Transit funding the first mayoral issue

Good morning!

Had some good news this week, as booster doses were opened up for people 18 years of age and older. I’ve got my appointment all set for this weekend, and you can book yours too, through the province or at a local pharmacy. I’m about seven months out since my last shot, so it’s definitely worth getting one right away.

And managed to grab what might be my last meal from Hung Sum, which as our food editor reported this week, will be closing later this month. Going to miss their dim sum a whole lot.

And don’t forget, it’s your last chance to enter the Imagine Monet giveaway. You can refer your friends and increase your chances of winning!

Let’s get to the newsletter

— Robert Hiltz, managing editor

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Weather Report

Friday: 28 🌡️ 16 | ☀

Saturday: 30 🌡️ 17 | 🌤

Sunday: 30 🌡️ 19 | 🌤

Monday: 30 🌡️ 20 | 🌤

LRT Inquiry: What we’ve learned

Weighing in: The first real campaign issue in the municipal election is upon us: should transit be free? It started when city staff asked for about $1 million to study the costs and benefits of changing the amount of the transit budget covered by fares versus taxes.

Now several candidates have weighed in on whether free transit is good or bad. It’s the first big issue and we’re excited to cover it. 

Where the big three candidates stand:

• Bob Chiarelli: The former mayor said he was against free transit, saying it would cost too much to implement. But, as reporter for The Logic David Reevely pointed out, Chiarelli used some torqued accounting to get to a much higher cost figure.

• Mark Sutcliffe: The broadcaster said he is against studying the issue, and said on Twitter the study would say we can’t afford free transit. He expanded a bit on CFRA, where he said he found the idea of free transit “perplexing” given the affordability crisis, and that it would add too much to property taxes.

• Catherine McKenney: The councillor said they are in favour of studying how transit should be paid for, pointing out fares need to continue rising to continue to cover the current 55 percent of the transit budget. “It’s time to have a serious talk about how transit is funded and by whom. I look forward to the conversation,” McKenney said on Twitter.

The memo from staff said: “Given the continued unpredictability and high variability of ridership projections, more clarity and data reliability are required before staff can revise or update the transit affordability model.”

City staff came up with several possible scenarios, with the limited data they have available:

The Lookout’s view: The proposed study looks at how to fund transit. That includes more than just the headline-grabbing free-transit option. With ridership numbers still well below 2019 levels, a rethink on transit is needed. Turning down opportunities to explore other options is the type of governance that got this city to where it is now.

Have your say: What do you want covered in the municipal election? Reply with your ideas!

The summer of Dorion rolls on

Giroux comes home: Claude Giroux, raised in Orléans, signed a three-year, $19.5 million deal to come to the Ottawa Senators. 

• “You look at the Ottawa Senators right now and it’s very exciting. They’ve got a lot of talent with guys who like to work hard and compete. I just like the character of the team, and I’ll fit right in with them. … I wouldn’t sign here if I didn’t think we had the chance to win the Cup,” Giroux told TSN.

Sens GM Pierre Dorion told the Ottawa Citizen, “Everywhere I’ve been going in the last two months everyone has been asking me if I’m signing Claude … So he pretty much saved my life.”

It’s all part of the summer of Pierre, as the GM makes big moves to upgrade the team. It’s a cause for a lot of optimism about the Sens. As Ottawa Sun writer Ken Warren put it: 

• “Veteran free agents with [Giroux’s] pedigree — an almost point a game player during his 15-year, 1,018-game career in the National Hockey League, including nine years as captain of the Philadelphia Flyers — just don’t sign with the Senators. At least they never used to.”

Josh Norris signs: The Sens also signed 23-year-old forward Josh Norris to an eight-year $63.6-million contract. Norris led the team in goals last year with 35, and was third in points with 55.

Ottawa’s best parks: Hog’s Back Park

You voted, and here are the results. Meet some of Ottawa’s best parks as voted by Lookout readers.

Where: 600 Hog’s Back Rd.

What to do: Glorious waterfalls a little south of downtown where the Rideau River meets the Rideau Canal. It’s a great place for a hike and a picnic, or just to sit and watch the water run. Plenty of parking, and there’s also a great set of play structures for kids, it’s great for a day trip without ever leaving town. 

What people are saying: “It's like a little forest or nature in the middle of the city. Just awesome place. I did not get much time to finish the trail hike because I was mesmerized by the beauty of the waterfalls.” — Kazumi Makwana

Read all the top parks here.

City Hall update

Stage 2 money held back by feds: Because of problems with the LRT, the federal government held back payments for the Stage 2 expansion. Just after the second derailment, and the calling of the LRT inquiry, the federal government decided not to hand over money “in order to assess payment implications, including potential public sensitivity”. Eventually, the feds paid the quarterly amount to the city, and is currently fully paid up. [CBC]

Residents relay convoy harassment experiences: In public hearings, the city’s auditor general heard from residents about the harassment and emotional toll of the weeks-long convoy this winter. The effect of the noise, and the physical and verbal harassment were big themes. So was the inaction of city officials to deal with the convoy. Residents can submit written testimony until the end of the month through this online survey. [Ottawa Citizen]

Stories you might've missed

Hard Rock fined:  The city’s biggest casino operator, Hard Rock Casino Ottawa, has been fined more than $225,000 for violating the province’s gaming standards. The allegations include failing to establish money laundering prevention policies, not protecting its gaming systems from security vulnerabilities, and sending gambling advertising to people who had signed onto a program to self-exclude from the casino because of gambling addiction. The Hard Rock took over the Rideau Carleton Casino five years ago. [Ottawa Citizen]

Marino won’t appeal suspension for racist remarks: Five days after a brutal hit by Garrett Marino that injured the Redblacks starting quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, and his absurd celebration while the QB was down that included racist remarks, the Saskatchewan Roughriders have apologized. “So did Marino, sort of — it seems highly unlikely the words were actually his,” as Postmedia sports writer Tim Banes wrote. In his “sort of” apology, Marino said he would not appeal his four-game suspension. [Ottawa Citizen]

CERB repayment emails no scam: A poorly formatted email with broken links and strange text colours demanding repayment of CERB funds is not a scam. The strange email, which included a link and a 1-800 number for Service Canada, was reported to the national fraud watchdog, but the federal government confirms it is real. If you received one of these emails from “[email protected] and want to confirm it is authentic, you can call 1-800-622-6232. [CBC]

Community highlights

• Atletico Ottawa has had to postpone their Sunday home game because of a COVID outbreak. [CTV]

• The city will be increasing its capacity at local vaccine clinics to get people their fourth dose. [CTV]

• Bluesfest continues, and Apt613 has more great photos from the city’s biggest festival.

• Looking for a new pet? Alvin the cat at the Humane Society is looking for a new home. [CTV]

Your weekend guide

• Shoot for Change ball hockey tournament | July 23, 10 am to 4 pm | Algonquin College | The public relations program at Algonquin is holding their annual charity event All Hands on Deck campaign to raise funds for the Royal Ottawa Foundation. There will be food, entertainment, prizes and a 50/50 raffle.

• Arlington Art Market | July 16, 10 am to 4 pm | Arlington Ave., between Bank and Kent | Come check out this art market to find all sorts of interesting things. And the first 200 people get free coffee or tea!

• Ottawa Maker Festival | July 16, 10 am to 6:30 pm | St. Laurent Shopping Centre | See all the kinds of cool things made by local producers.

• Northern Lights 2022 | Every Thursday to Monday, 10 pm | Parliament Hill | The light and sound show returns to Parliament Hill after two years away. Nightly showings throughout the week, except Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

• HOPE Volleyball Summerfest | July 16, starting at 7:30 am | Mooney’s Bay Beach | The city’s beach volleyball tournament returns for an all-day festival of sports, music, food and drink.

• Westboro KiteNight | Tonight 6 pm to 10 pm | Westwood Park | Bring your own kite to this event. You can register in advance at any business in the Westboro Village. Music and entertainment will be at the park, plus a free light kit to light up your kite.

• The Ottawa Lebanese Festival | July 13 to 15, 4 pm to 11 pm, July 16 to 17, 11 am to 11 pm | Saint Elias Centre, 750 Ridgewood Ave | The festival was established in 1990 and affords Ottawans the chance to experience the richness of Lebanese culture. It’s expected to be a fabulous party.

Today's top photo

Today’s top photo comes from our food and drink editor Ralf, who has spent the past little while scoping out some great brewery patios you may want to check out. Here is the patio at Braumeister Bierhalle, where Ralf recommends you try the Rheinwasser kolsch. To see what other patios Ralf recommends, see this week’s Insider!

Weekend pop-quiz

Ottawa GeoGuesser was popular! The answer was Carling Road right in front of Ottawa Civic Hospital. Congrats to Rob, Peter, Gord, Doug Thompson, Greg, Diane, Caro Huffman and Emma Lipton. A special shout out to Emma who said she’d recognize those street potholes anywhere. 

This weekend’s quiz is Bluesfest related. The real first name of one of the performers is Luther. Can you guess who?

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. For the most recent stats, see the OPH COVID Dashboard.

• Active Cases: 780

• Total deaths: 826

• Ottawans In Hospital: 24

• Ottawans In ICU: 3

• Acute Beds Occupied: 96% 

• ICU Beds Occupied: 76% 

• ICU Ventilator Beds Occupied: 20% 

Previous Lookout editions

• How should we pay to operate OC Transpo? - read more

• What the LRT inquiry means for Ottawa - read more

• Why Ottawa's housing market is cooling - read more

• How the new COVID wave hitting Ottawa and the province could impact you - read more

• Four more interesting sandwich shops in Ottawa to check out - read more