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HELLO OTTAWA

Correction

Reader Trevor wrote in wondering how a Presto card was revealed when Nepean HIgh School opened a time capsule sealed 25 years ago considering the system started in 2008 and only came to Ottawa in 2012?

There are two possible reasons for this: the first option is we erred and reversed the treasures; the Presto card went into the new time capsule to be opened in 2049. The second option is a time traveller went back and dropped it the capsule in 1999, which Darren says is far more likely than him making a mistake.  

– Martha and Darren

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TODAY’S LINE UP

•  Ottawa Stats
•  City Hall Agenda
•  What Ottawa is Talking About
•  Events
•  Deals of the Day

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OTTAWA STATS

CITY HALL AGENDA

What’s going on at City Hall

Ottawa Board of Health
Monday, February 12 at 5 pm

• Confirmation of the Chair and Vice-Chair for 2024
• Chair of the Board of Health verbal report
• Medical Officer of Health verbal report
• Verbal report on the education session regarding voluntary mergers
• Indigenous Health, Rights and Reconciliation: Annual update
• Attendance at the Association of Local Public Health Agencies’ (alPHa) winter symposium

📋 Agenda

WHAT OTTAWA IS TALKING ABOUT

🌃 Night Mayor

•  The City has published the help wanted ad for the new night mayor. Officially titled ‘nightlife commissioner’, the mandate is to lead the implementation of the Nightlife Economy Action Plan.
  
  The ad unfortunately requires a degree in hospitality, tourism, business administration, commerce, economics, recreology, public/business administration, recreation, leisure studies and or related fields which would be fine if the City was running a motel.
  
  But the best candidates out there who know how to sustain a thriving cultural scene are people are naturally gifted at bringing together people, money, and culture and they probably didn't run a lot of spreadsheets. If they have a degree, it’d would more likely be anthropology, or, for a friskier Ottawa, zoology.
  
  If you’d like to apply for the job, it pays $111,718.88 annually for a 35 hour week, No word if those hours start at 5:00 pm.
  
  (Nightlife Commissioner at the City of Ottawa)

📚 Dominican University College

•  Tens of thousands of books – some going back to the 16th century – will be tranferred from Dominican University College to Vietnam. The Catholic institution affiliated with Carleton University will be closing after this year, and its fortress-like building overlooking LeBreton Flats has been put on the market. The books will be received by the five hundred Dominican priests living in Vietnam. (David Warren in the Catholic Thing)

🪧 Public Service Alliance of Canada

•  The Public Service Alliance of Canada union leader arrested at yesterday's picket line has been charged. Alex Silas has been charged with mischief, intimidation by blocking or obstructing a roadway, causing a disturbance by impeding, and counselling an uncommitted indictable offence. The picket line was in support of those Department of National Defence workers who are paid outside of tax dollars. The Alliance said that it would ‘vehemently oppose’ the allegations in court. (CBC)

🤝 Diplomatic Residences

•  The High Commission of Uganda has demolished its residence without permission from the City. The 67-year-old residence at 235 Mariposa Ave was a heritage registered building but in a poor state of repair and is planned to be replaced. The City has complained to Global Affairs Canada, hoping to discuss it at a diplomatic level. (Arthur White-Crummey at CBC) 

🏒 The Sens

•  Former Sens coach DJ Smith has a new job with the LA Kings. After five years with the team, Smith was fired in December. Now based in hometown of Windsor, Smith has been hired by the Kings as an assistant with interim head coach Jim Hiller. (Bruce Garrioch in the Ottawa Sun)

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MORE FROM THE OTTAWAN

• 🍺 Our Ottawa-Gatineau Craft Brewery Map

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EVENTS

Is there an event we should know about?
Please use our easy event submission form
 

Today

•  Hills Winter Music Festival brings Chamber music to unique spaces in the Gatineau Hills. Tonight’s opener is sold out but there are still tickets for Saturday and Sunday.
   
•  Divertimento Orchestra performs its Pops Concert at Woodroffe United Church tonight and tomorrow. The program features hits from Humperdinck, Gershwin, Ellington, and more.
   

•  Overflow Brewing hosts another Art Battle, where the creatives have 20 minutes to paint the winning artwork (according to the audience vote). It’s no holds barred live art.

•  Snowflakes Land / Le Domaine Des Flocons continues at Jacques-Cartier Park in Gatineau

•  Undercurrents festival continues its run of new Canadian theatre. Until February 17 at Arts Court (2 Daly Ave).

•  ByTowne Cinema: Tótem, Sometimes I Think About Dying, The Boy and the Heron, Drunken Cinema: The Wedding Singer

•  Mayfair Theatre: Freud's Last Session, The Braid (aka La Tresse), Zombie, The Room

  Gigs

•  Silverados. Brew Revolution

•  Smelloship EP Release. Irene’s Pub Restaurant

•  Lucky Songs feat. Libby Hortop and Bruce Enloe. Meow! That’s Hot (519 Bank St)

•  80s Dance party. House of TARG

•  Petr Cancura. Montgomery Scotch Lounge

•  William Prince with Kacy and Clayton. NAC Southam Hall

•  Phillippe-Audrey Larrue Saint-Jacques. Shenkman Arts Centre

•  Midnight Vesta, Quirks. Cafe Dekcuf

•  That’s Rich weekly comedy show. Pour Boy

   

Tomorrow

•  The Ottawa Chinatown Lunar New Year Parade is back for the first time since the pandemic. The procession will wind its way along Somerset St West, from Preston to Bay between 10:00 am and noon.
   

•  The Art from the Heart Craft Show brings 60 vendors to Merivale Mall. 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

•  Romance is in the air at Square Lemon’s Be My Valentine craft market (10:30 am to 3:00 pm at Glebe Community Centre). It’s free to attend, you’ll meet more than 40 vendors, and you’ll probably find the perfect Valentine’s Day gift.

•  613Flea’s 2024 season launches with a Valentine’s Day edition of the marketplace. Shop with 150 vendors of everything from art to hand crafted items, all ready to hook you up with great Valentine’s Day gifts.
   

•  Divertimento Orchestra performs its Pops Concert at Woodroffe United Church with a program that includes hits by Humperdinck, Gershwin, Ellington, and more.
   

•  Artist Alison Fowler’s Wall of H’arts: art fundraiser is back, supporting the Ottawa Heart Institute Foundation. As in previous years, Fowler’s small, square heart images in myriad styles are available for sale. Fringe and Foliage salon will host the event again, with sales starting at 6:00 pm. For those who want to line up to ensure their place in line at 6:00 pm, Fowler will be distributing numbers from 4:00 pm.

•  Snowflakes Land / Le Domaine Des Flocons continues at Jacques-Cartier Park in Gatineau

•  ByTowne Cinema: The Boy and the Heron, Four Daughters, Sometimes I think about Dying, Paprika.

•  Mayfair Theatre: Unexpected, The Braid (aka La Tresse), Zombie, Saturday Night Sinema
  
  Gigs

•  Mixed Tape. Brew Revolution

•  The Low Keys. The Brass Monkey

•  Alex Pavone. Broadhead Brewery ($20)

•  Raphael Weinworth-Browne. Montgomery Scotch Lounge

•  Peanut Butter Sunday, Family Man, Audio Visceral, Banezean. House of TARG

•  Ness Nöst, Annie Martel. Irene’s Pub Restaurant

•  Jon Spencer, Bloodshot Bill, Retail Simps. Club SAW

•  Dizzy, Alanna Sterling. Rainbow Bistro

•  The Radicals. Atomic Rooster

•  An Evening With Gary Louris. Red Bird

•  Cartoon Acid, Mia the Clown, KTG LIVE on Elgin
   

Sunday

Super Bowl Viewing Parties

•  Southside Tap and Grill (4 Lorry Greenberg Dr) will roll out an international buffet from 6:00 pm that includes egg rolls, hot dogs, chili, wings, and an epic Create Your Own Poutine bar.
   
•  For home-based viewing parties of two, Maker Feed Co in Cumberland has a take-home dinner that ticks all the boxes: pork ribs, pogos, coleslaw, and two cans of Broadhead beer, all for $49.99. Order now for pickup between 4:00 pm and 5:00 pm on Sunday. (2607 Old Montreal Road)
   
•  Lil Z’s Pizza will be serving Dominion City Beer, lasagna, wings, and of course pizza. You can also expect door prizes. 45 Clarence.
   
•  Moose McGuire’s in Kanata (329 Eagleson Road) all-you-can-eat buffet is serious snacking: wings, nachos, and beer specials abound. Plus, each buffet purchase gives you a chance to win a Super Bowl swag prize.
   
•  On Merivale Road, Tailgators is planning half-priced wings as well as prizes. From 6:00 pm at 1642 Merivale Rd
   
•  Enjoy half-priced appetizers, $6.50 pints, prizes and giveaways from 5:00 pm at Broadway Bar and Grill Prince of Wales.
   
•  The doors open at 4:00 pm for the Prescott’s Super Bowl party. The bar promises a “full tailgating experience with contests, prizes, and giveaways.” It isn't free, though. Entry costs between $12.95 to $175.
   
•  Call to reserve a spot at the Jolly Taxpayer Bar and Grill, where the Super Bowl festivities will include giveaways, burgers, games, and a heated patio. 613-825-1122
   

Not Super Bowl related 

•  Learn how businesswoman Viola Desmond came to be on the Canadian $10 bill at the Bank of Canada Museum. It's all part of the museum's Black History Month programming. Free. 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at 30 Bank St.
   
•  Snowflakes Land / Le Domaine Des Flocons continues at Jacques-Cartier Park in Gatineau

   

•  The Pure Kitchen Drag Brunch has a distinctly Valentine’s Day vibe.

•  Bring your questions about Menopause to the experts at Venus Envy. Menopause-A-Palooza! specialists will discuss all things Peri- and Menopause, as well as nutrition tips.

•  Tour the new exhibition Vision and Views: Landscape and Abstraction in the Firestone Collection of Canadian Art, and enjoy a warming cup of tea at the Ottawa Art Gallery. The annual Firestone Chat will take place at the same time. Art & Tea  At The OAG is free.

•  As Winterlude continues, drop by the ByTown Museum to hear about the origins of the Rideau Canal, the museum’s stone structure, and more. 11:00 am - 3:00 pm.

•  The Caelis Academy Ensemble presents a programme of Handel and Bach. Mazenod Chapel, St. Paul University, 249 Main St.

•  Hear traditional Indigenous stories set to a new score as the NAC Orchestra and the NAC Indigenous Theatre join forces to present The Spirit Horse Returns. It’s an all ages show with activities before the performance and chats with the performers afterwards. 3:30 pm in Southampton Hall. $15 per ticket.

•  Staff from the Ottawa Humane Society will tell stories of the animals in their care, but there’s so much more for the kids to enjoy at the Tails of Love event. They can learn crafts, how to greet a dog, have their faces painted, and more. Tickets are $2 per person or $5 for a family with a maximum of three kids, and you can purchase them in advance or at the door. The OHS needs donations of treats and new or gently used toys for the animals; please consider bringing these with you to the event. 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm at 245 West Hunt Club Rd.

•  ByTowne Cinema: High Tea Cinema: Titanic, Ferrari, Tótem, Sometimes I Think About Dying.

•  Mayfair Theatre: Moonstruck (Norman Jewison Festival), Once Within A Time

  Gigs

•  Acoustic Coffee House. Red Bird

•  Sunday Night Revue. Irene’s Pub Restaurant

•  Family Funday Sundays - Unlimited Free Play. Ottawa Pinball Arcade.

•  Joey Vinegar, the C.A. & Sonny Show, and the Barrow Gang Buskers. Ottawa Farmers Market (Aberdeen Pavilion, Lansdowne)

Monday

• OPL’s Monday Movie Nights continues with Memories of Murder, the 2003 crime thriller from Korean director Bong Joon-Ho. In Korean with English subtitles. It’s a free screening for mature audiences.

• 100 Men Who Care will meet at Milestones Lansdowne Park for its first event of 2024, where members will have the opportunity to donate $100 to one of the following two charities: Storybook Ottawa or Ottawa Independent Living Resource Centre. (The next 100 Women Who Care meet-up is at the same venue on February 26, when the featured charities will be Twice Upon a Time, Food For Thought Ottawa, and Volunteer Ottawa.)

• If you were unable to get a spot in the Stray Dog Brewing Brew-chre Tournament on February 13, email the brewery about getting into tonight’s add-on date. It’s $25 to take part, and that gets you a place at a table, pizza, and a beverage. info@straydogbrewing.ca

• ByTowne Cinema: Tótem, Four Daughters, Sometimes I Think About Dying

• Mayfair Theatre: Freud’s Last Session, The Braid (aka  La Tresse), Once within A Time

  Gigs

• Jazz Jam with the Beeched Wailers. Irene’s Pub Restaurant

• The Five-Star Monday Band. The Laff

• Bluegrass Mondays with the Dusty Drifters. Red Bird

• Open Mic Night. Art House Café

Just Announced / Now Booking

• The NAC’s Big Bang festival is tailor made for kids, with places to run around and get creative, or to just sit quietly and soak in the entertainment. There’s a mix of free and ticketed events, with some already sold out.

• It’s all about Glenmorangie whiskies at the next Deacon Brodies tasting event on February 18. $71 per person gets you five drams, snacks, and sweets. You can pay at the door on the day of the event but you must reserve your spot now before it fills up.

• Broadway Across Canada presents a limited run of the hit musical Six, about the wives of Henry VIII (May 21-26 at the NAC). Tickets are on presale right now using the code ANNA.

DEALS OF THE DAY

BUT, ONE MORE THING ...

Something everyone often argues about but few have the answer: is it better to rent or to buy with a mortgage. Real Estate website Zoocasa crunched the numbers: almost everywhere in Canada, it’s thousands cheaper to rent.*

In Ottawa, with an average house price of $683,000, the average monthly rent is $2,388 and the mortgage would be $2,858.

The only place we saw on Zoocasa’s list where rent was more expensive than a mortage was Winnipeg, with rent at $1,526 and a mortage being $1,521 on a $332,100 house.

* In this theory, it's always assumed that you take the difference between the rent and the mortage and invest it in an index tracker fund so at the end of 25 years you would, in theory, have more money in stocks than you would have in real estate. If you don't invest the money, there is no advantage.

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