August 2025 ASH Newsletter

August 2025 ASH Newsletter

Ratha Yatra Chariot Festival

Hello Action Sandy Hill Members!

This email contains information about the activities of your community association and neighbourhood. Newsletters, both present and past, can be found here. Please contact us at [email protected] with any questions, concerns, and comments.

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Become an ASH member
The next Board meeting is on August 25 and will be a hybrid meeting; please send us an email at [email protected] to request the login link to the meeting. To view minutes from past meetings, click here.

ASH Info

  1. Petition Regarding Centre 454 
Neighbourhood Info
  1. The One & Only Arts and Craft Fair - Call For Artists & Artisans
  2. Volunteers Needed
  3. Musica Viva Singers
  4. Vanier Scout Group
  5. Waste less. Eat smart. Save Money.
  6. City of Ottawa Budget 2026
  7. City's 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan
  8. Consultation on Community Safety and Well-Being Plan
Neighbourhood Events and Activities
  1. Action Sandy Hill Community Conversations - August 18
  2. Summer Faerie Picnic - August 19
  3. Ratha Yatra Chariot Festival - August 23
  4. Odyssey Theatre - until August 24
  5. The Sandy Hill Neighbourhood Yard Sales - August 30
  6. Art in Strathcona Park - September 6
  7. The Sandy Hill Food Truck Festival - September 7
  8. The 2025 Ottawa Gatineau Draw the Line March - September 20
  9. Sandy Hill: History and Housing - October 5

1. Petition Regarding Centre 454

Residents in North Sandy Hill have started a petition entitled "Relocate Centre 454", which has received almost 500 signatures.

Given the importance of this issue to our community, and in response to a direct request from committee members, the ASH Board of Directors held a special meeting on Monday, July 28, 2025. At that meeting, the Board voted to circulate the petition to ASH members as a news item to ensure that the information is available to as many people as possible.

ASH has not taken a position on this petition. The Board will discuss the matter further at its August 25 meeting.

 

 

1. The One & Only Arts and Craft Fair - Call for Artists & Artisans

 

 

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2. Volunteers Needed

Calling all Book Lovers! Viscount Alexander Public School will once again be hosting the Good Books Sale on November 15th 2025 at the Sandy Hill Community Centre. Parent volunteers are in short supply.   Organizers are specifically looking for a generous neighbor who would act as the coordinator on the Book Sale day (9am to 3pm; or part thereof). Payment for your generosity will be given in early bird book selection privileges!

If you can help at the Book Sale day, or leading up to the event to sort books etc., please email Leila.

       
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3. Musica Viva Singers

Do you like to sing? Do you enjoy being in a community of others who like to sing? Join Musica Viva Singers (MVA)! Membership ranges in age from student to golden years, and their ability to read music ranges from beginner to trained musician. But all members love singing and helping others to enjoy making music. MVA needs all voices, high and low, Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Bass.

MVA meets at Centretown United Church on Bank Street every Monday from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m., and practice with Director Scott Richardson and talented accompanist Tom Sear.

Rehearsals start September 8, and there will be a concert on December 15. The first rehearsal is open, so anyone can come and try out.

Click here for further information.

 

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4. Vanier Scout Group

The 23rd Marie-Médiatrice Scout Group(the Group) in Vanier, a French-speaking, non-religious, co-ed, non-profit organization, is welcoming new youth for the 2025–2026 scouting season. The Group proudly serves Vanier and the surrounding communities in the heart of Ottawa.

The Group offers enriching activities for French-speaking youth aged 7 to 17. The scouts experience the great adventure of scouting while developing essential life skills, building lasting friendships, and creating unforgettable memories.

For any questions or to request promotional materials, please contact Nicholas Laplante, the Leader or reach out to the Group.

     
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5. Waste less. Eat smart. Save money.

Did you know that the City has partnered with Love Food Hate Waste to launch a new campaign to help you save money and cut down on food waste? Click here for more information and ideas.

     
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6. City of Ottawa Budget 2026

The City has begun consultations on the 2026 budget, so register for updates and share your priorities at https://engage.ottawa.ca/budget2026. Council will approve the 2026 budget on December 10.

     
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7. City’s 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan

City staff are currently reviewing the City’s 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan and your input is essential to help ensure it reflects the needs of our community. For more information, click here.

     
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8. Consultation on Community Safety and Well-Being Plan


The short survey is part of the City of Ottawa’s review of its Community Safety and Well-Being Plan (2021–2031). The Plan brings together residents, businesses, community groups, and government to work on long-term solutions that help make all communities in Ottawa safer and healthier. The project team is asking for your input to help guide the next phase of this collective effort. Your feedback will help refine priorities, identify emerging priorities, and shape meaningful actions.   The survey is open until August 19.

 
 
 

 

1. Action Sandy Hill Community Conversations – August 18

 

Join ASH Board members for themed discussions, every third Monday of the month. This month’s topic will be: solutions to neighbourhood problems.

Time - 7:00 pm – on Zoom. Save this link for all ASH virtual meetings.


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2. Strathcona Summer Faerie Picnic – August 19

 

Cirquonscient returns to Strathcona Park with free evening Faerie Pop-up picnics featuring circus arts and aerial acrobatics. Starts at 6:30 pm and runs for approximatley one hour. Click here for more information.


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3. Ratha Yatra Chariot Festival
August 23

         11:00 am parade begins on the corner of Templeton and Marlborough

         12:00 pm festival begins in Annie Pootoogook Park

          Free vegetarian buffet, performances and cultural activities for all ages

          www.iskconottawa.ca/ratha-yatra-2025


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4. Odyssey Theatre – until August 24

Odyssey presents the world premiere of The Girl With No Hands — a darkly comic fantasy where dreams awaken new realities. The play runs in Strathcona Park from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets.

 



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5. The Sandy Hill Neighbourhood Yard Sales - August 30

Clean out your basement, your attic and your closets to sell those treasures you have been holding onto for years. Simply set up a table in front of your home. Let us know you are participating in the Sale by sending an email to [email protected] with your address and postal code. We will add the information to our on-line yard sale map. If you or your children are setting up a table to sell drinks and baked goods, include that in your email and we will add it to the map. 
 

      
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6. Art in Strathcona Park – September 6

Once again, artists and artisans and undiscovered talents will come together to sell their work directly to the public and to raise public awareness about mental illness. More than just original art, Art in Strathcona Park also offers jewellery, pottery, stained glass, wood carvings, hand-made soap and honey, to name just a few, and will also feature a silent auction and a BBQ – something for just about everyone!

Art in Strathcona Park is a fundraising and public awareness event
 that is hosted by National Capital Artisans in collaboration with  Mental Illness Caregivers Association of Canada (MICA) and admission is FREE.  The event runs from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.


     
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7. The Sandy Hill Food Truck Festival – September 7

From 2 - 7 pm on Chapel Street between Laurier Avenune E and Wilbrod Street . Come enjoy local food and fun times!

     
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8. The 2025 Ottawa-Gatineau Draw the Line March Coalition – September 20

The Draw the Line coalition here in Ottawa-Gatineau is organising the march as part of a global mobilisation and national day of action to DRAW THE LINE – For People. For Peace. For the Planet.

     
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9. Sandy Hill: History and Housing  – October 5

Join Heritage Ottawa to explore our neighbourhood's transformations, from its origins as the 19th-century estate of Louis-Théodore Besserer, to its heyday as a home for lumber barons, senior public servants and prime ministers, on to its postwar shift toward denser, more middle-class housing. Along the way, the architectural styles that define our area and the shifting demographics, values, and pressures that continue to shape Sandy Hill’s urban fabric will be highlighted. Click here for more information.

 



 

 


Thank you to allsaints and Chez Lucien our generous sponsors.
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