City waters down proposed ban on smart-consumption monitoring devices
The City of Ottawa is aiming to strengthen regulations around smart-consumption monitoring devices on water meters, which could include working with the private company Alert Labs. On Tuesday, members of the city’s environment and climate change committee discussed changes to the Water Bylaw, which regulates municipal water services. A report released on May 8 outlined a potential ban on renters...
City’s e-scooter program set for spring rollout with new rules, expanded service
Ottawa residents will soon see e-scooters roll out across the city once again for the spring and summer, but this time with 24-hour availability and in more neighbourhoods. City council has unanimously approved a five-year extension for the scooters on Ottawa roads. Additionally, councillors supported continuing to contract Bird Canada and Neuron Mobility to manage e-scooter rentals from April 30...
Advocates call for sustainable climate solutions in wake of federal election
As some vote as still being counted in the federal election, environmental advocates are highlighting a gap between public concern about climate change and the need for action, emphasizing the need for more effective communication and stronger proposals from all federal parties to bridge this divide. A recent Angus Reid Institute poll indicated that nearly 70 per cent of Canadians...
Children’s mental health appears poorer than parents think, study indicates
Children are more likely to perceive their mental health negatively than their parents, according to data from the Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth.
‘Influencers’ a major source of election information for young people, report says
A new report from researchers at the University of Ottawa finds that social media influencers are becoming a central source of political information for young voters.
‘I’d rather waste money than time’: Frustrated bus riders brace for overhaul of city routes
After her 10-hour retail shift at Tanger Outlets, the last thing Monique Obasi wanted to do was wait for her ride home to the Morgan Grant neighbourhood in Kanata. So, at 9:45 p.m., Obasi hurried to the nearest bus stop. In the home stretch of her run, she watched the bus speed past her stop, right in front of her...
Photography program helps people with Down syndrome explore their visual creativity
The True to Life project is the work of photographers Kelly McDonald and Emillie Swain, who have taught photography to students with Down syndrome for roughly a decade.
Green groups alarmed as city explores ‘waste-to-energy’ incineration project
This spring, as the City of Ottawa reviews its options for the future management of municipal waste, officials will explore a controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy incinerator. Local environmental groups are concerned about the emissions and toxins that could be produced by an incinerator and argue the facility would incentivize overconsumption instead of encouraging greater waste reduction and higher...
Group calls on federal candidates to support ceasefire in the Middle East
A grassroots organization representing some 250 groups across Canada is putting pressure on candidates in the federal election to support the Palestinian people and end the violence in the region.
‘Set up for failure:’ Harm reduction advocate slams transition to HART hubs
A leading defender of harm reduction services in Ottawa says the Ontario government’s push to convert safe consumption sites to HART hubs is misguided. Rob Boyd, CEO of Ottawa Inner City Health — one of just three remaining safe consumption sites in the capital — said the province’s new approach to Canada’s overdose and toxic drugs crisis means Ontario is...
‘If we’re hurting, everybody’s hurting’: Dunn’s closes ByWard Market eatery
After an 18-year run, Dunn’s Famous Deli is joining the growing list of businesses that have closed in the ByWard Market. After surviving the COVID-19 pandemic and an ever-changing business landscape, Russell Garland, Dunn’s owner, says rising safety concerns and a lack of tourists as the main reasons for the restaurant’s closure in late March. “Homelessness, drugs, shootings and stabbings....
City seeks public input for five-year plan to transform Ottawa’s cultural life
The City of Ottawa has begun a major public consultation aimed at creating a new five-year plan for the development of the capital’s cultural life. “This is the first city-wide cultural planning exercise since 2012 and aims to help the city better serve the evolving needs of Ottawa’s culturally diverse populations,” according to the official announcement in late March. Everything...