Project update (January 2024)
The City of Ottawa is pleased to advise that the design of the Varley Drive and Leacock Drive proposed sidewalks is underway, refining the completed functional designs and preparing the project for construction. Additionally, a portion of new sidewalk along Teron Road has been added to the project to connect a future sidewalk link between Bethune Way and the development currently under construction southeast of the Teron Road & March Road intersection.
Detailed design is expected to be completed by May 2024, with construction of the project anticipated to commence in June 2024 and be finished by the end of 2024. Please note that in addition to the new sidewalks, there will be pathway upgrades to the Alice Wilson North Trail, as well as traffic calming measures implemented on Varley Drive and Leacock Drive (i.e., raised pedestrian crossovers, reduced roadway widths, etc.).
Another update with a detailed project overview will be provided in the coming months as detailed design nears its completion. Should you have any inquiries in the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact:
City Project Manager
Joseph Lolli, P.Eng.
Engineer, Infrastructure Projects
100 Constellation Drive, Ottawa, ON K2G 6J8
Tel.: 613-580-2424, ext. 21679
Update May 30, 2022
The City of Ottawa has updated the functional design of the Varley Drive and Leacock Drive proposed sidewalks following public feedback received in 2021 (refer to April 22, 2021 update for more information on public feedback received by the project team). The final functional design can be found by clicking on the following links:
Varley Drive (west) Functional Design [ PDF 11.177 MB ]
Varley Drive (east) Functional Design [ PDF 10.155 MB ]
Leacock Drive Functional Design [ PDF 16.708 MB ]
The project will now proceed to the detailed design and construction phases led by Infrastructure Services. The project website will be updated with the contact information of the Infrastructure Services project manager as soon as it is available.
For more information, please contact:
Mazen Shuhaibar
Project Manager, Cycling and Walking Programs
Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development Department
City of Ottawa
110 Laurier Avenue West
613-580-2400, ext. 52901
mazen.shuhaibar@ottawa.ca
Update April 22, 2021
The As we heard it consultation summary reports for the Varley Drive and Leacock Drive proposed sidewalks, can be found at the following links:
Varley Drive As we heard it report [ PDF 222 KB ]
Leacock Drive As we heard it report [ PDF 251 KB ]
The top six concerns were as follows:
- Beaverbrook Community design: the proposed sidewalks will disturb the original Bill Teron “Garden City” design
- Pedestrian safety: concerns related to the safety of school children, residents walking and running, those using strollers, seniors and those with vision and hearing impairments, using mobility aids and wheelchairs
- Traffic speed and volume: concerns related to increased traffic and speed throughout both neighbourhoods
- Property Impacts: negative impacts that the new sidewalks would have on driveways, lawns, berms and trees
- On-Street parking: concerns regarding the implementation of sidewalks reducing on street parking
- Alice Woods and Sandwell Park: informal pathway that is not winter maintained
The functional design will be adjusted with consideration to the public feedback before progressing to the detailed design stage. Some public feedback, particularly related to individual properties, will be reviewed further as part of the detailed design to identify the most appropriate integration with existing landscapes. Based on the public feedback, the City plans to continue with designing a sidewalk on the west side of Leacock Drive and the inside of Varley Drive and will move forward with the following actions:
- Further assess traffic speeds and consider opportunities to incorporate some limited traffic calming measures.
- Conduct further survey mapping near properties with berms to better assess how the sidewalk will tie into the berms.
- Reduce impact on trees by using hydrovacing around trees that are at higher risk for damage and narrowing sidewalk to 1.8m where recommended by Forestry services.
- Review driveway lengths for short driveways to confirm all driveways continue to accommodate at least one vehicle length.
- Sidewalks will be installed behind the existing curb where possible which will maintain on street parking. Where road is proposed to be narrowed, parking will be limited to one side.
- Consult with Forestry and review opportunities to upgrade the existing sub-standard north side pathway through Alice Woods and Sandwell Park.
Please note that once the functional design has been adjusted, the updated design will be posted here on the project web page.
For more information, please contact:
Mazen Shuhaibar
Project Manager, Cycling and Walking Programs
Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development Department
City of Ottawa
110 Laurier Avenue West
613-580-2400, ext. 52901
mazen.shuhaibar@ottawa.ca
Sidewalk Implementation
The City of Ottawa is proposing to construct three new sections of 2.0m wide sidewalks for the following road segments:
- Varley Drive west from Beaverbrook Road to Carr Crescent north (east side) 490m in length
- Varley Drive east from Beaverbrook Road to Milne Crescent north (west side) 550m in length
- Leacock Drive west from Beaverbrook Road to The Parkway (west side) 430m in length
These three sections of proposed sidewalk are listed within the Council-approved 2013 Ottawa Pedestrian Plan and will be approximately 1470m in total length. In accordance with the City’s policy for collector roads, Varley Drive and Leacock Drive should both have a pedestrian facility on both sides of the roadway. The requirement becomes increasingly important when the corridor is a public transit route, leads directly to public transit, fronts onto schools, parks, community facilities and/or leads directly to these amenities. Due to the limited budget, the proposal is to complete the inner loop of Varley Drive and the outer loop of Leacock Drive. The projects would essentially fill in the missing sidewalk pieces and contribute to one complete continuous sidewalk. The completion of these sidewalk segments will provide connections to W. Erskine Johnston Public School, Georges Vanier Catholic School, Stephen Leacock Public School, Varley Park, Holly Acres Park and Craig Park. The project includes connections to bus stops within the project limits.
The proposed sidewalks will be installed within the City’s right-of-way. The need for any additional right-of-way to accommodate the sidewalk will be identified during the study. Landscaping and other features within the right-of-way may be impacted during construction.
See drawing below for the extent of the study area.
Additional information and a short survey regarding these projects can be found by clicking on the following links:
Functional design [ PDF 5.852 MB ]
For more information, please contact:
Mazen Shuhaibar
Project Manager, Cycling and Walking Programs
Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development Department
City of Ottawa
110 Laurier Avenue West
613-580-2400, ext. 52901
mazen.shuhaibar@ottawa.ca