Riverside Hospital Neighbors ‘Surprised’ by Parking Proposal

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People who live near Riverside Hospital say they were taken by surprise to learn that the hospital is considering converting a green space in their neighborhood into a staff parking lot.

News of the proposed parking lot, the plan for which has not yet been finalized, according to the hospital, was discovered after a nearby resident asked a surveyor what they were doing on the land.

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“Would you like to know from a surveyor that the green park in front of your house is going to be converted into a parking lot?” neighbor John Martins wrote in a letter to this newspaper.

The land in question, on Sarah Billings Place, across the bus lane from Riverside Hospital, is owned by the Ottawa Hospital. It is part of the property that the city sold to the hospital for $1 with the condition that it continue to be used for nonprofit health care. Under the agreement, the city could claim back the excess land if it was not used for its intended purpose.

Part of that land is green space that residents have long used for picnics and games, among other activities, neighbors say. It also serves as a buffer between a quiet residential neighborhood and Riverside Hospital, they say.

Riverside is now the site of a soon-to-be-built long-term care and nursing home development. The development aims to increase access to long-term care, help reduce wait times and improve access to care across the health system, the hospital said in a statement.

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The construction of the development by privately owned Schlegel Villages does not meet the original intended use of the land, for nonprofit health care. Last year, the city asked TOH to pay nearly $13 million in compensation for the land because of that.

But under a $500 million agreement between the province and the city of Ottawa, the city no longer has the right to claim compensation based on land use. That right was transferred to the province under the agreement, which has essentially paved the way for development to begin, which will include a 256-bed long-term care home and an adjoining 15-storey retirement home.

In a statement, hospital spokesperson Michaela Schreiter said some existing staff parking is no longer available due to construction of that long-term care facility.

“To provide more parking for our staff, we are exploring ways to increase parking options on the Riverside campus.”

In recent months, the city of Ottawa has been working on the lot to improve water mains as part of a development project at Bank Street and Riverside, neighbors say. That involved digging and disturbing the green space, but neighbors said the city assured them the property would be restored to green space after the work.

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Earlier this year, a resident noticed surveyors on the property and asked what they were doing, and was then told that a parking lot for 140 vehicles was being considered.

“We are sad,” said neighbor Anna Chiappa. “It was a beautiful park used by the community.”

It’s also the last intact vestige of what was once land belonging to the historic Billings Estate, said neighbor Patricia Prud’homme, who lives nearby.

Alta Vista Councilwoman Marty Carr said she was not aware of any plans to consider building a parking lot there until residents contacted her.

He said he will meet with hospital officials, “who were very apologetic for not informing me.” Carr said he is working to help the hospital find other solutions.

“My preference is that we find another place for additional parking,” Carr said. He noted that Riverside Hospital has a traffic stop at its front door.

The hospital has been doing preliminary work, including taking soil samples from the site, but has not made a decision. Doing so would require a site plan application.

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“Other than soil sampling, the hospital has not performed any work on the lot at this time,” Schreiter said in a statement, “but we are working with the city to explore the best use of this lot.”

Carr said a potentially complicating factor is Ontario Bill 185, Cutting Red Tape to Build More Housing Act, which appears to exempt hospitals and long-term care facilities from some planning obligations. He said the implications of the bill, which has not been signed into law, are not entirely clear at this time.

As of now, the city says, building a parking lot on the land requires an application to the city’s planning department.

“The City of Ottawa can confirm that, to date, no applications have been received for the construction of a parking lot at this location. Under current regulations, a site plan would be required to be submitted prior to construction of such a facility,” said Planning Services Director Derrick Moodie.

Neighbors say they fear noise, light pollution and a significant increase in traffic if the proposal goes ahead.

John Martins noted that the city assured residents that the for-profit development would be near Smyth Road and that there would be no development near Sarah Billings Place in Alta Vista.

“Our neighborhood has always thought of the Riverside campus as a very valuable part of our community. “We are shocked and disheartened that the hospital and city caught us by surprise and only found out about this proposed parking by accident,” Martins wrote.

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