Ariel Troster
@arieltroster.com
City Councillor for #SomersetWard in Ottawa. Queer Jew. A better city is possible. Let’s build it together. 🏳️🌈
Pinned
Happy New Year! Here’s a little preview of the big issues and local wins we will see in 2026 at City Hall and in our community.
Daisy and Moose are getting along suspiciously well tonight. They must be plotting something …
January 11, 2026 at 3:20 AM
Daisy and Moose are getting along suspiciously well tonight. They must be plotting something …
Reposted by Ariel Troster
We are expecting 10 - 15 cm of snow tonight in #OttCity.
A winter weather parking ban will be in effect starting tomorrow, January 11 from 10 am until 7 pm. When vehicles are removed from our streets, our crews can clear snow efficiently.
Info: https://bit.ly/3NbOPFS
A winter weather parking ban will be in effect starting tomorrow, January 11 from 10 am until 7 pm. When vehicles are removed from our streets, our crews can clear snow efficiently.
Info: https://bit.ly/3NbOPFS
January 10, 2026 at 8:35 PM
We are expecting 10 - 15 cm of snow tonight in #OttCity.
A winter weather parking ban will be in effect starting tomorrow, January 11 from 10 am until 7 pm. When vehicles are removed from our streets, our crews can clear snow efficiently.
Info: https://bit.ly/3NbOPFS
A winter weather parking ban will be in effect starting tomorrow, January 11 from 10 am until 7 pm. When vehicles are removed from our streets, our crews can clear snow efficiently.
Info: https://bit.ly/3NbOPFS
Reposted by Ariel Troster
Yesterday's memo on bus cancellations asserts hundreds of millions in new spending that at the end of the day has little to do with cancelled buses. Let's separate the spin from the solutions.
January 10, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Yesterday's memo on bus cancellations asserts hundreds of millions in new spending that at the end of the day has little to do with cancelled buses. Let's separate the spin from the solutions.
The latest edition of the Somerset Ward newsletter is out, with updates on a new public bathroom, warming spaces, ANCHOR expansion, and more! Read it and sign up at www.arieltroster.com/swm_63
January 10, 2026 at 3:35 PM
The latest edition of the Somerset Ward newsletter is out, with updates on a new public bathroom, warming spaces, ANCHOR expansion, and more! Read it and sign up at www.arieltroster.com/swm_63
If you are looking for hope and catharsis during this dark time (and have already binged the gay hockey series multiple times), go see live music. Neko Case’s voice healed something in me last night.
Also, I noticed the crowds at her shows are getting older. Wait, I resemble that comment …
Also, I noticed the crowds at her shows are getting older. Wait, I resemble that comment …
January 10, 2026 at 2:34 PM
If you are looking for hope and catharsis during this dark time (and have already binged the gay hockey series multiple times), go see live music. Neko Case’s voice healed something in me last night.
Also, I noticed the crowds at her shows are getting older. Wait, I resemble that comment …
Also, I noticed the crowds at her shows are getting older. Wait, I resemble that comment …
Reposted by Ariel Troster
When you build a world where kids can't walk anywhere to get candy this is a natural outcome.
Very glad everyone is okay. This is very scary. 😬
Very glad everyone is okay. This is very scary. 😬
Ottawa police stop 13-year-old driver out to get candy in Barrhaven
Ottawa police stop 13-year-old driver out to get candy in Barrhaven
Ottawa police say they put an end to a slow-going candy-run in Barrhaven on Thursday morning.
bit.ly
January 9, 2026 at 8:55 PM
When you build a world where kids can't walk anywhere to get candy this is a natural outcome.
Very glad everyone is okay. This is very scary. 😬
Very glad everyone is okay. This is very scary. 😬
The Ward 14 team visited the Catherine Street Yard today, and got to meet with meet some of the amazing city staff members who operate plows and other snow removal machines. Thank you to Bryden Denyes and Shawn McGuire for the warm welcome and for answering our many questions.
January 9, 2026 at 7:31 PM
The Ward 14 team visited the Catherine Street Yard today, and got to meet with meet some of the amazing city staff members who operate plows and other snow removal machines. Thank you to Bryden Denyes and Shawn McGuire for the warm welcome and for answering our many questions.
Reposted by Ariel Troster
Council will soon be voting on a new zoning by-law that adds greater density and focuses on 15-minute communities across Ottawa. I've been thinking a lot about growing up in Convent Glen in that context, and offer the following: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_0R....
Growing up in Convent Glen's 15-minute community
YouTube video by Kitchissippi Ward
www.youtube.com
January 9, 2026 at 2:32 PM
Council will soon be voting on a new zoning by-law that adds greater density and focuses on 15-minute communities across Ottawa. I've been thinking a lot about growing up in Convent Glen in that context, and offer the following: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_0R....
Reposted by Ariel Troster
ICE UPDATE | Full temporary closure
Due to the forecasted warmer weather and rain, the Rideau Canal Skateway will temporarily close starting this evening.
⛔ Full closure as of 10 pm on Thursday, January 8.
Due to the forecasted warmer weather and rain, the Rideau Canal Skateway will temporarily close starting this evening.
⛔ Full closure as of 10 pm on Thursday, January 8.
January 8, 2026 at 9:25 PM
ICE UPDATE | Full temporary closure
Due to the forecasted warmer weather and rain, the Rideau Canal Skateway will temporarily close starting this evening.
⛔ Full closure as of 10 pm on Thursday, January 8.
Due to the forecasted warmer weather and rain, the Rideau Canal Skateway will temporarily close starting this evening.
⛔ Full closure as of 10 pm on Thursday, January 8.
With the temperatures rising today, you can help the city prevent flooding by chipping the ice away from your nearest catch basin. Be a drain hero! We really appreciate your help.
January 8, 2026 at 3:36 PM
With the temperatures rising today, you can help the city prevent flooding by chipping the ice away from your nearest catch basin. Be a drain hero! We really appreciate your help.
Reposted by Ariel Troster
She had stuffed animals in her glove box.
January 7, 2026 at 11:45 PM
She had stuffed animals in her glove box.
Reposted by Ariel Troster
Renee Nicole Good
May her memory be for a blessing. May she rest in power.
January 7, 2026 at 10:57 PM
Renee Nicole Good
Reposted by Ariel Troster
Update from the City's public works department about snow clearing operations.
⚠️ If you can, ensure that your local catch basin is clear and able to take in water.
💡Did you know: You can find your nearest catch basin on ottawa.ca. Search for "catch basin locator map".
⚠️ If you can, ensure that your local catch basin is clear and able to take in water.
💡Did you know: You can find your nearest catch basin on ottawa.ca. Search for "catch basin locator map".
January 7, 2026 at 7:35 PM
Update from the City's public works department about snow clearing operations.
⚠️ If you can, ensure that your local catch basin is clear and able to take in water.
💡Did you know: You can find your nearest catch basin on ottawa.ca. Search for "catch basin locator map".
⚠️ If you can, ensure that your local catch basin is clear and able to take in water.
💡Did you know: You can find your nearest catch basin on ottawa.ca. Search for "catch basin locator map".
It’s too much to bear. Who will stop this?!?
NEWS: In a heartbreaking video, after ICE shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis, a woman who was in the same SUV cries out: “They killed my wife. I don’t know what to do."
“We stopped to videotape, and they shot her in the head,” the distraught woman sobs.
www.advocate.com/news/minneso...
“We stopped to videotape, and they shot her in the head,” the distraught woman sobs.
www.advocate.com/news/minneso...
Distraught woman says ICE killed her wife in video after deadly Minneapolis shooting
“They killed my wife,” the distraught woman says, adding, “They shot her in the head.”
www.advocate.com
January 7, 2026 at 10:04 PM
It’s too much to bear. Who will stop this?!?
It’s amazing that I can deadlift more than 200lbs with no pain the next day, but calf raises do me in every time.
January 7, 2026 at 12:58 PM
It’s amazing that I can deadlift more than 200lbs with no pain the next day, but calf raises do me in every time.
Happy New Year! Here’s a little preview of the big issues and local wins we will see in 2026 at City Hall and in our community.
January 6, 2026 at 8:07 PM
Happy New Year! Here’s a little preview of the big issues and local wins we will see in 2026 at City Hall and in our community.
Did you know that when people are released from prison in the winter, it is often with only the clothes on their backs? They accept donations of coats and boots at the courthouse at 161 Elgin. Just ask for the cellblock to drop them off.
January 6, 2026 at 6:54 PM
Did you know that when people are released from prison in the winter, it is often with only the clothes on their backs? They accept donations of coats and boots at the courthouse at 161 Elgin. Just ask for the cellblock to drop them off.
I am trying to listen to new Neko Case before her show at Bronson Centre this Friday, but this 2006 album is perfection and I can’t stop/won’t stop.
January 6, 2026 at 2:39 PM
I am trying to listen to new Neko Case before her show at Bronson Centre this Friday, but this 2006 album is perfection and I can’t stop/won’t stop.
Reposted by Ariel Troster
Applications are now open for #OttCity’s Community-led Greening Initiatives and Gardening Program.
Apply by February 3.
An information session will take place on January 14 at the Nepean Sportsplex.
Find out more: https://bit.ly/4bqfwQW
Apply by February 3.
An information session will take place on January 14 at the Nepean Sportsplex.
Find out more: https://bit.ly/4bqfwQW
January 5, 2026 at 8:22 PM
Applications are now open for #OttCity’s Community-led Greening Initiatives and Gardening Program.
Apply by February 3.
An information session will take place on January 14 at the Nepean Sportsplex.
Find out more: https://bit.ly/4bqfwQW
Apply by February 3.
An information session will take place on January 14 at the Nepean Sportsplex.
Find out more: https://bit.ly/4bqfwQW
This is the energy that my wife are bringing into our January closet purge (Alison Bechdel knows what’s up).
January 4, 2026 at 7:52 PM
This is the energy that my wife are bringing into our January closet purge (Alison Bechdel knows what’s up).
Proof that you truly never know what new thing will get added to the list of a city councillor’s responsibilities. Managing Taco Bell traffic has certainly never been on mine.
www.ctvnews.ca/canada/newfo...
www.ctvnews.ca/canada/newfo...
Newfoundland’s newest Taco Bell is so popular, city staff have had to intervene
Legions of excited Taco Bell customers are causing traffic headaches in a Newfoundland town, where city council has intervened to keep vehicles moving during the restaurant’s opening weekend.
www.ctvnews.ca
January 4, 2026 at 7:42 PM
Proof that you truly never know what new thing will get added to the list of a city councillor’s responsibilities. Managing Taco Bell traffic has certainly never been on mine.
www.ctvnews.ca/canada/newfo...
www.ctvnews.ca/canada/newfo...
Reposted by Ariel Troster
“Survey after survey has shown that business owners overestimate how many customers drive to their stores vs walking or biking. In a 2012 Los Angeles study, more than half of the store owners on the bike-laned part of the boulevard thought most of their customers drove. The actual number was 15%.”
I read all the studies on the economic impact of bike lanes. Here's what I learned.
Research proves that bike lanes are good for business. So why do so many stores and restaurants still oppose them?
www.businessinsider.com
January 2, 2026 at 4:41 AM
“Survey after survey has shown that business owners overestimate how many customers drive to their stores vs walking or biking. In a 2012 Los Angeles study, more than half of the store owners on the bike-laned part of the boulevard thought most of their customers drove. The actual number was 15%.”
Now would be a really good time for our PM to … say something
There's no legal difference between kidnapping Maduro and kidnapping Mark Carney.
January 3, 2026 at 3:35 PM
Now would be a really good time for our PM to … say something
Trust your employees and let them work in the place with they are happiest and most productive. I’m with Jeff on this one. Forced RTO is punitive and unfair.
I can only re-iterate what a backwards move I consider RTO, particularly in light of ongoing transit challenges. Residents, not commuters, hold the key to a revitalized downtown. I spoke with CTV about it yesterday.
City of Ottawa employees return to office 5 days a week, federal public servants wait for announcement on return to office rules
As all City of Ottawa employees are now required to be in the office five days a week, federal public servants are waiting for word on possible changes to hybrid work arrangements in 2026.
www.ctvnews.ca
January 3, 2026 at 1:35 PM
Trust your employees and let them work in the place with they are happiest and most productive. I’m with Jeff on this one. Forced RTO is punitive and unfair.
One of the best decisions I ever made was getting out of that toxic hellhole
It's well past time for Canadian government officials to get off of X, @jameswsthomson.com writes. This latest — disgusting — incident is just one more reason.
Canadian government officials, what are you still doing on X in 2026?
The platform's own chatbot started posting sexualized material of children and other people who couldn't consent. With no moral bottom in sight, it's well past time our officials found other ways to c...
www.nationalobserver.com
January 2, 2026 at 9:41 PM
One of the best decisions I ever made was getting out of that toxic hellhole