✨New Post✨ Orléans can be so much more than just a bedroom community. From fixing exclusionary zoning to making streets safer for our kids, here are six practical steps to build the neighborhood we actually want to live in. Read more:

✨New Post✨ Can one building change the future of a neighborhood? In Orléans, it can. This project shows that local shops and better places are ready to be built. Read more here:

This is a great way to show people the negative externalities of car dependency even if you have and love a car. Many types of people can’t drive, and we should all have the choice.

Orléans north of Highway 174 faces significant transportation challenges due to limited access routes, creating a car-dependent community. The infrastructure is designed for vehicles, neglecting safe options for pedestrians and cyclists.

The past year was huge for us here, and there's lots more to come in 2026. If you like what you've gotten so far, stay tuned for more, and have a look at the ways you can support this work on urbanism in Orléans:

Council will soon be voting on a new zoning by-law that adds greater density and focuses on 15-minute communities across Ottawa. I've been thinking a lot about growing up in Convent Glen in that context, and offer the following: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_0R....

If you’re in northwestern Orleans, follow @cgow.bsky.social for news stories and newsletters from the community association. You won’t regret it!

My preference would be to move that library into Place d'Orleans mall or Chapel Hill shopping centre temporarily. Then demolish the building. Replace with affordable housing above a new library facility.

✨New Guest Post from @dewline.bsky.social ✨ Orléans needs local library branches that don't require driving to get to. If we want to create villages where children have true autonomy, we need accessible amenities, not just islands in an ocean of parking lots. 📚🏙️ #Ottawa #Urbanism

Calling all advocates for a better Ottawa - the city is conducting a survey on how they engage with residents: engage.ottawa.ca/improving-ci...

Stay tuned to theneworleans.ca (@theneworleans.bsky.social) for lots more on this, and I’ll be continuing to contribute to work with: @cgow.bsky.social, @bikeottawa.bsky.social, @strongtownsottawa.ca, and @visionzeroottawa.bsky.social! Looking forward to 2026!

"Conspiracy theorist relieved that proposed local amenities have been voted against and will now be a 30 minute drive away."

Adventures in crossing suburban streets in the winter…

✨New Post✨ It's time to legalize the village. We can’t afford to subsidize low-density, exclusionary sprawl anymore. It’s time to choose municipal sustainability over outdated zoning. 🏘️📉📈 #Ottawa #Zoning #StrongTowns

✨New Post✨ It’s time for a real Vision Zero strategy that values lives over "lost time" for vehicles. It’s time to stop making excuses and start building infrastructure that actually protects our kids. 🚲🛑 #VisionZero #Ottawa #SafeStreets

✨New Post✨ The federal Return-to-Office mandate isn't just about commutes; it's a drain on innovation and autonomy. Here's a guest perspective on why "butts in seats" is a betrayal of the public service. 🏢🚶‍♂️ #RTO #Ottawa #cdnpoli #PublicService

Sure, but perhaps the lack of fanfare is because it still isn't bold enough. We still have 200+ codes and subclasses. Gotta protect that neighbourhood character 🫠 Zoning variations: * 5 x trailer parks * 8 x agri * 8 x rural industrial industrial * 10 x village mainstreet * 36 x housing * Etc

✨New Post✨ It's time to legalize the village. We can’t afford to subsidize low-density, exclusionary sprawl anymore. It’s time to choose municipal sustainability over outdated zoning. 🏘️📉📈 #Ottawa #Zoning #StrongTowns

✨New Post✨ The federal Return-to-Office mandate isn't just about commutes; it's a drain on innovation and autonomy. Here's a guest perspective on why "butts in seats" is a betrayal of the public service. 🏢🚶‍♂️ #RTO #Ottawa #cdnpoli #PublicService

O-Train East extension testing to begin ‘relatively early’ in 2026, mayor says www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/artic...

✨New Post✨ It’s time for a real Vision Zero strategy that values lives over "lost time" for vehicles. It’s time to stop making excuses and start building infrastructure that actually protects our kids. 🚲🛑 #VisionZero #Ottawa #SafeStreets

✨New Post✨ Shouldn’t we expect our leaders to evolve? Intellectual honesty is the only way to tackle municipal insolvency. We need a city built on current math, not just 1950s nostalgia. 📉🏙️ #Orléans #Ottawa #StrongTowns

✨New Post✨ We’ve looked at the history, the hurdles, and the blueprint. Now, we look at the destination. 🏁 Part 5 of The Complete Community series is live. Join us as we wrap up our deep dive into the future of our suburbs and outline the vision for The New Orleans. #Urbanism #Orleans

✨New Post ✨ "Affordable Housing" vs. housing that is affordable. Are we solving the problem or subsidizing a broken system? It’s time to challenge the comfortable narratives in Ottawa. Read why the current approach is a myth. 📉 #OttPoli #HousingCrisis

✨New Post✨ You know that cheap cooked rotisserie chicken sold by grocery stores? It’s what’s known as a "loss leader." Suburbs are the rotisserie chicken of city budgets. It feels like a deal upfront, but the long-term math just doesn't check out. 🍗📉

✨New Post✨Rome wasn't built in a day, and apparently neither are complete streets in Orléans. 🏛️🚦 I’ve updated the timeline of the Jeanne d'Arc / Orléans Blvd saga through to the end of 2025. The data tells the story of the gap between vision and reality. 👇 theneworleans.ca/2025/09/12/j...

✨New Post✨ You know that cheap cooked rotisserie chicken sold by grocery stores? It’s what’s known as a "loss leader." Suburbs are the rotisserie chicken of city budgets. It feels like a deal upfront, but the long-term math just doesn't check out. 🍗📉

✨New Post✨ We often discuss the "what" of urbanism, but the "how" usually involves multiple levels of consultation that can be hard to navigate. Guest author Genevieve from Greater Avalon CA shares the reality of engaging with the process—friction and all. #Orleans #OttCity #CivicEngagement

✨New Post✨Rome wasn't built in a day, and apparently neither are complete streets in Orléans. 🏛️🚦 I’ve updated the timeline of the Jeanne d'Arc / Orléans Blvd saga through to the end of 2025. The data tells the story of the gap between vision and reality. 👇 theneworleans.ca/2025/09/12/j...

✨New Post ✨ "Affordable Housing" vs. housing that is affordable. Are we solving the problem or subsidizing a broken system? It’s time to challenge the comfortable narratives in Ottawa. Read why the current approach is a myth. 📉 #OttPoli #HousingCrisis

✨New Post✨ We’ve looked at the history, the hurdles, and the blueprint. Now, we look at the destination. 🏁 Part 5 of The Complete Community series is live. Join us as we wrap up our deep dive into the future of our suburbs and outline the vision for The New Orleans. #Urbanism #Orleans

I delegated to the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee today with a simple message: Stand up for Ottawa. 🏛️ Bill 60 is a threat to our autonomy & budget. #ottawa #ottbike #bill60

✨New Post✨ A better city doesn't happen by accident. It happens by design. 🏗️ The Blueprint is about making the intentional choices today that create a solvent, resilient, and livable Orleans tomorrow. Read the next chapter of our series on The Complete Community. #NewUrbanism #WalkableCity #Orleans

✨New Post✨ Do our neighborhoods generate enough wealth to pave their own streets? 📉 In Part 3 of our Complete Communities series, we crunch the numbers on "Productive Communities" and why fiscal sustainability starts with urban design. #StrongTowns #Orleans

✨New Post✨ Do our neighborhoods generate enough wealth to pave their own streets? 📉 In Part 3 of our Complete Communities series, we crunch the numbers on "Productive Communities" and why fiscal sustainability starts with urban design. #StrongTowns #Orleans

✨New Post✨ Housing is the foundation, but amenities are the lifeblood of a neighborhood. 🏪🏡 We’re exploring how mixed-use planning and tweaking the density dial can turn our streets into complete, resilient communities. #StrongTowns #Urbanism

If you ask drivers how they’d like to get around their city better, they’ll ask for more and wider lanes. To get the right answers, it’s time to ask the right questions. Reducing traffic happens when people drive less. We need options. We need places to go nearby.

Households in #canada “should” be able to live with just one car. Cuz if you can live with one car, you would be able to live with no car.

Excellent piece here from Bruce Deachman. I participated in the same workshop a couple years ago. Eye-opening, empathy-building, and at times maddening. Should be mandatory training for every elected official.

✨New Post✨ (first in a series!) We need to stop designing just for movement and start designing for living. Here is how we move beyond "Complete Streets" toward a Complete Community. #Orleans #ottawa #strongtowns

✨New Post✨ We love to vacation in dense, walkable, vibrant places. Why not build those same joys of urban life right here in our own communities? #Urbanism #Ottawa

✨New Post✨ Ontario's Bill 60 is a direct hit on local control. It's vetoing municipal efforts to build safer streets for everyone. Why is the province overriding local decisions? This is a major setback for walkable, people-first communities. #Bill60 #onpoli #Ottawa #SafeStreets

✨New Post✨ What's it *really* like to bike through Orléans? It's... an experience. I break down the anatomy of a typical suburban ride—the good, the bad, and the infrastructure that just... ends. A two-wheeled urbanism ride-along. #KidicalMass #Ottawa #ottbike

What does it take to make our suburban streets safe for kids? I did a 3.5 km narrated ridealong of our Kidical Mass Orléans route to show exactly what needs to change. 🚲 #Orleans #KidicalMass #Urbanism #SafeStreets

Is Ottawa school zone safety negotiable? 🚷Delays to sidewalk builds 🚦School Street policy red lighted 📸 Automated Speed Enforcement to be cut down by Doug Ford 📣 No! Tell the Mayor to stand up to the province and anyone who makes communities less safe. schoolstreetsottawa.ca/2025/10/11/o...

✨New Post✨ Our city budget often chases short-term 'municipal candy' while ignoring the long-term fiscal bellyache it causes. It's time for the adults in the room to prioritize financial solvency over flashy projects. 🍬💸 #Ottawa #Orleans #StrongTowns

✨New Post✨ From our weekly "Pedal and Play" rides to a season-ending Kidical Mass event, we're showing what a more connected, family-friendly Orléans can look like—one bike ride at a time. 🚲 #Orléans #KidicalMass #Community

170 Slater, the collapsed parking garage being redeveloped into 538 residential units. Community Benefits Charge (CBC): ~$600,000 Development Charges (DC): ~$13,000,000 Of those DCs, about $3-million goes exclusively towards suburban arterial roads. Those should be eliminated long before the CBCs.

✨New Post✨ The average bike probably isn't practical for daily life, but realistically that just mean you have the wrong bike. Most North American cyclists are riding a sports car or Jeep when they need a sedan or a minivan. theneworleans.ca/2025/10/02/y... 👩👧👦 #CargoBike #Suburbs #urbanism

✨New Post✨ The suburban dream sold us the 'freedom to drive,' but it came with a hidden contract: the obligation to own a car for everything. True freedom is about having choices—the choice to walk, bike, or live a full life without a car. #LessCar #Urbanism