Flags: Display at Municipal Sites

Approved by: Chief Corporate Services Officer
Section: General administration
Approval date: June 22, 2006
Effective date: June 22, 2006

Policy statement
Purpose
Application
Policy requirements

Flags flown permanently at Ottawa City Hall

Flag raisings

Half-masting of flags
Position of flags
Disposal of flags

Technical Description of the Flags Flown Permanently at City Hall

The national flag of Canada
The province of Ontario flag
The City of Ottawa flag
The Franco-Ontarian flag

Responsibilities

City Manager, deputy city managers, executive officers, directors
City Clerk
Office of Protocol
Employees

Monitoring/contraventions
Legislative & administrative authorities
Keyword search
Appendices

Policy statement

The City of Ottawa will fly flags on its premises on a permanent basis, and on a temporary basis to mark special occasions. Flag-raising ceremonies enhance public awareness of activities such as national days, multicultural events, and fund-raising drives. They encourage support from members of the public, and benefit and enrich the community. A flag raising is the ceremonial raising of either a flag or pennant that can occur with or without an accompanying ceremony.

The City will fly its flags at half-mast in the event of a death or to commemorate a solemn occasion. The act of half-masting is a strong visual statement that speaks to the sense of loss that is shared by all citizens. The flags are lowered at the direction of the Mayor.

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Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to present the protocol with respect to the raising and half-masting of flags by the City of Ottawa.

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Application

This policy applies to City Hall and all of its municipal sites.

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Policy requirements

The flying of flags at Ottawa City Hall falls into two categories; flags that are flown permanently, and flags that are flown temporarily on special occasions.

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Flags flown permanently at Ottawa City Hall

The National Flag of Canada

The Province of Ontario Flag

The City of Ottawa Flag

The Franco Ontarian Flag

Promotional banners of any kind are prohibited from being attached to, or flown from, the City of Ottawa’s external flagpoles.

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Flag raisings

In recognition of the ethnic diversity of the population of the City of Ottawa and of its unique role as the nation’s capital, the City of Ottawa will fly the flag of any nation on its national day with whom Canada has diplomatic relations. All Embassies have been invited to provide the City’s Office of Protocol with their national flag to be flown outside City Hall on their respective national day. Where these flags have been provided, they will be flown from sunrise to sunset in accordance with the attached list of national days provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Government of Canada. (Appendix A). Where two or more countries share the same national day, flags will be flown in alphabetical order.

As a gesture of respect and friendship, the City of Ottawa will fly the appropriate flag on the occasion of a visiting dignitary; the flag will be flown for the duration of the visit to Ottawa City Hall.

To celebrate achievement, the City of Ottawa will also fly the flag of: a charitable or non-profit organization to help increase public awareness of their programs and activities; an organization that has achieved national or international distinction or made a significant contribution to the community; an organization that has helped to enhance the City of Ottawa in a positive manner. It will be the responsibility of these groups to provide the City of Ottawa with the appropriate flag. The City will not fly the flag of a group or organization whose undertakings or philosophy are contrary to City of Ottawa policies or by-laws; espouse hatred, violence, or racism.

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Half-masting of flags

The flying of flags at half-mast denotes a period of official mourning or commemoration.

The City of Ottawa will fly its flags at half-mast in the event of a death or to commemorate a solemn occasion. The flags are lowered at the direction of the Mayor. In consultation with the Mayor, the Office of Protocol will provide instruction to lower the flags at City Hall, the Client Service Centres and all municipal locations where appropriate.

The position of the flag when flying at half-mast will depend on its size, the length of the mast and its location; but as a general rule, the centre of the flag should be exactly half-way down the mast.

The official period of mourning is defined as the day of passing until sunset on the day of the funeral.

Flags will be flown at half-mast on an annual basis to commemorate the following occasions:

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Position of flags

In compliance with flag protocol an observer facing the display would find these flags positioned in the following manner beginning at the extreme left. (For additional information regarding the positioning of flags, please refer to Appendix B.)

Facing the display, an observer would find these flags positioned in the following manner beginning at the extreme left. (For additional information regarding the positioning of flags, please refer to Appendix B.)

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Disposal of flags

When a flag becomes worn, noticeably faded or otherwise unfit for service, it must be disposed of privately by burning.

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Technical Description of the Flags Flown Permanently at City Hall

The national flag of Canada

The official ceremony inaugurating the new Canadian Flag was held on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on February 15, 1965.

The national flag of Canada is a red flag of the proportions two by length and one by width containing in its center a white square of the width of the flag, with a single red maple leaf centered therein. The colours red and white are Canada’s official colours and with the maple leaf, are the symbolic elements found in the Canadian flag.

The province of Ontario flag

The Province of Ontario flag is red and of the proportions two by length and one by width with the Union Jack occupying the upper quarter next to the staff and with the shield of the armorial bearings of the Province of Ontario centered in the half farthest from the staff. The flag was first raised in a ceremony in front of the Legislative Assembly building on May 21, 1965, the day it was proclaimed into force.

The City of Ottawa flag

The City of Ottawa flag was designed to reflect the landscape of the new City with a green and blue backdrop representing the importance of the City’s green spaces and waterways. The stylized ‘O’ logo is in the center of the flag and represents the vibrancy and forward-movement of the new City.

The new City of Ottawa flag was developed following extensive public consultation that emphasized Ottawa’s quality of life, environment, economy and status as the nation’s capital. The flag was adopted by the Ottawa Transition Board on October 23, 2000.

The Franco-Ontarian flag

The emblem of the Ontario French-speaking community consists of two vertical bands of different colours. The first band is mid-green and has a white lily in the middle of the band. The second band is white and has a mid-green trillium in the middle of the band. On the emblem, green represents summer and white represents winter. Together the two colours represent the diversity of Ontario’s climate. The lily evokes the French-speaking community worldwide, whereas the trillium is the floral emblem of Ontario. The City of Ottawa flies the Franco-Ontarian flag to honour its original creation more than a quarter of a century ago; to acknowledge it as an important symbol for the French-speaking community in Ottawa; and to commemorate its formal recognition in 2001 by the Province of Ontario.

Notwithstanding any of the foregoing, the Mayor may, in his sole discretion, direct that a specific flag be flown or not flown at City Hall and/or its Client Service Centres on a specific date, in which event such direction shall take precedent over any direction contained in this policy.

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Responsibilities

City Manager, deputy city managers, executive officers, directors

It is the responsibility of the City Manager, Deputy City Managers, Executive Officers and Branch Directors, or designate, to:

• understand and support this policy and ensure that the policy is communicated to employees;
• work cooperatively with the City Clerk, the Chief of Protocol, or designate, with respect to flag protocol;
• establish the proper delegation framework to comply with this policy; and
• refer all requests for flag protocol to the Office of Protocol.

City Clerk

The protocol for flags initiated by the City of Ottawa or that take place on City property is the responsibility of the City Clerk or designate (Office of Protocol).

Office of Protocol

• provide leadership, coordination and advice for all protocol matters involving the City of Ottawa;
• be the principal point of contact for all flag protocol.

Employees

Employees are responsible for adhering to the provisions of this policy. Employees are also responsible for directing all protocol enquiries to the Chief of Protocol for action.

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Monitoring/contraventions

The application of this policy will be monitored by the Chief of Protocol.

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Legislative & administrative authorities

List of appended National days was obtained from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

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Keyword search

Flags
Flag-raisings
Half-masting of flags

Enquiries

Chief of Protocol
City Clerk’s Branch
Corporate Services Department
City of Ottawa
Tel: 3-1-1

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Appendices

Appendix A: List of National Days as provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Government of Canada

Appendix B: Information on the positioning of flags

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