From Ottawa Neighbourhood Study, which began in April 2006, where the team created maps and profiles for all of the populated 97 Ottawa neighbourhoods that would then be useful in helping to highlight health and planning needs and the policies that communities need in order to develop to address these. The study goal is that these profiles will help us to better understand the social and physical pathways through which neighbourhoods affect health. The project brings together the University of Ottawa, the City of Ottawa, local Community Health Centres, Arts Ottawa East, United Way/Centraide Ottawa, Just Food, and other community-based partners.
See the
whole project here.
History and Description
Carp is bounded by Thomas A. Dolan Parkway to the north, March Road to the south, Upper Dwyer Hill Road to the east and the Ottawa River to the west. Carp, a village to the west of Ottawa, was named after the Carp River that runs through the majority of the area. The neighbourhood was amalgamated into the City of Ottawa in 2001.
The People
As of the 2006 census, Carp had 8,982 residents. The population consists mainly of young and middle aged adults, which is consistent with most neighbourhoods in the city of Ottawa. The distribution across age groups was as follows: 13% were children under 9 years of age, 16% were youth aged 10 to 19, 20% were young adults aged 20 to 39, 45% were middle aged adults aged 40 to 69, and 5% were seniors aged 70 to 89.
In terms of knowledge of official languages, 70% of Carp residents reported that they could speak or understand English only (Ottawa average: 60%), less than 1% reported that they could speak or understand French only, 28% reported that they could speak or understand both English and French, and less than 1% reported that they knew neither. This neighbourhood is not particularly diverse: 7.3% of the residents reported that they represent a visible minority (Ottawa average: 20%). 1% of residents identified as Aboriginal (First Nations, Inuit or Métis). 36% of the population were immigrants who came to Canada between 1996 and 2006, and 11% were recent immigrants (i.e. came to Canada between 2001 and 2006). 18% of residents aged 15 and over were first generation immigrants, 17% were second generation immigrants, and 64% were third generation or higher. Among the immigrants, 28% were from Asia or the Middle East, 3.7% were from Africa, 1.8% was from the Caribbean, 6.6% were from the United States, 57% were from Europe, and 2.3% were from South or Central America.
In 2006, the average individual income in Carp was $55,131 (above the Ottawa average of $34,844), and average household income was $123,301 (well above the Ottawa average $86,848). The percent of people below the Low Income Cut-Off (LICO, which is an important poverty benchmark) was 2%: this is much lower than the city average of 14.1%, but it has increased from 1% in 2001. Less than 1% of the children (Ottawa average: 17%) and seniors (Ottawa average: 6.9%) in the Carp area were living below the Low Income Cut-Off. Of residents living in families, just 7% were in lone parent families (Ottawa average: 16%). 7% of Carp’s seniors were living alone (Ottawa average: 27%).
The population has an above average education: 14% of residents did not complete high school, 22% completed at least high school, 6% completed an apprenticeship or trades certificate, 20% completed college or CEGEP and 38% completed a bachelor’s degree.
The neighbourhood socio-economic index is based on average income, percent below the LICO, the unemployment rate, the percent of people with less than a high school education, and the percent of families that are lone parent. Based on this index, neighbourhoods were divided into quintiles, with 1 representing most advantage and 5 representing the least advantage. Carp is in the 1st socio-economic quintile.
Employment
74% of Carp’s residents participated in the labour force. The unemployment was rate 5.6% (similar to the Ottawa neighbourhood average of 5.9%), and youth unemployment was 13% (also similar to the Ottawa neighbourhood average of 13.8 %.) Of those who were employed, 56% worked full-time, 37% worked part-time, and 6.8% did not work in the year before the census. 53% of residents did unpaid work, including housework and unpaid care to seniors or children.
Transportation to Work
Among those who worked, 85% drove a car, truck, or van to work, 7.3% rode in a car, truck, or van as a passenger, 5.4% used public transit, none walked to work, less than 1% bicycled to work, and less than 1% used other methods of transportation to work.
Housing
Carp has experienced steady growth in terms of housing and is a relatively new neighbourhood. Only 7% of dwellings were constructed before 1946, 11% were built between 1946 and 1970, 17% were built between 1971 and 1980, 22% were built between 1981 and 1990, 21% were built between 1991 and 2000, and 20% were built between 2001 and 2006.
In 2006, Carp had 2,940 dwellings: 95% were single detached, 1.2% were semi-detached, 3.9% were row houses, less than 1% were apartments with more than 5 stories and less than 5 stories. The great majority (94%) of residents owned their homes and 6% rented. Housing is affordable for most residents in the neighbourhood: 13% of residents (unchanged from 13% in 2001) pay more than 30% of their income on shelter (below the city average of 24%). 5% of the dwellings were reported to be in need of major repairs (near the city average of 6.4%). The number of people per room, a measure of crowding, was .36.
Civic Engagement and Responsibility
Carp residents are engaged in the political process, with 54% of eligible voters voted for mayor in the last municipal election (Fall 2006): this is higher than the city average of 48%. 63% (± 11.5% of the residents) felt a sense of belonging to their community. The neighbourhood is fairly stable, with 7.2% of residents moving within the last year: this is much lower than the city average of 14%. Sixty-six percent (65.7% ± 10.9%) felt a sense of belonging to the neighbourhood; this is above, but not significantly different than the city average or the average for the 1st SES quintile neighbourhoods. In 2006, the property crime rate was 16.6 crimes per thousand people, a lower rate than the city average of 42.7 per thousand people. Personal crime rates were also lower than the city average of 6.5 per thousand, at 1.8 per thousand people.
Carp has 5 religious organizations within its borders, with a ratio of .56 religious organizations per thousand people.
Neighbourhood Resources for Health
(Note that the food data is up to date as of September, 2008, while the other data was updated in September, 2007)
Food
Carp has poor access to both specialty food stores and grocery stores. It also has low access to unhealthier food outlets (fast food outlets, convenience stores).
This neighbourhood has no grocery stores and 1 specialty food store (.11 per thousand people). The closest grocery store and specialty store are 10.7 kilometres away and 10.59 kilometres away, respectively, from the population weighted center.
Carp has 2 convenience stores (.22 per thousand people) and 3 fast food outlets, or .33 for every thousand people. The closest convenience store is 838 metres (a 13.8 minute walk1) away from the population center and the closest fast food outlet is 854 meters (a 14 minute walk). One (33.3%) of West Centre Town’s 3 schools is within 500 metres (or 8 minutes) of a fast food outlet.
Carp also has five sit-down restaurants, or .55 per thousand people, and the average distance to the four closest restaurants is 4,401 metres from the population center.
Greenspace
Carp has some greenspace, with 1.2 km² of greenspace available, or .13 km² of greenspace per thousand people: this is below the city average of .26 km² per thousand people.
Parks and Recreation
Carp has many opportunities for recreation. In total, it has 54 recreation sites, or 6.0 sites per thousand people. Specifically, it has three sites for winter recreation (.33 for every 1000 people), 47 sites for summer recreation (5.2 for every 1000 people), and four indoor recreation facilities (.45 for every 1000 people). In 2007, 62% of this neighbourhood’s residents reported using a recreational facility (source: RRFSS). The neighbourhood also has 5.9 km of bike/walking paths, or .65 metres of bike/walking paths for every resident. In 2007, 93% of the residents reported being aware of walking, biking, or nature trails in Ottawa, while 51% reported using walking, biking, or nature trails (source: RRFSS). Carp has 58.7 m² for every resident: this is well above the City average of 34.4 m² per person. With a recreation index score (combines all recreation per thousand, bike paths, and parks) of 55, Carp has above average opportunities for recreation (city average = 50).
Education and Culture
Carp has three schools. The closest City of Ottawa library branch is located 1,950 metres from the population center: this is near the city average of 2733.7 metres.
Financial services
This neighbourhood has one bank, with a ratio of .11 banks per thousand people. This is below average for the Ottawa area. It has no ‘less healthy financial outlets’ (check cashing, pawn shop, or payday loan outlet). This is also below the city average.
Health services
Compared to other neighbourhoods in Ottawa, Carp has a below average number of pharmacies, with .11 per thousand people. The mean distance to the four closest physicians from the population center is 1,535 metres; this is below the average distance for the Ottawa area. Data from the 2001 to 2007 Canadian Community Health Surveys show that the proportion of residents who have a regular medical doctor is 94.2% (± 4.9%): this is significantly higher than the City average (88.3% ± 1.0%), but not significantly different from the 1st SES Quintile average (92.6% ± 1.6%). The proportion of residents who have ever had a flu shot was 60.7% (± 11%); this is near the Ottawa average (62.0% ± 1.5%) and the average for the 1st quintile (62.4% ± 3.2%).
The proportion of residents who visited a dentist in the past year (83.6% ± 8.1%) is near the 1st SES quintile average (80.8% ± 2.6%) and significantly higher than the City average of 73.4% (± 1.5%).
Neighbourhood Health Outcomes
*Please note that the results from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) represent combined data from the 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2007 cycles. Results from the Rapid Risk Factor Surveillance System (RRFSS) represent combined data from 2003 to 2007 for self-rated health, body mass index (BMI), and physical activity.
The health of Carp residents is mixed compared to other residents in the Ottawa area. Sixty-five percent (65% ± 9.3%) of residents rated their overall health as excellent or very good in the years 2003 to 2007. This is similar to the Ottawa average of 64.5% (± 1.2%).
In terms of reproductive health, the rate of low birth weight single births in the years of 2002 to 2007 was 4.7 per hundred births: this is slightly higher than the city average of 4.3 per hundred births. The rate of preterm births of 7.4 per hundred was higher than both the Ottawa average (6.4%) and the average for the 1st socio-economic quintile (6.6%). The rate of teen births was 0.7 per hundred; this is lower than the Ottawa average of 2.3 per hundred and similar to the 1st quintile average of 0.8 per hundred.
The rate of hospitalization for Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions (conditions such as asthma, diabetes, cellulitis, angina, and hypertension) between 2003 and 2007 was 1,897.2 (± 339.3) per hundred thousand people; this is significantly higher than the city average (976.1 ± 21.2) and the average for the 1st socio-economic quintile (868.0 ± 46.3). The rate of emergency room visits for the same conditions between 2003 and 2007 was 13,171.9 (± 742.0) per hundred thousand people; this is significantly higher than both the City average of 5,806.1 (± 50.3) and the average for the first socio-economic quintile (5,369.04 ± 105.8). Hospitalization rates for unintentional injuries between 2003 and 2007 were 967.3 per hundred thousand people (± 244.4); this is sigificantly higher than both the Ottawa average of 472.2 (± 15.0) and the 1st quintile average of 497.7 (± 35.1). The rate of ER visits for unintentional injuries of 24,750.6 (± 928.1) per hundred thousand people was significantly higher than that for the Ottawa area (8,765.6 ± 61.5) as well as that of the rate for neighbourhoods in the 1st socioeconomic quintile (10,865.7 ± 149.0).
In terms of physical activity, 36.4%* (± 13.2%) of the residents were inactive in their leisure time (CCHS 2001 to 2007); this is not significantly different than either the Ottawa average or the average for the 1st socio-economic quintile. Seventy-nine percent of residents (± 8.2%) were moderately or highly physically active across all daily activities during the years 2003 to 2007; this is near both the Ottawa average (78.5% ± 1.1%) and the average for the 1st socio-economic quintile (81.6% ± 2.2%). Fifty-four percent (± 9.8%) of the residents aged 18 years and older reported overweight or obese BMIs (RRFSS; years 2003 to 2007); this is not significantly different from the averages for either the Ottawa area or for the 1st socio-economic quintile. Forty percent (40% ± 11.4%) of residents consumed 5 to 10 servings of fruit and vegetable servings per day in the years 2001 to 2007. This is not significantly different than the Ottawa average or the average for the 1st socio-economic quintile.
80.9% of residents (± 8.0%) lived in smoke-free homes during the years 2003 to 2007 (RRFSS); this is not significantly different than the Ottawa average or the average for the 1st socio-economic quintile.
School Readiness
The Early Development Instrument (EDI) measures the school readiness of kindergarten children on five major domains; physical health and well-being, social competence, emotional maturity, language and cognitive development, and communication skills and general knowledge. If a child scores below 90% of other Ottawa children on a domain, he or she is considered ‘vulnerable’ on that domain. Importantly, 22.7% (± 5.8%) of kindergarten children residing in the Carp neighbourhood were rated as vulnerable on the Early Development Instrument (EDI) in Year 2006, while the city average is 29.3% (± 1.0%). Additionally, 12.3% (± 4.5%) of neighbourhood children were vulnerable on TWO or more domains of school readiness (City average = 15.8% ± 0.8%).
Neighbourhood Strengths and Challenges
The Carp-Hardwood Plains neighbourhood has a number of strengths, including an affluent and well-educated populace, many of whom are engaged in the political process. A high proportion of residents also feel a strong sense of belonging to the community. Unemployment, poverty and crime rates are all low. Most homes were built after 1980, are predominantly single detached houses, owned, affordable and well maintained. Kindergarten-aged children are generally well prepared to succeed at school. Residents have a number of opportunities for recreation, and ample opportunities to enjoy nature. They also have good access to a City of Ottawa Library branch. However, there is no grocery store within the boundaries of this neighbourhood. While most residents have a regular doctor, on average the health of Carp residents is a concern. Although self-rated health is near average, reproductive health is an issue, as is the fact that this area has the highest rate of ER visits for ACS conditions. Hospitalizations for these same conditions are also high. Moreover, Carp residents have the highest rate of ER visits and hospitalizations for injuries in the Ottawa area.
1 Based on an average walking speed of 1.1 metres per second (http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/publicat/pdf/PedComp/pedintro.pdf)
* Interpret with caution - high sampling variability
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