Ottawa Citizen
Ex-librarian follows her passion, opens romance-only bookstore
It was the fall of 2024 when Amanda Holmes first picked up the romantic-fantasy series A Court of Thorns and Roses. Though Holmes had been a lifelong reader, her special interest in the specific genre two years ago would “snowball” into Ottawa's first...
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A closer look at the consolidation of Ontario conservation authorities
The Ontario government has finalized its plan to merge the province's 36 conservation authorities into nine new authorities. The consolidation will help “get shovels into the ground faster,” the province said in a March 10 release. For Eastern...
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How is OC Transpo targeting delays?
OC Transpo executives say they are making progress in efforts to return the O-train fleet to full capacity as councillors vent their frustration over the slow pace of repairs for a “spalling” issue that was identified in January. Interim general...
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OFFICIAL INTRIGUED BY ANTI-DRONE SYSTEM FROM TRIO AT HEART OF EXPLOSIVES TRIAL
A senior official at the Department of National Defence says he wants to learn more about the anti-drone system three men charged in an Ontario gun and explosives investigation are working on, once their legal problems are resolved. But developing...
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OUTLIVING `BEST BEFORE' DATE
“I suck at dying.” Hélène Campbell says this both matter-of-factly and jokingly. The two-time double-lung transplant recipient has had plenty of opportunities to meet her maker, especially after learning years ago she wouldn't qualify for another...
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Residents fear mercury still in soil
The responsibility for testing the soil in a former golf course in Kanata for mercury contamination falls to the companies that want to develop the 175-acre property, the City of Ottawa says. Heavy equipment moved onto the property in January to...
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NEW FLOUR POWER
Gabrielle Prud'homme is the owner and miller at Almanac Grain, Ottawa's only urban stone mill, which just opened a new location in Little Italy. “Our whole goal in starting this was feeding more people better,” Prud'homme says. Sofia Misenheimer reports.
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Phoenix drops the ball on severance
Jack Logan served Canadians for almost 50 years, first in the military, then as a civilian public servant within the Department of National Defence. While scores of public servants have been impacted by the Phoenix pay system fiasco during their...
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Telltale sign for a long-awaited spring in Ottawa isn't what you might expect
Spring has (almost) sprung in Ottawa, and a telltale sign for residents along the Rideau River is the sight — and sound — of the City of Ottawa crew's hefty amphibious icebreaking machine. The Eco Technologies-owned icebreaker looks a lot like a giant...
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RUSSIA MAY SEE CHANCE TO BENEFIT FROM MIDEAST WAR
For Russia, the assassination of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was the latest blow to President Vladimir Putin's network of anti-western partners, and it exposed Moscow's diminished influence on the world stage, from the Middle East to...
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PSYCHEDELICS AT END OF LIFE
On a late winter day, the sun seeped into Andrew Chernysh's room inside Ottawa's century old Saint-vincent Hospital. It illuminated family photos and postcard-sized Group of Seven prints that blanket one wall and bounced off a bouquet of birthday...
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Bamm's Snack Shack closing — but for a most unusual reason
To understand Bamm's Snack Shack — a small, colourful restaurant on Cobourg Street in Lowertown — you have to understand the back room. A couple of Victorian couches immediately command the eye, although they compete with the two video games set to...
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New parking rules bad move for Byward
Early one morning last summer, I parked my car on the top level of the city-run garage at 70 Clarence St. and didn't think about it again until the following day. For the next 24 hours, I wandered the Byward Market. I enjoyed an iced latte on the...
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`Community hazard zones' prompt bus service for downtown students
About 60 more students at five downtown Ottawa schools will soon become eligible for school bus rides after the transportation authority cited safety concerns for those along walking routes near “hazards” such as shelters and supervised consumption...
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Community support event held in honour of stabbing victim
On a cold Sunday afternoon, a group of volunteers gathered at the corner of 53 Daly Ave., to hand out winter clothing, food and hot beverages for those in need. Hoodies, winter jackets, sweaters, gloves and tuques were piled onto a tarp on the ground...
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IS TRUMP RUNNING OUT OF TARIFF CARDS TO PLAY AHEAD OF CUSMA REVIEW?
Even the highest court in the land could not convince Donald Trump to stray from his love of tariffs. The U.S. president's yearlong imposition of tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) was brought to a halt by the...
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MYSTERY IN SMITHS FALLS
Robbie Thomson was barely out of toddlerhood when his parents noticed he dragged his left leg on the ice. The Thomsons were a hockey family — dad George played with the Smiths Falls Bears back in the day — and all three kids, Jed, Tabatha and Robbie,...
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One dead, others injured after car slams into building
A man in his 70s died and two other people were in critical condition after a car crashed into the Capital City Mission's The Drop-in on Wednesday, Feb. 25. The man was taken to hospital in life-threatening condition after the crash, but did not...
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Frostbite from long, cold commute
Jazz Rosenberg's trip home from her job in downtown Ottawa on public transit usually takes 50 minutes at most, even in rush hour. But on the evening of Jan. 27, the trip took three hours, an unfunny comedy of errors that left Rosenberg with diagnosed...
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`SECRET' MEETING LED TO HOWE BRIDGE DEAL
The key piece of the puzzle that saw Canada pay the entire bill for the Gordie Howe International Bridge — thus allowing the massive project to proceed — came at a secret meeting. At least, it was supposed to be secret. In an interview with Postmedia...
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GOING FOR GOLD
It turns out Canada's game-winning goal on Friday in the semifinal of men's hockey at Milan Cortina 2026 was a year in the making. The goal, which proved to be a release-valve on a mounting overload of tension for Canadian fans, was the finale of a...
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Equine centre in Greely harnesses healing power of therapeutic riding
When 13-year-old Keira Reaney was asked what image she'd like printed on her customized ankle and foot orthotics, she chose a photo of the first horse she rode during therapeutic riding lessons. The photo reflects the profoundly positive impact riding...
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Safety agency found 'non-conformities' at Vorlage after fatal chairlift accident
The Quebec agency tasked with ensuring safety at ski areas ordered Centre Vorlage to shut down all of its aerial lifts after an accident that resulted in the death of a 13-yearold Ottawa girl. The ski area is gradually reopening its operations this...
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Organizers laud banner Winterlude
It was a banner year for Winterlude, according to organizers, tourism industry insiders, visitors and locals alike, with a stretch of cold but sunny days creating ideal conditions for the festivities. The 48th edition of Winterlude came to a close on...
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Guerrilla theatre artist skewers Trump on canal
Velvet Leclair's papier mâché likeness of U.S. President Donald Trump drew a lot of attention from skaters on the Rideau Canal on Sunday. She donned the mask and danced along the Rideau Canal from the Lisgar Street entrance to the Corktown Bridge,...
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SECOND CHANCE FOR LOVE
When Marc Marier moved into a supportive housing residence in Kanata a handful of years ago, he didn't expect to fall in love. And when Joanne Higgs tentatively approached Marier on one of his first days at the Hope Living residence — the reaction she...
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Professor dives into riddle of what's killing the turtles
Carleton University's Grégory Bulté has been studying the northern map turtles of Opinicon Lake since 2003. Every fall, the turtles do something unusual, even for turtles. Hundreds of them gather or “aggregate” on the shores of an island in the middle...
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TRAGEDY IN TUMBLER RIDGE
Tuesday “started as any other” for Tumbler Ridge, B.C., mom Cia Edmonds, but within hours she was sitting in the Vancouver children's hospital with her daughter, Maya, 12, who was “fighting for her life” with gunshot injuries to her head and neck. The...
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Kanata community edges closer to heritage status
When prolific Ottawa developer Bill Teron broke ground on a new self-contained “satellite city” that would become Kanata in the 1960s, he envisioned a community from the viewpoint of a child pedalling a tricycle. Clusters of homes with similar...
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In-office mandate `insulting': PSAC
The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), the largest federal public service union in the country, said the government's new changes to the number of days public servants will spend in the office a week are “grounds for legal action.” On Feb. 5,...
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CANADA'S RACE TO BUILD NEW WARSHIPS
As U.S. President Donald Trump was lecturing Prime Minister Mark Carney and other Western leaders in Davos last month, Vice-admiral Angus Topshee was speaking to his officers about the new navy Canada is building to protect its sovereignty. In the...
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SAFETY 'NET WANTED
Josephine Maharaj, 17, was one of the youths who testified at the House of Commons Heritage Committee earlier this week about internet safety, and how a lack of regulations is harming young people,
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GAMES ON IN ITALY
Canada's Trinity Ellis takes part in luge women's singles training on Thursday in Cortina. The Milan-cortina Winter Olympics officially begin Friday with the opening ceremony. online at ottawacitizen.com
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Restaurateur transforms Ottawa Hospital's meals
His name is synonymous with fine dining in Ottawa, so it might surprise some to learn where Stephen Beckta's latest project has taken him. For the past several years the acclaimed restaurateur who has helped change the way people think about food in...
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As OPS cracks down on grocery theft, criminologist urges focus on root causes
As the Ottawa Police Service continues to crack down on retail and grocery theft, one criminologist is calling for restorative justice and community-based solutions to tackle the root cause of the issue. Twelve people are facing charges after they...
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MARKET BOOSTER
Eight years ago, Victoria Williston arrived in Ottawa for a morning anchor job with Citynews Radio. She was a Humber Polytechnic grad with a diploma in journalism who discovered she had a voice for radio. But, when Rogers Media closed the Citynews...
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CANADA HAS PLEDGED EV SECTOR $50B IN SUBSIDIES. IS IT WORTH IT?
If you want to play, you have to pay. But when that payment is in the Canadian automotive industry, it in turn pays off in building businesses across several sectors that grow a national economy and generate thousands of jobs, industry experts...
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A FLAWLESS MEAL
Finding chef Briana Kim's new Chinatown restaurant is a bit like a treasure hunt, but Antheia is all about discoveries — delicious and otherwise.
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Algonquin urged not to wave `white flag' on journalism
Jon Willing was on his way to teach a journalism class at Algonquin College on Jan. 22 when he got the bad news via email. For the second year in a row, Algonquin is contemplating deep cuts. Last year, 37 programs were cut. This year, 30 more programs...
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Runners love the Rideau Canal, too
Embarking on the Rideau Canal Skateway defines a quintessential Ottawa winter, but for Anthony Balatti it doesn't involve skates. Venturing onto the Skateway in running shoes, a light athletic top and sometimes shorts, he says the frozen surface has...
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`Unconventional spaces' a new normal in hospitals
It is commonly known as the Garage, but, when Marnie Potter began to groggily take in her surroundings during a recent hospital stay there, she thought she was in an airplane hangar. She arrived at the at the General campus of The Ottawa Hospital with...
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'TIL DEATH DO US PART
A case playing out in an Ottawa courtroom presents not just the heavy burden of caring for an ailing loved one, but also the moral and legal considerations when love leads to homicide.
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Wheel assembly woes dog LRT system again
The number of trains operating on the O -Train Line 1 was to be temporarily reduced starting on Wednesday evening after a new issue was identified with their wheel assemblies, OC Transpo announced. While frequency of service and hours of operation...
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Long-awaited realignment of Greenbank Road nears
Rows upon rows of houses blanket Barrhaven's Half Moon Bay community, now among the fastest growing subdivisions in Ottawa. It's a far cry from the vast land and local roads that defined its rural past. Before its rapid expansion, Half Moon Bay was...
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Line 2 transforms Riverside South
Gio Petti says he grew up in an area of the city commonly known as the “middle of nowhere.” But in reality the Riverside South suburb he calls home is actually less than 20 kilometres south of downtown Ottawa. For years, an unreliable and disjointed...
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Social media probe cost city $11K
The City of Ottawa spent $11,131.07 on an external report into the social media conduct of Rideau-vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante, though the city's integrity commissioner did not track the full expense of the investigation. Last August, Integrity...
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XI WELCOMES STEADY STREAM OF LEADERS SHAKEN BY TRUMP'S NEW WORLD ORDER
Donald Trump's tariff war occupied U.S. allies for much of last year. Now, Chinese President Xi Jinping is welcoming a procession of leaders looking to mend fences with the world's other major economy. South Korea's Lee Jae Myung kicked off the trend...
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RE-READING MATTERS
Ray Tropiano is the owner of Re-read Used Books in Stittsville, a donation-driven store where inventory changes constantly. As the cost of living rises, there has been a growing interest in used book stores in Ottawa. Sofia Misenheimer reports.
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Zoning bylaw overhaul could reshape Ottawa
With Ottawa's population projected to grow by more than half a million people over the next 20 years, city councillors are poised to pass a sweeping overhaul of outdated zoning bylaws that could reshape the look and feel of the city's...
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Government's planned AI redaction system called a `tool of repression'
At least three federal government departments are developing artificial intelligence tools to help redact sensitive information from documents before they're released to the public, and observers warn it could damage transparency in an already...
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ART OF LAMBSCAPING
As is the case for many things in farming, solar grazing started as an experiment for Chris Moore and Lyndsey Smith. Solar grazing, sometimes called “lambscaping,” is the practice of using sheep grazing to manage vegetation under and around solar...
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Chronically ill girl denied coverage for prescription
A public servant whose chronically ill daughter was denied coverage for a prescription is calling out the government's health-care plan as “discriminatory against kids.” Julie Jewett, who works at Employment and Social Development Canada, said the...
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Ottawa's `inclusive' dog park policy drives owners of small pups away
Has wokeness gone to the dogs? You might think so based on the city's reply to one resident's inquiry about off-leash dog park areas specifically for small canines. Shelley Creaser is the owner of Meka, a four-year-old Morkie, a Maltese/yorkshire...
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Bylaw won't protect tree canopy from development, advocates say
Ottawa's plan to grow its tree canopy has failed to take root, and local environmental advocates fear a new zoning bylaw won't help. In the last municipal election, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe promised to plant one million trees during his first mandate and...
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WILL TOP U.S. COURT END THE TARIFF TURMOIL?
'Tis the season for renaming — everything from a cultural hub dedicated to a beloved slain president to new destroyers to 2025 itself. No, U.S. President Donald Trump hasn't labelled the year with his name, but his trade representative, in a new op-ed,...
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COOL START TO 2026
A stoic Cédric Raffa breathes through his New Year's Day cold-water plunge at Britannia Beach. The temperature was -15C when Raffa and another approximately 250 hardy souls braved the freezing temperatures and icy Ottawa River waters.
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Same old outage story for Nepean
Just minutes after the power goes out in the Manordale neighbourhood, the sounds of gas-powered generators begin their mechanical symphony through the area. Resident Brittany Lauzon, who lives in a farmhouse that's more than 100 years old, says power...
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A special ride for this Uber driver
When Dave Nguyen started chatting with his Uber driver days before Christmas, he discovered that he had never been tobogganing in his life, so something had to change. It was a snowy night downtown, and Nguyen had just finished his company Christmas...
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Gut molecule fuelled by healthy foods helps protect against Type 2 diabetes
Eating your broccoli, along with other beneficial foods, can help protect against Type 2 diabetes, researchers at the Ottawa Heart Institute, along with partners in France and the U.K., have discovered. The researchers have found that a natural...
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DID TRUMP SAVE CANADA FROM BAD POLICY?
Prime Minister Mark Carney rescinded Canada's digital services tax (DST), a threeper-cent levy on digital services revenue from large domestic and foreign businesses, in June after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to halt trade talks if the tax...
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PHILANTHROPY IS HIS THING
Bruce Mckean describes it as his coming out party. A year ago, the retired public servant stepped out of the shadows to reveal himself as the face behind hundreds of millions of dollars in donations to support mental-health research in Ottawa, Toronto...
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WHAT CHRISTMAS MEANS TO OTTAWA, EVEN THOSE WHO DON'T CELEBRATE
We don't all celebrate Christmas, but we all move through it. In that regard, Christmas is less like a ticketed event that one signs up for than it is, say, a kind of weather front: It blows though town, disrupting routines and rattling windows,...
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Riders left in the cold as OC Transpo misses targets
Carleton University student Brooke Anderson relies on OC Transpo for her long commutes to campus from Kanata but is often stuck waiting in the cold waiting for her bus to show up. “I was recently waiting for a bus that didn't arrive and my fingers...
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BOOM & GLOOM
In one southwestern Ontario city, forever linked by history to all things jumbo, one of the world's largest automakers is building Canada's biggest factory — a $7-billion colossus expected to employ about 3,000 people. Only 50 kilometres away, in...
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UNSOLVED SHOOTINGS
Ottawa Police Service Sgt. Derek Wereley has investigated the shooting that left two men dead and six people injured at a wedding in 2023. New details have emerged, but no charges have been laid. Nicholas Kohler reports
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SMALL TOWN UNCERTAINTY
A rainbow crosswalk, Uber Eats, Starbucks, a biryani restaurant and a French elementary school. These are five things Arnprior has now that weren't there a decade ago. Ottawa-area towns like Arnprior, Carleton Place and Kemptville were among Canada's...
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Cloutier takes centre stage at NAC
Under the watchful eye of nuns, Annabelle Cloutier learned to play piano in a convent in the Eastern Townships. She started playing at the age of five — and never stopped. She's currently working on the second movement of the Ravel Concerto in G....
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Rideau Canal Skateway prep begins
Crews have taken to the Rideau Canal to begin flooding operations ahead of the famed Skateway's hoped-for opening later this winter, though when lace-up season starts exactly is still anyone's guess. Looking very Oompa Loompa-like in their full-body...
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Carney reaffirms commitment to fight antisemitism
As Ottawa's Jewish community mourned the lives lost at a mass shooting in Sydney, Australia, Prime Minister Mark Carney reaffirmed his commitment to fighting antisemitism across the country at a menorah lighting event at Ottawa City Hall on Sunday...
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HOW KUSHNER BECAME TRUMP'S INDISPENSABLE SECOND PEACE ENVOY
As soon as he finished negotiating a ceasefire in Gaza in early October, Jared Kushner said he was returning to his family and day job in Miami, where he heads a multibillion-dollar private equity firm. His involvement in high-stakes peacemaking was...
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