GACA Board Meeting – June 1, 2021

Glebe Annex Community Association (GACA)

Board Meeting – Tuesday June 1st, 2021 7:00 p.m.

Held Via Zoom

Present: Annalisa Salonius, Avery Steinberg, David Perkins, Gabrielle Dallaporta, Jeremy Reisch, Joanne Benoit, Laurent Carbonneau, Paul Sarrouf, Scott Templeton, Sue Stefko, Jonathan McLeod (Assistant, Office of Shawn Menard, Councillor, Capital Ward)

The meeting was called to order at 7:05 p.m.    The agenda was approved with the addition of one item, the introduction of returning and new board members.

All returning and new board members, and Jon from Councillor Menard’s office, introduced themselves.

The minutes were approved.

There was no business arising from May 4th.

The councillor’s office had requests for traffic calming measures on additional streets in the Glebe Annex.  Basic measures, like flex stakes do not require consultation. The issue of cars running stop signs was discussed.

The vaccine clinic at the Horticulture Building is closer to opening. Better air systems are being installed.  It will be nice to have an additional central vaccination location option.

Line 2 is the original O-Train route that goes from Bayview, past Dow’s Lake to Carleton and South Keys.  There have been some delays, so the city will start extending the hours of work to 10 hours a day, as well as on weekends. This work should not affect the Glebe Annex, noise-wise. The closest stop with accelerated construction is Gladstone station. Once Line 2 is completed and the train is running again, the R2 buses will come off Bronson and Carling.

A meeting took place with city traffic staff, MTO, the Councillor’s office, and Sue.  The MTO have redesigned the Bronson offramp it so it will have a very wide right-hand turn coming off the Queensway. The wide turn encourages drivers to try and whip around that corner to merge onto the traffic on Bronson. There is also a challenge in that there is an additional turning lane, so it will also be wider for pedestrians to cross when they traverse the offramp. One positive is that they the MTO is realigning the access to Chamberlain from the offramp, so vehicles coming from the 417 will no longer make a quick jog right and then left to get onto Chamberlain. The traffic staff said it is not possible to have a ‘no right turn on red’ light, due to traffic volume.  There is a possibility of creating a road apron.  An apron is a buffer area, a lower curb with rumble strips on it. If a car cuts that corner tightly, it will go over the rumble strips and will automatically slow down. However, the MTO noted that this could inconvenience trucks, since this is on a truck route. Councillor Menard asked the MTO and city staff to consider a raised pedestrian crosswalk across Bronson. The MTO was sceptical, as they indicated that heavy trucks going over the speed bumps constantly would destroy them.  There will be a Chamberlain Street realignment public consultation by the city. The councillor’s office wants to ensure that it is safe for pedestrians and cyclists.

Carling Avenue, from Sherwood to just before Bronson, will have a temporary bike lane installed. The hope is to create a temporary bike only lane, using traffic cones in what is now the shoulder of Carling.  The Councillor’s office is working with other implicated councillors to help fund the lane.

Concerns were raised regarding the residents only signage on Powell.  Initially there were road blockades, then warning signs that violators would be ticketed. The new residents only signage is smaller with a Covid-related message to share the road.  Jon said the initial blockades and fine warnings were an error and offensive.  They are now looking at more permanent signage as people rip the papers off.  The Covid-related measure was introduced as more children were playing in the street, particularly when after school programs were cancelled. This is a temporary measure.  Many people were opposed to the signs initially, but many are now supportive. Jon delivered flyers to residents of Powell Avenue in the Glebe and spoke with residents there.  The signs will probably be removed at end of the summer, September, when school starts.

Support for the temporary traffic calming methods on Carling was expressed – it will be positive for the community. This is a plus not only for the cyclists but also for pedestrians, with the cars farther from the sidewalk. Sue also expressed her thanks to the city councillor and Jon for the MTO meeting on the Bronson offramp, where the MTO was somewhat hostile to any suggestions for change.  She appreciates their perseverance and fighting to improve the safety of the Glebe Annex. MTO was difficult, but the councillor and Jon stayed firm and respectful.

Sue thanks Jon for his attendance at the GACA board meetings and his and the councillor’s ongoing support.

Sue did not hear back from the Glebe Community Centre on meeting room availability.  Based on everyone’s availability, meeting options are the first Tuesday of the month, or the second or fourth Wednesday of the month.

Executive Positions:  president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer.  There are also areas of effort. If there is more than one candidate, we will vote using Doodle.

New Board 2021 – 2022

The following board members stepped forward for the following areas.   Avery will not be on the board due to her schedule, but she will help out with events.

We had a date chosen in May, but the city cancelled the spring clean due to Covid. Now it is back on. The date of June 12th was chosen with a rain date of June 13th.

The MTO seemed quite unwilling to listen or look at any design changes. The Councillor wanted a tighter turn radius as vehicles exited the off ramp onto Bronson, to make cars slow down.  The MTO said this could not be done because it is a truck route, and you cannot make it more difficult for trucks. Sue asked for more signage or painted road indicators or something to better denote the pedestrian crossing – they also seemed unwilling to do that. The city staff did not push for any of these suggestions either.

Sue had planned on writing a community association position on the whole idea of blocking of the street.  Powell is not the only street with this signage and the signage is less offensive now. Individuals have complained and maybe a community letter is no longer required.  Laurent offered to draft a diplomatic letter, while still expressing our concerns to the Councillor. This was supported by the board. Our community will be provided with a summary and history of the signage on Powell in our next newsletter.

The meeting adjourned at 8:42 p.m.