Glebe residents have compared the buzzing noise that can be heard in some parts of the neighbourhood to the sound of a drone or helicopter. Unlike an actual rotary-wing aircraft, though, the hum is constant and doesn’t fade off into the distance.
The noise comes from an air conditioning system on top of The Clemow residential tower that opened in February at 265 Carling Ave., near Bronson. Described as a “vibrant 50+ rental community” featuring “community, activities, and a warm, welcome atmosphere,” many nearby Glebe residents regard the structure as something else entirely: a nuisance.
In an update recently posted to The Clemow website, building owner KTS Properties reveals that a “modification to the unit to reduce the level of noise it emits” has been ordered after consultation with engineers and sound specialists. The owner insists this solution will be more effective than the option of installing external baffling.
“Residents won’t see the change,” when the air conditioning system is modified, but neighbours “will notice the difference in sound levels,” according to KTS.
Since the City of Ottawa recently adopted an urban intensification strategy as part of its new Official Plan, the solution to this issue may influence similar residential tower projects for years to come. The plan says Ottawa “has an ambitious target to achieve more growth through intensification than by urban expansion and has a 60 per cent intensification target by 2046.”
This means the city may prioritize zoning for the construction of high-rise residential structures such as The Clemow to encourage intensification rather than expansion of the size of the city.
The property owner says it will finish modifying the building by spring 2026, but frustrated Glebe residents still protesting the nuisance say they will measure success when noise levels are lower. Residents are also dissatisfied with the response from bylaw enforcement officers, who say they haven’t found any noise violations.
Glebe resident Jennifer Humphries told Capital Current “the city, planners, and developers need to come to grips with this issue” since urban intensification is now a priority in Ottawa.
Her spouse, John, said of the noise from The Clemow, “Once you hear it, you can’t not hear it.”
In a Sept. 5 community update, Capital Ward Coun. Shawn Menard highlighted the concerns he’s heard from constituents.
“This disturbance is a quality-of-life issue that has been a constant during this hot air-conditioning season,” he wrote.
Residents organized demonstrations in September and October to protest the steady noise coming from the building. The most recent march disbanded when a representative from building owner KTS Properties agreed to meet and discuss solutions with protestors and Menard.
In an email to Capital Current, Coun. Menard wrote that a significant “challenge with this situation is getting the private property owner to pursue a resolution when no violations have been recorded by bylaw.”
The bylaw provision prohibits operating an air conditioner or similar system if the noise “has a level greater than 50 dB(A) when measured at the point of reception.”
Bylaw officers have reportedly visited several “points of reception” in backyards and on front porches throughout the Glebe to gauge noise levels coming from The Clemow.
Bylaw recorded some measurements above the 50 decibel threshold but didn’t issue violations because they found that ambient noise unrelated to The Clemow’s air conditioning system pushed the noise level above the legal limit.
Menard wrote that getting results for residents is a challenge because it requires balancing provincial and municipal guidelines “with different noise thresholds depending on where decibel readings are taken.”
Roger Chapman, director of By-law and Regulatory Services for the City of Ottawa, confirmed in an email to Capital Current that no violations have been observed to date. Bylaw enforcement services “continues to work with the property manager at The Clemow to explore potential ways to reduce fan noise from the air conditioning system,” Chapman wrote.
Menard wrote in an email to Capital Current he is pursuing a potential amendment to the current noise bylaw. For now, he suggests developers should have more strict oversight of noise plans for future builds “to ensure they are compliant at the outset of construction and not after occupancy has begun.”
While more reviews and public consultations are needed to amend current requirements, bylaw services director Roger Chapman said in his email that the city “continually reviews its regulatory framework to ensure it reflects evolving community expectations and best practices.”
As urban intensification continues in the city, lessons learned from The Clemow controversy may reverberate far beyond the neighbourhood.
Glebe resident Neil Pearson, who holds a degree in urban planning from the University of Dundee and has worked as an urban planner in the United Kingdom, says “this is a good test case to show where there are problems and gaps” in existing building permit and bylaw enforcement processes.
If best practices aren’t identified and implemented now, Pearson warned that this issue in the Glebe “is just going to happen again and again” throughout the city.
