Rideau Hall beefs up Governor General book collection

I have a new story up on OpenFile Ottawa this week about the Governor General's Literary Awards Collection, now on display at Rideau Hall, which also features a sidebar on the new additions to Rideau Hall now on display including the new portrait of the Queen and the Diamond Jubilee Handrails. As always, I really enjoy Rideau Hall stories, and it gave me the opportunity to be present for the unveiling of both the portrait and the handrails, which was a great opportunity.

Doors Open: Rideau Hall offers nature tour, wildlife presentation

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of OpenFile today, which looks at the Doors Open activities at Rideau Hall, which have a bit of a twist - on top of the regular indoor tours, they'll also be doing a number of outdoor activities on the grounds. It was a fun story, and while I've been to Rideau Hall half-a-dozen times, it was nice to get a bit more of a private tour, including one of the rooms that wasn't previously open to the public before.

Unveiling the new tabard of the Chief Herald of Canada

I have a second story up on OpenFile today, which connects to my first one, and it was a bit of a treat in that I got to get a preview of a one-day-only event, which was happening at the opening of the 90 Wellington exhibition, but I also got to have a great discussion with the Chief Herald about this new tabard that has been created for Canada. It was definitely a fun piece to write, and I had a great time discussing heraldry with the Chief Herald, and some of the work that she and her office have done.

What the former Capital InfoCentre looks like on the inside

I have a new story up on OpenFile Ottawa today, which follows up on my story from last week, and shows the new Canadian Honours exhibition that now inhabits the space. As someone who has recently become interested in the Canadian Honours System - and who is a fan of the office of the Governor General - this was a really fun story to be able to cover. I updated the text over the course of the day with a couple of interviews of attendees at the opening event today, and I posted the full interviews on my Routine Proceedings blog here and here.

90 Wellington exhibit to showcase great Canadians

I have a story up on OpenFile Ottawa today which looks at who is moving into the former Capital InfoCentre space on Wellington street. This particular piece is a bit of a teaser, with more to come next week on just what's going to be part of the exhibition.

Public Works blocks entrance to National Press Building

I have a new story on the main page of OpenFile Ottawa today, which looks at the upcoming closure of a sidewalk on Wellington Street here in Ottawa, and how that closure affects the National Press Building, and by extension the National Press Theatre. It's something that not only affects journalists here in town, but any group or politician who would make use of the Theatre, and the fact that the main entrance is going to be blocked for two-and-a-half years is clearly an issue. It's also part of the pattern that seems to keep the most important street in Ottawa as far as tourism and public democracy continues to be a permanent construction zone, and it should be something that we are concerned about.

Sir John A's Name Belongs On Downtown Building: Biographer

I have a story up today on the main page of OpenFile Ottawa, wherein I spoke to Richard Gwyn, the most recent biographer of Sir John A. Macdonald, and we spoke about the governments' recent renaming of the old Bank of Montreal building on Wellington Street in Macdonald's honour. Gwyn approves, but had a few other interesting anecdotes to pass along. It was a great conversation, and I'd like to chat with Gwyn at some future point as well, given that I am quite fascinated with early Confederation history (not to mention that his two-volume biography is a fantastic read).

Parliament Hill's Rehabilitation Underway on Several Buildings

I have a new story up on OpenFile Ottawa this morning, which serves as an update on the progress of the renovation, restoration and refurbishment of several buildings on Parliament Hill and in the parliamentary precinct. As a regular denizen of the Hill, I always enjoy hearing more about what is going on with that process, and doing stories like this gives me the opportunity. Plus, how cool is the cutaway picture of the Wellington Building?

Scaffolding on Wellington remains for several years

I have a story up on OpenFile Ottawa site today, which looks at all of the scaffolding on Wellington Street as part of the ongoing Parliamentary precinct construction and renovation. While this is a story that someone seems to cover every few months, I decided to take the angle of speaking to Ottawa Tourism about it, which was a different take that I think suit the OpenFile audience quite well. And hey, I managed to take a couple of decent photos to include with it, so that was a nice bonus.

What elections mean for Sparks Street pubs - Brixton's Edition

I have the second part of my look at political pubs now online on OpenFile, which looks at the way in which the 2004 election was the event that changed the NDP Wednesday night hangout, and how Brixton's became that hangout. I'm happy that these stories have finally seen the light of day after a number of delays, and how we managed to get the timing to work out better than initially anticipated.

What elections mean for Sparks Street pubs

I have a new story up for a new venue - OpenFile. This is the first of two stories about pubs as political hangouts, and the road to these stories was a bit harried. When other outlets did their own stories on the same hangouts around the same time as these stories were originally written, my editor at OpenFile and I held back, and rejigged the pieces to fit the election that ended up happening. There was to have been a third piece as well, but we couldn't make it work in the long run, but I'm happy with these two pieces. (And we'll look forward to the second piece by Monday).