This is so shameful. For those not watching council today, as you'll see below Mark Sutcliffe is pulling the same EXACT tactics as Jim Watson would in the last council, pulling the rug out from under councillors and trying to derail debate at the last possible moment.

The Ottawa Business Journal founded by and formerly owned by Mark Sutcliffe has come out in defence of his city-wide RTO mandate. The article is also written by a commercial real estate boss. He argues that forcing workers back to the office is "city-building."

At today's Council meeting, I brought a motion forward to reverse the City Manager's five-day-a-week return-to-office order. We'll debate that in two weeks. I've heard from many City staff about the diminishment in the quality of both life and work the order will create, with too little benefit.

As always, @samhersh01.bsky.social is blunt. This city could be so much better, especially on issues like transit. @otttransitriders.bsky.social ottawacitizen.com/opinion/hers...

It's fair to say Mark Sutcliffe inherited a mess of a public transit system when he was elected, but throughout his term as Mayor, despite running on a pledge to "fix transit" he's done everything he can to make that mess ten times worse. From me today in the @ottawacitizen.com:

Forcing municipal workers back to the office 5 days a week to take Zoom meetings serves absolutely no purpose. If Sutcliffe really wanted to "revitalize" our downtown he'd stop cutting public transit and other services. Workers dont just exist to service downtown businesses.

I want to express my profound disappointment today that the City has ordered its workers back into the office five days a week. It is a short-sighted decision that serves no one well in either the short or long term. (1/6)

Sutcliffe just announced a potential 6.5% increase for Ottawa Police in next years budget (the largest increase in 15 years) and ANOTHER potential transit fare increase. Sutcliffe has made his priorities clear - and it's not Ottawa residents. We have a transit budget crisis, not a policing crisis.

Opposing new sidewalks? Really? I've been to Manor Park and if you're on foot it's a pain to get around because of the lack of sidewalks. Sidewalks don't "destroy greenspace" they encourage sustainable modes of transport and make neighbourhoods more accessible.

Our feminist Prime Minister

The cuts from Mark Carney on the public service will decimate Ottawa's local economy but not a single small business, local politician or city councillor have spoken up about it. Where is the same outrage they had around letting people work from home?

A woman died last week after being hit by a truck near City Hall, now two children were hit - when is this going to stop? We need Vision Zero now not Vision "20% less cycling deaths." Shame on our Mayor and council who allow this to keep happening.

This is appalling. Children should—must—be safe in our city. While at least one of these drivers is charged with fault, our infrastructure also fosters a bad road culture, since it privileges cars. #OttCity isn’t doing enough fast enough. #VisionZero #Ottawa www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/artic...

Extremely problematic motion from Councillor David Brown and new Osgoode Ward councillor Isabelle Skalski who want staff to look into options to privatize parts of our public transit system. The only way we will improve the system is by investing in it not selling it off.

On Canada Day, Mark Sutcliffe boasted about high transit ridership - he forgot to mention one thing: it was free. Detractors of free transit argue we must chose between affordability and reliability but it's a false choice - we can and should have both. From me in @ottawacitizen.com:

Terrible, senseless and 100% avoidable tragedy. The City of Ottawa needs to fund more active transportation and cycling infrastructure instead of endless road expansion. Everyone deserves to feel safe on the road. For details on a commemoration see below:

Egregious abuse of power by the Conservative Ford government taking over the schoolboard here in Ottawa. The financial issues boards are facing are the fault of provincial underfunding. No doubt they will try and force back cops into our schools among other things.

Zohran's victory should ignite excitement not just in the US but everywhere including in Ottawa. We don't need to keep electing boring, uninspiring mayors or city councillors who want to hold back what's possible here. Start organizing and join @horizonottawa.bsky.social as a member:

Great op-ed by @samhersh01.bsky.social. #OttCity Council is willing to assume legal risk with the problematic “bubble bylaw,” but not with fossil fuel advertising. Allowing fossil fuel promotion contradicts the City’s commitments and responsibilities. ottawacitizen.com/opinion/otta...

Was happy to speak out on behalf of @ijvcanada.bsky.social against the OCDSB's decision to reprimand Elizabeth Yao for calling out the genocide in Palestine in her commencement speech. There is a very clear difference between actual harm and discomfort with opinions you disagree with.

I certainly hope Yao receives a formal apology from Principal Jane Conrod and the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board for Conrod's heavy-handed response last week. Glad to learn Yao's back in school and has vocal support from local community leaders like @samhersh01.bsky.social. #ocdsb #ottcity

Extreme heat is coming to Ottawa on Monday, with a forecasted high of 35°, feeling like 47° with the humidity. This is a serious danger for many, particularly the unhoused. Mayor Sutcliffe needs to ensure cooling centres are available to keep the public safe.

There's some big things on the Environment Committee agenda this morning, including the debate around whether to use an incinerator for Ottawa's garbage, and a report on banning fossil fuel advertising. Follow along with our coverage below, and watch live: www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vHU...

Now moving on to the discussion on fossil fuel advertising. The first delegate is @samhersh01.bsky.social. Hersh says it is frustrating that this has been continuously delayed over the past year despite the urgent need for climate action.

Today, Ottawa city councillors have an opportunity to take real leadership and vote to take steps to ban fossil fuel ads on city property. Staff say it's "too risky" but during a climate crisis it's a risk worth taking. From me in the @ottawacitizen.com:

GM of OC Transpo, Renée Amilcar, has announced her resignation, leaving her position on July 18th after less than 4 years on the job. 🤞We're keeping our fingers crossed that her replacement understands and prioritizes the needs of transit riders. www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/artic...

Under Amilcar's leadership we saw one of the worst cuts to public transit in over a decade, a steep rise in fares and the further erosion of our transit service. I hope the next GM of OC Transpo is someone who can challenge our council to do better.

"These new security check measures seem to eerily follow the same pattern to make City Hall a less welcoming place to be. Perhaps that is the goal." Read more from @samhersh01.bsky.social on the new security measures at City Hall and if they are really necessary: ottawacitizen.com/opinion/otta...

I have often walked through City Hall on my walks. There's interesting art galleries, washroom and water fountain and I may even run into my counsellor. I won't bother doing that now if I have to be searched. This should be reversed @arieltroster.com

Last week, the City of Ottawa announced security measures at City Hall including installing metal detectors. This excessive, unnecessary measure speaks to a pattern of a clamp down on dissent and should be reconsidered. From me in the @ottawacitizen.com:

Last year, along with several other community members we pursued a lawsuit against the Ottawa Police Services Board for implementing bylaws that significantly deterred public participation in meetings to hold police accountable. Tomorrow is the first day of our court hearing:

BREAKING: “Bikers’ Church” Pastor Claims Police Liaison Invited Him to Protests Rob McKee, a pastor at a controversial Ottawa church, claimed that an officer with the city’s police force invited him to “numerous” protests. www.antihate.ca/_bikers_chur...

🧵 - Today's joint committee meeting, which will include a discussion on the "bubble bylaw", something we've been campaigning against for months. We'll provide some updates below, and you can also follow along live on YouTube: www.youtube.com/live/3UiPHw_...

Anyone running in the Osgoode Ward by-election should be opposed to the Tewin development. Originally sold by private developers as "reconciliation" -, it is nothing more than a billion dollar get-rich-quick scheme by the development industry.

Consider voting @joelharden.bsky.social in Ottawa Centre. We think there are some local factors that make them a good choice. See CooperateForCanada.ca for more recommendations. #cdnpoli #elxn45 #elxn2025 #neverpoilievre

The transphobic loser and grifter who has come and harassed Ottawa schools for two years running is coming back. Time once again for the community to stand up against hate and remind them theyre not welcome here - thanks to @csottawa.bsky.social for organizing this pushback.

Disappointing is an understatement. This will do nothing to relieve congestion and will put peoples’ lives at risk. The fight is not over. Support @cycletoronto.bsky.social any way you can. 👇

BREAKING: Chrystia Freeland to form new centrist party En Marche!

The huge impacts of these tariffs make it even more clear how decades of free trade agreements with the US negotiated under Conservative and Liberal govts have been a disaster and has led to an erosion of Canadian sovereignty and lower standards for workers and local economies.

I've been hearing that Mark Sutcliffe wants to appoint a councillor in Osgode Ward rather than have a by-election. He needs to respect democracy and allow residents to choose their next city councillor.

Best Theratronics workers were on strike for almost a full year from an employer that refused to negotiate with them. Through the extreme cold and extreme heat they preserved and got a deal for themselves because they didn't stand down - this is the power of a union 💪

A central part of Mark Sutcliffe's "fairness campaign" was that the feds were shortchanging #ottcity when it came to PILTs - seems like the courts disagree. All this was and has been is an excuse for Sutcliffe to put the blame on someone else for his abysmal financial management.

Kiss of death

Kudos to community members in #Ottawa who disrupted this anti-trans event at the Main Branch of the Ottawa Library and shame on the OPL for allowing this to happen. As an institution thats been supportive of the LGBTQ+ community this is disappointing. They need to apologize.

How many more times do we have to fucking say it: You cannot overdose on fentanyl simply by touching it or breathing near it and our mainstream newspapers need to stop reporting it as fact just because the police say so.

Of course ridership didn't increase, because you lowered the quality and frequency of service! This is exactly the argument everyone made to restore off-peak headways! You cant cut service and expect more people to take the train - its clear Amilcar and head OC Transpo staff are not transit users.

We need a champion at OC Transpo to advocate for transit. The senior executives are loyal to the mayor instead of riders. We need someone to say, for this level of funding, this is the service you get. If you want better service, we need X ...

The point many of us made last summer is that frequency matters beyond just capacity. 10-minute headways can mean waiting for the train as much as riding it for multi-stop trips. The commute-centric view of transit is penny wise but pound foolish. www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/artic...

Insane. This is 20% of all programs at Algonquin being cut while the College's President continues to make close to $350k and the province conitnues to critically underfund post secondary institutions. This has nothing to do with international students.

The solution to fixing the #Ottawa LRT isnt to transfer responsibility to Metrolinx and Toronto-based consultants - its by actually giving the city the funding it needs to serve everyone. The only LRT worse than Ottawa's is the Eglington Crosstown owned by...you guessed it Metrolinx.