Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan

Update Nov 22, 2022: The Parks and Recreation Facilities Masterplan passed at Ottawa City Council, agenda 61, Wednesday, October 13, 2021 details can be found at: City Council - October 13, 2021 (escribemeetings.com)

Update Sept 3, 2021: Notice of a Special Joint Meeting of Community and Protective Services Committee and Planning Committee

The Chairs of the Community and Protective Services Committee (CPSC) and Planning Committee have called a Special Joint Meeting of CPSC and Planning Monday, September 27, 2021, at 9:30 AM, to consider the following matter:

• City of Ottawa Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan

Please note that the format and details for participation in this meeting will be communicated with the Agendas, which were published on September 16, 2021.

Thank you,

June 1, 2021: Round 2 Consultation: Seeking feedback on the Draft Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan:

Welcome Back!

We are pleased to invite you to participate in the second round of consultations on the Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan (the Plan).

In Round 1 of public consultation, you told us about what is important to you and what opportunities and challenges you see for the City of Ottawa’s Parks, Outdoor and Indoor Recreation Facilities. We heard from 2,200 people in the first round. We are aiming to reach our target of 5,000 with Round 2 of online survey #3 and more online engagement sessions.

Your input is important in developing the final recommendations!

The purpose of this survey is to seek feedback on the Master Plan document released on May 11. More specifically, this survey focuses on the key recommendations related to the need for parks and the number of specific types of facilities per thousands of residents, such as pools, arenas and tennis courts. As an example, you will see these recommendations written in the plan as 1:1,400 for playgrounds, which means residents would have an average of 1 playground for every 1,400 residents across the city.

One main requirement for this plan is to determine the need for parkland to meet population growth. There are many sections in the plan that are focused on presenting research, staff and public consultation findings, municipal benchmarking and current state analysis. This information was used to develop recommendations for parkland and the number and type of recreation facilities needed to serve residents for the next 10 years, to 2031.

To easily find sections and items within the Plan, please click on the document; on page 2 there is a table of contents that link to each section. You can also type the page number in the box in the top of the toolbar. For items of interest, if you click CTRL + F at the same time and type “tennis” (for example) you can use the arrows to go to each sentence that contains that word or phrase.

Before completing the survey, we encourage you to read the Frequently Asked Questions, the sections of the Master Plan that are relevant to you, your family, or your organization, as well as Appendices A and B. These sections show the background research, public consultation results and information that led to the recommendations for parkland and for each of the recreation facility types. Reviewing this material will help you complete the survey. If any links are broken you can find the FAQ and draft Plan with the appendices on the right side of this page.

To participate, complete the online survey below (closing June 17) or register for one of the following virtual bilingual consultation sessions:

• Monday, June 7, 2021 from 1:30 to 3:30 pm; Register here
• Monday, June 7, 2021 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm; Register here
• Tuesday, June 8, 2021 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm; Register here (see note below on session focus)
• Wednesday, June 9, 2021 from 9:00 to 11:00 am; Register here

**Due to popular demand another new date has been added** 

• Monday, June 14 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm; Register here

All sessions, including the presentation and discussion, will be offered in English and French. Upon registration, registrants will indicate their preferred language and they will receive a link for either the English or French session.

The June 8 and 14 session will be co-hosted by Ottawa Sport Council and will focus on sports fields and the wide range of outdoor and indoor sports courts and amenities and the needs of sport clubs and organizations.

If you require a disability related accommodation to fully participate in this event, please contact 613-580-2424 ext. 25192 or RCFS-PublicEngagement@ottawa.ca(link sends e-mail). For deaf community members, our facilitators can engage using Canada Video Relay Service(link is external) or via the chat within the meeting.

January 16, 2021: The City is looking for your feedback on the first Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan. The plan will provide a framework to help the City determine what municipal parks and recreation facilities we will need in the next ten years to serve the needs of residents. This master plan will be part of the City’s New Official Plan, which will be adopted in October.

Get Involved

Tell us how your household uses parks, outdoor and indoor recreation facilities in your community, how satisfied you are with existing facilities and what you would like to see in the future by filling out the surveys below:

• Parks and Outdoor Recreation Facilities survey (Closed February 21)
• Indoor Recreation Facilities survey (Closed March 12)

Please answer questions based on your pre-pandemic use of parks and facilities.

If you require special accommodation, you can email Selma.Hassan@ottawa.ca or call 613-580-2424, extension 25192 for assistance. Thank you for your interest in the Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan and please subscribe to the DiscoverRec newsletter for project updates!