YOW Alt Hotel [1085 Airport Pkwy] | ?m | 7f | U/C - Page 10

J.OT13 · #**181** Posted **Jan 22, 2024, 5:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by OTownandDown

How many of the other eight box hotels within a 2km radius did the City subsidize for construction? There are a further 10 or so within 5km...

Did the City provide tax breaks or subsidies for the EY Centre to be built? How about the Infinity Centre? These are conference spaces within about 2 minute drive of the airport.

Did the airport chip in for the airport spur of the O-Train? How much did that cost the City to build? Doesn't that count as helping the airport?

I think a hotel is not really required here, there are a thousand rooms within a very short drive, but it does make the airport look fancy on paper. Many airlines bus their staff downtown for overnight stays anyways.

Large hotel brands especially do not require a subsidy. If the business case isn't good for the hotel to build on the site, and the airport can't afford to sweeten the deal themselves, then maybe it's not the right time.

I don't know if the City funded the EY Centre, but they gave up the convention space at the Ottawa Civic Centre to benefit EY and give it a near monopoly on many types of trade shows and conventions. I'd call that a subsidy of sorts. And it's owned by Shenkman, of OSEG, for whom we'll have invested nearly a Billion dollars to support. We're also building a transit station exclusively for them.

The City did not subsidize other hotels or convention centres nearby as they don't benefit anyone in particular.

The airport funded it's O-Train station nearly 100% (unlike EY Centre), with the Feds chipping in chump change.

A hotel directly connected to the airport would elevate the facility to the same class as... Winnipeg... along with every other Canadian City over 1 million.

The subsidy is to help a semi public institution, the international airport, bounce back from a tough few years. An airport hotel could help us become a hub, which is sorely needed to alleviate Trudeau and Pearson.

And Germain isn't considered, at lest not in my book, a "large hotel brand". It's a Quebec based hotel chain with under 20 locations. This is not Marriott.

Quote:

Is there some sort of new program where the City is handing out tax breaks for new hotel rooms built within City limits? Or what of the tax breaks that Mark Motors took advantage of? If those programs don't exist, why should this be a special case, just because its the airport?

The program does exist... for the airport. That's the point. if the program exists, pay up. If you don't want to pay up, don't establish the program and keep it going.

roger1818 · #**182** Posted **Jan 22, 2024, 5:43 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by J.OT13

The program does exist... for the airport. That's the point. if the program exists, pay up. If you don't want to pay up, don't establish the program and keep it going.

That's the thing.

If they want the program to exist, treat all applicants equally,
If they don't like the current rules, change them, and
if they don't want the program to exist, cancel it.

phil235 · #**183** Posted **Jan 22, 2024, 7:55 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by roger1818

That's the thing.

If they want the program to exist, treat all applicants equally,
If they don't like the current rules, change them, and
if they don't want the program to exist, cancel it.

This is it. Most of the arguments here seem to stem from the idea that the airport doesn't need to be subsidized. City council already decided the opposite of that when it set up the CIP:

"City of Ottawa staff determined that a CIP would support YOW’s recovery efforts using financial incentives to stimulate private sector investment and development that would increase employment, re-establish non-stop air service and restore the airport’s role as an economic generator for Canada’s Capital Region."

The plan worked exactly as it was supposed to, but council decided to reject an individual application for purely political reasons. Regardless of your position on government subsidies of business, you should be opposed to that.

J.OT13 · #**184** Posted **Feb 6, 2024, 4:19 PM**

New rendering from Airport Website with shorter/smaller building.

https://yow.ca/en/yow-plus/airport-hotel

DTcrawler · #**185** Posted **Feb 10, 2024, 8:55 AM**

Shame that the curtain-walled top floor from the original proposal was killed thanks to the city's CIP shenanigans. Would've been a nice touch to elevate the airport's aesthetic and likely have provided some great spotting opportunities.

On another note, just came across this traffic advisory from YOW. Looks like preliminary works for construction are about to commence?

J.OT13 · #**186** Posted **Feb 10, 2024, 2:37 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by DTcrawler

Shame that the curtain-walled top floor from the original proposal was killed thanks to the city's CIP shenanigans. Would've been a nice touch to elevate the airport's aesthetic and likely have provided some great spotting opportunities.

On another note, just came across this traffic advisory from YOW. Looks like preliminary works for construction are about to commence?

For sure. This is not the same project. It's a downgrade. Meanwhile, Sutcliffe and his former Watson Club Hypocrites are tapping themselves on the back.

J.OT13 · #**187** Posted **Mar 25, 2024, 8:27 PM**

Started digging, as per Hoggytime on Skyrise.

https://skyrisecities.com/forum/thre...-design.37633/

YOWflier · #**188** Posted **Apr 20, 2024, 10:19 PM**

Crane is up.

ponyboycurtis · #**189** Posted **Apr 21, 2024, 5:45 PM**

Ah.. so this is adjacent to the exit ramp of the drop off area. Indeed a shame to dumb down the design. First thing you will see of the city when you walk out the door.

At least after badgering Mr. Brockington about 90% of the LED strips on the handrails on the pedestrian bridge over the parkway they finally fixed them all last summer. Was looking pretty ridiculous for a while.

AuxTown · #**190** Posted **Apr 22, 2024, 6:59 PM**

I'm just happy to see this moving forward. Our quiet little airport isn't going to be so quiet soon, but if that brings some new flights with it I'm all for it!

ponyboycurtis · #**191** Posted **Apr 22, 2024, 8:02 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by AuxTown

I'm just happy to see this moving forward. Our quiet little airport isn't going to be so quiet soon, but if that brings some new flights with it I'm all for it!

ahhh... I remember flying direct to Heathrow

Of course they lost my luggage but that's pretty much a constant story for me.