The Canadian National Newspaper: Downtown Ottawa living ain't so easy

At first glance, living in the downtown core seems to have its perks. It means being close to the action, the attractions, and for some, that walking to work is a viable option - an important consideration given high gas prices and rising environmental concerns.

But we don’t need to scratch too far beneath the surface to discover that there are actually a number factors driving people out of the downtown core - a problem that plagues nearly all urban centres across North America.

One of the major deterrents to living downtown are high property taxes, which are expected to skyrocket another 23 per cent in Centretown next year. Neither the provincial government nor the city seems to be helping the situation.

Property taxes are determined by real estate values in an area and how much property costs have increased compared to the city’s average. This means that if the cost of a property has gone up more than the city’s average, taxes will increase. And because real estate tends to be much more costly in the city’s core, this tax increase will hit downtown residents hard, if not the hardest.

These factors make living downtown increasingly a costly adventure – one that many people quite simply can't afford. Those currently living downtown may even have to find a new place to live once the tax increase takes effect. Suburban living, on the other hand, is feasible for more people because houses are cheaper and in turn, taxes are lower. More people living in the suburbs means more commuters on the road, and more fossils fuels in the air.

Linked to these problems is the likelihood that the city will reinstate development fees by July 2009. Developers wanting to build downtown have been exempt from these fees, which range from about $2,400 to $20,000 per residential unit, for a decade. The fees were scrapped 10 years ago to encourage growth in the downtown core. But the city claims this goal has been achieved, that people want to live downtown, and that there is no reason to continue the exemption.

However, the facts don’t support this assertion. According to Statistics Canada, the population in the downtown core has dropped nearly five per cent since 2001. And development outside the city is booming.

On top of the financial pitfalls, the downtown core also has the least amount of green space in the city. All of this concrete is a definite turn-off for homeowners, especially those with families. As families are driven away, schools and additional services that would be offered in most residential areas shut down or fade away.

All of this makes the downtown core a difficult sell. It’s no surprise that more and more people are calling other neighbourhoods, especially suburban ones, "home sweet home."

But by taking away incentives to make the core appealing, the city is creating the universally feared “urban wasteland”- a hole in the most vibrant area of Ottawa.

They’re forcing more commuters on the road, despite the cost of fuel and the environmental implications, and moving life away from the heart of the city. This is a misguided and, in the long run, a huge mistake.

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