Rideau Centre Expansion | Completed

[loga0082]

Yes, I have heard that the Shoppers Drug Mart is supposed to go where the old food court once stood. I know that the LCBO is moving. I think that it is going in the location where Jacob's use to be. Are both the Shopper's Drug Mart and LCBO going to open in February or March of next year? I think that Freshly Squeezed in suppose to go where Richtree use to be. When I walked up the roof terrace I saw that the expansion is connecting to the wall where the former cinemas use to be. Do you have any idea what the former cinemas are going to be in the future? I definitely know that they will not be cinemas again.

loga0082

[mykl]

The one complaint I have about the new walkway is that rather than a nice classy grey like in the renderings (and on the side of the bulding), they've gone with white which looks a bit garish and will show dirt and age faster than grey. The white looks out of place.

[J.OT13]

You're right. it looks like the same shit they used between the bottom of the (former) third floor window of Ogilvy's and the top of the actual floor plate of the expansion. Looks pretty bad.

[loga0082]

Which walkaway are you referring to ? You are not being clear! Is it the East Pedestrian bridge which they are renovating? If it is that bridge, they should had put better glass than that. In the diagrams and the YouTube video, the glass in the East Pedestrian bridge looked far more beautiful and shinier.

loga0082

[Kitchissippi]

Went into the partially renovated mens department at the Bay last week and it's nice to see that they've opened up some of the windows (east side of the Frieman Mall) to let natural light in. The windows are pretty dirty after being concealed for a couple of decades (maybe the glass needs to be replaced), but you can now see the across the street to the Rideau Centre while you're shopping for belts

[loga0082]

Originally Posted by Kitchissippi

Went into the partially renovated mens department at the Bay last week and it's nice to see that they've opened up some of the windows (east side of the Frieman Mall) to let natural light in. The windows are pretty dirty after being concealed for a couple of decades (maybe the glass needs to be replaced), but you can now see the across the street to the Rideau Centre while you're shopping for belts

Were you able to go in the men's department at the Bay and buy something? Do they still have a lot to do? When will the Bay be completely finished with renovation?

Loga0082

[kevinbottawa]

Strellson confirmed for the expansion in 2016.

Strellson will also open at Ottawa's Rideau Centre, in the mall's expansion which will be anchored by Quebec City-based retailer La Maison Simons.

http://www.retail-insider.com/retail-insider/2015/8/strellson-expansion

[mykl]

Here's a view of the new rooftop from yesterday. Looks like it could be something nice.

No Sylvia Logan, I don't know what will be there. Its just a picture.

[loga0082]

Originally Posted by mykl

Here's a view of the new rooftop from yesterday. Looks like it could be something nice.

No Sylvia Logan, I don't know what will be there. Its just a picture.

I went up the roof terrace last week and two weeks ago and I saw that the expansion is starting to connect near the former cinemas. I think that in the expansion Simons will be there. Simons is supposed to go on the 4th floor of the expansion. The windows on the left are on the wall, where the big word CINEMAS was written. The former 3 cinemas were towards the left not on the right where the Simons is supposed to be. I did email Ms. Vanbuskirk and she told me this morning that she has not come up for the permanent lease of the former cinemas. She said that once they make an announcement, it will be on facebook, twitter, and instagram. This is a lovely photo which you took of the roof terrace.

loga0082

[rocketphish]

Progress update:




Photos by me
Aug 14, 2015

[loga0082]

What a nice photo of the East Pedestrian bridge which you took! It is starting to look nice. I heard that it will open next month.

loga0082

[mac_junkie1]

Yup! They look to be on schedule. Can't wait until it's open.

The amount of "people" under that bridge lately have been a little frustrating. I had some homeless guy scream at me at the top of his lungs because I wouldn't give him money... Truly pathetic and he didn't look like he had issues either. Well dressed and clean... And the pamphlet people too.... It's getting out of control.

Rideau Street in general needs a MAJOR cleanup. If this much money went into the mall rehabilitation and the road still looks like that, its all wasted effort. All those "cheap" retailers need to go to a different area. Tims, McDonalds, little convenient store. You've got a Bank, Chapters then HBC then it goes to waste... The street has lost its charm. Can't blame people or the elderly avoiding it. City Council & The BIA need to get together with a proper long term game plan for how they want this main strip of the city to look like in the near future. The removal of the massive planters was a great start, but nothing really has happened since then.

The outside of the mall is looking good. Ogilvy's is getting a lot of progress lately too and the future Shoppers Drug Mart area seems almost complete and just waiting for them to move it. Things are moving quickly. Also the first floor or HBC's renovation is open and looks stunning. What a huge difference it makes. Once they open up the windows too, it'll look even cooler. Good job on their part.

Originally Posted by loga0082

What a nice photo of the East Pedestrian bridge which you took! It is starting to look nice. I heard that it will open next month.

loga0082

[1overcosc]

^ That classism is a little sickening, FYI.

[Urbanarchit]

*

[mac_junkie1]

[mac_junkie1]

"Those people" I was trying to refer to are more or less the mcdonalds crowd. They can hangout there as much as they want, but they don't have to take the whole sidewalk, cause trouble, push each other around or pee behind the ugly dark hbc annex... It's not a fun area to be around...

Originally Posted by defishel

+1

Rideau Street needs a make-over, but we shouldn't control a public space to prevent those as you describe "undesired people" from spending time in that space. Are there better businesses that could fill that space? Depends on what we mean by "better". Those businesses seem to be fairly successful if they managed to survive, and surely they deserve the right to exist, even if their customers are those that wealthier people consider "undesired".

[mac_junkie1]

The way I was trying to word it in my mind didn't really come out on "paper" the way I envisioned it...

By no means am I hating on the homeless or anything like that, I wish there was options for them to get the help they want, but what I don't like is how every few steps there's someone wanting attention for whatever reason and then you get the "younger" crowd near mcdonalds who take up the whole sidewalk, leave their trash everywhere and push each other around for fun... That's what I meant by "undesired". Everywhere else past that block you can walk and you see none of that going on. There's a way to act in public, and that isn't it.

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

^ That classism is a little sickening, FYI.

[loga0082]

Originally Posted by mac_junkie1

The way I was trying to word it in my mind didn't really come out on "paper" the way I envisioned it...

By no means am I hating on the homeless or anything like that, I wish there was options for them to get the help they want, but what I don't like is how every few steps there's someone wanting attention for whatever reason and then you get the "younger" crowd near mcdonalds who take up the whole sidewalk, leave their trash everywhere and push each other around for fun... That's what I meant by "undesired". Everywhere else past that block you can walk and you see none of that going on. There's a way to act in public, and that isn't it.

Rideau Street does need a makeover. It does look scruffy. I feel sorry for the youths and even older people that they feel homeless. There are shelters in Ottawa which they can stay like the Shepherds of Good Hope and the Ottawa Mission. They should have a shelter for the youths, so that they will have a good education and decent jobs. The youth should throw their junk in the garbage or recycle. Who needs MacDonald's anyway? It serves nothing but junk food and it is bad for everyone's health including children, teenagers, young and middle-aged adults. They should renovate the other side of Rideau Street near the Bay and Chapter's instead of spending million of dollars renovating the interior of the Rideau Centre.

Loga0082

[Nepean]

The "problem" of Rideau Street is a textbook case of gentrification. On one side you have massive redevelopment (Rideau Centre upgrade; condo towers being built or planned; Arts Court project), while on the other you have a concentration of shelters and lower income residents around King Edward/Rideau.

My understanding of urban development is that the best neighbourhoods are those that accommodate residents from all income levels. Unfortunately, the plans to renovate this part of town have focused almost exclusively on condo towers, street work, a new Arts Court and the Rideau Centre upgrades (all of which I support), while not really addressing how the needs of the area's poorer residents can be accommodated into the city's larger development plans.

In my view, one of three things may happen in the long term:

a) the shelters will be pushed out, akin to what happened to thousands of residents in Lebreton Flats in the 1960s;

b) many of the shelters remain but without much help from the City, thereby guaranteeing that Rideau will continue to have problems, which could result in Lansdowne replacing the Byward Market as the place to go in the city; or

c) the poorer residents of King Edward and surrounding areas are finally included in the city's development plans for Rideau, rather than being ignored. I don't pretend to know what this option would entail, but it seems to me is what the city should strive for.

[loga0082]

It is true that along Rideau and King Edward the area is quite rough. I always see people, especially young ones; beg for money. I see many drunkards and drug addicts there and also people arguing with each other.

Loga0082