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After a summer of meetings over coffee and Zoom, the first order of business for Ottawa’s first nightlife commissioner is to set up an advisory council.
Mathieu Grondin, the Montreal native hired by the City of Ottawa in June to foster economic development in the nation’s capital from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., spent the last few months getting to know the players in Ottawa’s after-hours scene.
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Now he’s looking for residents who participate in the city’s nightlife economy to advise his office.
Grondin says the council will not only help him “identify the systemic barriers to commercial and cultural growth at night,” but also propose solutions and new initiatives.
“It will help build consensus around issues, and we can use it as a soundboard to get feedback on the different steps that will be implemented as part of the Nightlife Economy Action Plan,” he said, referring to the action plan that was presented to council last spring.
Creating an advisory council is one of the first action items in the plan, and it’s an idea that Grondin previously implemented during his work with MTL 24/24, a non-profit organization that supports Montreal’s nightlife.
This time, he’s looking for about a dozen members to sit on Ottawa’s council for a two-year term. Half of the seats will be reserved for major cultural and economic-development organizations, such as the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition and Ottawa Tourism, while the other half will be at-large members recruited from the public.
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It’s not a paid position, and at-large members will be expected to attend a minimum of four in-person meetings each year. It’s hoped the first meeting will take place before the end of 2024.
“We are launching an open call,” Grondin said. “We’re looking for nightlife participants, consumers, people who like to go out, nightlife workers, harm-reduction workers, safety personnel and anyone else who is active at night here in Ottawa.
“We want the group to represent the diversity of Ottawa nightlife, from restaurants to nightclubs to the hip-hop scene. We want to get as much diversity as we can.”
If you’re involved in Ottawa’s nightlife and want to add your voice, fill out the application at ottawa.ca/en/city-hall/city-news/newsroom/apply-now-join-ottawas-new-nightlife-council. Virtual interviews may be conducted.
According to statistics gathered by the city, an estimated $1.5 billion is spent on nightlife activities each year in Ottawa, an amount that represents about 30 per cent of daytime consumer spending. The sector includes about 4,600 businesses and some 38,000 workers.
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