I agree with most, if not all, of lrt's Friend's suggestions.
Also, like @Kevinbottawa has mentioned in the past, I'd like to see a more vibrant waterfront in Ottawa. I've seen some great examples in Europe that always impress. Something like the following could go either along the canal, or the Ottawa River:
Rhine River in Mainz, Germany
Zurichsee in Zurich, Switzerland
Even doing something like the "
Plus Pool" concept (in the middle of the Hudson River in New York) that was posted on Kickstarter a while ago would be interesting on our own Ottawa River, especially since it helps to clean the river water as well:
