Photo by Angelina Litvin via Unsplash. If you know a young up-and-coming writer, let them know that the Ottawa Public Library’s annual Awesome Authors youth writing contest is looking for submissions. The contest is open until Feb. 19 to all youth between the ages of 9 and 18, who are residents of Ottawa and have not yet completed high school. ...

The city is working on replacing its clunky e-agenda system and you can now take a look at what will replace it. The current system, SIRE, was adopted around 2011 and hosts all agendas, minutes, supporting materials and recordings for city meetings. ...

Still shot from Hydro Ottawa aerial footage showing tornado damage on Greenbank Road in September 2018. Here’s our annual list of things that Ottawa was obsessed with in 2018. These themes chronicle life in this city for the past year, for better or for worse. ...

“Absolutely frigid weather” at Major’s Hill. Photo by David Johnson via the OttawaStart Flickr pool. Ottawa residents love to talk about the weather. Along with hockey and gas prices, it may be our favourite topic. This page includes links to local forecasts, weather alerts, satellite and radar images, along with specialty forecasts. ...

“Maman”, a giant spider sculpture outside the National Gallery of Canada. Photo by James Peltzer via the OttawaStart Flickr pool. As the nation’s capital, Ottawa is home to Canada’s premier museums, including the Canadian War Museum, the Museum of History (formerly the Museum of Civilization), and the National Art Gallery. ...

“Absolutely frigid weather” at Major’s Hill. Photo by David Johnson via the OttawaStart Flickr pool. Snow is on the ground in Ottawa – and it will stay through Christmas. After Saturday’s sprinkling of 3.2 centimetres of snow over Ottawa, there was about 4 centimetres of snow on the ground measured at the Ottawa Airport as of 7 a. ...

Christmas lights sparkle downtown with the Peace Tower as a backdrop. Photo via Canadian Heritage. Here’s our a list and map of large-scale Christmas light displays in and around Ottawa, including downtown, Parliament Hill, Taffy Lane and even more in surrounding communities. ...

Beginning on Monday, January 7, Elgin Street will be closed to traffic from Somerset Street to Catherine Street. Additionally, there will be traffic impacts on Elgin Street between Laurier Avenue and Somerset Street: One southbound lane will remain open along Elgin Street from Laurier Avenue to Somerset Street. ...

There was a lot of news in city politics this week. Here’s a recap: Committee chairs and members picked On Wednesday, council approved nominations for committees, boards and agencies as well as deputy mayors. The deputy mayors, a ceremonial position, are Matthew Luloff, Laura Dudas and George Darouze. ...

“Out like a lion.” Photo by Jamie McCaffrey via the OttawaStart Flickr Pool. Like most cities, Ottawa experiences quite a bit of congestion on the road – especially during the winter. Here’s a handy guide to navigate your way through it and get where you’re going. ...