Mark Watson says he doesn’t know who slipped a note in his mailbox last month about a neighbour’s plan to build an airstrip this summer only 800 metres from his yard.
That tip was the first he’d heard of it.
Watson, who has lived on a 10-acre rural Dunrobin property in west Ottawa since 2007, may soon live close to a 400-metre grass airstrip for general aviation use.
The runway, expected to launch by the end of the summer, is being planned by his neighbour, Les Nagy.
Watson said he’s worried about environmental pollution, disturbance to his organic hobby farm (“The bees don’t like it”) and the potential for a crash landing on Sixth Line Road, a key local artery.
Neighbours also told CBC they’re concerned about how new airstrips, or “aerodromes,” proceed under the watch of Transport Canada while municipalities like the City of Ottawa watch from the back seat — a situation the area’s councillor, Clarke Kelly, has called “a very frustrating realization.”
Mark Watson lives on nearby Berry Side Road and says the process under which airstrips proceed feels like ‘the wild west.’
People in Ottawa need city permits to build decks, but not landing strips, Watson said
“It kind of feels like the wild west.”
Transport Canada requires airstrip builders to consult other residents before construction, but communication has been “abysmal,” according to another neighbour, Mark Hayman.
Hayman, who lives on a side road from Nagy, said there’s been no consultation for him and he’s only heard of plans through “word of mouth.”
Airstrips a common occurrence, landowner says
Nagy has owned the land in question for more than two years, according to provincial property records. A sign with two maps posted to his fence gives an idea of his plans.
The airstrip is intended for “very low” monthly use in good weather, he told residents in correspondence obtained by CBC.
Nagy describes himself as an experienced mountain and backcountry pilot of 21 years, and he recently told Watson that once his airstrip is built, “I would be very surprised if you would even hear me.”
Nagy pointed to float planes on nearby Constance Lake and two runways on a nearby property as examples of “a very common occurrence around us daily.”
“I can literally hear the planes taking off from Constance Lake as I write this,” he said via email on Sunday. “Pretending that this area is silent nature is just not correct.”
The maps attached to Nagy’s notice show the northern end of the runway being “fairly close” to Sixth Line Road, said Hayman, whose business partner died in a crash at the Carp airport in 2021.
The airport is equipped to handle emergencies but in a residential area, “making emergency landings is going to be challenging,” he said.
Construction on Nagy’s runway is expected to begin in June and take three months, according to the notice, which asked for all comments and questions to be communicated by phone, email or mail from April 5 to May 20.
Patricia Ganim, who lives down the road, said the sign is small and escaped her notice.
“I drive by there probably four or five times a week,” she said.
Hayman and Watson said Nagy never approached them. Ganim said she received a notice at a building (her business property) next to Nagy’s yard but not at her home three doors down from Nagy.
Nagy maintains he is following all steps defined by Transport Canada.
He declined to be interviewed and has not responded to questions about his consultation process.
He deferred to Transport Canada, which referred CBC back to Nagy. Nagy also shared links noting aerodromes being a matter of federal jurisdiction.
Watson asked Nagy for a tour of the site, but was told in an email viewed by CBC that he was afraid of doing so because people were getting a “little nasty.”
I am not looking for permission but rather looking to hear concerns and come to a meaningful compromise.– Les Nagy
Nagy told Watson he would answer questions over the phone, adding that other residents on Berry Side Road where Hayman and Watson live sent emails of approval.
“You may want to sync up with your neighbours and dig into the bigger picture a bit,” Nagy wrote.
Nagy also told Watson he wasn’t “looking for permission” but instead wanted to “hear concerns and come to a meaningful compromise.”
“I will be highly sensitive to your right to enjoy your property as I have to enjoy mine … and I am willing to accommodate your concerns,” Nagy said.
What’s known about the aerodrome process
Nagy’s aerodrome proposal sheds light on a system criticized for being too heavily weighted toward pilots over municipalities and neighbours.
Regulating the approval and location of aerodromes is “entirely” within federal jurisdiction, the City of Ottawa said in an emailed statement, adding aerodromes are not subject to municipal zoning.
Aerodrome noise complaints go to Transport Canada, according to Kelly. Still, as of May 24 he said he received emails opposing Nagy’s plan.
Kanata-Carleton MP Jenna Sudds said a limited number of people contacted her to voice their concerns about Nagy’s airstrip, so her office has asked him to explain how he will address them.
The required consultation process has only been in effect for six years, which followed previous aerodrome conflicts.
Those rules were the first to require proponents to talk to nearby residents, said Patrick Floyd, a pilot and aviation lawyer with knowledge of the Dunrobin area.
Proponents must first “correctly” identify the interested parties and stakeholders, a list that includes municipalities, according to Transport Canada.
As of Monday, the City of Ottawa said Nagy had not sought its input.
“[He is] answerable to Transport Canada for any omissions,” the city said.
Which neighbours need to be consulted?
If a project falls within four kilometres of “a built-up area of a city or town,” people who live within that same radius need to be consulted.
If not, only people whose land borders the project area need to be approached, Floyd said of the regulations.
Nagy told Watson the latter approach was required in his case.
“I live in the City of Ottawa,” Hayman said. “To say he just needs to notify his immediate neighbours is, I think, a very narrow interpretation. The reality is he would be overflying all of his neighbours.”
CBC has asked Transport Canada to confirm which bubble applies in Nagy’s case.
Proponents also need to place a sign in plain view of the public.
Even though proponents may not have to notify everybody, casting a wide net doesn’t hurt, Floyd said.
“An incomplete consultation is fatal because you don’t know what you don’t know,” he said.
The Canadian Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) has produced “a guide on how to manage the process,” which includes a section called “Getting Along With Your Neighbours.”
COPA said many legal problems can be avoided by taking the time at the beginning of a project “to educate people.”
The association counsels proponents to invite neighbours over but also stresses — as Nagy did in his email to Watson — that “you are not asking their permission.”
Once the airstrip is built, COPA encourages pilots to hold events, host people and take others for a flight to “show them their homes from the air.”
Proponents are also advised “under no circumstances” to seek out a municipal building permit as that might strip them of “protection under federal jurisdiction.”
What happens after the consultation
Proponents are not required to hold a community meeting, which was an industry concern, Transport Canada noted in 2015.
Once the consultation window wraps, Transport Canada must receive a report describing the plans, outreach efforts, feedback received and how the landowner plans to address objections.
That report should be made available to any interested party for five years. CBC has asked Nagy for his report and has not heard back.
While Transport Canada told CBC it “does not require applications or grant approvals with respect to the development of aerodromes,” a flowchart summarizing the regulations states, unless notified otherwise, proponents can begin construction 30 days after handing in the report.
The Minister of Transport will give the green light or issue a notice seeking more information to evaluate lingering objections, according to this page.
That notice is simply an encouragement to “push the button, do it again and better this time,” said Floyd, but it isn’t a “no.”
“It’s a non-process that does nothing to protect neighbours,” Watson said.
City says it’s waiting on proponent
Under the Aeronautics Act, the minister can stop a project due to aviation safety or public concerns.
“Transport Canada has the power to determine the location of aerodromes by prohibiting them or remaining silent,” Kelly said. “It seems that remaining silent is equal to approval.”
The city said it understands residents want the municipality more involved but directs concerns to Transport Canada.
“Due to the city having no authority over these types of matters, staff are not in a position to proactively reach out to either the federal agency or the proponent,” the city said.
Dunrobin resident Carolynne Bruce said the city needs to speak up anyway.
“Saying ‘it’s federal’ is the city is abdicating its responsibilities and leaving concerned citizens to fend for themselves,” she said.
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