Has Sutcliffe Lost Control Of City Council?

09/25/2025

The material below was posted on X by uOttawa professor Evan Potter:

1/5 @_MarkSutcliffe has votes for #Lansdowne 2.0. It’s all over but for the counting. Or is it? Real drama just starting—#ottawa ballot box in ’26. #OttPoli #ottcity @JCHIANELLO @Alex_S_Cullen @KenGray
Lansdowne 2.0: The Day After Council’s Final Vote https://t.co/bS6ww6WReZ
— Evan H. Potter ?? ?? (@EvanHPotter) September 22, 2025

Speculation has it the 15-10 vote at Ottawa City Council on Wednesday concerning hybrid work-at-home portends the favourable vote on Lansdowne this fall.

But a person very familiar with the internal goings-on at Ottawa City Hall says the Lansdowne vote is very fluid and that person’s head-count is 13-12 against the plan, The reasoning behind this change in feeling is that some councillors are afraid to take a half-billion dollars in new debt for the northside stands and arena to the hustings next year given the precarious fiscal situation on Laurier Avenue.

That said, the 13-12 prediction is far from solid. Lots of arm-twisting and related events could occur that might swing that vote one way or the other. But at least today (maybe not in a month or so) the votes on Lansdowne are wavering. This is no longer a done deal but rather a political fight to the end.

One other thought. Mayor Mark Sutcliffe went public with great fanfare to say that work-at-home at the City of Ottawa was over. Now it’s not. That makes Sutcliffe look weak. Despite supporting the compromise motion on work location, the mayor’s original position has shifted in the face of political blowback.

That’s not a good sign for an affirmative Lansdowne vote. The mayor backs Lansdowne, but now with the sea change in work-from-office, does he have the political capital to hold the Lansdowne outcome? Wednesday’s vote is the first small sign that Sutcliffe’s control of council has slipped a bit.

Ken Gray