At a Special Council Meeting on Thursday, June 15, Council received the final recommendations report concerning the Oshawa Ward Boundary Review from the Consultant Team of Watson and Associates Economists Ltd. and Dr. Robert Williams.

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The Consultant Team of Watson and Associates Economists Ltd. and Dr. Robert Williams have released their Oshawa Ward Boundary final recommendations report and wish to thank the community for their feedback. The report is now available on the City’s website and will be presented to Council during a Special Council Meeting on Thursday, June 15 at 6:30 p.m. in Council Chamber at City Hall. Community members are welcome to:

• Attend in person;
• Submit email or written correspondence to City Hall; address correspondence to City Clerks, clerks@oshawa.ca or 50 Centre St. S., 5th Floor, Rundle Tower, L1H 3Z7.
• Watch online via webstreaming

View the City of Oshawa Oshawa ward boundary review – final recommendations report now.

Subject to Council direction on June 15, 2017 a by-law formally approving the boundaries will be considered by City Council at their regular meeting scheduled for Monday, June 26. Pending the outcome of any appeals filed with the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB), the new boundaries will be introduced in the 2018 Municipal Elections.

Following their review, the independent consultants have recommended two ward boundary options which Council can choose from, both of which align with the guiding principles underlying the review, as well as receiving the majority of support from residents who participated in the community consultation process.

The first recommended option was displayed as preliminary ward option 5A. The boundary layout strives to achieve reasonable population equality in 2017, which will encourage a more favourable ward balance by 2026. Details on the proposed ward option 5A layout are as follows:

• Proposed Ward 1 includes rural Oshawa, Taunton as well as emerging urban growth areas in Kedron and Columbus.
• Proposed Ward 2 extends from Winchester Road to Rossland Road west of Ritson Road and includes the communities of Windfields, Samac, Northwood, Northglen and Centennial.
• Extending east of Ritson Road from Taunton Road to Bond Street East/King Street East, Proposed Ward 3 includes the communities of Pinecrest and Eastdale.
• Proposed Ward 4 covers the area south of Rossland Road to Highway 401 west of Ritson Road and includes Downtown Oshawa and large portions of the Central and O’Neill neighbourhoods, as well as Vanier and McLaughlin.
• South Oshawa is represented by Proposed Ward 5, which extends south from Highway 401, Ritson Road and Bond Street East/King Street East and includes the communities of Lakeview, Farewell and Donevan.

The second recommended option appeared as preliminary ward option 5E. Similar to option 5A, 5E strives to achieve reasonable population equality in 2017, which will encourage a more favourable ward balance by 2026. Details about the proposed ward option 5E layout are as follows:

• Rural Oshawa, the community of Taunton and emerging urban growth areas in Kedron and Columbus are represented under Proposed Ward 1 which is bound by Highway407, Ritson Road and Taunton Road to the south.
• Proposed Ward 2 extends from Highway 407 to Rossland Road west of Ritson Road and includes the communities of Windfields, Northwood, Samac, Northglen and the majority of Centennial.
• Proposed Ward 3 extends from Taunton Road to Olive Avenue east of Ritson Road and Wilson Road and includes the communities of Pinecrest, Eastdale and the northern portion of Donevan.
• The communities of McLaughlin and O’Neill, northern areas of Vanier and Central as well as Downtown Oshawa are included in Proposed Ward 4, which extends north-south from Rossland Road to Gibb Street/Olive Avenue west of Wilson Road.
• Proposed Ward 5 extends south from Gibb Street and Olive Avenue.

Should Council enact one of the recommended options by by-law at their June 26, 2017 regular meeting, the Minister of Municipal Affairs, or any person or agency may appeal the by-law to the OMB within 45 days of passage (being Thursday, August 10, 2017). The OMB has the authority to make an Order affirming, amending or repealing the by-law passed by Council.

Further information on the review, including reports, presentations and other important items are available on the City’s website at www.oshawa.ca/owbr.

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OSHAWA – The City of Oshawa, in partnership with Oshawa P.U.C. Networks and Oshawa Public Libraries, is pleased to announce the winners of the second annual Energy Conservation Challenge.

The goal of the Challenge was to inspire the community to submit ideas on how to reduce energy consumption and reduce greenhouse gas (G.H.G.) emissions on the Connect Oshawa engagement website and in-person at City and Library facilities.

The Oshawa Environmental Advisory Committee, a committee of volunteers that advises Council with respect to certain environmental matters, reviewed all submitted tips. The Committee selected three winners who will receive gift certificates for Avanti Trattoria restaurant, donated by the Oshawa P.U.C. Networks.

Congratulations to Alexander Chow who submitted the winning tip, “Motion sensor most of the utilities room (hallway, walk in closet, laundry, powder room) and solar timer pot lights around outside of house. Build canopy for south facing window to block heat into the house to save running A.C. in the summer.” Kudos also goes out to second place winner, Clare Izard and to Tonya Harden who took third place.

The Challenge kicked off on Earth Hour (March 25) and ran through to Earth Day (April 22). The City congratulates the winners and thanks all participants who have taken an active interest in environmental responsibility.

“Congratulations to our winners and thank you to everyone that participated in the Energy Conservation Challenge,” said Councillor Amy McQuaid-England, Council Representative on the Oshawa Environmental Advisory Committee. "I encourage all residents to think of ways to reduce our carbon footprint."

“Oshawa Strategic Plan’s goal of environmental responsibility continues to be a priority for the City. The Energy Conservation Challenge was a great way to highlight how simple changes can make an impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and energy use,” said Councillor John Aker, Chair of the Development Services Committee.

The City of Oshawa has demonstrated leadership in achieving its goals to reduce its corporate G.H.G. emissions and energy consumption by:

• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions at City Hall by over 75 per cent
• Participating in the annual Earth Hour event since 2008 by reducing energy use and turning out all non-essential lights at City Hall and other City facilities
• Achieving energy savings at the Civic Recreation Complex that earned the “10 Percent Club 2016” award at the Mayors’ Megawatt Challenge Annual Forum
• Completing light-emitting diode (L.E.D.) lighting projects in two recreation centres, improving lighting in our facilities and the replacement of L.E.D. street lights

For more information, visit www.oshawa.ca/environment. For updates on the City of Oshawa, visit www.oshawa.ca and sign up for news, alerts and e-newsletters. Stay connected with us on Twitter, Facebook,Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and Connect Oshawa.

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