Ottawa Citizen
Homeowner stuck between a root and a hard place
Nicole Robert doesn't usually work out of Ottawa's City Hall, but now she's hunched over on the floor next to security, writing code on her laptop. Robert doesn't work for the city — she's a statistical analyst for the Medical Council of Canada. On a...
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`Safe gathering spot' at risk in policing push: Inuit group
When Lisa saw Kate out of the corner of her eye, she sprang toward her. It was hot and clammy. But the two friends were glued to each other like magnets as tears dripped out of their eyes. They had not seen each other in more than a year. The last...
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Lax border policies fostered one of Canada's most dangerous gangs
At the immigration hearing for an accused Indian gangster earlier this month, an Edmonton police officer attempted to illustrate the scale of the criminal operation that law enforcement was now dealing with. The hearing concerned Jashandeep Singh, an...
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THAT SINKING FEELING
Paul Charette had just finished a locksmithing job at the Rideau Centre and was returning to the van he'd parked outside when he first encountered the sinkhole. It had opened up, a giant, yawning maw, between him and the company car, a dark blue Dodge...
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BUS ATTENDANTS CUT
Amanda Jollymore and Brian Mcphail say their six-year-old daughter, Mia, is strong enough to get herself into trouble, but she isn't always strong enough to get herself out of it. So, when the parents learned Friday that the bus attendants assisting...
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Proposed bill would keep tenants cool
Ontario landlords are required to keep tenants warm in the winter. Ottawa Centre MPP Catherine Mckenney says it's time the province offered the same protection from extreme heat in the summer. Mckenney has introduced a private member's bill that would...
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`Concrete action' on safe supply clinic celebrated
It's been a year since the New Dawn Medical clinic has called Chinatown home. But only now, Somerset ward Coun. Ariel Troster says, are residents and politicians seeing “concrete action” regarding the controversial safe-supply clinic. For months,...
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HOUSING PRICES WOULD BE 10% LOWER IF CANADA HAD KEPT PACE WITH U.S.: CMHC
Canada's housing stock would be about 30 per cent larger and prices 10 per cent lower if this country's building industry had been as responsive to demand as its American counterpart over the last couple of decades, says a new report from the federal...
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THE EARLY BUZZ
Robert Anderson, a research scientist at the Canadian Museum of Nature, says that while their appearance has been delayed because of a cool, damp spring, we can expect lots of mosquitoes in the Ottawa area now that the weather has warmed, Natasha...
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`It's just a mess': residents avoid congested intersection
For Findlay Creek resident Roger Baliki, avoiding the intersection of Bank Street and Leitrim Road has become part of his routine. Baliki says he now plans routes around the intersection whenever possible, frustrated by congestion and a layout he...
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OTTAWA HAS UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO BOOST SENIORS HOUSING OPTIONS
When Debbie Staples was told she might have to leave the apartment she has lived in for nearly 20 years, she tried to imagine what might come next. “Is the postman going to deliver the mail to my car?” she recalls thinking. “Because that's where I'd...
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GM seeks to get OC Transpo `on track'
OC Transpo general manager Rick Leary is hoping to “change the narrative” and steer clear of the negative media attention surrounding the organization he was tapped to lead two months ago. Leary highlighted some of the positive progress OC Transpo has...
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Highway 417 work making traffic woes in Nepean even worse, advocate says
Since the Highway 417 construction and closures began near Angela Prescott's Glabar Park neighbourhood, traffic congestion in the area is worse than ever. “The exacerbation has been tenfold since the reduction on the highway. So we've seen a dramatic...
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FEDERAL MINISTER POURS MORE COLD WATER ON N.B.'S LNG IDEA
Canada has reached a landmark deal to export liquefied natural gas to Germany — but it's from the Pacific coast. And federal Energy Minister Tim Hodgson has poured more cold water on the possibility of an East Coast export terminal, even as New...
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FAMILY HOUSING CRISIS
Amy Ayers and her three children, 26, 15 and 14, along with their cat and dog, are living in tent in an Ottawa forest. Not for fun, but because they have nowhere else to live. Their precarious housing situation started more than a year ago. Ayers...
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This painful, common disease has no national action plan
Karissa Renaud was 25 years old when she first experienced pain in her pelvic area so severe that trips to the emergency room at various Ottawa hospitals became routine. Doctors couldn't quite figure out the cause. Instead, she was prescribed...
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Program expands to divert youth from gangs, exploitation
Ketcia Peters still remembers the moment a teacher told her she was a leader. As a teenager who had recently moved from Montreal to the United States and struggled to speak English, Peters said she often acted out in school rather than risk...
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Man turns whimsical mowing job into a cause
When Genevieve Herzog was working on the front lines during the COVID -19 pandemic as an occupational therapist, she would often walk through an overgrown stretch of Ottawa's hydro corridor. So her husband, Mike Herzog, cut a small path through the...
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A ROARING RACE WEEKEND
Marathon runners make their way past Parliament Hill during the early kilometres of their race on Sunday. From a 100-year-old man's grit to a running club that's all about community, participants in this year's event showcased a range of race rhymes...
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POLITICIANS SEEK TO EASE FOOD COSTS, BUT ARE BATTLING MARKET FORCES
OTTAWA Call it the coriander conundrum. Like with parsley, carrots, dill and most other members of the apiaceae family of edible plants, the retail price of coriander has been growing like a weed. While the prices of many items on grocery store...
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FACING A CRISIS
Ottawa's last two supervised consumption sites will close by June 13. What this means for the communities these sites served and for people like Joey Macrae-chiaralli — who has a history of homelessness and drug use — is unknown.
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Ottawa artist's joyful clay world resonates as call for inclusion
For Benjamin Lachapelle, gloomy weather is just another reason to reach for his colourful assortment of air-dry clays. “A lot of these figurines (are) incredible animals which inspire me,” Lachapelle said while holding a tray full of little handmade...
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Canadian military refused to release this F-35 photo
Somewhere, maybe locked in a vault at Department of National Defence headquarters, is one of the rarest recent photos involving the Canadian Forces. In February, RCAF commander Lt.-gen. Jamie Speiser-blanchet travelled to Lockheed Martin's Texas...
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Ottawans have caught the Hyrox bug. What's behind this new obsession?
Imagine running for one kilometre and doing one functional workout. Sounds doable, right? Now imagine repeating that eight times over. One-kilometre runs in between eight functional workouts including skiergs (which simulate cross-country skiing),...
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Pandemic-era stem cell treatment shows promise
In January 2021, at the height of the pandemic, Sharon Charlebois spent three weeks at the Civic hospital battling a life-threatening case of COVID-19. The Kanata woman had not been feeling well after Christmas and tested positive for the coronavirus...
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DOES THE NFB HAVE A PROBLEM?
In a windowless office in National Film Board headquarters, Eric Pouliot flicked on an ultraviolet light to reveal a series of dots painted in invisible ink on a puppet's head. Turning to his keyboard, the veteran technical director hit play on a...
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Inuk reverend keeping culture alive
In a small stone church on Montreal Road in the Ottawa-area neighbourhood of Vanier, something remarkable takes place every Sunday morning. Sun filters through the stainedglass windows in Easter shades of peach, pale pink and green as dozens of the...
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Filling in the fading Centretown canopy, one free tree at a time
In recent years, the trees lining the streets of Centretown — providing shade and respite for passersby — have slowly faded away. A group of non-expert volunteers concerned about the neighbourhood's declining tree canopy formed Centretown...
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Newborns may get genetic testing
Just a few days after her daughter was born, Robyn Miller was awakened by frantic knocking at the front door. Her midwife was there with an urgent message to contact Sickkids Hospital. Specialists were concerned about the results of a blood screening...
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City hall security incidents drop with addition of screening gates
City of Ottawa officials have noted a 30 per cent drop in security incidents at city hall since the installation of secure screening gates nearly a year ago. The city installed enhanced security measures in May 2025 that require visitors to pass...
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SUPREME COURT SET TO WEIGH IN ON HUGE INDIGENOUS TITLE CLAIM
The clock began ticking April 7 on what could be one of the most important Supreme Court of Canada cases in New Brunswick's history. That's the date the country's top court told several law firms involved in the Wolastoqey Nation's landmark title...
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SHOW, TELL AND AVOID
Hintonburg resident Cheryl Parrott has a “show-and-tell” kit of drug paraphernalia she uses to help educate her neighbours. In 2025, there were 35,917 discarded needles recovered in Ottawa — a 22 per cent increase from 2024.
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SOAKING IN THE VIEW
Erik Thuswaldner relaxes against a flooded park bench at Britannia Bay onwednesday. Thuswaldner's a member of the Ottawa West Ice Dippers, an ice plunging group based in Britannia, which has used the park's flooding to prolong their season this year.
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Mom takes on 'out of control' traffic chaos at Nepean elementary school
For the many years that parent council member Brittany Lauzon has been walking her two daughters to and from St. John XXIII Catholic Elementary School in Nepean, she's seen how bad pickup and drop-off times can get. Illegal parking and dangerous...
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Linda Thom — and her park — deserve a new gold medal
There's a tiny park in my 'hood — Linda Thom Park, named for the woman who at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics won a gold medal in the 25-metre pistol event — the first summer Olympic gold won by a Canadian woman in 56 years. A handful of metal seats...
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New program helps seniors age in place
Researcher Suzanne Dupuis-blanchard had a light bulb moment when she began looking into why older adults often struggle to remain in their homes. Surprisingly, it had nothing to do with the medical side of aging. The director of the Centre for Aging...
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WHY IS WASHINGTON STILL SO ANGRY OVER BANS ON U.S. ALCOHOL?
It has been more than a year since most provinces banned U.S. alcohol from liquor store shelves, but the United States government is still feeling the hangover. Late last month, the issue of U.S. alcohol bans by every province except Alberta and...
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REMEMBERING PETER
A community vigil will be held on Sunday for Peter Clark, the crossing guard who died after he was struck by a hit-and-run driver on March 23 in Barrhaven. “I have been struggling with how to be strong without him,” says his widow, Amanda. She tells...
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Lack of a full-time EA for girl with autism pushes family to the brink — a shelter
Jennifer and Andrew Nickerson's precariously constructed life had been teetering for months. It crashed to the ground in March when they found themselves living in a city shelter. Andrew was laid off in March 2024. The couple left their Kanata...
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Police alone can't curb drug use, legal eagles say
As residents and local businesses push for a stronger police presence in downtown neighbourhoods like Ottawa's Chinatown over increased safety concerns and open drug use, some legal experts say policing isn't the solution. For many, safety concerns...
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AN UNBEATABLE VIEW
A vivid sunset lights up the Ottawa River at Harry Kingston Point Sunday. The warm weather is expected to continue through Thursday before cooler temperatures and a mix of sun and clouds settle in for Friday and the weekend.
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Felled by LRT construction, part of 'Mother Elm' is getting a new life
When an elm tree in Byron Linear Park was cut down in November 2019 to make way for LRT extension construction, residents were devastated. The elm was no ordinary tree: it was over 100 years old, beautiful with branches that stretched and hung with...
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MILITARY RECRUITMENT SOARS AFTER PAY RAISES, SOVEREIGNTY THREATS
The Canadian Armed Forces has recorded its highest recruitment levels in over three decades, enrolling 7,310 personnel in the last fiscal year. That's up 600 new members year-over-year. Officials said the new numbers show strong or stable recruitment...
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`ADVENTURE' BEGINS
A new designation will allow for off-road vehicles — such as those belonging to Thousand Island ATV Club president Greg Potvin — in parks like Charleston Lake. Welcome to the `adventure' class provincial park.
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Bookstore crawl highlights resurgence of retailers in brick-and-mortar spaces
Before Amna Hakim signed the lease on Love Lyla Books, she was an online retailer. For years, she sold a curated collection of books by Muslim authors through her website so she could work around her children's schedules. Then last summer she hosted a...
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Willola Beach residents hope for more volunteers, calmer waters in face of floods
Dave Mckay can hear the Ottawa River lap against his home from inside the living room. Looking out onto the waves from a window, Mckay, who's retired, can point out all the spots in his backyard that have been impacted by flooding over the years. The...
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An elevator breaks and a man falls
Laura Recoskie was headed to the stairs that take transit users to the platform at Parliament Station on the afternoon of April 8 when an anxious-looking woman approached her. The woman said her partner had fallen on the stairs. They didn't have a...
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She felt love in Canada as a refugee. As a doctor, she's worried for others
Unwanted. Uncared for. Unloved. Those were the cornerstones of what Parisa Rezaiefar had felt before eventually leaving her country in 1992. That year, after coming to Canada as a refugee from Iran, she remembered vividly the Persian man — a doctor —...
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`SCENARIOS ARE ALL EITHER BAD OR VERY, VERY BAD'
Grocery prices are elevated, gas prices are high, job markets are cooling, and U.S. President Donald Trump is sticking to his tariff plans while the world eyes a shaky ceasefire with Iran. The truce between the U.S. and Iran has raised hopes and...
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GHOSTS OF OUR GRIEF
There were 10 of us, more or less. Eight in the living room of a Kanata home, two more joining by video call from out of province, their faces small and pixelated on a laptop at the edge of the coffee table. The host, a friend, had invited me. I...
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How tough is it for Ottawa bands to get into Bluesfest?
Ottawa musician/producer Dean Watson knows what it's like to be skipped over by Ottawa Bluesfest. “If you're a band and you do everything they ask for, and then you're just passed over, it's disheartening,” said Watson, who's been part of the...
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Queensway Carleton project matches newborns and doctors
Ayisha Cretney-reney and her partner, Glenn Burley, searched for years to find a family doctor. But, when she became pregnant with their first child, the search began again: Their doctor was no longer taking new babies of patients. Their baby was at...
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A closer look at how sensitive clay beneath city led to an Orléans landslide
Bordering the Ottawa River to the north, a striking and somewhat hidden landscape lies within a forested stretch of Orléans, near the intersection of Jeanne d'arc Boulevard and Tenth Line Road. A series of rolling ridges define the terrain, giving the...
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University of Ottawa Students' Union calls for better crisis situation protocols
Emotions were still running high in the University of Ottawa community on Saturday, the day after a campus security lockdown. While the Friday lockdown was lifted within a couple hours of its initial declaration and the Ottawa Police Service confirmed...
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FEWER CANADIANS CROSSING BORDER — AND DUTY-FREE SHOPS ARE PAYING
Canadians still have their elbows up when it comes to travelling south of the border, and those fewer trips are having a disastrous effect on a key business: duty-free shopping. Tariff spats, Donald Trump's “51st state” rhetoric and encouragement by...
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`MOST SEVERE' DAMAGE YET
OC Transpo officials acknowledged they were considering a full shutdown of the O -Train Line 1 as a contingency plan after a technical analysis revealed “additional damage” to the cartridge bearing assemblies on the train car axles. Union officials...
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Ottawa woman waits 16 months for an MRI
More than eight months after her MRI appointment was abruptly cancelled because her family doctor had retired, Lisa Kis finally got her scan. The Ottawa woman was referred by her doctor for an MRI in January 2025. By the time she prepared for that...
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Can a keto diet treat severe mental illness?
When she was 17, Ruby Urlocker experienced a mental health crisis that had been building for months. She remembers running to a nearby park intent on throwing herself in front of a train. Faced with an unscalable fence, she returned home, where the...
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`Indigenous Adele' behind Hozier cover booked for life-changing Bluesfest gig
Alicia Kayley has always dreamed of singing in front of a big crowd at Ottawa Bluesfest. As the daughter of Kevin Chief, the Juno-winning musician/dancer also known as Flying Down Thunder, Kayley grew up in a family comfortable with performing,...
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Neighbourhood becoming unsafe, shaken Chinatown residents fear
Javier Salazar and his wife had settled into a routine. It had now been more than two years since the couple moved into their Chinatown apartment with their then-newborn daughter. Salazar preferred walking the girl to daycare, but there was a reason...
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SWEET URBAN OASIS
I have lived in Ottawa for decades, and I don't recall ever visiting the magnificent Richelieu Park in Vanier, let alone the sugar-shack operation that started almost a century ago. It's set on a hill in a forest of maples, just a few kilometres from...
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Ottawa picks new boss for OC Transpo amid woes
He started operating trains in the Boston area as university student. He takes public transit, but is also known to drive a Ford F-150. He doesn't speak French, but says he's going to take classes. Even though he has lived in Canada since 2009 and is a...
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JEWISH LEADERS WARN OF IRAN-INSPIRED TERROR THREAT
The Jewish community throughout North America has faced a shocking 900 per cent rise in antisemitic incidents since 2014, according to the Anti-defamation League data. Since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack in Israel, synagogues, community centres,...
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HEFTY HOSPITAL LOTTERIES
Every month, Glenn Craig of Thunder Bay gets on the phone to tell somebody they've won a lot of money. Often, the amount is many millions of dollars. A year ago, it was $6.4 million. That last call is documented, as most of Craig 's calls are, in a...
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Private information at risk if federal police access bill is passed, prof says
An Ottawa lawyer is raising concerns over a proposed federal bill that would give law enforcement the ability to obtain Canadians' private information and intercept communication, and he says Ottawans should be concerned. Bill C-22, the lawful access...
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DOES THE BYWARD MARKET REALLY NEED A SHINY NEW FOOD COURT?
Jill Anguaya is anything but tickled about the City of Ottawa's plans to redevelop the historic Byward Market building. I can't say that I blame her. Anguaya runs Tickled Pink, a gift shop inside the market hall at 55 Byward Market Square where...
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Bus-only lanes pondered for Glebe
Peak period bus-only lanes may soon be introduced along Bank Street as the City of Ottawa explores ways to improve OC Transpo service and reliability through the busy Glebe corridor. A proposed 15-month pilot project would establish bus-only lanes...
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`CHAOS' AT LAGUARDIA
The pilot and co-pilot of this Air Canada Express plane were killed after colliding with a fire truck at Laguardia Airport late Sunday in New York City. There were 72 passengers and two other crew aboard, many of whom were injured.
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CANADA'S LANGUAGE WATCHDOG TRIPPED OVER A DOG'S TAIL ...
It was not Ai-generated, computer-translated from English or the work of anglophones. The Valentine's Day message was written by real, live francophones — and, yes, they knew some would read it as a reference to part of the male anatomy. Internal...
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Rivals' invasions rile Sens fans
“If you could do anything about the Leaf fans at the games, that would be great.” According to Ottawa Senators president Cyril Leeder, that was one of the very first messages that captain Brady Tkachuk had for new owner Michael Andlauer after he...
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Ottawa Tourism has doled out grants to eight festivals. Here's what it means
From Ottawa Bluesfest to Saunders Farm Frightfest, festival organizers in Ottawa are promising a vibrant 2026 season thanks in part to a $1-million pot of funding injected into their sector this year. Eight of the city's biggest annual events received...
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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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