Ottawa’s downtown core has seen a steep decline in recent years. Numerous factors, ranging from new work-from-home policies for federal workers to crime and the opioid crisis, have prevented visitors from coming or returning to the capital.
“Yesterday, we witnessed someone attack someone else on the ground. My sister-in-law panicked,” says Laith Barsoom, whose relatives are vacationing from the Netherlands. “We didn’t want to dine outside because we were worried about the kids,” he adds.
Barsoom’s son, Jonas, says, “It depends on where you are because if you’re deep downtown there’s a lot of homeless people but places you can walk to like Parliament Hill are much nicer and cleaner.”
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Earlier this month, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe launched his “Fairness for Ottawa” campaign, calling on all levels of government to help get Ottawa on the same playing field as other big cities by providing funding to help …