The OSCAR l April 2020 Page 1 THE OSCAR www.BankDentistry.com 613.241.1010 The Ottawa South Community Association Review l The Community Voice Year 48, No. 4 April 2020 Life has changed for all of us For messages from the OSCA President, and the Executive Director, see pages 8 and 9. After closing the Brewer Arena one month early and removing the ice, the City opened its first COVID-19 Community Assessment Centre in the arena on Friday, March 13th. The adjacent building, formerly home to the Westboro Spring Programs Academy, was quickly retrofitted and is also used as part of the Community Assessment Centre. PHOTO BY JOHN DANCE at the Firehall Check out our 2020 Reflections on a Virus Spring Guide for I was a wartime child, program listings! entered the post-war world of peace and prosperity, REGistration is NOW a blessed time in history. OPEN! My parents had endured The Firehall (260 Sunnyside Ave.) ten years of Depression OLDOTTAWASOUTH.CA and the war. Made babies not knowing if their children would live under the boot heel of a bloody dictator. Now, I’m old, retired, commanded to stay home while a deadly virus prowls the streets. I can do that. gratefully, Layabout Please note that Our programs and our AGM are still tentatively scheduled as normal. If anything changes, we will let clients know via our website and social media. Bruce Grant, retired engineer and layabout, is a resident of OOS. Page 2 The OSCAR l April 2020 BUSINESS BEAT creative ways to continue to serve and it looked pretty clear there was no the community. There are too many construction activity on the top floor. I Uncertain Times Ahead examples to name them all, but there’s asked a Shoppers employee and they known all along –­­ is that we have an Cedars & Co. offering front door informed me that Anytime Fitness had amazing business community. I was delivery for those in self-quarantine, postponed their plans to start working so impressed to see one after another several restaurants changing to takeout on the fitness centre until the fall. It business make the unbelievably tough & delivery, Black Squirrel Books and was also pretty clear that the employee but necessary decision to close their Comet Comics offering mystery comic thought it was actually quite likely the doors, many of them days before and book deliveries, newly opened whole idea was off altogether. And one the government’s declaration of a Cylie offering Easter gift baskets, and has to think the current situation does State of Emergency required bars the list goes on. make it less likely that Anytime Fitness and restaurants to close. I have been will be opening anytime soon. similarly impressed with the proactive approach almost all businesses have Noel’s Landscaping taken, whether they decided to stay Also in early March, I received an open or closed. And as I am writing email from Cory Noel to let me know this (on March 20), we are starting that although they were forced to to see what an engaged and creative close their Bank Street location, they The pandemic led many Bank Street business community we have. Several will still be offering their delivery businesses to close, while others businesses have stepped up with and landscaping/excavation services offered new services such as food to the area and are offering 50% takeout or delivery. off of delivery for the first order of PHOTO BY MAURA GIULIANI landscaping materials for residents of OOS! By Erik van der Torre Bubble Tea By the time you read this, things The “for lease” signs are gone on the will have likely changed, again. former Comet Comics and Milk Face Potentially a lot. Hopefully only a location. I haven’t really been able to little. In all likelihood we are still PHOTO BY BRENDAN MCCOY find out what’s supposed to go in there, physical distancing and – if the first but one rumour I have heard is a “high- few days of the pandemic in Ottawa end bubble tea place”... But it seems are any indication – we will have It is also encouraging to see the level unlikely any new business is going to continued to find creative ways to of concern that the community has for be opening anytime soon given the stay socially connected. Writing the our local businesses. Several people current situation. Business Beat is near impossible this have reached out to me to find out if month, as it is impossible to know there are ways that they could help. Lindt Closed how long this new reality might last. To that end OSCA has created a list This may come as a shock, but But what we do know – and have PHOTO BY BRENDAN MCCOY of our local businesses to keep track another business has closed at of who is offering what during these Lansdowne. The Lindt store is no more. challenging times. And I invite you to (continue to) check out the list on Business Beat is a monthly feature that our COVID-19 portal on our website: highlights new and existing businesses Plant-Based Roasts https://oldottawasouth.ca/covid-news- in Old Ottawa South. Opinions are my Roast with Wild Rice and-resources. own. If you know of any new businesses Stuffing 736g opening up or want to share your Vegan Ham Style Roast 539g As we were originally planning to be thoughts about existing businesses, travelling for March Break, I did have send a note to: e.vandertorre@gmail. Nutty Dips 9 a Business Beat draft ready a week com. Caramelized Onion 49 9 before deadline. I have made some ea Spicy Thai 200g ea 4 changes to it, but I feel like some of Erik van der Torre has lived in Old 5 1 the news I had planned to share is still Ottawa South with his wife and three relevant. sons for over 10 years. He is a member of OSCA’s Traffic & Safety Committee Sometime Fitness? and is OSCA’s Communications and In early March I noticed the “For Marketing Coordinator. Lease” sign was still up on Shoppers Canned Fish & Seafood Multiple varieties Uncooked 340g Cooked 340g For the list of “Businesses of OOS – 9 to 99 Pacific White 9 9 9 Shrimp (31-40/lb) 9 9 9 14 ea 7 ea 9 ea What’s Open & Closed and Cool Earth Mesh Who’s Offering Takeout” Tote Bag 9.99 Go to: oldottawasouth.ca/covid-news-and-resources Carebags Reusable Produce Bags 4 pack 19.99 Tutoring and Day School Got It! Reusable Produce Bags • Grades 1 to 12 • 3 pack Two-Bite Chocolate 9 Croissants 9 13.99 127g ea 3 Located in Old Ottawa South, 1187 Bank St 754 Bank Street (613) 232-9466 613-260-5996 Monday to Friday 8:00am - 10:00pm Saturday 8:00am - 9:00pm [email protected] Sunday 9:00am - 8:00pm www.astolot.com www.metroglebe.com The OSCAR l April 2020 Page 3 NEWS name put onto a seat. An easy way for Mayfair seat us to get some income while we were closed. sale - getting This started years back when we were doing a fundraiser to buy a new immortalized at digital projector, and we did quite well with that campaign. But, we still had your favorite local quite a few seats left up for grabs. We left the offer open, with information on cinema how to snag a seat on the website, and would sell a few seats here and there By Josh Stafford over the years for birthday, wedding, or anniversary gifts. A week or so ago, I was looking Someone on Twitter beat me to the forward to my normal routine of punch with the suggestion to the masses watching movies at the Mayfair, when that people could buy a seat while we I wasn’t working at the Mayfair. I was were on lock down, and word began looking forward to watching Little to spread. It’s a rare example of social Women, Greed, Weathering with You, media as a force of good in the world. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, and Star I spent the better part of a Thursday, Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. March 19, wrangling requests, and Everyone at the cinema had been answering questions from people keeping track of, and adjusting to interested in supporting the cinema the ongoing reality of the frightening while we can’t be open to the public updates regarding the coronavirus. and screening movies. We were following the new rules and By March 28 we had completely suggestions as they happened, setting sold out the names-on-seats. It’s very ticket sales to cap off at 250 per movie, heartening, and appreciated, that the encouraging patrons to space out in Mayfair is in people’s thoughts during their seating, lots of extra cleaning, and these stressful and bizarre times. We attempting to buy hand sanitizer from hope that everything is back to normal a world that was suddenly sold out of PHOTO BY BRENDAN MCCOY soon, with the Mayfair screening great hand sanitizer. the first time since 1932. It all seems switched up the marquee to a ‘closed’ movies as per usual. More concerning news on the message, removed all the listings off the very heavy, stressful, and depressing. COVID-19 subject escalated very On my to-do homework list was to website, and left a ‘we’re closed’ notice Josh Stafford is a co-owner of the quickly, and next thing you knew, we get the word online that we still have on the answering machine.