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Posted Jun 2, 2011, 1:26 PM
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Join Date: Apr 2010
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Quote:
Booth Street site ‘in critical condition’
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
By TOM SPEARS, The Ottawa Citizen
Graphic 1: Future of the Booth Street campus? Photographed by:
Dennis Leung, The Ottawa CitizenOTTAWA — Much of the massive Natural Resources Canada complex on Booth Street is in terrible condition and could soon be abandoned, according to internal papers that suggest building more than 1,000 homes there.
A spokesperson for the department said Wednesday that NRCan has no plans to move out or redevelop soon.
But an access to information request by researcher Ken Rubin also reveals lengthy, detailed analysis of how the federal government could sell off and redevelop up to 14.4 acres of prime land on Booth.
The entire block on the east side of Booth north of Carling Avenue — two massive 1950s office-and-lab buildings — is a mess. A “strategic overview” by engineering consultants in late 2008 says 601 and 615 Booth are “in critical condition and require replacement,” and the site should be surplus by 2013.
Demolition could follow, as the area is in demand by private developers.
At the south end, nearest Carling and facing Dow’s Lake, the review says “this property could become a residential neighbourhood consisting of a variety of housing forms.
“Preliminary analysis indicates the potential to produce some 500 residential units.
“The removal of the existing building (615 Booth) would provide for a more typical city block plan, which will improve pedestrian access between adjacent neighbourhoods.”
The office building at 601 could be knocked down or renovated to make way for new offices with excellent access to the Queensway, the papers say.
The neighbouring building at 568 is rated as fair to good, but two smaller buildings, 556 and 562, are rated poor. Three vacant NRC buildings farther north are obsolete.
A detailed plan prepared by the Canada Lands Company and NRCan in 2008 proposes:
A new “Headquarters Showcase” office tower with 35,000 square metres of space, to be built beside the existing NRCan office tower at 580 Booth, which staff call the Dark Tower. There would also be 12,000 square metres of new research labs just north, across Norman Street. These would be north of the present tower, on land that is used today for parking.
Demolition of 615 Booth, and construction of residential low-rise buildings around a central court, while “a 16-storey tower enjoys a prestigious Carling Avenue address, and takes advantage of spectacular views of Commissioner’s Park and Dow’s Lake.”
Another residential highrise at 401 LeBreton St. (at Carling), with 3,000 square metres of commercial space at ground level, possibly used as a grocery store. Some of the roof of the commercial section would be “outdoor livable space for residents of the tower.” The former low-rise building there was named by Citizen readers as one of Ottawa’s “hot spots of hideousness.”
A “green plaza” along Carling Avenue. Trees along the streets.
McCann Street would be extended to the west.
PricewaterhouseCoopers did a parallel study that concludes the overall Booth complex could take anywhere from 630 to 1,144 apartments or condos, plus offices, on 14.4 acres of redevelopment
“Great site,” said Mark Shore of Shore, Tanner, an Ottawa real estate consulting firm.
“The proximity to Preston Street is a huge selling point, plus proximity to Dow’s Lake as well. And it’s a very central location.
“That’s validated by the private sector’s interest in that area as well,” he said. Projects by Mastercraft Starwood and Domicile are going to be springing up soon near the Booth area. “Anything inside the Greenbelt is golden these days.”
“Those (existing) buildings are an eyesore right now,” he said. “Let’s face it, that’s an awful project.”
He said the land’s value can’t be estimated without knowing what density city officials will allow.
The smaller buildings farther north, close to the Queensway, could also make future office sites, the 2008 review notes. “The heritage value of the buildings on the site could be retained through partial incorporation into new structures.”
First, however, there’s the multi-million-dollar matter of contaminated soils.
The Booth Street complex has heavy metals, oil residues and polyaromatic hydrocarbons all through its soil. It’s no great threat to people unless they drill a well for their drinking water, but it still needs remediation before it’s sold. Otherwise the new owner can become liable for cleanup costs.
Cost estimates have risen over the years, but the most recent figures available indicate a total of about $7.7 million for the southeast and central “quadrants” of the complex. These are areas on both sides of Booth where much of the historical industrial research and lab work was done.
The work includes removing and disposing of some 79,000 tonnes of soil.
The Booth complex covers 10.4 hectares, or 25.7 acres, on 4.5 city blocks. It has 13 buildings, three of them vacant.
NRCan spokesperson Jacinthe Perras wrote in an e-mail response to questions that NRCan isn’t planning to abandon 601 or 615 Booth for now:
“Both buildings are structurally sound and with targeted minimal investment are expected to remain useful for another 10 years. Upgrading the buildings over time could further extend the period that the buildings could be occupied far into the future.”
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen
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illustrations of the current and one possible future site plan here:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Booth+...on/4877465/story.html?cid=megadrop_story
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