Here’s what you told us were your favourite OBJ stories of the year. After all, regardless of what an editor deems newsworthy, it’s the reader who is the ultimate decider.
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When people ask me to define news value, I get squirmy. That’s because it’s an art and a science, with a good dose of long-toothed experience and “feel it in your bones.” And sometimes, defying even the best “nose for news,” stories can surprise you on either the upside or the downside. Of course, today’s interconnected world can take a modestly successful story and amplify it a thousandfold, which can totally throw a monkey wrench into things.
In the olden days, we crammed a variety of stories into a newspaper and hoped that some of them caught people’s fancies. These days, we can track in minute detail how each story is being received by readers. It allows us an intimate understanding of our audience and makes it a snap to compile a list like this.
So here’s what you told us were your favourite stories of the year. After all, regardless of what an editor deems newsworthy, it’s the reader who is the ultimate decider.
‘I have not seen anything anywhere that looks like what’s going on in Ottawa’: Goldy Hyder
This interview with Goldy Hyder, president and CEO of the Business Council of Canada, which appeared in the 2023 Welch LLP Business Growth Survey report, was by far OBJ’s most-read story of 2023. In it, OBJ reporter Mia Jensen asked Hyder about the future of the federal presence in Ottawa. This was his reply:
“This is an issue that has caused me great concern. As somebody who travels quite a bit, particularly to other capital cities, I have not seen anything anywhere that looks like what’s going on in Ottawa. The level of return (to work) in many other countries is way higher than what we’re seeing here.
“If we’re not careful, we’re creating an unhealthy divided society with that 60 per cent who have no choice but to go to work every morning. They’re the people who keep us safe, who take care of us when we’re not well, who keep our lights on. They’re relying on those of us who don’t have to go to work every day to be a part of their customer base. There’s going to be some resentment building over time.”
Quebec hobby store to occupy two-storey location in Rideau Centre, opening slated for October
This story from April 2023 certainly captured readers’ imaginations. OBJ writer Sarah MacFarlane reported that Imaginaire, a Quebec-based collectibles and hobby store, had chosen Ottawa’s Rideau Centre as its first location outside its home province. The retailer planned to occupy 20,000 square feet bridging the third and fourth floors, next to Simons in the Rideau Centre, representing a $3-million investment.
Owner Anthony Doyon said the nation’s capital could be a prime location for Imaginaire since it gives the retailer the ability to access markets in both Ottawa and Gatineau.
The retailer opened its doors at the Rideau Centre on schedule in October 2023.
Ottawa’s first milkshake bar sets new standard for sweet in the city
It was a sweet surprise when this story by OBJ writer Rob Thomas took off with readers in March 2023.
Sushen Kakkar, the owner of For God Shakes, says one or two people have complained about his milkshake bar’s irreverent name, but most take it in the playful spirit he intends. The name was inspired by a healthy love of wordplay and Kakkar’s own habit of saying “for God’s sake” a little too often, he says. He certainly admits to uttering a nervous oath or two when his milkshake bar — Ottawa’s first, according to Kakkar — finally opened at 204 Dalhousie St. in the ByWard Market in the fall of 2022.
Rogers Media shuts down CityNews Ottawa, lays off newsroom staff
There’s nothing like a bit of breaking news and OBJ’s senior writer David Sali got the jump on the report that Rogers Media was shutting down its CityNews Ottawa radio station effective immediately, the company confirmed in October.
“We’ve made the difficult decision to close CityNews Ottawa (1310 AM) due to low audiences, declining revenue and restrictive regulatory policies for AM radio,” a spokesperson for Rogers Sports and Media said in an email.
The closure marks the end of a century-long run for the city’s oldest radio station, which was originally launched in 1922 under the call sign CKCO.
Shopify leaders Lütke, Finkelstein pull up stakes from capital
Good thing? Bad thing? Opinions were mixed when OBJ’s David Sali reported that, more than two years after Shopify removed the word “Ottawa” from the placeline on its news releases, Shopify chief executive Tobi Lütke had stopped calling the city home as well.
In September, the founder of the e-commerce software powerhouse posted a shot of the CN Tower on X, along with a message that seemed to confirm something many in the capital’s close-knit tech community had suspected for months: Lütke and his family had relocated to Canada’s largest city.
Lütke’s move came on the heels of Shopify president Harley Finkelstein’s decision to uproot his family from their Rockcliffe Park home and return to Montreal, the city of his birth. Finkelstein told a Montreal magazine in July that the Quebec metropolis “still felt like home to me.”
Savour the City: Ten of the best lunch spots in downtown Ottawa
In 2023, some smart editor had the idea to team up with local food and drink writer Yvonne Langen to highlight all that is scrumptious in the city. This column from Langen was a particular hit with readers, featuring a curated list of midday dining destinations. All the restaurants are a stone’s throw from Parliament Hill and surrounding office towers. If the photos aren’t enough to get you salivating, Langen’s descriptions should do it.
Here are the Forty Under 40 recipients for 2023
A perennial favourite for OBJ readers is the annual list of who made the cut for the prestigious Forty Under 40 awards. This year, OBJ and the Ottawa Board of Trade along with several external advisers whittled down 160 nominations to 91 finalists and from there chose the top 40 based on business accomplishments, professional experience and community involvement.
Land with space for 10,000 housing units near future Hard Rock casino hits market
You can’t beat OBJ’s commercial real estate writer David Sali as this story proves once again. In October, he reported that a 160-acre parcel of land steps away from the future Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in the city’s south end was for sale in a move expected to generate significant interest from major property development firms. Commercial real estate brokerage Avison Young, which is marketing the property, said it was the largest tract of development-ready land available in Ottawa.
“It really is a once-in-a-generation opportunity,” Avison Young vice-president Gillian Burnside told OBJ.
Stella Luna owner steps aside to allow her son to build the business as a ‘collective space’
Sometimes there’s a story behind the story, as was the case here when OBJ writer Zenith Wolfe reported that there would be new owners of Ottawa’s Stella Luna Gelato Cafe.
The gelato and coffee shop was opened by Tammy Giuliani on Bank Street near Sunnyside Avenue in 2011 as a family business. However, Stella Luna became embroiled in controversy during the “Freedom Convoy” occupation, when Giuliani made an anonymous $250 donation through fundraising platform GiveSendGo. A data leak revealed her donation, which she later said she regretted, sparking threats of violence toward staff and causing her to temporarily close the store.
In February, her son Zachary Giuliani took over as the second-generation owner alongside his fiancé, Christopher Berneck.
Let the good times roll: Golden Palace celebrates 63 years with half-price egg rolls
Mix a little nostalgia with a hot deal and some darn good Chinese food and you get this fun story from OBJ intern Sophia Adams. In April, she asked Golden Palace owner Bill Kwong why his restaurant is still in business after more than 60 years and he said it’s simply because it’s been around so long — that, and maybe the egg rolls.
“After more than 60 years in the business and the restaurant being run by the same family, a lot of the restaurant’s success can be found in its longevity,” says Kwong, the third-generation owner of the Golden Palace, which first opened its doors on Carling Avenue in 1960.
Anne Howland is the editor in chief of OBJ. Results compiled as at Dec. 4, 2023.
