From family adventures to date nights, concert events to local getaways, our Bell Media Weekender has the inside scoop on the best events in the region.
For your year-long guide to what’s happening in Ottawa, watch CTV every Thursday to Saturday for local updates.
“We’ll continue to work to ensure that we have the resources in place with the support of the various agencies that are stepping up to help us.”
The Ottawa Police Service has had to take “unprecedented measures” to staff its Canada Day policing plan, interim chief Steve Bell said Monday, and it’s resulting in a hit to members’ wellbeing.
The police service has had to cancel days off and call people back from annual leave, Bell told reporters before a Monday meeting of the Ottawa Police Services Board. This year’s Canada Day gatherings in the capital are “an all-hands-on deck event, but that has a cost on the health and wellbeing of our members. And I think it’s important that we recognize this,” said Bell.
Unlike pre-pandemic Canada Days, when OPS would handle the downtown core while the Parliamentary Protective Service or RCMP were responsible for celebrations on the hill, this year’s celebrations are stretching over a wider span of the city’s core.
Supt. Rob Bernier, the Canada Day event commander, told the police services board the Ottawa police footprint on July 1 will extend across approximately three kilometres downtown, from the Canadian Heritage celebrations on LeBreton Flats through the Wellington Street corridor to the ByWard Market.
According to Bell, the federal government has advised that “hundreds of thousands of people” are expected to flood into the downtown area Friday. At the last pre-pandemic Canada Day celebration, on July 1, 2019, some 56,000 visitors to the Hill were counted throughout the day and about 30,000 spectators attended the evening show.
“This is a unique year. We’ve been locked down or not able to participate in something like this for the past two years. So people are ready to come out and celebrate,” said Bell. There are also various “freedom movement” groups ready to come out to protest.
A total of 15 Canada Day events are expected across the city, including five that should be “relatively significant in size and time,” Bernier told the board, with celebrations throughout the day and fireworks at night. Bell told board members that the ability to respond and maintain public safety in various parts of the city has been a key component of their planning.
Bernier did warn that the coming days will be a strain on OPS resources. The service has reached out to other Ontario municipal police forces, the OPP, other provinces and the RCMP, but they too are dealing with Canada Day events and demonstrations in their respective jurisdictions as well as having personnel on summer holidays, said Bernier.
“We’ll continue to work to ensure that we have the resources in place with the support of the various agencies that are stepping up to help us.”
When it comes to its own workforce, OPS has taken “unprecedented measures to ensure every available officer and police member is deployed” for the July 1 events, Bell said Monday. This comes after the deployment of “a great number” of officers at January and February’s Freedom Convoy occupation, a rolling protest through downtown Ottawa in March and motorcycle-themed “Rolling Thunder” rally in late April. Calls for service have also been on the rise as pandemic restrictions have relaxed, according to Bell.
“We have a fatigued workforce. Our members are tired. They’ve had to work very hard over a long period of time,” said Bell.
“It’s not sustainable forever to be able to make people or request that people work as much as we have over the last period of time.”
CTVNewsOttawa.ca looks at Canada Day activities happening in Ottawa.
Canadian Heritage will host “Canada Day 2022” at LeBreton Flats Park in Ottawa and Place des festivals Zibi in Gatineau.
LeBreton Flats Park will host the daytime ceremony at 11:30 a.m. and the evening show at 8 p.m.
The daytime ceremony will feature: Lisa LeBlanc, Tenille Townes, Chantal Kreviazuk, Sarahmee, DJ Shub, Boogat, Kellie Loder, Sebastian Gaskin, Josiane Comeau, Riit, Gurdeep Pandher.
The evening show will feature Charlotte Cardin, Salebarbes, Walk Off The Earth, Ariane Moffatt, Sarahmee, Neon Dreams, Riit, Cindy Bedard, Sebastian Gaskin and Gurdeep Pandher.
You can also check out the Tim Hortons Summer Fun Zone, the Grains on the Go exhibit, the Giant Tiger GT VIP Zone, the Via Rail miniature train and more.
Canada Day events will be held at Place des festivals Zibi from 9 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. on Friday. There will be emerging artists performing and activities for the family.
Discover emerging artists including Lisa LeBlanc, Jonathan Roy, ALLDAYJAM aka Mike Clay, Melissa Ouimet, Genevieve et Alain, Marie Clo, Kia Kelly and Double Magnum. You can also watch BMX demonstrations and take part in a bunch of activities.
While the main Canada Day festivities will be held at LeBreton Flats Park, Canadian Heritage says Canada Day activities will be held on Parliament Hill on Friday.
There will be an aerial performance by the SkyHawks. The Canadian Forces Snowbirds are scheduled to perform an Aerial Show from 3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.
The Tim Hortons Canada Day fireworks will be held near LeBreton Flats Park, starting at 10 p.m.
Canadian Heritage says the best views will be from LeBreton Flats Park, Place des festivals Zibi and the surrounding streets.
For more information, visit the Canadian Heritage Canada Day website.
Celebrate Canada Day at the National Arts Centre.
Enjoy a free NAC Orchestra concert, learn how to make a paper birch bark basket or how to create your own Canada Day dance, attend a Powwow Workout Class and listen to the Unisong Choir.
For more information, visit https://nac-cna.ca/en/series/la-fete-du-canada-day.
The TD Ottawa Jazz Festival is offering free, local performances on Canada Day at Marion Dewar Plaza at Ottawa City Hall.
Enjoy live music from the Jazz Youth Summit, the Prime Rib Big Band, Lynne Hanson and The Lionyls.
For more information, visit https://ottawajazzfestival.com/
Celebrate Canada Day with the RCMP Musical Ride.
Enjoy a family-friendly performance on July 1 at 2 p.m., with shows also scheduled for July 2 and July 3 at 6 p.m.
The show is free, but donations for the Ottawa Food Bank will be collected on Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, the Ukrainian Canadian Congress will collect donations to support displaced Ukrainian families in Ottawa.
The RCMP Musical Ride will be held at the Musical Ride Centre at 1 Sandridge Road.
For more information, visit https://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/celebrate-canada-day-weekend
For information on each museum in the region, visit the websites.
Canada Day in Barrhaven 2022 is set for Thursday, June 30 to Sunday, July 3.
Checkout the Midway, Kidz Zone, food vendors, entertainment stages and more.
Canada Day activities on Friday include a Seniors’ and Family Breakfast, Midway, multicultural stage shows, Indigenous vendors, musical performances and fireworks at 10 p.m.
For more information, visit https://canadadaybarrhaven.ca/
Enjoy Canada Day festivities at the Greely Community Centre.
Events include a pancake brunch at 11 a.m., kids games and interactive events, and “Fantastic Fireworks” at 9:30 p.m.
For more information, click here – https://www.greelycommunity.ca/index.php/upcoming-events/82-canada-day-in-greely/2022-07-01-11-00
Celebrate Canada Day in Kanata on Friday.
Festivities include a Family Fun Zone, live bands and fireworks at 10 p.m. The midway opens at 10 a.m. on July 1, and there will be family entertainment all day.
For more information, visit https://canadadayinkanata.com/.
Don’t miss non-stop free activities, music and entertainment to celebrate Canada Day at O Canada Orleans.
Festivities will be held at Petrie Island.
Events include a KIDZONE, a beachside BBQ, the Rising Stars of School of Rock and fireworks.
For more information, visit https://www.ocanadaorleans.ca/.
The Stittsville Village Association presents Canada Day in Stittsville.
The party will be held from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday on the field of Sacred Heart High School – 5870 Abbott Street East.
Don’t miss the inflatables and games, food, live music and fireworks at 10 p.m.
For more information, visit https://www.stittsvilleva.com/event/canada-day-in-stittsville-2022/.
The Osgoode Village Community Association invites you to enjoy Canada Day in Osgoode.
Events include a parade on Osgoode Main Street, children’s activities, the Zoo Crew, a talent show, Music by Heirs of the Dog and fireworks at 10 p.m.
Events will be held at the Stuart Holmes Arena on Osgoode Main.
For more information, visit https://www.osgoodevillage.org/canada-day.html.
The Riverside South Community Association invites you to enjoy Canada Day Fireworks.
Enjoy music starting at 8 p.m., with fireworks beginning at dusk.
The event will be held at Claudette Cain Park.
For more information, visit https://riversidesouth.org/canada-day.
Celebrate Canada Day with the Trend Arlington Community Association.
Festivities begin at 5 p.m. on Friday, with entertainment in the space around the Community Centre at 50 Bellman Drive. The festivities will wrap-up with fireworks at sundown.
For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/441954810652137?ref=newsfeed.
Coun. Eli El-Chantiry says the West Carleton Branch 616 of the Royal Canadian Legion in Constance Bay is hosting a pig roast dinner and live entertainment on Friday beginning at 3 p.m.
The Dunrobin Community Association is hosting a Canada Day celebration at the Dunrobin Community Centre on Thomas A. Dolan Parkway. The festivities begin at 6 p.m., and includes a barbecue, a live band and fireworks.
If we missed an event for Canada Day in Ottawa, email CTV News Ottawa at ottawaweb@bellmedia.ca.
With the first official day of summer around the corner, neighbourhoods across the city are coming to life, preparing for what residents and businesses hope marks a return to ‘‘normal”.
For Ottawa’s central business improvement areas, the warm weather signals the highly anticipated return to in-person festivals and events that allow them to showcase and celebrate all that their local communities have to offer.
“Collectively as downtown BIAs, we all agree that creating a sense of life and energy in the core is what we owe our businesses and our neighbours to get people excited again about the idea of being in public spaces together,” said Dennis Van Staalduinen, executive director of the Wellington West BIA.
OBJ reached out to some of Ottawa’s BIAs to find out what impact the return of in-person festivals and events for the first time in more than two years is having, or going to have, on their local member businesses and communities.
Wellington West BIA – WelliWow – May – July 2022
Representing the interests of the eclectic Hintonburg and Wellington Village business communities, the Wellington West BIA has partnered with Ottawa-based community arts organization MASC to unveil a new kind of event experience that celebrates the intersection of culture, creativity and diversity this neighbourhood community is already known for.
The WelliWOW 2022 Performance Arts series will see outdoor arts and performance events popping up all around the Wellington West community, the plan being to animate local parks and public spaces and introduce a diverse range of artists and art forms.
The BIA hopes the free series will attract area residents, as well as encourage Ottawa-area or visiting art-lovers to stop by and see all that Wellington West has to offer.
“We are very intentional, trying to be as open and multicultural and as diverse an area as is humanly possible, because we believe that creativity, prosperity and great communities are built on diversity, with people meeting people who aren’t like them and then forming surprising partnerships and projects,” said Van Staalduinen.
Preston Street BIA – Italian Week Ottawa – June 9-19
The marquee event in the city’s Italian community social calendar, Italian Week Ottawa is Little Italy’s 10-day open invitation to come and celebrate all things Italian. Returning to the streets from June 9-19, Italian Week offers something for people of all ages. Visitors can enjoy live music, local artists, shopping and, of course, great food.
Lindsay Childerhose, executive director of the Preston Street BIA, said members are incredibly optimistic and excited about the return of in-person events.
“The Italian Festival represents such an important opportunity to celebrate and to be on the street together. Celebration within the community is such a big part of the Italian culture, the spirit of ‘la vida bella,’” Childerhose said.
“There has been a huge transformation in our neighbourhood, and many street improvements have been made to enhance the visitor experience. We cannot wait for people to come and see for themselves, to remind them that we are here, and to encourage them to shop and support local.”
Bank Street BIA – The Best of Times – June 18-19
Kicking off its summer festival season with a shake, rattle and roll, the Bank Street BIA is collaborating with Optimal Show Experience to offer a unique ticket-free event called The Best of Times. The event on June 18 and 19 will feature themed decorations, activities, sights and sounds from the ’50s to the ’90s, giving attendees a chance to step back in time.
Whether folks are strapping on roller skates and going for a spin or just taking in the atmosphere, the main theme is fun and connection. Sabrina Lemay, the assistant director of the Bank Street BIA, stressed that while some of the BIA’s members are still getting their feet back under them and full recovery will take time, the return of live events has brought a feeling of excitement and optimism and is driving more foot traffic and tourism dollars to the area.
“When we did the Fire and Ice winter festival in February, we heard all our businesses say that they had an increase in sales,” Lemay explained. “We saw families in a different demographic on Bank Street than we’ve ever seen before, which goes to show the urgency to want get back out, and that connection that people have been missing that they want so badly.”
Sparks Street BIA – Ottawa Asian Fest – July 22-24
With Ottawa Ribfest done and dusted, the Sparks Street BIA is going full steam ahead on preparing for its next outdoor event, the Asian Night Market in July. According to Kevin McHale, the BIA’s executive director, the response to Ribfest from local foodies and BIA member businesses alike was fantastic.
“I heard from several restaurant owners that they had downtown business offices scheduling parties of 20 or 30 in a group to have their first staff events in person in years,” said McHale.
For the Sparks Street BIA, helping member businesses by getting foot traffic back in the area with events is critical to helping them recover not only from the economic effects of the pandemic, but also from the devastating impact of the trucker convoy occupation earlier this year.
“We want residents to start thinking of us as their front yard, as a place where they come and hang out and relax and bring their friends here, a place to be proud of,” said McHale. “That’s a long term goal of ours, and we do that by creating a great space and great events.”
The following events also are scheduled the week of May 23 at Reddick Library, 1010 Canal St., Ottawa. Call 815-434-0509 for information.
Monday, May 30: Library closed for Memorial Day.
4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Wednesday, June 1: Spy Training Camp, kindergarten through second grade. Train to become a top-secret spy! Choose your super secret code name and see if you have what it takes to become a top-notch spy.
1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, June 4: The Loop Group, adults. Learn how to knit or crochet in a friendly environment with knowledgeable people.
Ottawa police are promising a large police presence will be deployed today, as the Rolling Thunder biker rally rolls into the capital.
The “Rolling Thunder Ottawa” website doesn’t provide many details about the rally this weekend, but events are scheduled for today, Saturday and Sunday at the National War Memorial, on Parliament Hill and at a church in Vanier.
The first event of the weekend is a Freedom Fighters Canada rally and march at 6 p.m. on Parliament Hill.
As the bikers and supporters arrive in Ottawa for the event, a motor vehicle exclusion zone is now in effect in the downtown and ByWard Market areas.
“No motor vehicles involved in any event are permitted inside this zone,” police said. “However, the roads are not closed. Residential and business traffic, as well as pedestrians, cyclists and public transit are permitted.”
Interim Chief Steve Bell told reporters on Thursday there will be vehicles and physical barriers set up at some locations around the exclusion zone.
“City barricades, heavy equipment or police officers and police vehicles will be at various patrolled access points surrounding the vehicle exclusion zone to filter lawful traffic onto and in and around those streets,” Bell said.
“This weekend, residents will see a large and sustained police and enforcement presence, including bylaw and parking enforcement.”
Officers from Ottawa police, Ontario Provincial Police, the RCMP and municipal police forces will be deployed across the downtown area for the protest.
There will be no on-street parking or stopping anywhere inside the exclusion zone, which covers Waller Street, Wellington/Rideau street, Bay Street and Laurier Avenue.
Parking within the zone is available in parking lots and garages. On-street parking will be permitted this weekend in the ByWard Market.
Mayor Jim Watson says the city is ready for this event.
“I’m much more confident with the preparation for this particular convoy made up of about roughly 500 motorcyclists,” Watson told CTV’s Power Play. “We have exclusion zones where these people cannot drive their bikes through residential neighbourhoods and we also have a greater police presence.”
Two kilometres away from the National War Memorial and Parliament Hill, Community Solidarity Ottawa is hosting an “Unwelcome Party” this evening.
“We cannot let this go unchallenged,” organizer Brian Latour said.
CSO says they wanted to do something to send a message to the Rolling Thunder biker rally that they are not welcome in Ottawa. The event also aims to publicly demonstrate how much of a disruption the convoys have had on Centretown residents.
The “Unwelcome Party” begins at 5 p.m. at Strathcona Park in Sandy Hill.
Ottawa Bylaw says enforcement will begin at 7 a.m. for vehicles violating the Special Event No Stopping Zones in the exclusion zone.
The exclusion zone for no stopping and no parking is Waller Street, Wellington/Rideau street, Bay Street and Laurier Avenue.
Ottawa City Hall and the underground parking lot are now closed for the weekend.
The city says City Hall and the parking lot are off-limits to the public until Monday.
“When it came to online services, it meant we did not have that same kind of interaction. Many of my members expressed having increased anxiety, stress.”
Ottawans of various faiths are marking Easter, Passover and Ramadan this weekend without significant public health restrictions for the first time since the start of the COVID pandemic.
Sikander Hashmi, an imam at the Kanata Muslim Association, says he’s looking forward to a return to more familiar celebrations for Eid al-Fitr, which closes out Ramadan, the Muslim holy month that started on April 2 and runs until May 1.
“(It) starts off with prayers in the morning, people wearing their best clothes, a lot of handshakes and hugging that did not happen for the last two years. So I think that will probably be back this year. It’s just a very celebratory environment.”
In addition to Ramadan, Easter and Passover celebrations are also taking place over the long weekend. These religious events typically take place in the spring, meaning they were among the first high-profile celebrations curtailed after the pandemic was declared in March 2020.
In 2021, Ontario was in the grasp of a severe COVID wave leading to the reinstatement of stringent public health measures that again prevented large, in-person gatherings for these religious celebrations.
This year’s Easter, Passover and Ramadan celebrations will likely look a lot more similar to pre-COVID events, though, since Ontario dropped most public health restrictions in late March.
It’s welcome news to many religious leaders, who had to pivot and find creative ways to keep their communities engaged during COVID lockdowns.
“We had to shift all of our services to online services,” said Ezekiel Nkongolo, senior pastor at an Ottawa evangelical church, the Worshippers Gathering.
“When people are in a service, they participate actively. When it came to online services, it meant we did not have that same kind of interaction. Many of my members expressed having increased anxiety, stress.”
It’s a sentiment shared by Hashmi.
“One of the things we were worried about is that people would be worried about losing their sense of community during the pandemic.”
Hashmi said he knew he quickly he would have to adjust to the ever-changing circumstances caused by the first COVID-19 wave in 2020, adding his mosque was the first in Ottawa to suspend Friday prayers because of the virus.
As a spiritual leader, he sought to keep the community engaged through Zoom prayer meetings, which continued through Ramadan.
Prior to the pandemic, followers would gather daily to pray together, but during the COVID lockdowns Hashmi hosted an online program that was broadcast every day before sunset, when the Ramadan fast broke. Afterwards, the mosque would hold quizzes and prize draws. Families would watch on screens as they prepared meals.
Though the mosque has again opened its doors, Hashmi said the online concept was so well-received by the community that it has been continued.
“We did a Ramadan feedback survey to see what people were looking forward to, and they actually wanted to continue even though we were opened up. So we’re still doing it, just not everyday.”
Members of the Kehillat Beth Israel synagogue also had to make adjustments to Passover celebrations because of the pandemic.
“Passover is already largely a home-based holiday. The Passover meal, which is called the seder, is usually done in people’s homes and families gather together,” senior rabbi Eytan Kenter said.
“One of the things that was most painful of the pandemic period was the inability of those families to gather together and to be able to celebrate together.”
During COVID lockdowns, Kenter said he made sure to emphasize to his community that physical gatherings were not the only way to remain connected and to appreciate one another.
“It’s not just about coming together in joy, but being together and supporting each other as we deal with the hardest challenges of our lives.”
With the pandemic restrictions moved, many are excited for the return of in-person celebrations of these important religious events.
Nkongolo and the team at his church are all set to celebrate this Easter Sunday. “We already have our small glasses, non-alcoholic wine, and small bread.”
For Reverend Michelle Terwilleger and the congregation at St. Peter & St Paul’s Anglican Church, this weekend’s Good Friday service was a long time coming.
“In 2020, all of this was just online. Last year, we shortened the service. So, this year, to have our full Good Friday service is a highlight for a lot of people,” she said.
“For some people, this is their favourite service. So, to be able to have as many people who want to attend, be able to attend and be able to come together and remember that Jesus died for us, to remember His love for us, as a community, to sing together, and of course on Sunday to celebrate his resurrection is wonderful, it’s glorious.”
MEXICO CITY —
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday invited Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to take part in an event supporting Ukrainian victims of the conflict with Russia, amid criticism that Mexico has been too accommodating to Moscow.
During a phone call, Trudeau asked Lopez Obrador to participate in the “Stand Up for Ukraine” campaign event on Saturday to raise funds for Ukrainian refugees and internally displaced people, the Canadian government said.
Trudeau is co-convening the event with the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
Lopez Obrador has tried to remain neutral in the conflict and has declined to impose sanctions against Russia. While his government backed a United Nations vote urging Russia to withdraw its forces from Ukraine, it has also criticized Europe for sending arms to other countries – as it has for Ukraine.
Last month, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico expressed concern at a public display of solidarity between the Russian ambassador to Mexico and a group of Mexican lawmakers at the inauguration of a Mexico-Russia friendship committee.
Ukraine’s ambassador to Mexico, Oksana Dramaretska, on Sunday posted images of corpses on streets of Ukraine and tweeted at Lopez Obrador: “Do you really want to continue friendly relations with those in the Kremlin who are committing genocide after this?”
Lopez Obrador has not commented publicly on the tweet.
Dramaretska posted the tweet after the bodies of civilians shot at close range were discovered in the Ukrainian town of Bucha.
Ukraine has called the killings Russian war crimes. Russia denied targeting civilians and described evidence presented as a “monstrous forgery” staged by the West to discredit it.
Canada’s government said Lopez Obrador and Trudeau also discussed their concerns about the humanitarian impact of the conflict and global challenges stemming from it, including those related to energy and food security.
(Reporting by Dave Graham Additional reporting by David Ljunggren Editing by Leslie Adler)
OTTAWA —
Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez has asked arts bodies that get federal funding to suspend all cultural activities involving Russians linked to Vladimir Putin’s regime in protest of his invasion of Ukraine.
Canadian Heritage has written to organizations receiving the department’s funding, asking them to cancel tours and co-productions bankrolled by Russian or Belarusian state organizations.
The demand, issued last month, could lead to cancellation of exhibitions of art loaned from Russian galleries, as well as concerts, festivals, and theatre and ballet productions featuring Russian artists.
It warned that Canadian cultural organizations found to have ties with the Russian or Belarusian states will also no longer get government funding.
But the letter makes it clear that ordinary Russians with no ties to Putin’s regime or to the Belarusian state will not be affected.
The Heritage Department said it had launched a review to identify activities involving Russia and Belarus.
“We urge you to do the same, and to suspend all activity involving the participation of Russian or Belarusian state organizations or their official representatives,” the letter said. “This includes program partnerships, direct and indirect financing of tours, co-productions, participation in festivals or other events involving the Russian or Belarusian governments.”
Rodriguez faced questions Thursday about whether the instruction was so broad it could lead to Russian artists being penalized more generally, while probing all links to the Russian state, including officials, could prove difficult.
Laura Scaffidi, press secretary to Rodriguez, said the scope of the instruction would not capture work by ordinary Russians and Belarusians, or Canadians with Russian and Belarusian heritage.
“Russian culture has given the world so much rich music, literature and other art. We celebrate that,” she said. “This is not about unfairly targeting law-abiding and peace-loving citizens and permanent residents.”
A number of arts organizations have cancelled events involving Russian performers since the invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier this month, the Canada Council for the Arts announced in a blog post that it was cutting ties with Russian and Belarusian artists.
The Vancouver Recital Society and the Orchestre symphonique de Montreal have announced they are cancelling planned concerts with Alexander Malofeev, a young Russian pianist.
In the U.K., the Royal Opera House cancelled a tour of Russia’s Bolshoi Ballet following the attack on Ukraine.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 31, 2022.
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