Bad weather grinds trains to a halt, again

Good morning!

One day, this will be a newsletter that doesn’t kick off with news about a broken train. Alas, today is not that day, as you’ll see. It does get discouraging after a while, that despite several years of operation the LRT still finds new and interesting ways to break down. But hey, there was a pretty neat light show before the trains broke.

Keep up with whether the trains are running by checking OC Transpo's Twitter account for the latest updates.

Next week we’ve got a week of exciting announcements coming. You’ll notice a new-look Lookout landing in your boxes Monday morning. We can’t wait to show you what we’ve cooked up.

Let’s get to the newsletter, shall we?

— Robert Hiltz, managing editor

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Weather Report

Friday: +2 🌡️ -5 | 🌧/❄️

Saturday: -4 🌡️ -12 | 🌤/❄️

Sunday: -5 🌡️ -5 | ☀️

Monday: +2 🌡️ -6 | ☀️

TRANSIT

Freezing rain shuts section of LRT, 25 years after the start of the great ice storm

What happened: Nearly 40 passengers were stuck on two immobilized O-Trains Wednesday night, and the LRT line experienced shutdowns and delays through most of Thursday. While workers were trying to bring the debilitated trains back to the garage, the city said the overhead wire system that powers the trains was damaged and would need to be repaired.

Wednesday, two trains were halted, one in each direction, when they lost power between Lees and Hurdman stations. The city waited nearly an hour to get the passengers out on foot because of the freezing rain, transit general manager Renée Amilcar said in a memo.

• Trains were running in a loop between Tunney’s Pasture and uOttawa stations for most of Thursday, with R1 bus service running in the eastern end of the system.

Why it happened: In its initial assessment, the city said freezing rain build up on the overhead wires is at fault for the train breakdown. An hour or so after the trains broke down, the entire system suffered a power failure, the exact cause of which is unknown.

Light show: Wednesday night, Twitter user Type-ZERO posted a video of serious sparking and arcing as a train headed toward Hurdman Station. The city said arcing wasn’t unusual during bad weather, but “the significant arcing that occurred last night may have damaged the” overhead wiring system, the city said in a memo.

The city said late Thursday it would work through the night repairs and remove ice from parts of the overhead wiring on the east end of the system. In a memo, Amilcar said she would provide an update early this morning on the status of the LRT line.

• Check OC Transpo's Twitter account for live updates on whether the LRT is running today.

Anniversary: The rain started 25 years, almost to the hour, of the great ice storm of 1998. About 650,000 people in Ontario and Quebec lost power during that storm. The Ottawa Citizen has a fantastic walk down memory lane of that beautiful but deadly storm.

OTTAWA BY THE NUMBERS

🌡️ -15 C: For only the third time ever, Ottawa’s temperature stayed above this level for the whole of December. The lowest temperature was -13.2 C. [Ottawa Weather Records]

⛽️ 140.9: The price gas (in cents) was expected to drop to today. Gas prices have dropped almost 10 cents this week. [CityNews]

CITY HALL

Vacant unit tax comes into effect, and Sutcliffe hires a chief of staff

What happened: The website for city homeowners to avoid the new vacant unit tax went live Wednesday to mixed results, CTV reported. 

Homeowners completing the information early ran into technical delays. The city said in a memo that the delays weren’t because of the added number of users, but because of a broken cable at its IT centre which affected some city services.

What it is: The tax is a measure to relieve some pressure on the housing crisis by charging owners one percent of the assessed value of a home kept vacant for more than half the year.

• You’ve got until mid-March to fill out the city’s form and avoid the tax. After this year, a $250 fine will apply for late applications. Any home that doesn’t declare the status of their home by April 30 will be automatically considered vacant and subject to the tax.

What qualifies: A home is considered vacant by the city if it was unoccupied for more than 184 days in the previous calendar year. The city says most homes will not be subject to the tax. If it’s a primary residence occupied for more than six months, or rented out for six months of the year in increments of 30 days or more it is not considered vacant.

• The city has a tool to find out if you’re subject to the tax here. The site to make your declaration is found here.

Elsewhere at city hall

New chief of staff: Mayor Mark Sutcliffe decided against change at city hall by appointing Robyn Guest, Jim Watson’s former policy advisor, as his chief of staff, CBC reported. 

• "She has a wealth of experience in municipal government and played a vital role during the recent transition period. … Robyn provided valuable support to me during the first few council meetings of this term, including all the key decisions that have demonstrated a commitment to a new approach in the mayor's office and that have been well received by city councillors and others,” Sutcliffe told CBC.

Family ties: Guest’s brother, Brian Guest, was a consultant at the heart of the design of the LRT public-private partnership agreement and was in and out as one of Watson’s advisors. Her husband Chris Swail, was the city’s director of O-Train planning until 2019. The relationship of the family was fodder during testimony at the LRT inquiry, CBC reported.

What it means: While Guest’s experience at city hall will be an asset to a political newcomer like Sutcliffe, it does not suggest the new mayor is looking to make much change in the way the city is run. This type of hire would seem to indicate any sort of a great reckoning over the (ongoing!) LRT debacle is less likely.

Want more city hall coverage like this? Subscribe to Insider City Hall launching in February that breaks down the biggest municipal issues and what they mean for you. 

THE AGENDA

🚕 In court, taxi drivers accused the city of being weak when Uber and other ridesharing apps came to town. But the city said it had no way to stop the technology companies from moving in. [Ottawa Citizen]

⛪️ The group that occupied St. Brigid’s church appealed the eviction order that booted them from the property in September. No court date for the appeal has been set. [Ottawa Citizen]

🔥 Several recent local e-bike blazes have fire officials warning people to charge their bikes and scooters according to the manufacturer’s instructions and to not use damaged batteries. [CBC]

🎁 The community came out to support a charity that had Christmas gifts for families in need stolen over the holidays. Ottawans donated $4,000 to make up for the loss, much more than was stolen. [CBC]

🚒 Five homes under construction were destroyed by a fire in south Barrhaven. Another 15 were saved by fire crews. [CTV]

EVENTS

Your weekend guide

Arts

Do you have any idea what is going on? Saturday, 7 pm: Artist Nick Sommers has been putting together an array of artwork he’s ready to show the public at Club Saw, 67 Nicholas St. Featuring a set by the No Hits to cap off the night. Tickets start at $6.

Music

The Thick, Friday 9 pm: Blues-funk band The Thick are coming to Cafe Dekuf as part of their Super Lightning Tour, with opener Riley Burns. Tickets start at $17.

Sports

Social Rollerskating, Friday 9 pm: Head on out for a fun night on four wheels. Rollerskating for all styles and levels at Carleton’s Norm Fenn Gym, 1125 Colonel By Dr. Tickets start at $9.

Kids/Family

Winter Lights, until Jan. 8 5:30 pm: It’s the last weekend of the light show on Parliament Hill. Catch the multimedia spectacle every 15 minutes from 5:30 pm until 11 pm. Admission is free.

General

Family Paint Party, Saturday 7 pm: Start with a blank canvas and head home with a masterpiece in a guided night of painting and fun for anyone six and up at Mexicali Rosa’s in the Dow’s Lake Pavillion. Tickets start at $39. 

Paint with Tunes, Sunday 6 pm: A night of guided painting and live music. They’ve got everything you need to paint, you just need to show up at the Works Craft at 2525 Bank St. Tickets start at $40.

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel the Exhibition, all weekend: See the art of the Sistine Chapel up close and life-size with huge, licenced reproductions of Michelangelo’s masterpiece. At the EY Centre, 4899 Uplands Dr. Tickets start at $34.

Film

752 Is Not A Number, Saturday 11 am: The story of a Toronto dentist whose wife and daughter boarded Ukraine Airlines Flight 752, which was shot down leaving Iran killing all aboard. Screens at the Mayfair Theatre, 1074 Bank St. Tickets start at $12.

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HOUSING

Home sales slump 30% in December

What happened: Home sales dropped 30 percent in December compared to the same month last year, down to 601 sales from 857 the year before, the Ottawa Real Estate Board said. The board’s new president Ken Dekker said high interest rates and inflation were keeping buyers out of the market.

• “The leading economic force behind Ottawa’s rapid appreciation in the past five years is chronic supply insufficiency. It intensified during the pandemic as prospective purchasers capitalized on incredibly low interest rates. Today’s higher rates are slowing down building projects, which exacerbates the low supply issue,” Dekker said.

Key numbers:

• Residential sales dropped 22 percent to 466;

• Condo sales dropped 48 percent to 135;

• The five-year average for total sales in December is 775, well above last month’s 601;

• The sale price of a house dropped seven percent from last December to $655,839, while the price of a condo increased nine percent to $434,973

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• The Little Theatre Company will be putting on a nostalgic look back at this city and its music in Ottawa Suite next week. [Ottawa Citizen] 

• If you’re looking for a great croissant, Maison Oddo is your stop. It’s one of our food editor’s top surprises of the year.

• Believe it or not, video rental stores are still out there, including two in Ottawa. (This time with a working link, sorry!) [CBC]

• It’s not clear whether this raccoon paid its fare to ride the LRT. [Reddit]

• Nepean’s Brandt Clarke is relishing his role on the national junior team. [CBC]

• Hoping to give extra incentive for Ryan Reynolds to buy the team, Sens goalie Cam Talbot debuted a Deadpool mask. [CTV]

• Sad news as The House of Cheese in the ByWard Market closed after nearly five decades. [CTV]

• Want to have your announcement featured? Contact our partnership team for more info.

TOP PHOTO

Today’s photo comes from Joanne Reyes, who was out on the Quarry Trail. “The birds were patiently waiting their turn for food as I was feeding. Such pleasure,” she said.

Have you got a great nature shot you want to share with readers? Send it our way! We love running photos from the Lookout community.

OTTAWA WORDLE

Congrats to Chelsea, Gord, Micah, Sylvie, and Adam — plus many more of you! — for getting Wednesday’s OttawaGuesser correct. The image was at the corner of Somerset and O’Connor.

Think you’ve got what it takes to get the Ottawa Wordle? Play now.

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