Growing food may soon be allowed alongside Ottawa roads if council approves
Ottawa residents may soon be able to grow food on city-owned property near roads, if a motion passed by the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee is adopted by full council. If the motion amending a bylaw is adopted, it would allow fixed planters placed half a metre away from the sidewalk and 1.5 meters away from the road on streets without...
More staff needed before expanding community policing, says chief
Ottawa police are confident that they will be able to expand into the city’s communities soon in response to concerns about rising levels of crime, though police staffing issues will need to be resolved first.
Ottawa Public Library says cost for new Bookmobile has doubled — thanks, in part, to Trump
The Ottawa Public Library plans to use almost all of its $1.8-million budget surplus from the past year to replace an aging Bookmobile, one of the city’s two travelling mini-libraries for underserved communities. According to a staff report, the city’s next Bookmobile will cost $1.5 million to put into service by 2026 — double the cost of the last one....
Music Week to boost capital’s bid to be ‘Nashville North’ nighttime hotspot
Ottawa band Whiskey River played a live show at the Lowertown Brewery in the Byward Market on March 8. . [Photo © Gavin Ramnauth
Cozy reads and romantasy: Ottawa library users increasingly turning to fiction
Ottawa public library users are increasingly turning to fiction, according to data from the Ottawa Public Library.
One in four struggle to afford food: How Ottawa’s Parkdale Food Centre is managing demand
The Parkdale Food Centre is barely able to keep up with the demand as amid rising food prices.
One person, two votes? What would the Ontario election look like with a different voting system?
The vote also exposed some of the oddities in our electoral system, as the Progressive Conservative majority came despite the party winning only 43 per cent of the popular vote. In an election where only 45 per cent of eligible voters showed up to the polls, the party won a strong majority with only 19 per cent of eligible voters....
Intersectional art exhibits showcased resilience in Black History, Winter Pride
Black and queer communities flooded Arts Court in downtown Ottawa last month to celebrate intersectionality with two multidisciplinary art exhibits. The early February vernissage, an ode to Black History Month and Ottawa’s Winter Pride festivities, spearheaded the undercurrents theatre festival organized by the Ottawa Fringe Festival. In one room, Capital Pride and the Ottawa Trans Library curated a colourful display...
Neighbourhood health hubs playing key role in city immunization efforts
Any Ottawa parent with a child who’s missing immunizations should be expecting mail soon — if they haven’t already received it. Since December, Ottawa Public Health has mailed about 11,000 incomplete immunization advisory letters to families with children missing one or more vaccines on their health record. Soon, the agency will send school suspension notices to those who have not...
Can I Skate? Ottawa couple develops app tracking Rideau Canal ice conditions
Skating on the Rideau Canal Skateway was always a family affair for the Owens. Every February, Stephen and Leslie Owens would drive more than four hours from Caledon, Ont. to visit their son Tyler in Ottawa. The couple, their sister and their two sons would spend Family Day on the Canal. “That’s been a tradition since I arrived (in Ottawa),”...
Crépu celebrates the creativity of Black hair in Ottawa
From a young age, Charifa Labarang had a fascination with hair. Long before she mastered her craft, the Gatineau-based hairstylist and designer spent hours experimenting, using her hair as a canvas for creativity and self-expression. As she taught herself to cornrow, braid, and twist, she discovered that hair could be more than just a style—it was a medium for innovation...
NAC Orchestra plans landmark spring tour to South Korea, Japan
The National Arts Centre Orchestra is to embark on a monumental tour this spring, including its debut in South Korea and a return to Japan for the first time in 40 years. The orchestra has performed in every Canadian province and territory, but it is also known as one of the most accessible and collaborative orchestras in the world. This...