Deadline passes for eviction at St. Brigid’s, the convoy group stayed

Good morning!

The weirdness downtown continues, as the group who said they were buying St. Brigid’s but now seem to have not paid their rent, made a bizarre appearance in flag cloaks and foil crowns.

At one point the group turned water guns on the gathered media. It wasn’t violent, and is obviously absurd, but it’s an escalation from a group whose motives are, at best inscrutable, and at worst menacing. Hopefully, this ridiculousness is sorted out soon.

With that, let’s get to the newsletter.

— Robert Hiltz, managing editor

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ST. BRIGID’S

After eviction deadline, convoy group remains

What happened: A deadline for eviction set by a bailiff came and went early yesterday morning, and “The United People of Canada” (TUPOC) continued to stay at St. Brigid’s church in Lowertown.

Police said yesterday the landlord was seeking a court order to enforce the eviction of the convoy off-shoot.

• “Should the Sheriff [who enforces eviction notices] believe that the execution of the [eviction] order could create a breach of the peace, they may require that police accompany them and assist in the execution of the order,” Ottawa police said.

A true farce: Underling the absurdity of the situation was the board member and face of the group William Komer. In a Facebook livestream, Komer emerged from the church dressed like a cut-rate Burger King, complete with tinfoil sceptre and yellow cleaning gauntlets and Jughead Jones crown. CBC had some good photos one of their reporters posted to Twitter.

The outfit was apparently to troll the gathered reporters — he had a “herald” introduce him as the “keeper of the comedy, the shepherd of the haters.”

After Komer’s usual legal-adjacent nonsense about the reporters and gathered community members protesting as the real trespassers, he and one of his followers sprayed photographers with water guns and threatened them with private prosecutions, the video shows.

• Dig deeper: TUPOC says it’s prepared to use private prosecution at St. Brigid’s, here’s what that means [CBC]

The deconsecrated church was conditionally sold to the group in June, but according to documents obtained by CTV, the property has been back on the market since Aug. 12.

Komer said the group would not be leaving, as they did not believe the eviction notice to be valid. Meanwhile, police said they would be keeping an “enhanced presence” at the church until the landlord dispute is resolved.

CITY HALL

Lame duck council committee votes to destroy homes for parking lot

What happened: The planning committee voted to demolish a six-unit apartment building downtown to make way for a parking lot. The building at 142 Nepean St. will be turned into a lot for business tenants at a next door building, despite plenty of parking nearby. The committee voted 8-4 to get rid of the homes.

The parking lot will be for a new tower being constructed on an empty lot next to the affordable building. The developer said if the low-rise apartments were not torn down for parking, they would not build the new tower, but stressed this threat was “not a threat.”

• Residents had previously told CBC they were paying about $1,200 per month for rent, well below the city’s average, which is above $1,700 for a single-bedroom flat.

Lame ducks: Councillors Scott Moffatt, Eli El-Chantiry, and Jean Cloutier, none of whom are running for re-election, voted for the motion to demolish the building. Cathy Curry, who was appointed to council earlier this year, also voted to demolish the building, but she is running for election.

The vote breakdown:

• For demolition: Couns. Cloutier, Curry, Dudas, Hubley, Kitts, Moffatt, Tierney, El-Chantiry

• Against: Couns. Brockington, Leiper, Menard, Gower

CITY HALL UPDATE

Video of LRT lightning: CBC obtained OC Transpo security camera footage showing the lightning strike that took out nearly a kilometre of the overhead wire that powers the LRT. In the video, you can see a bright flash, and then a shower of sparks. Then the wire falls to the ground, and another burst of sparks can be seen. [CBC]

Horizon announces endorsements: Progressive community group Horizon Ottawa announced its endorsements for 11 wards across the city. The group endorsed two incumbents, Jeff Leiper and Shawn Menard, and a host of newcomers, including Kevin Hua in Stittsville and Laine Johnson in College Ward. You can see their full list here.

New buildings at Bank and Riverside: Two new towers have been approved for just south of Billings Bridge, Coun. Shawn Menard posted on Reddit. A memorandum of understanding passed for affordable housing, seniors’ units, multiple three-bedroom units, and traffic calming. Menard said Bank Street further south would be redone in the years to come with wider sidewalks, bike lanes, and safer traffic lanes.

CAPITAL EATS

Dunrobin Distillers expands in a big way

This week, we launched a food publication, Capital Eats. As part of the new publication, we’re bringing out some stories from the Lookout Insider from behind the paywall, like this recent story by our food editor Ralf, on a major business deal in the Ottawa food and drink scene.

A short while ago I was honoured to have received an invitation to attend the Swiss Ambassador to Canada's residence for an announcement about a business venture between Swiss whiskey producer Seven Seals and Ottawa's own Dunrobin Distilleries.

It was on the day of the event that the final contracts between the two companies had been signed, so the excitement was palpable. Attendees were beautifully turned out and good conversation was in the air as the libations flowed.

Read the rest of the story.

SPONSORED BY IMAGINE MONET

Imagine Monet is a “bubble of beauty” right here in Ottawa

That’s how one reviewer described their experience at Monet the Immersive Exhibition.

So why is it a big deal?

The exhibition is an immersive experience of sound and art, allowing you to experience over 200 works by Impressionist master Claude Monet.

• It’s family friendly, and is sure to wow kids of all ages.

And it’s right here in Ottawa, but only until September 4th. Get your tickets before the event ends.

STORIES YOU MIGHT’VE MISSED

Refugee claimant issued expired permit: Left waiting for months, a refugee claimant in Ottawa was issued a work permit, only for the permit to expire on the day it was issued. The 23-year-old escapee from the Ethiopian civil war, who is pregnant, can’t work or apply for OHIP without the permit. The federal immigration department issued the document with a date issued and expiry date of Aug. 6, 2022. [CBC]

Man arrested for driving through encampment: A 36-year-old has been arrested for allegedly driving a truck through a homeless encampment in Kingston. Witnesses said the driver hit several people, drove backward and forward, and did doughnuts before driving off. Fortunately, people were only minorly injured. [Global News]

School HVAC still not installed: A new air conditioner has been sitting on the lawn of Severn Avenue Public School since last fall, waiting to be installed. The OCDSB said it hasn’t been installed because of a lack of structural steel and other issues, but they hope to have it installed by Sept. 2. [CTV]

Rural LTCs struggling to raise funds: The province requires long-term care homes to raise part of construction and upgrade costs from the local community. In urban areas this can be difficult, but in rural parts of the region it’s nearly impossible. Several not-for-profit LTCs said small local populations don’t make it possible for them to raise the millions necessary to complete mandatory upgrades by 2025. [Ottawa Citizen]

WEEKEND GUIDE

Pride, a big dig, baking, and so much corn

Capital Pride | Friday to Sunday | Various times and locations | Free | The pride festival’s big weekend is here, with live music, DJ sets, a street festival, drag show extravaganza, parade, and dance.

Community Bake Day | Saturday, 11 am to 1 pm | 175 Woodridge Cres. | $2 suggested donation | Bring your own dough and ingredients to cook your own pizza in the Bayshore Park Community wood-fired oven. Can’t bring your own dough and other ingredients? The oven’s team will provide for a suggested donation of $2.

Stittsville Sweet Corn Festival | Saturday 10 am to 3 pm | 1491 Shea Rd. | Free | Everything corn. An eating contest, vendors, corn bread, corn crafts, a Cajun boil, live music, shucking contest, and so much more.

Public Archaeological Dig | Saturday to Tuesday, 8 am to 5 pm | Leamy Lake Park | Free | The NCC is running a public archaeological dig to learn more about the pre-contact history of the area. Sites in the area were occupied between 1,000 and 2,000 years ago.

Natsu Matsuri (Japanese Summer Festival) | Sunday, 11 am to 4 pm | Annie Pootoogook Park | Free | Performances by a drumming group, women’s choir, martial arts practitioners, archery, food and more.

Drive-in movies | Next Tuesday and Wednesday, 8:30 pm | Bayshore Shopping Centre | Free | Showings of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore and Space Jam: A New Legacy on P5 of the mall’s parking garage. Spots are first-come, first-served, with room at the front if you bring your own chair.

Community highlights

• The city has closed Petrie Island’s East Bay swimming area because of high levels of E. coli. [CityNews]

• Bistro Ristoro is a restaurant that punches well above its weight, and should be on your list to visit. Give the spaghetti carbonara and Picanha Steak a try.

• Even skunks need a little help now and then, here’s the story of the rescue of one with its head stuck in a peanut butter jar. [Ottawa Citizen]

• Banh Mi Yes is returning sometime next month, this is great news, it’s probably the city’s best banh mi.

• Coyotes have been spotted around town, the city has advice on how to make your home uninviting to the animals.

• The musical Anastasia will open at the NAC and Apt613 has a preview you’ll want to check out.

• Inflation is making back to school shopping more expensive than ever. [CTV]

OTTAWA WORDLE

Congrats to Eric, Gord, Christine, Darcy, Pat, Elyse, for getting the GeoGuesser correct. It was a photo from Leitrim Road, near the airport. Special mention to Andrew, who knew it was near the end of Runway 32. An honourable mention to Gilles, Colette, Carol and Carl, who knew it was near the airport, but not the correct road. And another honourable mention to Bam, who got the right road, but not quite the right location.

Today, why not give the Ottawa Wordle a try. Play now.

Latest COVID stats

Note: Ottawa Public Health is now only updating COVID stats twice a week, on Tuesday and Friday afternoons. Because of the Lookout’s publishing schedule, this means the numbers here may be out of date.

• Active Cases: 714

• Total deaths: 868

• Ottawans In Hospital: 25

• Ottawans In ICU: 1

• Acute Beds Occupied: 100%

• ICU Beds Occupied: 73%

• ICU Ventilator Beds Occupied: 18%