The Slater | 66.6 m | 22 fl | Completed

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

It can work both ways. I've lived in Ottawa off and on for almost 35 years and have never been to Kanata, Barrhaven or Orleans, unless it was driving by on my way somewhere else. When I think about it, I'm not sure I've ever been outside the Greenbelt, as a destination.

Ya. It all depends on what one values and the types of places one frequents.

[Urbanarchit]

*

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by defishel

I was surprised when some classmates admitted to never going downtown. They lived all their life in Nepean (or around there) and never went downtown that he didn't know major streets, businesses or buildings (the program is architecture, so that's a huge surprise and not such a great thing considering one should be familiar with buildings and cities).

Another person lived in Barrhaven and spent a year in Sandy Hill, but was still completely unfamiliar with Ottawa. I showed them a sketch of the Post Office on Elgin/ Sparks by Noffke, and they didn't recognize it! It's an incredibly iconic building at a prominent intersection by the War Memorial, and they couldn't identify any of the buildings or that area. Another person from Orleans didn't know where Hintonburg, Westboro, Little Italy are.

I was in Architecture at La Cité years ago. My friends were familiar with the Market, but not the CBD. Seems no one other than a few whom I work with (Lyon at Albert) know of the CBD.

[canabiz]

Apparently units are still available for purchase for this project. I just got an email from Marnie Bennett Property Group advertising 5% down + 25K off...not sure if they raised the prices then offering a discount or if they simply slash 25K off original price...

[Urbanarchit]

*

[ServiceGuy]

With a double construction hoist this building has the potential of being finished twice as fast as most other high rise projects. You don't often see Ottawa projects spending the extra on this kind of set up.

[OTSkyline]

Thanks for the update! I think it will look good; especially considering the ratio of windows vs. cladding (a nice contrast to what we are seeing at Cathedral Hill, Andaz Hotel & TriBeCa) - the black cladding also looks nice anyways. Ground level also looks like it will be great addition; a lot better than the empty lot we had before.

[teej1984]

I agree! This building is looking much nicer than expected. They're still selling units too, with 25k off right now.

[phil235]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I was in Architecture at La Cité years ago. My friends were familiar with the Market, but not the CBD. Seems no one other than a few whom I work with (Lyon at Albert) know of the CBD.

The Parliament Buildings are in the CBD. How is that possible?

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by phil235

The Parliament Buildings are in the CBD. How is that possible?

It's like people from Gatineau (non-urban enthusiast); they know the Market, they know Parliament yet they seem oblivious to the CBD. They might know there are lots of jobs in that general area, but show them pictures of any building south of Wellington or talk about Confederation Park, they won't have a clue.

[Neednothing]

The advertisement is for "up to 25K off". 25K is probably the discount for the most expensive still-available unit, not your studio.

A promo price was offered last summer before the pricing went up, too. The 25K number in the ad is to get you fine folks in the door

[jitterbug]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I was in Architecture at La Cité years ago. My friends were familiar with the Market, but not the CBD. Seems no one other than a few whom I work with (Lyon at Albert) know of the CBD.

The problem with most North American cities, including Ottawa, is that they aren't cities at all, but rather a collection of villages connected only by a network of roadways.

Just walk around Ottawa's downtown core (also known as the Central Business District, or CBD) on a weekend and you are struck by the fact that the streets and sidewalks are EMPTY. In a "city" of over one million souls, you would logically assume the geographic heart of the urban area would be teaming with activity, but this is not so. Why? Because all the action is in distant locales, notably car-friendly suburban shopping centres, strip malls, and big box malls. What would be the reason for suburbanites to head downtown -- to listen to the crickets? Ottawa's CBD is particularly bad as a "no man's land" because it is really just an office park and most street-level services are designed only to serve the 9 to 5 office crowd.

Attractions like theatres, an NHL hockey arena, unique restaurants, shopping, and so on would certainly help to bring people in from the distant suburbs. Plus, affordable, family-friendly housing in or near the core is also essential. We are seeing the beginnings of this shift as we come to realize that the car-dependent suburban sprawl that began in the 1950s is both unhealthy and unsustainable. But rebuilding will take time, likely many decades. Too late for me at least.

[phil235]

Originally Posted by jitterbug

Just walk around Ottawa's downtown core (also known as the Central Business District, or CBD) on a weekend and you are struck by the fact that the streets and sidewalks are EMPTY.

I think that this reflects more of a stereotype than the reality. If you've been downtown on a weekend lately, particularly since the weather has turned, I think you would be struck by the number of people on the streets.

I don't disagree that the CBD could use more attractions, but you can't exclude the Market, the Canal etc. when talking about the centre of the urban area. Those places are very busy. The biggest concentration of Ottawa's best restaurants is downtown, as are the best patios and street life in general. With a few exceptions like the Glebe and Wellington West, there is no better place to walk around if you like urban life. You've also got the NAC and the National Gallery and premier attractions that bring people into town. The Rideau Centre is obviously Ottawa's preeminent shopping destination.

There are lots of reasons to come downtown, and lots of people do just that.

[jitterbug]

Originally Posted by phil235

There are lots of reasons to come downtown, and lots of people do just that.

The parts of the central area you mention are indeed busy on weekends. But that does not hold true for the CBD, which is roughly the area bounded by Wellington at the north, Laurier at the south, Elgin at the east, and Bay at the west. Indeed, I was on Sparks Street just this Saturday afternoon (at the Bier Market pub) and I can confirm that things were indeed VERY quiet on Sparks and on the adjacent streets and sidewalks.

[Boxster]

Originally Posted by jitterbug

The parts of the central area you mention are indeed busy on weekends. But that does not hold true for the CBD, which is roughly the area bounded by Wellington at the north, Laurier at the south, Elgin at the east, and Bay at the west. Indeed, I was on Sparks Street just this Saturday afternoon (at the Bier Market pub) and I can confirm that things were indeed VERY quiet on Sparks and on the adjacent streets and sidewalks.

Absolutely agree with you.

The action is in the Market area.

[Urbanarchit]

*

[phil235]

Originally Posted by jitterbug

The parts of the central area you mention are indeed busy on weekends. But that does not hold true for the CBD, which is roughly the area bounded by Wellington at the north, Laurier at the south, Elgin at the east, and Bay at the west. Indeed, I was on Sparks Street just this Saturday afternoon (at the Bier Market pub) and I can confirm that things were indeed VERY quiet on Sparks and on the adjacent streets and sidewalks.

Bank and Elgin are pretty much always busy. Sparks depends on the time of year. It doesn't help that half the street isn't under construction.

I just don't think it is true to make a generalization that those streets are always dead on weekends. I was downtown last Sunday and the sidewalks were teaming with people because of the nice weather. They are only going to get busier with a thousand or so condos coming on line right in the CBD. It's heading in the right direction, and more quickly than people realize.

[rakerman]

The Slater on May 9, 2015

DSCF0335-1000335-20150509 by Richard Akerman, on Flickr

[Neednothing]

I hear that some Final Tentative Occupancy dates are May 5, 2016 and possibly April 11th.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by jitterbug

Just walk around Ottawa's downtown core (also known as the Central Business District, or CBD) on a weekend and you are struck by the fact that the streets and sidewalks are EMPTY.

The same is true of the downtown office district in every North American city I've ever been in.

There is a non-office-district part of downtown, too. Try going there instead.