Mayor’s Message: Mark Sutcliffe

By Mayor Mark Sutcliffe

Ottawa is a great place to live, work, and invest. One of our greatest assets is our quality of life. In January, when The Globe and Mail ranked more than 450 Canadian municipalities, Ottawa was rated the most livable major city in the country.

As our city celebrates its 200th anniversary in 2026, we have an opportunity to reflect on what we’ve achieved together, and to plan for the future. From a small lumber town in the 1800s, Ottawa has grown into a national capital and an international, multicultural community.

What defines our city most is our people. At a time when the world faces many divisions, we in Ottawa are working together toward common goals. Our people have shaped Ottawa into a kind, smart, and healthy city.

It’s a welcoming place for visitors and new arrivals. We recently hosted a City of Kindness summit, where we discussed ways to ensure we remain a safe and diverse community for everyone. The Globe and Mail recently described Ottawa as having a “culture of kindness.”

We have the most educated population in the country. Beyond those who serve in the federal government, we are a city of innovators and entrepreneurs, and we are home to several major post-secondary institutions and research centres. And we have world-class health care, at the Ottawa Hospital, the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, and other major institutions, along with some of the best nature and recreational spaces anywhere in Canada.

We are a city of volunteers, where neighbours look out for neighbours. We are a community that works together to solve immediate and chronic challenges. A great example is our pledge to end youth homelessness in Ottawa by 2030, a commitment that has united the city around the plan championed by leading community organizations.

That spirit of collaboration is driving our economic development. Our leading organizations, including the Ottawa Board of Trade, are working together to attract investment, create jobs, support emerging companies in growth industries, build new housing, improve transportation, and revitalize downtown and the historic ByWard Market. We are welcoming major events, establishing new direct flights and connections, and seeing significant growth in arts, culture, music, entertainment, and nightlife.

As we celebrate 200 years of our beautiful city, we should take pride in how far we have come by working together. And we should be genuinely excited about our future. We have a great history. But I believe that for Ottawa, the best is yet to come.

Mark Sutcliffe, Mayor of Ottawa