Category: 3. Business

Christmastime’s a-comin’, which means a slew of changes to shops, services and more.

This is a broad overview and it rarely hurts to check specific hours beforehand.

There will be a separate guide to changes around New Year’s Day.

Wednesday, Dec. 24

Shopping and attractions

Many grocery stores, pharmacies and alcohol outlets close early.

The Bayshore, Place d’Orléans, Rideau Centre, St. Laurent and Tanger malls each close at 5 p.m. Bayshore opens early at 8 a.m.

The science museum is open on regular hours.

The national gallery and agriculture, aviation, history and war museums close at 2 p.m., while the Ottawa Art Gallery closes at 4 p.m. until Jan. 2.

The nature museum is closed.

Services

Waste collection is on a normal schedule.

OC Transpo is on a “reduced weekday schedule” starting Monday, Dec. 22, until Friday, Jan. 2, with further changes on holidays. School routes won’t be running.

Its winter schedule also begins Sunday Dec. 21.

Bank branches across the city are generally open with regular hours.

Free parking will be available at Ottawa city hall starting at 4 p.m. on Dec. 24 and running until 7 a.m. on Dec. 26.

The ByWard Market garage will offer free parking over the same time period.

The city’s sexual health clinic and dental clinics will work modified holiday hours.

All Ottawa Public Library branches that do not normally close on Wednesdays are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 25

Businesses, attractions, banks and services are generally closed. Some pharmacies, grocery stores and restaurants are open.

OC Transpo is on a Sunday schedule. Para Transpo is offering holiday service.

The city will not offer curbside or multi-residential garbage, green bin, recycling or bulky item collection on Christmas. Pick-up will take place the following day. The Trail Waste Facility will also be closed.

The Site program mobile van will work from 5 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

The city’s sexual health clinic and dental clinics will be closed, as will all four of the city’s employment and social services offices.

All Ottawa Public Library branches are closed.

Friday, Dec. 26

Shopping and attractions

Some grocery stores may tweak their hours, but many are back to normal.

Pharmacies and alcohol outlets may be closed or open under different hours. Check with specific locations.

The Bayshore, Rideau Centre and St. Laurent malls each open early: Bayshore and St. Laurent at 8 a.m. and the Rideau Centre at 9 a.m.

Place d’Orléans is keeping its regular hours.

The aviation, history, science and war museums are open on regular hours, as is the national gallery.

The agriculture museum and Ottawa Art Gallery are closed. The nature museum is open an hour later until 5 p.m.

Services

OC Transpo is on a Saturday schedule. Para Transpo is offering holiday service.

Bank hours may vary. Royal Bank says all branches are closed, for example.

The Trail Waste Facility is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Site program mobile van will work from 5 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

The city’s sexual health clinic and dental clinics will be closed, as will all four of the city’s employment and social services offices.

All Ottawa Public Library branches are closed.

The Ministry of Energy has approved a major revision to Pakistan’s net metering policy, significantly altering the framework for solar power consumers across the country.

Sources in the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) said the decision was finalised after months of consultations with key stakeholders, including power distribution companies (Discos) and regulatory bodies. Under the revised net billing mechanism, solar consumers will now be compensated at a fixed rate of Rs11 per unit for electricity exported to the national grid.

Officials said the duration of solar power agreements has also been reduced to five years. Unlike the previous net metering regime — under which excess electricity generated by consumers was adjusted against their total consumption — the new system introduces a fixed per-unit compensation rate to be determined by Nepra. Electricity drawn from the grid will continue to be billed at the prevailing Nepra-approved tariff.

Under the earlier policy, solar consumers received a much higher buyback rate of Rs25.98 per unit. However, officials said the revised framework aims to align solar incentives with evolving market conditions and ensure long-term grid sustainability.

Sources further said that all solar installations with a load of up to 25 kilowatts will now require a licence from Nepra. Previously, domestic, commercial and industrial consumers installing systems within this capacity were exempt from licensing requirements.

The Ministry of Energy has informed the federal government that continuation of the old net metering policy was no longer viable due to mounting financial and operational pressures on the power sector.

Ministry officials maintained that the determination of solar tariffs falls under Nepra’s mandate and that tariff structures and regulatory frameworks are periodically revised in line with sectoral needs. They also sought to reassure consumers, saying the revised policy is unlikely to have a significant impact on the majority of solar users.
 
 
 

The proposal to the authority, by applicant Rachel Coe, said: “The proposal introduces a small-scale, modern feature into the green.

“The introduction of a catering trailer will deliver a clear community facility, enhancing the social and economic vitality of Oxenhope, increasing local activity and visitor engagement with the Millennium Green and thereby outweighing any limited adverse impact.

“The applicants intend this to be a short-term measure to start their business. The long-term goal is to find premises within the village and have a cafe.”

Mr Hague, from Hertfordshire, has worked in the vintage clothing business on and off since the 90s, and took on the store in 2023 as he “couldn’t bear” to see it close.

He added: “I have been aware of Nottingham coming up here in the 90s to get stock from Robin. I sort of got to love the city through that.

“Clothes and music have always been part of my life, it was very much led by the heart.

“Robin and Mary worked really hard for 37 years. They rarely took holidays and dedicated their lives to it.

“When it became available I did not think it was going to be the best idea financially, but I really wanted to give it a go.

“We have always had a great team. That is the saddest thing, that we have had to give notice [to staff] and that is a real tragedy.”

The last day of trading is set to be New Year’s Eve.

Helen Davies, Babergh councillor for Sproughton & Pinewood, which encompasses the site, told the meeting that ever since she had moved to the ward in 2011, the site had always been “a little bit run down”.

“It’s lain derelict for ages, and I think we are all well aware that the nature of shopping has changed,” she said.

“I try and make an effort to do my shopping physically, but I fail dismally at times, especially now, and it is a lot easier for us to go to an outside retail area because generally you can park pretty easily, so you can do your bigger purchases there.

“The site is rundown, it’s fenced off, it would be great to have it back into use, but I also feel we need to make certain that the Ipswich store is protected to a degree.”

She said she had felt some promise of this from M&S, but said there was still a risk.

Ipswich Borough Council, prior to the decision, said it was in support of the proposal.

In a letter within the planning documents, its head of planning and development acknowledged that while the new store would have an impact on the town centre, “there are reasons to be optimistic about the direct of travel in the town centre that will keep footfall and investor sentiment high”.