Tell the City: Don’t give in - we need sidewalks!

A handful of streets in one section of Manor Park (west of St. Laurent Blvd and north of Manor Park Public School - see image below) are slated to get sidewalks and traffic-calming by design in 2026. This is a cost-effective opportunity for the city to bring these streets up to current accessibility and road safety standards while they are already dug up for new sewers and water mains under a city-wide policy. But many vocal residents on the affected streets in Manor Park don’t want sidewalks and are vigorously campaigning against them (see the many news articles in recent weeks!). In summary, their arguments centre on concerns about neighbourhood character and the unique “local context” of this corner of Manor Park, while minimizing the accessibility and safety concerns of others who live or travel through the area.

This would set a terrible precedent for neighbourhoods across the city. Ottawa has experienced numerous major injuries and deaths of vulnerable road users in recent months. Designing residential streets to 30km/hr and providing dedicated space for pedestrians is an essential part of making the city safe and walkable for all.

Sadly, this situation is not unique to Manor Park. Similar delays, reductions in scope, and even cancellations of proposed sidewalk and cycling infrastructure installations have happened in other neighbourhoods in Ottawa. 

Wherever you live across Ottawa, tell your city councillor that there should be no exceptions for incorporating sidewalks into residential neighbourhoods. Basic safety infrastructure for pedestrians does not have a local context. Minimum accessibility standards do not have a local context. 

If you live anywhere within Manor Park, not just on the affected streets, your opinion is especially important (see image for neighbourhood boundaries!) - complete this survey by Aug 30, 2025.

Image 1:

Image 2: Manor Park neighbourhood boundaries as per Ottawa Neighbourhood Study

Why does the fight for these new sidewalks in one corner of Manor Park matter to everyone?

These opportunities for integrated street renewal and the affordable addition of sidewalks only occur once every ~80 years. Ottawa’s growing population and upcoming densification needs infrastructure that supports sustainable transportation options, healthy aging, inclusivity and climate resilience. In Manor Park, there are 1000s of new housing units planned over the coming decades within 2 blocks of the affected streets! If one neighbourhood can exempt itself from this policy, others can too - leaving important gaps in the pedestrian network and parts of the city stuck with 1950s road safety and accessibility standards for generations. 

What about greenspace and preservation of mature trees?

The city has already indicated that tree protection will be a priority. 

The small amount of front yard grass that may be affected is part of the city right-of-way.

Isn’t more pavement bad for the environment?

Like many residential streets across Ottawa built since the 1950s - these roads are already excessively wide expanses of asphalt. Their width encourages speeding. The plan is to narrow the space for cars, build in traffic calming (speed humps, etc) and create dedicated pedestrian space. When all is said and done, there will be roughly the same amount of paved surface!

Maximizing walkability is an important part of helping everyone to reduce car-dependency and choose sustainable transportation options more often. 

But we need sidewalks over there! 

Yes - the sidewalk network in Manor Park and across Ottawa has many missing connections and deficiencies! But we can advocate for sidewalks and improvements around schools and busy roads at the same time. The reality is the funding comes from different city budgets and can’t be swapped. 

Retroactively adding sidewalks to a street later on is extremely expensive and disruptive.

The opportunity for this type of cost-effective sidewalk installation as part of an integrated renewal project only comes every 80 years! If we miss this opportunity, ….

These sidewalks don’t connect anywhere!

In the case of Manor Park - that’s just not true. They will connect to OC Transpo bus stops along St. Laurent Blvd and Sandridge Road as well as other community destinations like St. Columba Anglican Church, the RCMP stables and the MPCC Daycare, as well as the Farm Store and Community Hub at 1805 Gaspe. They will also lead to sidewalks that are planned for installation in the next few years around Manor Park Public School and leading to Hemlock Road. Some sidewalks are better than none and the city needs to start somewhere.