Ottawa secondhand bookstore starts a second chapter - Capital Current Re-Read Used Books is expanding with a second location in Riverside South. The owners share the story about what their small business has become.

Capital Current’s Amber Gray reports on how Re-Read Used Books is turning a new page with its second location.

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Lower tax rates on apartment buildings may mean lower rents for tenants - Capital Current A four-year tax adjustment could see some tenants in Ottawa receive a break on rent.

Capital Current’s Dexter Nyuurnibe reports on how lower tax rates for older apartment buildings may give some tenants a reduction in rent.

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OC Transpo hiring underqualified candidates, Ottawa's Auditor General says - Capital Current The City of Ottawa's Auditor General listed several concerns about the way OC Transpo hires employees.

An Auditor General investigation finds OC Tranpso hired several underqualified candidates to fill key management roles. Capital Current's Aidan Kallioinen has more.

Councillors push for more transparent real-time tracking of transit reliability - Capital Current OC Transpo riders are coping with hundreds of daily cancellations of scheduled bus trip and the city is finally acting to improve communication.

City Councillors like Rawlson King want new tracking of on-time reliability for OC Transpo services. Capital Current's Isabel Malseed and Emily Renae Kapralik have the scoop 🚌

Submissions for the exhibition closed on March 26, and winning submissions will be selected in mid-April.

The exhibition will take place from April 25 until May 19, anyone is welcome to attend.

Photo of one of the Carleton University Art Gallery’s workshops. People sit at tables on the second floor of the gallery, working on the workshop activity.

"We're seeing a lot of marginalized communities sharing stories, like more racialized youth, queer youth, houseless youth, and having more opportunities for people to share their stories through art, I think is really important," Sanassy says.

[Photo Provided by Saivani Sanassy]

Saivani Sanassy smiles at the camera from inside the Carleton University Art Gallery.

"And I think it's just as valuable as a mid-career artist or a professional artist, because there are different stories that are being shared," says Sanassy.

[Photo Credit Sarah Forrest]

Saivani Sanassy, an ambassador and workshop facilitator at the Carleton University Art Gallery, says that art programs for Ottawa youth are always important.

"There aren't as many opportunities for youth and emerging artists to share their stories, share their artwork," she says.

More examples of Runstedtler's work can be found through her portfolio here: naomirein.my.canva.site.

Also, her Instagram here: www.instagram.com/the_girl_and....

Runstedtler says exhibitions like Young at Art are important learning experiences for young creatives. Not only can they practice creating pieces, they can also practice self-representation, she says.

changing seasons - experimental short film YouTube video by Naomi Rein

"That can be really important for somebody's development... and help them perceive themselves in a more positive way," she says.

Runstedtler's video submission can be viewed here: youtu.be/r5TY_LxGXjA.

Naomi Runstedtler is one of last year's selected artists. "It's a great way to just have community as a young person... I think it's really important to have spaces for young people where they can express themselves and just gain recognition for something that they've done."

Photo of the Shenkman Arts Centre’s gallery space, a visitor is viewing one of the art pieces on display. This is the space that will be used for the exhibition.

For the exhibition's 30th year, Young at Art has introduced a $500 bursary for the Senior category, which includes artists aged 16 to 19.

Also starting this year, two runner-up artworks will be featured in the gallery for each category on top of the selected winners.

[Photo Credit Sarah Forrest]

"It helps youth present their ideas, stories, and creativity publicly, which builds confidence and validates their artistic voice," said Qassem.

In a statement to Capital Current, Areej Qassem, a program coordinator at the City of Ottawa said, "Young at Art plays an important role in supporting the future of young artists by providing early exposure to a professional exhibition environment."

Photo taken from the inside the arts centre building. The photo shows a promotional image for the exhibition displayed on a TV monitor inside the gallery.

These young creatives submit their work through the City of Ottawa website. Their submissions are then reviewed by a committee of professional artists. Selected works are featured in the Young at Art exhibition at the Shenkman Arts Centre in Orléans.

[Photo Credit Sarah Forrest]

Photo of the front of the Shenkman Arts Centre building

2026 marks the 30th anniversary of Ottawa's Young at Art exhibition, featuring artists aged 12-19.

[Photo Credit Sarah Forrest]

Postma also underlined how these changes could add increased pressure.

"Losing this access would significantly complicate our daily business operations,” said Postma.

Photo of a delivery truck on Bank Street.

Additionally, Postma notes that it could make store deliveries even more challenging than they already are. “We rely on frequent afternoon deliveries,” said Postma. “Currently, couriers are able to park briefly in front of the store to drop off shipments."
[Photo credit Dexter Nyuurnibe]

Photo of parked cars on Bank street.

“Implementing bus lanes, particularly during the 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM window, would further restrict access for our customers and may discourage them from visiting our shop.” [Photo credit Aidan Kallioinen]

Photo of Fairy Dreams Bridal and My Baby Shoppe on Bank street.

Lauyrn Postma, manager of Fairy Dreams Bridal and My Baby Shoppe, says the plan will compound existing parking issues. “Current restrictions already cause many clients to arrive late for their appointments,” said Postma. [Photo credit Aidan Kallioinen]

Photo of the number 7 bus on bank street.

Coun. Menard says he has experienced these bus cancellations himself. “The buses I take most are the six and the seven,” he said. “That afternoon peak period can be really difficult in getting back... so there was a point where I had to get off the bus and just walk.” [Photo credit Dexter Nyuurnibe]

A photo of the number 6 double decker bus on bank street.

“The cancellations and delays for buses are because they're sitting in traffic… dedicated bus lanes just means that they're able to be that much more reliable,” said Miljusevic. [Photo credit Aidan Kallioinen]

Some transit advocates say the pilot project doesn’t go far enough. “I think it definitely falls short in some ways,” said Marko Miljusevic, a board member at Strong Towns Ottawa. “They wouldn't run it on weekends or during events. That seems like a really big missed opportunity.”

bit.ly/47BN8c3

Map of Bank Street in Ottawa with sections highlighted showing where bus lines may go.

“ It's [about] the sheer number of buses that are on Bank Street,” said Shawn Menard, councillor for Ward 17. “To me, this is a really good start in that there are sections of 24-7 bus lanes we can test.” [Photo courtesy City of Ottawa]

The project comes off the back of Ottawa’s Transportation and Transit Priority Feasibility Study which recommended the city install north and southbound bus lanes to reduce wait times in the Glebe. The bus lanes would serve OC Transpo’s second and third-busiest routes.

Map of Ottawa with Bank Street highlighted.

Ottawa councillors are set to vote on a pilot project on April 8 to install bus lanes along a portion of Bank Street in the Glebe. If approved, the bus lanes will run along a 1.6-kilometre stretch of Bank St. during peak hours for an initial 15-month period. [Photo courtesy City of Ottawa]

Ottawa police say translation system in body-worn cameras already helping in the community - Capital Current The Ottawa police say they are finding that the artificial intelligence software accompanying body-worn cameras is helping them with language translation in the community, report writing, among other ...

Capital Current’s Justine Castillo reports on the progress of the Ottawa Police Service’s body camera pilot project that uses AI for transcription and translation. #Ottawa #AI

Read about it here: capitalcurrent.ca/ottawa-polic...

AI in body-worn cameras major time saver, Ottawa police tell board - Capital Current The Ottawa Police Service says the AI part of body-worn camera pilot helping speed up report writing for officers.

Capital Current's Will Brady reports on the benefits Ottawa police say they are seeing from the artificial intelligence system built into body-worn cameras, something the force plans to expand in coming years. #Ottawa #OttNews

Read about it here:
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LGBTQ2+ activists, police say drop in hate crimes not accounting for large number of unreported incidents  - Capital Current Hate crimes directed towards members of Ottawa's LGBTQ2+ community are under-reported.

Does the data on LGBTQ2+ hate crimes tell the full story?

Despite a decline in the number of reported hate crimes against the LGBTQ2+ community, some groups say that's at odds with their experiences. Check out the story by Will Brady and Dexter Nyuurnibe here:

capitalcurrent.ca/lgbtq2-activ...