelieu Park forest to celebrate Halloween. | Free. 

York Street Market | Along York St. | Oct. 27 | Visit the ByWard Market every other Sunday to explore 30+ vendors offering handmade goods like home decor, jewelry, cider, spices and more! | Free. 

Acres of Terror | Cannamore Orchard, 1480 County Road 32 | Until Oct. 30 | A terrifying Halloween attraction with four main parts: The Spooky Wagon Ride, House of Terror, Fog Maze and Spooky Village. | Ticket prices vary. 

Pumpkins After Dark | 401 Corkstown Rd | Until Oct. 31 | Pumpkins After Dark is an outdoor Halloween celebration featuring over 10,000 hand-carved pumpkins, food trucks, roaming entertainment, and live pumpkin carving. | Ticket prices vary. 

Pumpkinferno | Upper Canada Village, 13740 County Road 2, in Morrisburg | Until Oct. 31 | Take a nighttime stroll through a spellbinding outdoor exhibit of more than 7,000 handcrafted pumpkins lit up along a kilometre-long path with a picturesque historic backdrop. | Ticket prices vary. 

PumpkinFest and FrightFest | Saunders Farm, 7893 Bleeks Rd | PumpkinFest offers family-friendly autumn fun — find the perfect pumpkin, get lost in their hedge mazes, hop on a hayride and enjoy kid-friendly haunted attractions. | Ticket prices vary. 

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Barrhaven’s ‘Crime for Christmas’ book fair is happening on Nov. 19. [Barrhaven Independent]

• Join Women United on November 7 for our Disruptive Dialogue, featuring expert discussions on financial literacy, mental health, and the transformative power of women in philanthropy. [Sponsored]

• Breast Cancer Survivors ‘Run for the Cure’ at Rideau Carleton Raceway. [Barrhaven Independent]

• Wellington West Giant Tiger owner John Ferguson has retired after three decades. [Kitchissippi Times]

• Friends and family gathered to thank Reverend Anthony Bailey who has left Parkdale United Church after 25 years. [Kitchissippi Times]

• A new Christmas movie is being released on Netflix which will feature locations shot in Ottawa and Brockville. [CTV]

• The 43rd annual Snowsuit Fund has officially kicked off in Ottawa. [CTV]

• Want to have your announcement featured? Learn how here.

WORDLE

Think you can solve this week’s Ottawa wordle? Play now.