#584 In Bridgeland

#584 Saturday on the Doors in Meadow Park

Peter Karwacki · October 24, 2026
Ward 13 · Rideau-Rockcliffe

I spent today canvassing in Meadow Park. A lot of people weren’t home — that’s normal this close to voting day — but the ones who answered were welcoming. Two conversations stood out.

One was with a voter who invited me in. We talked about the new east-end bridge. He supported the position I laid out in the debate and have repeated here: we should lead on it and shape the discussion while we still can, rather than wait for a design that arrives from somewhere else and then object. The details of mitigation, transit lanes, noise walls, and emergency access are still open. Sitting out the conversation doesn’t protect the ward; it just leaves the terms to others.

The second conversation started the usual way. A man said he’d already voted — then he said it about ten times more. When I asked for a short discussion about what’s actually good for the ward, he stayed and talked for about fifteen minutes. At the end he said he liked the ideas and how they were expressed, and that he should have voted for me.

There was also a woman who told me I was the first politician to knock on her door in 48 years. She said she would vote for me because “you showed up.” I told her — and I told everyone else — the same thing: look at the policies on this blog, and watch the televised debate with the incumbent. People were uniformly appreciative of being pointed toward the actual record instead of just being asked for a vote on the spot.

That’s the pattern of the day. People are open when you show up and talk about the concrete choices in front of the ward. The bridge is one of those choices. The question is whether Ward 13 engages early and writes protections into the project, or watches it get decided without us.

Voting is Monday, October 26, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
If you want the details, they’re on this blog. The debate is on the record.

This time around, inform yourselves. Vote differently. Vote wisely.

Vote for Peter Karwacki for Rideau-Rockcliffe.