Larry O’Brien

Today, Mayor O’Brien marked the 100^th Anniversary of the neighbourhood of Eastview / Vanier and the important contributions this area of Ottawa has made to our city. Councillor Bédard made a presentation to Council with Mr. Beaulieu and Mr. Breton, the Curator and the President of the Board of Directors of the Vanier Museopark, to outline the importance of Eastview / Vanier for our community and for the country.

Photos of the event may be found here:

Photos - 100^th Anniversary of Eastview / Vanier

On behalf of the City of Ottawa, I would like to congratulate Ottawa native and two-time Olympian Kristina Groves on her most recent accolades. Groves’ team set a new world record this weekend at the Speed Skating World Cup in Calgary, Alberta. Groves also won Saturday’s 1,500M skate to give Canada three gold medals at the event.

A member of the Pacers Speed Skating Club of Ottawa, Groves now trains at Calgary’s Olympic Oval and is headed to Vancouver for her third Olympic showing come 2010.

As we approach the Vancouver Games, Ottawa is getting ready to welcome the Olympic torch relay. The flame will arrive at City Hall this coming Saturday, December 12th, at 2:15 p.m., and I invite you to join local Olympians in the free celebration at 110 Laurier Avenue West.

The Olympic Torch Relay is scheduled to come to Ottawa from Gatineau shortly after noon on Saturday via the Alexandra Bridge. The relay will make its way down Sussex Drive, through Rockcliffe, Vanier and the ByWard Market before crossing over the Laurier Avenue Bridge to Confederation Park and then City Hall.

Seeing the Olympic torch carried through our city will create memories to last a lifetime. It is our City’s chance to show off our true Olympic spirit as we build momentum toward the 2010 Games.

I hope to see you all there.

This evening I join the many voices across Ottawa recognizing long-time CTV Ottawa anchor Max Keeping’s immeasurable contributions to the local community. Max announced on tonight’s live local broadcast that he will be stepping aside in March.

Max will be dearly missed each evening in homes across Ottawa, including my own. His generosity of spirit has made Ottawa a kinder, bigger-hearted, more giving place for all of our residents.

Max has long been a fixture in Ottawa’s philanthropic community, dedicating many hours to a number of local charities. He established the Max Keeping Foundation in 1995 to further assist children and families in need. Once he steps aside in March, Max will assume the role of CTV Ottawa’s Community Ambassador.

His contributions to our city over the past 37 years have been remarkable - I can’t think of a more fitting role for him to step into.