NCC National Capital Core Area Plan | In Progress

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

For Canada Day, I tested out the NCC’s new swimming dock beneath Parliament
It was my first Canada Day in Ottawa, and I spent it at one of the NCC's new swimming docks on the Ottawa River with a view of Parliament.

By Olivia Belovich, Ottawa Citizen
Published Jul 01, 2026 | Last updated 5 hours ago

...

I also brought to the capital a distaste for swimming in waters near downtown. Not many people in Toronto swim in Lake Ontario. There’s a general understanding that it’s kind of gross.

Toronto has the same mythology as us.

[urbanforest]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Toronto has the same mythology as us.

I find this really interesting as someone who grew up swimming in the St Lawrence near Kingston. Perhaps the water is a bit gross right at Toronto, but downstream it's spectacularly clear and clean — which spoiled me when I moved here and found the water was brown from tannins or relatively stagnant in the case of the Rideau.

[zzptichka]

Monday evening

[Uhuniau]

Is that Hull structure the same size as East Wharf, or bigger?

[SL123]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Is that Hull structure the same size as East Wharf, or bigger?

Bigger but it doesn't include the nice wooden steps/seats so overall maybe equal

[rocketphish]

New swimming dock opens near history museum
National Capital Commission has now opened 2 new downtown docks

CBC News
Posted: Jul 10, 2026 12:02 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour ago



The National Capital Commission (NCC) has opened its second new Ottawa River swimming dock this summer.

A promised dock near the Canadian Museum of History in downtown Gatineau, Que., has opened, the NCC said Friday.

The dock is accessible for unsupervised swimming from dawn until dusk, the NCC said. Water testing results will be published on Swim Guide.

Swimming started at the East Dock near the Ottawa Locks on the Ontario side of the river last month.

Those two docks join those at the River House near Rockcliffe Park, which opened in 2023, and the Dow's Lake dock on the Rideau Canal that made its debut last year.

The NCC has long operated beaches in the region.

The federal Crown corporation has been focusing on bringing more activities to the Ottawa, Gatineau and Rideau river shorelines, saying they had been underused for years.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-gatineau-swimming-dock-history-museum-river-9.7265804

[Uhuniau]

Gave the Hull dock a little test splish-splash last evening. Dang.

[dougvdh]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Gave the Hull dock a little test splish-splash last evening. Dang.

It was hopping there yesterday evening when I biked by on my way home from work. I was trying to see if it was as busy at the one on the south side of the river. It was also very busy at the RiverHouse.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by dougvdh

It was hopping there yesterday evening when I biked by on my way home from work. I was trying to see if it was as busy at the one on the south side of the river. It was also very busy at the RiverHouse.

Funny enough, it seems to me that the peak temperature for beach-ing seems to be about 27-28; after about 30, it starts dropping off again as people just stay indoors.

[zzptichka]

Couldn't find an empty chair yesterday after 7. It's pretty cool to see how much busier the whole park has become.

[zzptichka]

They resumed work on the pathway West of Portage bridge. Taking it seriously, good to see.

[SL123]

^ Oh nice I've been looking forward to the day this finally opens. Good to see some work in progress!

[zzptichka]

Literally found some plans for this project on the bench the other day

Too bad this phase doesn't seem to include the connection to the Voyageurs pathway.

[zzptichka]

Asked ChatGPT to sum it up

These are construction drawings for the NCC's Portage Bridge Quebec Shoreline (PBQS) Rehabilitation – Pathway & Shoreline Works, NCC project 337-07.

The drawings are marked "Issued for Construction".

Here's a summary of what the project actually involves.

High-level overview

The project is essentially rebuilding the waterfront strip immediately west of the Portage Bridge on the Gatineau/Zibi side of the Ottawa River.

There are three major components:

1. Rebuild and improve the multi-use pathway along the river.
2. Stabilize the riverbank with a substantial new retaining wall and rock/riprap erosion protection.
3. Landscape and furnish the corridor with trees and other planting, benches, railings, lighting/electrical work, drainage, pavement markings, etc.

So this is considerably more than simply repaving the existing pathway.

The finished corridor should essentially be:

new asphalt pathway → landscaped edge → railing/retaining structure → stabilized rocky shoreline → Ottawa River

The work appears to extend roughly 250–300 metres west from Portage Bridge, toward the Zibi lands/zip-line area.


1. Reconstructed multi-use pathway

The existing riverside pathway is being substantially reconstructed.

The drawings show:

• new asphalt pavement
• new granular/base construction
• pathway regrading
• drainage improvements
• edge treatments
• new pavement markings
• solid yellow centre line in portions
• white line in portions
• StreetBond/limestone-coloured pavement treatment in some locations

The pathway elevations and surrounding terrain are carefully graded so that runoff is controlled rather than simply flowing down and eroding the riverbank.


2. Major new retaining wall

This looks like one of the biggest engineering components of the project.

A new retaining wall will follow the river side of the pathway for a substantial distance.

It isn't simply a conventional poured concrete wall. The drawings show a segmental/block retaining-wall system made from large concrete blocks.

The structural system includes:

• multiple courses of large concrete blocks
• staggered block joints
• geogrid reinforcement extending back into the soil
• engineered backfill
• clear drainage stone
• a 150 mm perforated drain behind the wall
• non-woven geotextile
• special block arrangements at each end of the wall

The geogrid is important: long layers of reinforcement extend horizontally back into the earth, effectively tying the soil and retaining wall together into one reinforced structure.


3. Shoreline stabilization / armour stone

A major purpose of the project is clearly erosion control.

The riverbank below and around the retaining wall will be reconstructed using large amounts of riprap / armour stone.

Work includes:

• excavating and regrading portions of the existing bank
• installing large armour stone
• installing smaller rock/filter material underneath where required
• geotextile/filter layers
• repairing existing erosion
• reshaping the transitions into the existing shoreline
• tying the new work into the existing bank at both ends

There are even notes allowing additional excavation and riprap where necessary to achieve the required shoreline slope.

So although the pathway is the most visible part of the project, shoreline stabilization appears to be one of its main engineering purposes.


4. Drainage

There is an entire civil drawing dedicated to drainage.

Both surface water and groundwater have to be managed around the new path and retaining wall.

In particular, the retaining-wall detail includes a 150 mm perforated drain surrounded by clear stone behind the wall.

This allows groundwater to escape rather than accumulating behind the retaining structure and creating hydrostatic pressure.

The pathway and surrounding ground are also carefully graded to control surface runoff.


5. Landscaping

There's also a surprisingly substantial landscaping component.

The landscape plans show:

• new trees
• shrubs
• perennials
• grasses
• new planting beds
• soil preparation
• protection of some existing vegetation
• restoration of areas disturbed during construction

Some of the vegetation is integrated into the rocky shoreline rather than simply creating a manicured lawn.

The result therefore seems intended to have a relatively naturalized riverfront appearance, despite the substantial engineering underneath it.


6. Benches and small rest/viewing areas

Several small widened areas appear alongside the pathway.

These incorporate things such as:

• benches
• paved/concrete pads
• landscaping
• other pathway furniture

So the corridor is intended not only as a cycling/walking connection but also as a small waterfront public space where people can stop and sit by the river.


7. New railings

The drawings contain extensive references to new railings / garde-corps.

These appear primarily where the pathway sits above the retaining wall/shoreline and fall protection is required.

Interestingly, the structural drawings coordinate the retaining-wall construction with the railing foundations.

There is even a note requiring the contractor to lay out the exact beginning of the retaining wall in the field while accounting for existing and proposed railing footings.

So the railing is structurally integrated into the shoreline work rather than simply being added afterward.


8. Electrical / pathway lighting


There is a meaningful electrical component, apparently associated primarily with site/pathway lighting and related infrastructure.



9. Zibi / zip-line area

The drawings clearly identify:

• Zibi Lands
• Ottawa River
• Portage Bridge
• Zibi Zip Line Landing Facility

The new pathway and shoreline work run through this area, and some of the construction has to be coordinated with the existing zip-line landing facility.

In other words, this is essentially an upgrade of the NCC waterfront corridor immediately west of Portage Bridge and alongside the Zibi development.


What all these drawings are showing

A lot of the drawings look almost identical at first because several engineering disciplines are drawing the same stretch of shoreline for different purposes.

TL;DR

Despite the project name making it sound somewhat like a pathway upgrade, this is really a fairly substantial shoreline rehabilitation project.

The existing riverside path and eroding/irregular shoreline west of Portage Bridge are being replaced/reworked into a much more engineered waterfront corridor:

reconstructed paved multi-use path + landscaping + benches + railings + retaining wall + drainage + armour-stone shoreline stabilization + lighting/electrical work.

When finished, it should look much more like a deliberately constructed waterfront promenade/pathway, while underneath it is a fairly serious retaining-wall and erosion-control system.

[SL123]

its been a long time coming! I hope its finally actually happening.