Ottawa's Board of Trade is using the run-up to the October 26 municipal election to argue that the city needs to think bigger. In a column published by the Ottawa Business Journal, Board President and CEO Sueling Ching sets out the thinking behind More Ottawa, the Board's non-partisan municipal election campaign.
What More Ottawa is
She describes More Ottawa as a non-partisan campaign, and it is aimed at informing voters ahead of the October 26 municipal election and beyond.
It is worth keeping in mind what this is. The column is written by the head of the Board of Trade, so the priorities below are the Board's own position on what the city should focus on, not a neutral assessment.
Priority one: Build for Growth
The first of the campaign's three priorities is called Build for Growth. According to Ching, "That means creating more homes, supporting complete communities, and ensuring our infrastructure keeps pace."
Put simply, the argument is that housing, neighbourhoods that have what residents need nearby, and the infrastructure underneath them should move together as Ottawa grows.
Priority two: Compete to Win
The second priority is Compete to Win. It builds on what Ching calls Ottawa's strengths in defence and security, technology, research, health sciences and tourism.
Those five sectors are the ones the column names. The piece does not, in what has been published here, break down specific policies or targets for each of them.
Priority three: Elevate the Capital
The third priority, Elevate the Capital, is about downtown. Ching writes that "A vibrant downtown supports jobs, tourism, culture, local businesses, and investment."
That framing ties the health of the downtown core to several things at once: employment, visitors, cultural life, independent businesses and outside investment.
How the column ends
Ching concludes that Ottawa has "the people, the assets, and the opportunity to build an extraordinary future." She directs readers to MoreOttawa.ca for more on the campaign.
What this means for voters
With the vote on October 26, the Board of Trade's three priorities are one more set of ideas for residents to weigh as they decide whom to support. The column does not name candidates, and specific proposals, costs or timelines have not been announced as part of this piece.
Readers who want the full argument in Ching's own words can find the column on the Ottawa Business Journal's website, and the campaign itself at MoreOttawa.ca.
Sources: Ottawa Business Journal
