Barrhaven gets new interchange, otherwise little new for Ottawa in Ontario budget

The provinceis funding a newBarrhaven interchange along Highway 416to meet the needs ofbooming subdivisions inthe areaone of Ottawa's few capital projects in the2024-2025 Ontario budget.

The budget, tabled at Queen's Park on Tuesday,outlines$214 billion in provincial spending anda deficit of $9.8 billion.

"Not a lot of surprises," said Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe.

"It's a budget that is based on the current financial situation andit's a responsible budget."

Sutcliffe said he was pleased to see investments in infrastructure, with $190.2 billion set aside for major projects such as building highways, hospitals and schools over the next decade.

That includes funding for the long-awaited Highway 416 interchange at Barnsdale Road"to support population growth and development planned by the City for the Barrhaven South area."

Barrhaven West Coun. David Hillsaid this will be a "huge improvement" for residents in "one of thefastest-growing communities in all of Canada."

Residents buying up upthousands of homessouth of the Jock River have long complained about how hard it is to get around.

Barrhaven has added about 3,500 peopleor 1,500 households a year, according to the city's 2023annual report on development.

Barrhaven has only one exit off the 416at Fallowfield Road. A second exit atBankfield Road further south predominantly serves Manotick.

Barnsdale isin the roughly 10-kilometre gap between the two, offering an easy connection withGreenbank Road.

"This is much more direct for residents," said Hill of the Barnsdale interchange.

It's unclear exactly when construction would begin but "everything that the city has been able to do within its power, it has done," the councillor said.

Also listed in the budget is continued funding for the redevelopment of The Ottawa Hospital's new Civic campusand a number ofelementary and secondary schools in the city and eastern Ontario.

No other capital projects for Ottawa

There was little else in the budget earmarked for Ottawa capital projects including Landsdowne 2.0and the affordable housing units that are supposed to come with it.

Neil Saravanamuttoo, the Ottawa-based director ofnon-profit CityShapes, said there had been a request from the city for $20 million in provincial funding for the project.

"That's a disappointment for the people of Ottawaand it just means it'll be another $20 million that the taxpayers have to pick up," he said.

The budget does include$1.8 billion in new spending to help municipalities build housing-enabling infrastructure such as roads and sewers.

Municipalities will also be allowed to lower their property tax rates on new purpose-built rental housing to encourage construction of more of those units.

Most of these measures encourage urban sprawl rather than making use of existing infrastructure in cities like Ottawa,said Saravanamuttoo, adding that method has done little to address the province's housing crisis.

All in a Day14:15What commitments are in the Ontario budget for housing in Ottawa?

We talk to Glen Gower, co-chair of the city's planning committee, Jason Burggraaf of the Greater Ottawa Home Builders' Association and Neil Saravanamuttoo of the national non-profit CityShapes about how the Ontario budget addresses housing.