We, the undersigned residents, parents, business owners, and members of Sandy Hill community, hereby petition the City of Ottawa to immediately cease funding to Centre 454 (operated by Belong Ottawa) at 454 King Edward Avenue and relocate the service to an appropriate, non-residential location elsewhere in the city.

BACKGROUND & REASONS

1. More than a Decade of Unaddressed Harm
Since 2012, residents have made ongoing and good-faith efforts to raise serious public safety, health, and livability concerns related to the continued operation of Centre 454 at its current location. These include documented instances of violence, drug trafficking, public disorder, infrastructure degradation, and threats to children and families.

2. Senior City Officials Inaction
The General Manager of Community and Social Services, Clara Freire, has publicly acknowledged that the location is both “inappropriate” due to its residential setting and “mismanaged.” She further committed to relocating the site - a promise that remains unfulfilled. No viable alternatives have been presented or acted upon by the City, despite ample evidence and proposals provided by residents.

3. City’s Breach of Fiduciary and Legal Duty
The City of Ottawa has a duty of care to its taxpayers and a fiduciary obligation to use public funds responsibly and equitably. Continuing to fund a site that causes documented and escalating harm to the community constitutes a breach of that duty. There are no behaviour standards, no accountability mechanisms, and no good-neighbour policies attached to Centre 454’s funding. This is unacceptable in any ward, particularly in one that is already overburdened with social services.

4. Failure to Uphold Equitable Service Distribution
Centre 454 is one of numerous homeless-serving agencies disproportionately concentrated in Ward 12, placing unsustainable burdens on a small, densely populated residential community. City-wide needs must be addressed through equitable spatial distribution, not by concentrating trauma and displacement in already vulnerable urban neighbourhoods.

5. Wasted Emergency Resources & Public Funds
The location has triggered significant and avoidable expenditures from Ottawa Police Services, By-law Enforcement, Ottawa Public Health, and emergency medical responders — a misuse of limited civic resources and a failure of public policy management.

6. Rejection of Community-Led Solutions
Residents and community groups have identified viable alternative sites within the Anglican Diocese’s property network and presented detailed relocation proposals. These have been rejected without justification, which amounts to a systemic failure to act in the best interests of its citizens.

OUR DEMANDS

To stop the harms caused in Sandy Hill, we call on the City of Ottawa to:

1. Immediately suspend all municipal funding to Centre 454 until it is relocated to a site that does not adversely affect residents, children, schools, and businesses.
   
   
2. Enforce and follow through on relocation commitments made by City officials and hold service providers accountable to minimum performance, conduct, and safety standards.
   
   
3. Conduct an independent equity and impact audit of Ward 12’s service burden in comparison with other Wards in the City of Ottawa.
4. Ensure all future funding contracts with social service providers include enforceable accountability frameworks, community impact assessments, and transparent public oversight.