Pedestrians walk through an urban lane behind Bank Street, connecting James and Gilmour streets.
Centretown residents and businesses are preparing for changes in the way the city manages so-called “urban lanes” – back alleys and other small streets with ambiguous ownership and maintenance issues.
City staff presented a report to the transportation committee in early April with recommendations regarding the way encroachment on these lanes is managed. The report and its recommendations were accepted by the committee and passed on to council for discussion on April 24.
The report says there are 64 kilometres of such lanes in Ottawa that are not subject to a comprehensive council policy. City officials want to improve the way they are managed as an asset, with respect to maintenance and encroachment.
If homeowners or businesses are encroaching on city streets, they could be subject to minor fines, according to the report.
Several issues led to the creation of the report, dating back to January 2010.
City staff needed to address problematic situations such as the sale of lane portions, which left landlocked parcels of property inside certain blocks with no access, or created dead ends, according to the report.
Staff also confronted maintenance issues and perceptions by some property owners of inconsistent responses to applications to create parking spaces.
Changes to city policies could have an impact on local businesses.
Many lanes are used for access to parking and deliveries. One of those lanes connects James and Gilmour streets, running behind businesses operating along Bank Street.
The Buzz Restaurant and Lounge uses the lane to access employee parking and receive supplies, says Jeanette Bouchard, general manager of the restaurant.
“It’s important mainly because of the deliveries,” Bouchard says. “We can’t have people coming through the front door.”
Changes to the way the laneway is managed could affect the parking and delivery-truck access for all businesses along the alley, says Bouchard.
There is also some confusion about who should be maintaining the laneway, according to Joseph Nasr, general manager of Bridgehead Coffeehouse at Bank and Gilmour streets.
A private contractor plows the laneway during the winter, says Nasr. “I don’t know from whom he gets paid. I guess maybe the landlord.”
The recommendations in the report would establish a policy requiring the city to clearly state who is responsible for the maintenance of these laneways.
Some concern was voiced at the committee meeting by Linda Hoad, a member of the Hintonburg Community Association’s board of directors. The report was premature, Hoad says.
“I’m really shocked and surprised that there has been no consultation. We’ve been talking with (city staff) for several years about ‘When is the report going to come out about lanes?’” Hoad told committee members.
City officials did not have to provide notice to the public about the report because it dealt with city-owned streets, according to Alain Miguelez, the city’s program manager for zoning, intensification and neighbourhoods.
The process for dealing with city roadways, sidewalks, and laneways is different than approving development applications on private land, Miguelez said.
The report should have been deferred for further discussion with the public, according to Hoad.
Innes Coun. Rainer Bloess agreed. “I’m a little surprised at the sudden urgency of this to go to council,” he said.
“Encroachment issues in back alleys and lanes have been around ever since the Champlain Sea covered this land.”
“Some citizens are assuming these laneways belong to them,” Rideau-Rockcliffe Coun. Peter Clark said at the committee meeting, opposing deferral. “We need to have an encroachment policy that will reserve the city’s interests.”