Good afternoon transit fans! We love talking about public transit. We actually launched Apartment613 in the midst of the transit strike last year – so complaining about public transit is really part of our blogging DNA. If you’re interested in a more smarty pants an actually intelligent discussion on the transit issues facing Ottawa you can now download the Journal of Public Transit in Ottawa online here. The Journal of Public Transit is a community reviewed publication offering independent analysis from interested writers, researchers and members of the informed public.... | Continue reading article

On Thursday evening Ottawa City council passed the 2010 budget – a full post on the subject is forthcoming. Some highlights: a 3.77% tax hike, reinstating the Crime Prevention Ottawa and scrapped recommended bus route cuts and reductions in stump removal and funding for tree trimming as well as approving a transit pass pilot program for Carleton and University of Ottawa students. The province of Ontario has agreed to foot the $3 million bill for the construction of a new 30-bed shelter for women and children.  The shelter will be... | Continue reading article

A quick note before we get to the news. Since we’re getting more and more photos from various contributors on Flickr, I decided to use a different photo for this feature instead of the same old one, starting with this ditty from Rick Carroll. Tell me what you think! While it looks like Bob Chiarelli won’t be running for mayor of Ottawa once more, a new candidate, Jane Scharf has entered the race. An anti-poverty advocate for many years, she ran in the 2006 campaign and received 0.49% of the... | Continue reading article

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR. While Apartment613 normally focus on city issues, from time to time the fact that Ottawa is the national capital just can’t be ignored. This weekend, as many as 3,500 people gathered on Parliament Hill to protest the closing down of parliament until March. The Ottawans were joined by at least 7,000 people in Toronto and 500 in Halifax, as well as a number of other groups around the country. The  protests were organized by the people behind the Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament facebook group, which now... | Continue reading article

ABSTrACTS/RéSuMÉS: An Exercise in Poetry Presented by The A B Series and The Ottawa Art Gallery Doors open 7pm / Reading at 7:30pm Thursday, January 28, 2010 Club SAW 67 Nicholas Street Ottawa Free admission / donations accepted ~~~ Poets perform works inspired by Michèle Provost’s installation ABSTrACTS/RéSuMÉS in the context of the exhibition Fibred Optics Featuring poets: jwcurry John Lavery Pearl Pirie Carmel Purkis Sandra Ridley Grant Wilkins Hosted by Max Middle For more information ABSERIES dot ORG

The big story this week was of course the horrendous earthquake that hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti. International emergency efforts have begun, with Canada leading the way. Canadians all over the country are demonstrating their generosity and the government has agreed to match individual contributions up to $50 million dollars.  Here’s a list of  Ottawa-area relief efforts if you care to donate. Our thoughts are with everyone in Haiti. The Ottawa Sun’s Dennis Armstrong reported a rumor this week that someone, a busy concert promoter, was hoping to take over Barrymore’s and... | Continue reading article

Few cities can resist the urge to engage in a little my-skyscrapers-are-bigger-than-yours style one-upmanship. Of course, it helps to have a little documentation on your side. Thanks to the latest Conference Board report, City Magnets II: Benchmarking the Attractiveness of 50 Canadian Cities, Ottawa can now claim to be better looking than both Toronto and Montreal, at least when it comes to attracting migrants. The conference board analysed the attractiveness of 50 Canadian cities seven categories: Society, Health, Economy, Environment, Education, Innovation, and Housing. All together, 41 different indicators –... | Continue reading article

If there is one thing that the blogging community is known for, it is speaking their minds. Leading into the City of Ottawa’s 2010 budget process, the editorial team at Apartment613 is working to compile a list of concerns, ideas and suggestions for Ottawa’s budget from local blog readers-extraordinaire. Send us your thoughts by email to editors@apt613.ca with Ottawa Budget as subject and we’ll create a master list of recommendations from our online community.

This was announced Tuesday, which in blog-time is pretty much the 18th century, but it’s still important: Ottawa-West Nepean MPP Jim Watson is bidding farewell to provincial politics in exchange for a shot at Ottawa’s top job. Blog readers over 30 (what, they exist – and I’m going to be one in just under four months, so start shopping now for sympathy cards) might remember Watson’s pre-amalgamation stint as the city’s mayor, from 1997 to 2000. He resigned after one term to become president and CEO of the Canadian Tourism... | Continue reading article

The people of Ottawa have an important voice on the proposed 2010 municipal budget: their own. Public consultation is more important than ever in the new budget process, and it’s up to you to let your city councillors know what’s on your mind. Check out the budget breakdown below, call your city councillor, or use one of the many contact options listed at the end of this post to make your voice heard. Debate on the final budget will begin January 25, so you have to act now if you... | Continue reading article