Summer in the City…

Hello Old South!  Summer is here and its bringing out all our neighbours onto the streets for festivals, barbecues & patios.  Already we’ve had another successful Gathering on the Green as well as a fantastic showing for National Aboriginal Day.  I also hope to see everyone at the Wortley Jazz and Blues Festival on Sunday, August 28^th.  There’s never a lack of exciting things to do in our neighbourhood.

To bring you up to date, the YMCA should be finishing upgrades to the Normal School within the next couple months and opening in the fall.  The glass entrance is really coming along and I can’t wait to see what the finished product looks like. 

As well, on June 15^th, we hosted a very well attended public meeting at Wortley Road Public School on the housing infill & intensification occurring in Old South. Over 70 people came to discuss their visions for how we can best manage new growth in our neighbourhood in the coming years.  Staff will compile the input that was given to help develop new policies to guide builders over the next few years until The London Plan is in full force and effect.  Once the draft policies are ready, we will have a public participation meeting at City Hall. Stay tuned for details.

As I’ve just mentioned the London Plan, I’m excited to announce that on June 23^rd, City Council unanimously passed the most significant update to the city’s official plan in over 20 years.  This is arguably the single largest piece of policy that we will complete during our term and it lays out the manner in which our city will grow for decades to come.  We have focused on reducing urban sprawl, increasing availability of affordable housing, improving intensification guidelines, designating rapid transit corridors and protecting our environmentally sensitive lands, just to name a few. The London Plan is the result of several years of tireless work by city staff, two terms of council and, most importantly, you.  Thousands of Londoners shared their visions for what they saw as priorities for our city and those ideas are now enshrined in the Plan.

Thanks for being so involved! Please don’t hesitate to share your ideas with me and I hope you have a safe and happy summer!