General Update/Rumour thread [Urban Ottawa]

[J.OT13]

Interesting news from Gatineau. Article's in French, but here;s the gist of it; the City owns land bordered by Maisonneuve, Allumetières, Champlain and Saint-Étienne, one block removed from Quartier du Musée. The land only has one historic building, an old fire hall, at the corner of Champlain and Saint-Étienne.

It seems like they are currently in talks to a developer to sell or transfer the land. I'm hoping it's Brigil in order to swap lands for Place de Peuples, though I doubt it because Desjardins doesn't seem to be the kind of guy who can be reasoned with.

MATHIEU BÉLANGER
Le Droit
4 avril 2018

DU PRIME LAND AU COEUR DU CENTRE-VILLE

Les terrains pouvant encore être développés dans l’Île-de-Hull se font rares depuis déjà belle lurette. La Ville de Gatineau peut toutefois se vanter d’avoir en sa possession un lot qui est probablement l’un des plus convoités du centre-ville, et son service de la gestion immobilière y accorde une attention toute particulière.

Le quadrilatère formé par le boulevard Maisonneuve, le boulevard des Allumettières, la rue Champlain et la rue Saint-Étienne, occupe une place de choix dans le portefeuille immobilier de la Ville. Ce lot de six terrains situés dans un endroit hautement stratégique correspond en tout point à ce que les promoteurs immobiliers considèrent comme du prime land.

L’« Îlot de la caserne », nommé ainsi parce qu’il comprend la vieille caserne #3 construite en 1911 qui bénéficie d’une citation patrimoniale, fait l’objet d’une analyse de la part des services municipaux depuis 2016, selon le plan immobilier présenté en mars dernier au comité exécutif. Il comprend six terrains et neuf bâtiments, surtout des immeubles résidentiels. La valeur de ce lot situé à l’angle des deux principales artères du centre-ville n’est pas indiquée.

La volonté de la Ville de Gatineau d’en faire quelque chose semble toutefois très claire. Une note inscrite au plan immobilier 2018-2020 concernant ce lot précise que l’administration municipale est actuellement « en attente du promoteur ».

Il n’y a pas d’indication sur une éventuelle vente de gré à gré, ou de préparation d’un appel d’offres, comme c’est le cas pour d’autres terrains sous la propriété de la Ville. Le nom du « promoteur » en question n’est pas précisé. Le Droit a tenté d’en savoir un peu plus auprès du conseiller municipal du quartier, Cédric Tessier, mais ce dernier a été expéditif. « Je ne veux pas commenter quoi que ce soit que j’ai eu en présentation [au comité exécutif] », a-t-il rapidement laissé tomber.

https://www.ledroit.com/actualites/gatin...obilier-2dc19a4634f4fb6c907f4f9c9a12d6a5

More on the City of Gatineau's land holdings in the broader article.

[kevinbottawa]

Planning committee OKs 25-storey development at Westboro station

BY: OBJ Staff
PUBLISHED: May 23, 2018 1:37pm EDT



Ottawa’s planning committee endorsed a 25-storey, mixed-use development near Westboro transit station, despite the ward councilor taking a hard line against the rezoning application.

The proposed development would see a public park, and two mixed-use buildings of 25 and four storeys built on a 1.3-acre property at the southwest corner of Scott Street and McRae Avenue. The site, currently home to a pair of two-storey single-detached buildings and an auto body shop, is 50 metres from the Westboro transit station.

While the spot is currently surrounded by buildings as high as eight storeys, just across Scott Street, recently amended zoning bylaws have allowed for a 25-storey development, which is currently being constructed by a team that includes local developer and property manager Colonnade Bridgeport.

Currently, the site is zoned for heights of up to 18 metres. Applicant FoTenn Consulting, representing the Estate of Carson Unsworth, successfully argued for a zoning amendment to permit 25 storeys, or 78 metres in height.



The planned project, which still requires approval from full city council, would see nearly 300 residential units, 15,000 square feet of retail space and nearly 200 parking spaces in underground garages.

The large amount of available parking so close to a transit hub was a sticking point for Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper, who was the only committee member to vote against the proposed amendment.

“This building should not be approved this close to Westboro transit station with the amount of parking that it has. It is perverse. It is contrary to all of our plans. I would ask you to join me today in voting against this building,” he said during Tuesday’s committee meeting.

The project has been in the works since 2009, when a zoning amendment was first submitted, but the application was subsequently placed on hold prior to being reactivated in 2016.

http://obj.ca/index.php/article/planning-committee-oks-25-storey-development-westboro-station

[J.OT13]

New Capital Build Task Force looking to foster millennial-friendly Ottawa

OBJ
Craig Lord
May 23, 2018

Business and community leaders in Ottawa have assembled as a new task force hoping to put some momentum behind the city’s transformational developments and attract more millennial workers to the capital.

The Ottawa Chamber of Commerce officially unveiled the Capital Build Task Force at an event last week. The group is currently focused on five main city-building priorities, with the redevelopment of LeBreton Flats chief among them.

Co-chair Doug McLarty, who is also a partner at MNP Ottawa, says the idea to unite the voices of Ottawa’s business leaders on the city’s future developments first came up after NHL commissioner Gary Bettman visited the city last year to announce this past season’s outdoor hockey game at Lansdowne Park.

After the announcement, Bettman met with McLarty and a dozen other people to talk about the shifting landscape in hockey towns across the league. Only a few arenas were outside of the downtown core, he was saying, with Ottawa among these outliers.

That’s an issue for getting the younger generation out to games, as millennials are increasingly living downtown and less interested in driving than their parents were. Businesses and city planners alike will therefore have to shift their offerings to cater to the now-maturing generation.

“Millennials are basically going to be in the driver’s seat in the coming years,” McLarty says. “Having him talk about that, it was very clear that what he was saying was, ‘It’s important for Ottawa to move its facility to the core of the city.’”

The overarching theme for the task force, McLarty says, is building a millennial-friendly city. He mentions his own children who have left for Toronto and New York, and expresses a desire to make Ottawa into a town they’d be proud to visit or make a home in. Realizing the potential of LeBreton Flats or crafting a world-class library like the one in Halifax will make Ottawa stand out to this generation, McLarty suggests.

There are a few ways the task force could help get these projects built. McLarty says he’d like to see more events like the visit from Edmonton economic development officials last December. Rick Daviss and Bob Black, two of the men behind that city’s $600-million Rogers Place arena, spoke at Ottawa’s Economic Outlook about the controversies and potential payoff of using public funds to subsidize such a development.

McLarty also says the task force will break off into subcommittees that will “tell the story” of projects important to Ottawa’s economy. For example, he says he’d like to see a healthcare leader work with the task force to illustrate the economic impact of research at the Ottawa Hospital as construction of the new Civic Campus gets underway.

While the task force is still recruiting, on board so far are leaders from Ottawa’s business, academic, philanthropic, construction and tourism industries, alongside representatives from First Nations and French-speaking communities. Ottawa Business Journal publisher Michael Curran and Mark Sutcliffe, CEO of parent company Great River Media, are both members.

Also on board is Samuel Gregg-Wallace, chief of staff to Shopify’s chief operating officer Harley Finkelstein. The local e-commerce giant has generously offered to host the task force’s first big meeting in the coming weeks, which is helpful, because the group doesn’t have an official source of funding yet.

The group is bootstrapping itself in the early goings, with McLarty himself putting down the cost of hosting the task force’s preliminary meeting at Bayview Yards. With a firm belief in the city’s future, he says he doesn’t mind putting his money where his mouth is.

“I’m so pumped about this city. I think we’re at a stage where it’s ours for the making,” he says.

Capital Build Task Force’s top five city-building priorities:

1. LeBreton Flats redevelopment
2. Train line between Ottawa and Gatineau
3. Civic Hospital redevelopment
4. Revitalized ByWard Market
5. Federal employment node in Orléans

http://obj.ca/index.php/article/capital-build-task-force-looking-foster-millennial-friendly-ottawa

[movebyleap]

Here we go again with "a world-class library like the one in Halifax". Why is everyone so obsessed with the Halifax library? This really worries me...will Ottawa end up with a generic glass box for a library?

Also...is a hockey stadium really the only thing millenials want in this city?

How about:
- a proper concert hall
- museum of modern art
- portrait gallery
- botanical garden
- a fabulous indoor market
- something cool like a giant ferris wheel (even Montreal has jumped on
that bandwagon)

And amazing, whimsical ARCHITECTURE!! (no, that does not include the "world class" Halifax library).

At the moment Lebreton Flats is looking like a bunch of hockey stadiums and condos. Woohoo!

[kevinbottawa]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

http://obj.ca/index.php/article/capital-build-task-force-looking-foster-millennial-friendly-ottawa

Looking at the names of the people on this task force in Capital magazine (the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce magazine) and the accompanying photo, it looks like a bunch of middle aged people gathering to talk about how to build a millennial friendly city. How about you get a bunch of millennials on there? And some representation. Almost everybody in the photo is white. Even in their feature story on millennials almost everybody in the feature is white, except for a First Nations guy who looks French. These organizations seem to have an old view of what Ottawa is.

I spend quite a bit of time with young creatives and entrepreneurs in this city, especially the ones who are people of colour, and am slowly building relationship with the "establishment". The two are so disconnected.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by movebyleap

How about:
- a proper concert hall
- museum of modern art
- portrait gallery
- botanical garden
- a fabulous indoor market
- something cool like a giant ferris wheel (even Montreal has jumped on
that bandwagon)

Except for the indoor market, it looks like the wish list of a millennial's grandparents. And Ottawa has an indoor market, but the city insists on using it as a flea market food court.

[Lakeofthewood]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

Looking at the names of the people on this task force in Capital magazine (the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce magazine) and the accompanying photo, it looks like a bunch of middle aged people gathering to talk about how to build a millennial friendly city. How about you get a bunch of millennials on there? And some representation. Almost everybody in the photo is white. Even in their feature story on millennials almost everybody in the feature is white, except for a First Nations guy who looks French. These organizations seem to have an old view of what Ottawa is.

I spend quite a bit of time with young creatives and entrepreneurs in this city, especially the ones who are people of colour, and am slowly building relationship with the "establishment". The two are so disconnected.

Preach!

As a millennial, there is nothing I like more than being told things I should and shouldn't like from someone of my parent's generation. /s

[rocketphish]

Originally Posted by movebyleap

Here we go again with "a world-class library like the one in Halifax". Why is everyone so obsessed with the Halifax library? This really worries me...will Ottawa end up with a generic glass box for a library?

Also...is a hockey stadium really the only thing millenials want in this city?

How about:
- a proper concert hall
- museum of modern art
- portrait gallery
- botanical garden
- a fabulous indoor market
- something cool like a giant ferris wheel (even Montreal has jumped on
that bandwagon)

And amazing, whimsical ARCHITECTURE!! (no, that does not include the "world class" Halifax library).

At the moment Lebreton Flats is looking like a bunch of hockey stadiums and condos. Woohoo!

Now that WOULD be cool in the winter, wouldn't it?

[lrt's friend]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Now that WOULD be cool in the winter, wouldn't it?

The giant wheels have enclosed gondolas designed for year-round use and are climate controlled. I rode the one in Niagara Falls at night in fairly early spring. It is not a dare-devil ride, just gives you a pleasant view of the city. I think that riding it in winter would be a wonderful experience especially on a snowy evening. The Niagara skywheel operates year round.

[silvergate]

Originally Posted by movebyleap

Here we go again with "a world-class library like the one in Halifax". Why is everyone so obsessed with the Halifax library? This really worries me...will Ottawa end up with a generic glass box for a library?

Also...is a hockey stadium really the only thing millenials want in this city?

How about:
- a proper concert hall
- museum of modern art
- portrait gallery
- botanical garden
- a fabulous indoor market
- something cool like a giant ferris wheel (even Montreal has jumped on
that bandwagon)

And amazing, whimsical ARCHITECTURE!! (no, that does not include the "world class" Halifax library).

At the moment Lebreton Flats is looking like a bunch of hockey stadiums and condos. Woohoo!

I think we need to start focusing on creating a place where cool things can come to be, rather than forcing them in.

I know a lot of people move to Toronto and Montreal, not just because there are plenty of jobs, but because both offer a much more vibrant city, more interesting night life, and just as many types of activities.

The city can start allowing things like carriage houses in more central neighbourhoods (more density, help keep rents affordable), and start allowing people to run businesses from homes. Furthermore, the city should start allowing more food carts/trucks the licence to operate, and expand the list of locations where they can serve from (or give them full reign downtown).

Finally, the city should be looking towards a differentiation strategy in the core, if it really wants to attract millenials. Ottawa can compete with MTL and TO on things like access to nature, cycling, kid-friendly activities etc., but does not keep up in what (to me at least) is a large factor in millenial culture - nightlife.

To differentiate, I think the city should look into pilot projects, like allowing public drinking (maybe on Sparks), and allowing street vendors to sell beer, mulled wine, etc.
Secondly, allow bars to remain open longer.
Finding a way to differentiate from our larger neighbors might be one way to attract people to not only visit, but consider staying.
And if those people stayed, they would contribute to a much more vibrant core in our city.

[Truenorth00]

Originally Posted by silvergate

I think we need to start focusing on creating a place where cool things can come to be, rather than forcing them in.

I know a lot of people move to Toronto and Montreal, not just because there are plenty of jobs, but because both offer a much more vibrant city, more interesting night life, and just as many types of activities.

The biggest reason people move is usually economic or for a relationship. It's rarely because of nightlife. Nobody is running to Toronto to do the 2 hrs each way commute from the edges of Scarborough to Union, because they want better nightlife.

Originally Posted by silvergate

The city can start allowing things like carriage houses in more central neighbourhoods (more density, help keep rents affordable), and start allowing people to run businesses from homes.

Ottawa doesn't need carriage houses yet. What Ottawa needs is plain old density in the form of more condos in the core. What Ottawa could and should aim to do is to show what can be done with European style density. 5-10 storey buildings. Lots of them. Instead of 50 storey buildings. And fewer of them.

Originally Posted by silvergate

Furthermore, the city should start allowing more food carts/trucks the licence to operate, and expand the list of locations where they can serve from (or give them full reign downtown).

Finally, the city should be looking towards a differentiation strategy in the core, if it really wants to attract millenials. Ottawa can compete with MTL and TO on things like access to nature, cycling, kid-friendly activities etc., but does not keep up in what (to me at least) is a large factor in millenial culture - nightlife.

Millennials are right on the cusp of entering the years when they settle down.
The average age of the millennial cohort is about 28. They aren't going to be craving food trucks and nightlife for much longer. Yet, they crave urban living. If you want Ottawa to differentiate itself, how about offering a real city, instead of the weird hicksville that passes for a city. Ottawa could offer a far more European sort of appeal with lots of midrise, high density living. That would be a real differentiator. Not food trucks.

Imagine something like planning and aesthetics restrictions that created Haussmann's Paris. What would truly be amazing, is Ottawa building a dense city of mostly 5-8 storey buildings in the core, with large family friendly units, lots of street retail and walkable neighbourhoods, bolstered by solid transit.

Originally Posted by silvergate

To differentiate, I think the city should look into pilot projects, like allowing public drinking (maybe on Sparks), and allowing street vendors to sell beer, mulled wine, etc.
Secondly, allow bars to remain open longer.

A lot of those rules are determined by the province.

Originally Posted by silvergate

Finding a way to differentiate from our larger neighbors might be one way to attract people to not only visit, but consider staying.
And if those people stayed, they would contribute to a much more vibrant core in our city.

They'll stay if there are jobs and quality of life is better. Food trucks and bars are only a small part of quality of life.

[acottawa]

I agree with Truenorth that most people move for jobs, relationships or family.

I am not sure there is a lot of evidence that millennials are looking for a particularly urban experience. 10-15 years ago it was pretty common for people in their 20s and early 30s to buy a condo. This seems less common now (which is one of the reasons I think condo sales have been weak in the last decade or so) and millennials seem to transition directly from the rental market (or more likely their parents house in the suburbs) to their own house in the exurbs.

Local press doesn't have much, but:

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2018/05...t-houses-with-backyards-report-says.html

[kevinbottawa]

Carleton University gives Dominion-Chalmers United Church deal the green light

Kieran Delamont
Published: May 24, 2018
Updated: May 24, 2018 9:20 PM EDT

Carleton University has finalized a deal to purchase the Dominion-Chalmers United Church, which it intends to turn into a “multi-purpose downtown performance space.”

The deal was approved by the university’s board of governors on Thursday. The dollar amount of the purchase has not yet been disclosed, though the building was appraised at between $7 million and $8 million and the provincial Ministry of Infrastructure chipped in $5 million.

The church will fill a badly needed vacancy for the university, which lacks space for larger audiences. There is nowhere on campus that can hold an audience larger than 400 people. The church has a seating capacity of about 1,000.

Originally called Chalmers Presbyterian Church, it was built in 1912. In 1962, its congregation amalgamated with Dominion United Church after that church burned down.

The university says it intends to maintain the heritage character of the church, though it will renovate its interior to include “high-quality recording spaces and make the facility more attractive as a rental venue for community and arts groups.”

Fewer and fewer people had been attending services at Dominion-Chalmers, and the church was struggling to look after its aging building. The size of the congregation had shrunk from 2,000 in the 1960s to between 80 and 100 people in 2016, which led to financial stress for the church. A number of options, including redevelopment, had also been considered.

“It is hard for a religious congregation to let go of a building that has been its home for more than 100 years,” said church council chair David Hayman, in a statement. “There are a lot of sacred memories in this place. But this was not our first home and it won’t be our last.”

http://ottawasun.com/news/local-news/car...wcm/deb8086a-14bd-4292-bc4e-c009d54aed98

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by acottawa

Local press doesn't have much, but:

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2018/05...t-houses-with-backyards-report-says.html

And guess what, Millennials: if you want a house with a backyard in any metropolitan area of any size, you're either not going to be able to afford it, or you are going to have to move to increasingly-distant suburbs.

It's a simple fact of geometry and economics.

[Lakeofthewood]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

And guess what, Millennials: if you want a house with a backyard in any metropolitan area of any size, you're either not going to be able to afford it, or you are going to have to move to increasingly-distant suburbs.

It's a simple fact of geometry and economics.

I mean that is literally what the article is saying and something that most millennials are aware of:

“Affordability is out of reach for many millennials,” Petramala said. “The average income needed to buy a house in the GTHA requires six times more than what millennials make.”

[J.OT13]

Anyone notice that www.westsideaction.com is no longer Darwin's blog?

[IntoTheCore]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Anyone notice that www.westsideaction.com is no longer Darwin's blog?

I'd noticed that his articles stopped popping up in my RSS feeds. The last one published was "Hauling drugs for charity" on February 13th.

[acottawa]

Website is down too.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by IntoTheCore

I'd noticed that his articles stopped popping up in my RSS feeds. The last one published was "Hauling drugs for charity" on February 13th.

I remember that one. He then made a brief appearance on the news in March during the public consultation for the new Civic Hospital, and I was surprised he didn't post anything about it back then.

A few weeks ago, I noticed the westsideaction website was replaced by something unrelated.

[Catenary]

Originally Posted by IntoTheCore

I'd noticed that his articles stopped popping up in my RSS feeds. The last one published was "Hauling drugs for charity" on February 13th.

I run into Eric every once in a while, if I see him I'll ask what's up. I suppose I could always email him too.