City lays out how Tewin suburb would be paid for

City of Ottawa staff haveoutlined howtopay for infrastructure when it expands itsurban boundary for new housing,including at a whole future suburb called Tewin.

Asweeping set of documentsreleasedahead of an important October vote on a new official plan includesnot just that major city-building blueprint, but alsooutstanding business from an importantcouncil meeting last winter.

In February, councilvotedto bring 1,011 rural hectares inside Ottawa'surban boundary for future development andcreate an entirely new suburb in the rural southeastnot originally proposed by city staff, calling itan act of reconciliation with Algonquin people.

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Staff have now come back with the 445 hectares to be added for that suburb, Tewin, a development theAlgonquins of Ontario (AOO) proposed with their partnerTaggart.

The development company also helped the AOO with financing to buy landin the area from the Ontario government.

Proposed agreementfor Tewin

Amid concerns abouta fourth suburb located far beyond existing homes, pipes and transit, the Algonquins of Ontario and Taggart had promised that "Tewin would pay for Tewin."

Over the past eight months, city staff have worked hard to resolve council's concerns about Tewin's soil conditions and financial implications, said planning committee co-chairCoun. Scott Moffatt.

"[It's] awhole brand-new community in an area that doesn't have hardly any development today. That's a big decision," he said.

Staff have now drawn up wording that could be used in an agreementbetween the landowners and the City of Ottawa.

Theowners say they'll cover the city's share of anynew train or Transitway infrastructure with adevelopment charge specific to new developmentin that area.

That fee, on top of typical development charges, couldalso pay for roads and pipes. Tewinwill alsocover OC Transpooperating costs for things like staff, fuel, new buses and the installation of charging stations.

"The risk-to-the-city part... was the most important piece, and I feel that's really covered in that [memorandum of understanding]," said Moffatt.

The landowners will also be responsible for a number of necessary studies related to such things as water, transportation, and soils.

Public meeting Sept. 29

It's not just Tewinthat councillors have been worried about, however.

In February, councillors expressed frustration with Ottawa's booming suburbs, where homes are builtbut roads, transit and other infrastructure lag far behind.

The new official plan addresses certain new areas to bebrought inside the urban boundary thatmight be too far from an existing rapid transit station. Those areaswon't be able to develop until money is found fortransit, water pipes, sidewalks, and roads, it says.

Moffatt also hopes council colleagues will reconsider land they brought intothe urban boundary nearRiverside South, after staff couldn't corroborate the developer's study that the land is no longer agricultural.

All of thisfine-tuning ofcouncil's urban boundary decision is just part of the larger official plan, however, whichsets out what can be builtin Ottawa through 2046 and where.

Residents have pored over its hundreds of pages , which were gradually releasedover the past couple of months, knowing that each map or policy could bring greatchange to neighbourhoods.

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They can take part in a virtual open house onSept. 29.

A joint meeting of the planning and rural affairs committee is then set forOct.14, and the interest is so greatthat it's scheduled to last threedays.