Snow turns to sleet as another winter storm bears down

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Good morning!

And good luck to everyone digging out this morning. It’s not the most snow we’ve ever received, but my goodness with that wind there were some brutal drifts out there.

It’s still a few days out, but it might not be the end of things for us:

We’ve got plenty of news on what the storm means for the city, and where you can get up to date information (even after this email lands in your inbox!) so you can navigate this likely ugly morning commute.

Good luck out there, now let’s get to it.

— Robert Hiltz, managing editor

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WEATHER

Wednesday: +2 🌡️ -7 | 🌧/❄️

Thursday: -3 🌡️ -11 | ❄️

Friday: -6 🌡️ -7 | 🌤

WEATHER

Snow, snow, and more snow to come

What happened: Expect a messy commute this morning after a day of snow and a night of snow that turned to freezing rain. In a winter storm warning, Environment Canada said it expected the rain to last several hours, ending early this morning. Rain could continue throughout the day, turning to snow later in the afternoon or evening.

• The total amount of snow expected was variable, depending on when an area saw snow switch to freezing rain. As much as 20 cm could fall, with the possibility of more this evening.

Parking ban: Starting this morning at 10 am, the city has declared a daytime on-street parking ban. This means that anyone without an on-street parking permit has to get their vehicle off the street so plows can do their work. The hope is the ban will be lifted by 7 pm.

• Parking is permitted on the street in certain commercial zones. There are also spaces set aside at community and recreation centres during parking bans. You can find locations and more at the city’s website.

To help keep the roads clearer, the majority of city plows are now running rubber blades, CTV reported. The blades are quieter, tend to cause less road damage, and follow the contour of the road much closer — meaning less salt needs to be used to keep streets clean.

Transit plan: OC Transpo put in place its winter operations plan. Seven bus stops are expected to be closed until the end of the storm, because they’re in areas with low traction because they’re on steep sections of road, the city said in a press release.

• Out of service trains will run all night, in the hopes of keeping the overhead lines that power the trains clear of ice. Last winter, ice build up halted the line and led to severe damage to certain sections of the power system. To keep up to date on transit operations this morning, keep an eye on the OC Transpo Helps twitter account.

School buses across the region were cancelled on Tuesday, but stayed running inside the city, CTV reported. For the latest information on school bus operations this morning for the public and Catholic boards, check the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority alert website.

Messy roads: There were several collisions on local highways, adding to the 39 on regional roads during the weekend storm, CTV reported. The 401 near Brockville was closed for more than an hour because of a crash Tuesday, the OPP said.

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OTTAWA BY THE NUMBERS

📖 $300 million: The amount the Quebec government is dedicating to catching students back up after a lengthy strike came to an end this week. The money will go to tutoring and other programs for students across the province. [CTV]

🥅 5: The number of trades the 67’s have made this week ahead of today’s OHL trade deadline. [CTV]

OUTSIDE DOWNTOWN

🚨 The owner of an Indian restaurant in Orléans is reeling from a break-in. He’s facing a bill of  about $3,000 to repair a smashed front door. [CTV]

🏘️ Ottawa Community Housing agreed to buy two complexes of Nepean townhomes from Minto for $86 million. The Tanglewood and Chesterton complexes will be run by the social housing provider with rents set for cost-recovery. It will add 311 units to OCH’s portfolio, and all current residents will keep their spaces. [CTV]

🐶 A vet in Kingston is running a mobile clinic to give homeless people with pets the chance to get their furry friends a checkup. In addition to a checkup the pets get updated vaccines and food. [CBC]

🥫 The Barrhaven Food Cupboard saw use increase 50 percent last year, for their busiest ever year. It forced the food bank to cut down on programs, including cancelling their Christmas hamper program, in favour of focusing on keeping their doors open and the pantry stocked. [Barrhaven Independent]

HEALTHCARE

Healthcare workers burning out across the region

What happened: A huge majority of healthcare workers in Ottawa and the surrounding region believe there aren’t enough staff in hospitals to deliver adequate patient care, according to a new survey of hospital staff. The poll, released by the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions suggests 85 percent of healthcare workers in the region think staffing levels are too low, CTV reported.

Dread: Just as alarming, 54 percent dread going into work every day, and 49 percent said they are considering leaving the profession in the next year. The union said about 60,000 positions across the province need to be filled in the next four years, and the system requires an additional annual investment of $1.25 billion to increase staffing.

• Those numbers are higher than the provincial average. For example, only 41 percent of healthcare workers across the province said they dreaded going to work, according to the union.

HOUSE OF THE WEEK

Okay, so this week’s home is definitely on the smaller side. It’s a bachelor condo, just off Main Street. But it’s got in-room laundry, and a dishwasher. Cozy, certainly. But it’s in a growing neighbourhood, nestled between the Rideau River and Canal.

Check out the fairly reasonable price at the listing.

House of The Week is a home selected by the Lookout team and is not a paid advertisement. All ads are labelled as such. If you’re a realtor who wishes to feature your home in our newsletter, please contact our sales team. 

THE AGENDA

🇨🇦 A Russian anti-war activist living in Ottawa was granted citizenship after a brief ordeal where it seemed she may not get it. Maria Kartasheva, who has lived here since 2019, was convicted in Russia in 2022 of a censorship law because of a Russian-language blog she wrote about the war in Ukraine. [CBC]

⚖️ OCDSB trustee Nili Kaplan-Myrth is appealing a decision by the board to sanction her for violating the school board’s code of conduct. Kaplan-Myrth was banned from the next meeting of the full board, and forbidden to sit on several committees for three months. [CTV]

🚨 Two people camped under the St. Patrick Street bridge suffered burns after a fire. It took two fire crews to get the blaze, seemingly fuelled by a propane tank, under control. [CTV]

👮‍♂️ Guilty of assaulting a man in the midst of a mental health crisis, Ottawa police Const. Goran Beric apologized to the court ahead of sentencing. Beric beat the man with his baton and stepped on his neck for more than two minutes. Beric’s defence lawyer asked for a conditional discharge so that he might keep his job on the force. [Ottawa Citizen]

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• The Ottawa Professional Women’s Hockey League team’s game against Boston was postponed because of the winter storm. [CTV]

• The Farm Boy Vegan Gluten Free Margherita Pizzas are being recalled for possible contamination of milk products. [CityNews]

• Here’s what to do if you or someone else falls though the ice. [CBC]

• The Barrhaven Independent named the late Gus Este, a Korean War veteran and local volunteer, their 2023 person of the year. [Barrhaven Independent]

• Expect delays along Woodroffe near Slack starting next week as the city begins water main repairs. [CTV]

• It can be difficult to get your head around the true size of the City of Ottawa. This map should help. [Twitter]

• Want to have your announcement featured? Learn how here.

CAPITAL EATS

Tucked inside and towards the back of Silk Road Foods, you’ll find Amma’s Biryani. It’s a spare set up: a counter and a chair for waiting. This is takeaway only food.

Of course, I couldn’t wait and began chowing down in the car but more on that later.

The business began a couple of years ago and soon had a loyal customer base. Little wonder, the food is first rate. 

Amma’s has a modest menu but apart from all the behind-the-scenes talent, perhaps this is part of its strength. What they make is memorable and you don’t miss a broad variety of options.

OTTAWA GAMES

Congrats to Chantal and Leslie, who both knew that the Canal needs to have ice at least 30 cm thick before it will be open to skaters.

Do you know where today’s Ottawa Guesser is? The first five people to respond get their names mentioned in the newsletter.