What we learned from the City of Ottawa’s podcast with the ‘Night Mayor’

Mathieu Grondin was introduced as Ottawa's new nightlife commissioner on Tuesday. Grondin was born and raised in Montreal and was the founder of MTL 24/24. (Leah Larocque/CTV News Ottawa)

It’s been nine months since Mathieu Grondin was hired as the City of Ottawa’s first nightlife commissioner.

Grondin, originally from Montreal, is tasked with helping to shape Ottawa’s nightlife, as part of Ottawa’s Nightlife Economy Action Plan, focusing on leisure, live entertainment and cultural activities that happen between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. The plan looks beyond just bar and restaurant activity and includes a focus on “safety, cultural tourism, industry initiatives, economic development, and commercial vibrancy.”

On Tuesday, the City of Ottawa launched a podcast series called “OttaTalk” on a variety of platforms, and Grondin was the first guest. In the 26-minute episode, he describes what his job is, what it isn’t, and what his goals are for Ottawa’s nightlife economy.

The nightlife commissioner job comes with a salary of $112,000. The plan also includes a “nightlife council” made up of volunteers, including business owners and other “nightlife economy” players.

Here’s what we learned.

What the “Night Mayor” isn’t

Grondin said there are some misconceptions about his role at the city.

“I’m not organizing parties, I’m not opening new clubs, and I’m not the official emcee for the city of Ottawa, either,” he said. “It’s a bureaucratic job.”

He described himself as a liaison between external partners and city council, who works to help event organizers and business owners navigate the bureaucracy.

“I’m the middle of all these different sectors and my job is to help them kick off new projects, to see if there’s different red tape—you know, there’s always red tape to get rid of. I have discussions with the community to see what can the city does to make their life easier to do business after dark more easily,” he said.

“When we discuss the misconception about the position, people are thinking that I’m going to be kickstarting new projects. That’s not the mandate. That’s not my mandate. If you have a project, I’ll be happy to help you and to direct you to the funding partners, help you with funding, help you navigate through the red tape.”

The “Night Council”

Ottawa’s “night mayor” has a “night council”, consisting of 18 people, all volunteers, from various business and cultural sectors involved in after-dark activities. The nightlife council includes 12 at-large members and six members from the city’s economic development and cultural industries: the Ottawa Coalition of BIAs (business improvement areas), the Ottawa Festival Network, Ottawa Tourism, Arts Ottawa, the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition, and the ByWard Market District Authority.

• Ottawa, meet your nightlife council

According to the city, the nightlife council will meet at least four times per year to “identify shared objectives for the development of commercial and cultural vibrancy at night; identify systemic barriers to commercial and cultural growth; propose actions and initiatives for consideration by the NLCO (nightlife commissioner’s office); and support the implementation of actions and initiatives undertaken by the NLCO and contribute to ongoing evaluation and impact measurement.”

Grondin said one of their priorities this year is working on a nightlife safety plan.

“So, what should the priorities be? Should we put a Narcan kit in behind every bar or should we address bystander intervention?” he said. “The people on the ground… the people owning and operating these venues are the ones who know what they need best, so they are the ones making up a good part of that council.”

Grondin said more than 500 people applied to be part of the council last fall and it was difficult to choose just 12 at-large members.

As of the time of recording, which was in December, he said the council had met once, with another meeting scheduled for January.

“We’re going to meet four times a year, at least, and each meeting is going to be a work session focused around a certain specific team,” Grondin explained. “So, for instance, there’s a bylaw review process undergoing to try and remove and identify and remove this red tape I was talking about so we’re going to have that work session around that. Another one’s going to be around safety.”

Where is the nightlife plan focused?

Grondin said the plan is city-wide and although downtown Ottawa and the ByWard Market in particular are considered the hub for nightlife activity, the project is meant to improve the nightlife in all wards.

“It’s important to me that we can develop nightlife pockets in every neighborhood or in every district or ward in the city, which means that if you live in Manotick, you don’t absolutely have to take your car to come downtown to … go to a restaurant, to see a show, maybe, or have a pint or whatever,” he said.

“I think it’s important to develop programming, a cultural offer for every district and every ward… By working with the BIAs, there can be some placemaking projects in the future, different festivals. Taste of Manotick is a good example. Working with them and see what can be done; can we extend a little bit by an hour or two? Sometimes it’s as simple as that.”

He noted that the plan was voted for by all members of council and having support from suburban and rural councillors is important to building nightlife in places outside the core of the city.

When can we expect to see results?

Grondin did not speak to any specific projects in the works, saying he was in discussions with private partners, but said people need to be patient.

“I know people in Ottawa are very thirsty and have a huge appetite and, you know, a month into the position I was getting emails from residents saying, ‘I’m not seeing any new events popping up.’ Well, this doesn’t happen overnight,” he said.

“It’s going to be a gradual and a mid to long-term project. The action plan we have runs until 2026, so by 2026 I can guarantee you—before next election—you will have heard of new activations, new projects popping up because of the work of the nightlife office.”

Listen to the podcast