Upcoming Events
Earth Day – Cleaning the Capital Event
Environment Committee
April 26 from 9 AM – 12 PM at Golden Fries
Join the Environment Committee this year at the Convent Glen Shopping Centre, in the parking lot near Golden Fries bright and early to get started with the cleanup. Our backup day in case of rain or snow is the following day, April 27th.
Pedal and Play Kickoff – Convent Glen North
Sunday April 27 at 10 AM; des Voyageurs School Parking Lot
This event kicks off a weekly series of spring and summer family-oriented bike rides through the community, called Pedal and Play. RSVP at the link below.
Orleans Wood Elementary School Book & Bake Sale
April 12, 2025 from 10 AM to 2 PM at Orleans Wood Elementary
We are gratefully accepting donations of the following gently used items:
✅ Fiction & non-fiction books (adult, teen, children) in any language
✅ Colouring books
✅ Puzzles (complete sets)
🚫 Magazines, dictionaries, religious books, textbooks or encyclopedias
Drop-off your donations at Orleans Wood during regular school hours.
Suburban Robservations
Rob Attrell, Secretary; Outreach Committee
Who I Am and Why I’m Here – Meet Rob
Even from my perspective, this is kind of a strange thing for me to write and put in a community newsletter, but I do hope you choose to read it and hopefully take something away from it.
My 6-Month Review of our Community
As I was sitting down to put together the April edition of the newsletter, I thought to myself: “What have I learned about this community and the people in it that I can share to commemorate half a year into this whole thing?”
Why I’m Obsessed with My Community
(Repost broken into more readable sections)
This is Part 1 of a 5* part series of posts about my thoughts on the urban design of our community. Now available in digestible chunks.
Part 2. Oops, All Cars
*A Tangent About Cars
Part 3. Isolation and the Status Quo
Part 4. Finally, Why I’m Obsessed With My Community
Part 5. What’s Next?
Strong Towns Video Series – Watch Party
I first came across this 5-minute video (linked below) shortly after it came out nearly 5 years ago (with the rest of the videos in the series following that). It’s not an exaggeration to say that these videos have changed my life. I’ve spent a lot of time talking *about* this concept, but I figure at this point, maybe you’ll get as much out of the videos themselves as I did.
Matt’s Community Corner
Matthieu Gagnon, Vice President
Maintaining Neighbourhood Character in a Time of Change
To maintain neighbourhood character, we need to ensure that people who live in the community can remain in the community while maintaining what makes the community special.
Ottawa Zoning Bylaw Changes Summary
Here are the highlights of what I consider important about the zoning changes, how they will affect Convent Glen Orléans Wood and next steps for the community association.
Environment Committee
Plastics – A Blessing or a Curse
Amrit Khosla, Environment Committee
In the last few decades, scientists began raising the alarm about the indestructible nature of plastic waste. Their long life that was seen as a blessing, now seems a curse. Images of floating islands of plastics in the sea, shorelines littered with plastic bags and bottles, and unmanageable waste being shipped thousands of kilometres away have become a common sight.
Protecting the Ottawa River and all its Wildlife, in Orleans and Beyond
Gillian Cantello, Environment Committee
On March 5th the Convent Glen Orleans Wood Community was treated to a very special evening with our very own Laura Reinsborough, the Ottawa Riverkeeper. Joined by Michael Ricco, President of Friends of Petrie Island, we learned all about the turtle egg incubation project that the Friends of Petrie Island lead in partnership with the Ottawa Riverkeeper.
In Other Community News
Spring – Community Roadmap Update
Spring is in the air (well, it will be soon), and that means we’re starting to plan out the season’s activities. Have a look at our spring roadmap and see what events and activities you might find interesting. If you’d like to volunteer with the Community Association on any event here or a new one, please reach out: Contact Us.
St Moritz Skating Rinks Closed for the Season
Rink Maintenance Volunteers
Well, we finally had to shut down for the season on late Friday, March 14. What a fantastic year we had!! 68 days open, which is a record year in recent years. We were fortunate to be open for Christmas Break and March Break!
We are all proud that we stayed open 68 days after a long season with various weather conditions! That’s an achievement and I’m proud to be part of the team! Last year was 25 days, year before 55, 3 years ago was 60, and 53 before that! As a group of volunteers and community members doing their part to help out, it’s been another very successful season! It was wonderful to see all the smiling faces of the kids and adults who got out!
Featured Community Photo
Photo taken by Cassie
Congratulations to Cassie on this great photo of an owl in her backyard, who sat posed for this photo for 6 hours!
Membership Drive & Contest
Outreach Committee
We are running a membership drive and contest to get more local residents engaged in the community and aware of the things the community association is working on. To make things a little more fun, you can earn points for every resident you refer to register as a member of the community association. Note that the geographic boundaries for membership still apply in this contest; only residents within our boundaries will be eligible.
Other Community Newsletters
March 2025 Newsletter – Laura Dudas
The Beat – Heart of Orleans Newsletter
Thanks to Our Sponsors
Check out our sponsors or get information about becoming one at cgow.ca/sponsors.
Gold-Level Community Builders
Almanac Urban Mill & Bakery
Almanac is an urban mill and bakery in Ottawa’s East End, and Gabrielle Prud’homme is the owner who calls Convent Glen home.
Dominion City Brewing Company
Dominion City was established to make great beer and bring people together in community. Today, their beer reflects the people and land that make it possible.
