Uploaded on 2016-09-04 by Ottawa resident

People, capital, and density are three stocks and flows that affect Ottawa. Ottawa has a large influx/flow of new residents (students, immigrants, workers, families) who move into areas both in the core and in the suburbs. Capital is another stock and flow that is used to develop the city into a more livable space. Density is an important flow that is also changing - young students and professionals often start living in the core and then move to the suburbs to have young families, and then often move to other areas to retire. These moves coupled with demographic factors lead to density changes and flows with a distinct geographic effects over time. Increases in population can bring new ideas and education into urban design and processes. They can also bring in a critical mass in terms of taxation to create change in terms of design and new construction and infrastructure and transportation to meet growing needs. The inflow and stocks of capital can also allow for construction and capacity to improve the livability of the city. Density changes can also have a positive effect on livability - families moving to the suburbs often have more and higher quality amenities for young children (despite longer commutes) and allow for greater greenspace given the existing planning, which in turn can have quality improving effects for those living close to the greenspaces. The varied densities for young professionals, families and the elderly can have a benefit for like-minded social groups, although care must be taken not to isolate age groups too much from one another in society by geographic affinities. It would allow for increased density of cohort-appropriate or cohort-popular amenities in the areas in which those cohorts live.