Hour 3 of Ottawa Now for Thurs. May 28th, 2026

If you’re a longtime listener of this program, you know that we’ve covered a few city-wide debates at nauseum. One of them is, of course, Ottawa’s troubled LRT system. Another topic is finding a place to park, especially in Downtown Ottawa. Today’s debate takes us to a city-owned parking garage at 70 Clarence Street, one that is frequently used by numerous employees at 87 George. Back in March, the garage introduced a 3-hour pay-and-display system, an attempt to encourage vehicle turnover in a touristy area. At the same time, it caused a lot of confusion and a lot of revenue for traffic ticket collectors, with 962 infractions being flagged since the end of that month. Are parking fines getting out of hand in our city? Do you have a parking ticket story that you’d like to share with the class? Kristy Cameron sifts through the CFRA textboard and tackles today’s Question of the Day. Plus, it’s a Thursday afternoon during gardening season, which means it’s time to give our gardening expert a ring! Today’s discussion: Native Planting vs. Naturalized Planting. One is better than the other. We discuss which one, and why, with Carson Arthur. And then, we open the floor to your gardening inquiries!