Latest news with #Dudas
Ottawa Citizen
04-07-2025
- Business
- Ottawa Citizen
City officials unveil converted office building as 'major milestone' in transitional housing
Article content 'This also represents a fundamental transformation of our shelter system… it is fundamentally different from the traditional shelter system,' Troster said. Article content Article content 'We know that homelessness is a problem that all of us need to solve, and I hope this will be a lesson to the rest of the community that these kinds of facilities help build community, they can integrate seamlessly into our community, and that they are a good thing and we need more of them. Article content 'We want enough permanent affordable housing for everyone, but in the meantime, people need a safe place to land when they come to Ottawa to start a new life,' Troster said. Article content Troster called it an 'ideal location' on Queen Street near the corner of Bank Street, close to the LRT, transit, downtown amenities and 'literally across street' from the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada offices, which are located at 235 Queen St. Article content Article content The project transformed 30,000 square feet of vacant office space into a transitional housing facility with four levels, including a lobby. Article content The top three floors of the building feature 'sleeping pods' equipped with a bed, four partial-height walls, a curtain for the entrance, a personal locker and an individual reading light. Article content Programming will be operated by CCI Ottawa, which also manages the St-Joseph Transitional Housing Program, and the organization will offer 'a supportive environment at the facility, including essentials such as meals and direct on-site services.' Article content The facility will also provide social and skill development services that 'facilitate the transition to permanent housing,' according to a news release. Article content Article content Myriam Mekhi, CEO of CCI Ottawa, said the facility will have 35 staff members onsite, including crisis counselling and employment counselling. Most of the temporary residents will be asylum seekers, Mekhi said. Article content Article content 'We're doing everything we can to support newcomers as they arrive in our city,' Sutcliffe said. 'Ottawa is and continues to be a welcoming city. We're going to do everything we can to support new people as they arrive in our city, to contribute to our community, to seek refuge from other places — that's what we've always done, that's we'll always do.' Article content Dudas said the Queen Street conversion 'is just one part of the puzzle.' Article content 'The city and city staff have been working at all ends to make sure we are acquiring and opening up new opportunities,' Dudas said. 'There's a new transitional housing facility on St-Joseph Blvd. that will eventually see about 150 individuals there. There is a facility on Corkstown Road that has welcomed families into the community. We have (a supportive housing proposal for) Kilborn Place, which is a work in progress, and those are just a couple examples of the work the city is doing to put words into action and making sure everyone in our city who needs a place to stay has a safe place to be.' Article content
CBC
24-02-2025
- Business
- CBC
Citing Elon Musk, city councillor wants Ottawa to suspend its X accounts
A city councillor is pushing the City of Ottawa to suspend all of its accounts on the social media platform X, which she calls "very negative," rife with misinformation and tied to the threat of punishing tariffs against Canada. Orléans West-Innes Coun. Laura Dudas has given notice of a motion she will make to council's finance and corporate services committee next week. It asks city staff to draw up a plan to suspend the accounts and migrate to other platforms. In her motion, she said X and owner Elon Musk no longer uphold the values of "transparency, impartiality, respect and accountability," which Dudas views as core principles for the city. Her concerns about negative or misleading posts on the platform dovetail with her desire to see the city distance itself from Musk, especially given his close association with the Donald Trump administration threatening tariffs against Canada. "The conversation about whether X is the right format to get factual information has been percolating for a long time," she said. "With the tariffs looming on the horizon, this is the time to talk about it." The city has maintained its main English X account since December 2008 and keeps numerous accounts on X, including for bylaw services, OC Transpo, paramedics, firefighters and traffic alerts. Councillors bolting from X Dudas said she left the platform when it was still Twitter around the time Musk began rebranding it as X in the summer of 2023. Many other city councillors still remain on X, though several have announced that they no longer plan to use it. "This is my last post," Bay ward Coun. Theresa Kavanagh posted on X last month. "I'm done. See you on Bluesky." "The Twitter account is now dormant," College ward Coun. Laine Johnson posted in November. "You can find me on Bluesky." Knoxdale-Merivale Coun. Sean Devine is one of the latest, posting this month that he will only use his X account for urgent communications. He also opened a Bluesky account. Bluesky is an alternative social media platform that was spun off from Twitter and became an independent company in 2021. Several city accounts already exist on Bluesky, though they have not yet begun posting. Ottawa Public Health is actively using its Bluesky accounts, as is the Ottawa Police Service. As of now, however, all are also operating X accounts in tandem. Dudas specifically mentioned Bluesky as one option, though she said her motion would not apply to arms-length agencies like those two mentioned above. Open to exceptions for emergencies Dudas has previously set her sights on social media companies including Meta, which runs Facebook and Instagram. She put together a motion to have the city pull its advertising from those platforms after Meta announced it would block Canadians from accessing news articles due to a dispute over federal efforts to make it pay for journalistic content. That motion failed by a single vote. If her latest motion passes at committee and council, Ottawa wouldn't be the first Canadian city to leave X. North Vancouver shuttered its account last month, while Prince George suspended it for all but emergencies. Dudas said city staff in Ottawa have also raised concerns about whether leaving X would limit the city's ability to get out emergency information. She said she's open to a discussion about exceptions. The motion didn't give staff a specific deadline. Dudas said she hopes the city can move quickly, but accepts there might be hurdles. "Frankly, if we're going to do it, let's just pull the Band-Aid," she said. "But once again, I understand that not all these things operationally are as easy as '1-2-3 go.' So I'd want to hear from staff as to how they would ease themselves off of it and if we can look at those other formats." Dudas's motion would also have the city publicize its intent to suspend its X accounts and redirect residents to other platforms.
