Local Improvements

Local Improvements are a request for new or replacement municipal infrastructure intended to upgrade or improve certain conditions within residential, commercial, and industrial areas of the municipality. This process is not applicable to infrastructure in new developments. A Local Improvement may be requested by property owners through a petition-based process. When a Local Improvement is approved, costs are shared by all property owners who benefit from this project and the City. Local Improvement works can include noise barriers, watermains, roads, sidewalks, sanitary sewers, storm sewers, and ditch alteration (where applicable).

The City administers Local Improvements through the authority of the following:

• Delegation of Authority to Various Officers of the City (By-law 2019-280)
• Infrastructure Master Plan
• Official Plan
• Ontario Regulation 584/06
• Ontario Regulation 586/06
• Private Approach (By-law No. 2003-447)
• Provincial Policy Statement, Infrastructure and Public Service Facilities
• Sewer Connection (By-law No. 2003-513)
• Sewer Use (By-law No. 2003-514)
• Site Alteration By-law 2018-164
• The Municipal Act, 2001
• Transportation Master Plan
• Use and Care of Roads (By-law No. 2003-498)

Local Improvement projects must be done in accordance with the Municipal, Provincial, and Federal legislations and guidelines. Although Local Improvements are initiated by the community and its residents, all Local Improvements will require approval from the City.

• For any Local Improvement, the City will determine the logical project limits based on system design requirements and/or overall cost benefits (e.g. entire street, completion of a sector, completion of a drainage basin, etc.).
• To address technical feasibility issues, the project limits for any Local Improvement, regardless of how it was initiated, may go beyond the route that will immediately benefit the affected property owners.
• Some candidate sites may not be suitable for a Local Improvement due to a variety of technical, economical, and administrative factors including, but not limited to, site topography and physical limitations.
• The City reserves the right to deny a Local Improvement following the completion of an engineering study, regardless of the recommendation.

The City will consider a Local Improvement for an area if:

• Technically, economically, and administratively feasible based on catchment wide analysis and without detrimental impacts to public or private property
  • This apprach will capitalize on economies of scale, minimize disruption, and provide consistent levels of service to adjacent properties (urban areas, villages or estate lots developments)
• The area is inside the Public Service Area (PSA) to extend sewer or water infrastructure.
• For technical feasibility, group development of no less than three distinct properties (i.e., no one- offs) will be considered for petition process.
• Survey of Interest and Local Improvement Petition has minimum 67% support for the project.

Contact the City and request an information package at LI-AL@ottawa.ca.

1. A property owner submits a written request to the City for a Local Improvement project (LI-AL@ottawa.ca)
2. The City will provide the requester with Fact Sheets
3. The City will complete a preliminary review of the request to determine if it qualifies as a Local Improvement project. If the Local Improvement application qualifies and is eligible, staff will provide a non-binding Survey of Interest Form for circulation by the Lead Petitioner to the benefiting property owners in order to determine the level of interest and identify project limits, as determined by the City.
4. If over two-thirds of the benefiting property owners sign the Survey of Interest form, the City will undertake a preliminary design review of the requested work to determine if the work is feasible.
5. Once the design review is complete and the City has determined that the Local Improvement is feasible, the City will send a Property Owner Package to affected property owners. The Property Owner Package will include cost sharing amounts.
6. The City will generate a Local Improvement Petition form and provide it to the property owner identified as the Lead Petitioner for the benefiting community. A minimum of two-thirds support of the benefiting property owners must be obtained for the Local Improvement to advance.
7. Construction begins.
8. At a pre-determined level of completion, project costs are shared with property owners. Benefiting Property Owners will receive a Notice of Special Assessment outlining payment options and payment terms.
9. Any objections from property owners regarding the costs will be sent to the Committee of Revision.

• All benefiting property owners will share the costs borne by the City, including the engineering design and construction costs
• The Committee of Revision hears objections before the City imposes a Local Improvement charge (or special assessment) on a property owner.
• The City initially pays the costs of the Local Improvement work and then recovers the required funding from the benefiting property owners based on the selected payment option, which can be over multiple years.
• The final charges are based on the lower of the estimated cost and actual total cost, unless extenuating circumstances apply. If the actual costs are higher than the estimate, the City will pay the extra amount.

For more information on the Local Improvement Process and how to get started, please contact the City at LI-AL@ottawa.ca, or call 3-1-1.

Taunton Place – Sanitary Sewer Local Improvement

What are the specific types of Local Improvements that can be applied for?

The majority of inquiries to City of Ottawa staff for Local Improvements are for the following works:

• Sanitary sewers
• Storm sewers / ditch filling
• Watermains
• Noise barriers
• Roads

If a Local Improvement survey fails, can residents apply again?

A survey of interest can be done any number of times provided property ownership has changed enough to potentially produce a different result. 

How long does the Local Improvement process typically take?

A successful Local Improvement process takes 3 to 4 years from initial inquiry to the time that construction may start, provided all the requirements are met. This is typical because of the requirements for consultation with effected property owners and Council, City budget process and the time required to design and construct the infrastructure asset.

How are costs collected for a Local Improvement from residents?

Local Improvement costs are recovered through municipal taxes for a specified period, or the property owner can elect to make a lump sum payment. Carrying costs are included in the cost to the property owner.

For more information, please contact the City:
By email: LI-AL@ottawa.ca
By phone: 3-1-1