General Update/Rumour thread [Urban Ottawa]

[clynnog]

Originally Posted by harls

^ yes, last summer they refurbished the entire P-Can station..it was quite a relic before. That intersection is probably the best location for a gas station in the city as flocks of quebec commuters take advantage of 5-cent-a-litre cheaper gas before scooting home across the bridge.

Is the difference still that high between Ottawa and Gatineau. I know Mtl is always more but I thought Gatineau competed with Ottawa for gas.

Whoever buys that PCan for higher density development in the future will likely have to content with some cleanup costs. I can't imagine it is the cleanest site in town.

[Kitchissippi]

Excavating some 20 feet down is as good a clean up as any.

As the only remaining gas station on Rideau Street, it will be a long time until they give up that location. in fact is there another gas station in Sandy Hill or Lowertown?

[Acajack]

I’d say it’s cheaper in Ottawa about 80 or 90% of the time. But generally when it’s lower in Gatineau, it’s only by a cent or less. When it’s cheaper in Ottawa, it’s usually by at least a few cents per litre.

For a Quebec resident, it’s worth it to gas up before crossing the bridge if you happen to be in Ottawa, but I’d say leaving from Gatineau to go to Ottawa just for that purpose, most of the time you’d burn up most of your dollar savings in gas, unless you live right near the river in the downtown Vieux-Hull area.

[Acajack]

There is a Pioneer gas bar further east on Rideau St. near Augusta and Chapel.

[harls]

Originally Posted by Acajack

I’d say it’s cheaper in Ottawa about 80 or 90% of the time. But generally when it’s lower in Gatineau, it’s only by a cent or less. When it’s cheaper in Ottawa, it’s usually by at least a few cents per litre.

For a Quebec resident, it’s worth it to gas up before crossing the bridge if you happen to be in Ottawa, but I’d say leaving from Gatineau to go to Ottawa just for that purpose, most of the time you’d burn up most of your dollar savings in gas, unless you live right near the river in the downtown Vieux-Hull area.

Agreed. I'll gas up if I'm there, if not there's no real savings.

The gas stations on rue Principale in Aylmer used to be almost 10 cents lower than those in Hull for the longest time...now there's no difference with the rest of Gatineau. I'm thinking the new Shell station at Vanier/Alumettières had something to do with it.

[Deez]

Originally Posted by Acajack

There is a Pioneer gas bar further east on Rideau St. near Augusta and Chapel.

It closed last year.


I walked by Nate's today at lunch to read the development application notice. Claridge's proposal is for 14 storeys facing Rideau and 6 backing on to Besserer. Not that I'm entirely against this development (or any others on Rideau) but it's becoming increasingly frustrating watching existing retail being torn down to make way for these projects when the street is littered with parking lots. Are those properties worth more than their retail brethren?

It's also worth mentioning that on my way to the site I noticed that much of Rideau was cordoned off due to ANOTHER pedestrian being struck by a transport truck. There was blood on the pavement so it couldn't have ended well. How many more studies is it going to take...

[Tor2Ott]

OBJ article discusses some potential new office buildings in the core. Definitely good news...

http://www.ottawabusinessjournal.com...2411235520.php

[Aylmer]

I smell new towers!

[waterloowarrior]

Originally Posted by Deez

It closed last year.


I walked by Nate's today at lunch to read the development application notice. Claridge's proposal is for 14 storeys facing Rideau and 6 backing on to Besserer. Not that I'm entirely against this development (or any others on Rideau) but it's becoming increasingly frustrating watching existing retail being torn down to make way for these projects when the street is littered with parking lots. Are those properties worth more than their retail brethren?

It's also worth mentioning that on my way to the site I noticed that much of Rideau was cordoned off due to ANOTHER pedestrian being struck by a transport truck. There was blood on the pavement so it couldn't have ended well. How many more studies is it going to take...

It would be interesting to see the MPAC data for those sites... it's probably a lot of numbered companies, but sometimes the address registered points to which company it is.

re: pedestrian
http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/...e587a6&k=62129

[AuxTown]

Just build a freakin' bridge already!!!! Does anyone actually think that routing trucks through our downtown core is a good idea by any stretch of the imagination? And what about pedestrian safety? Neighbourhood aesthetics? There's no reason to continue with this crap.

[harls]

How about a tunnel from Laurier/Nicholas to the M-C Bridge?

(I know, I know.. the costs would be astronomical..)

[eemy]

Originally Posted by harls

How about a tunnel from Laurier/Nicholas to the M-C Bridge?

(I know, I know.. the costs would be astronomical..)

Wasn't the Vanier Parkway supposed to eventually connect to the M-C Bridge?

[Aylmer]

They could also build a bridge from brittania to Aylmer and build the 550 expressway and connect it to the qweensway via the river parkway...

[Acajack]

Yes, the Vanier Parkway was originally planned to lead all the way to the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge*.

Local Franco-Ontarian lore is that the new Vanier Parkway was run through the (at the time) majority French-speaking areas like Overbrook and Vanier, but that it was halted as soon as it hit the mainly anglo-populated areas that begin once you cross Beechwood.

Regarding Harls’ proposed tunnel near Ottawa U., I’d say any new plans on this subject are just going to set us back another 20 years when this has been delayed long enough already.

The logical bridge route is Montée Paiement to Aviation Parkway, which will necessitate a change in the parkway’s heavy truck ban (still doable though). All of the studies over the years have shown this to be the number one choice, but the main stumbling block is NIMBYism from people in Manor Park, even though the new bridge would actually be quite a distance from anyone’s “back yard”.

*BTW, does anyone on this forum know that francophone media in the region always refer to this bridge as Cartier-Macdonald rather than Macdonald-Cartier? Eeeeeeenteresting.

[Mille Sabords]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Yes, the Vanier Parkway was originally planned to lead all the way to the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge*.

Local Franco-Ontarian lore is that the new Vanier Parkway was run through the (at the time) majority French-speaking areas like Overbrook and Vanier, but that it was halted as soon as it hit the mainly anglo-populated areas that begin once you cross Beechwood.

Local lore is probably onto something, but the truth is also that the Vanier Parkway was built on a former railbed that served the old Vanier industrial rustbelt (of which the Dominion Bridge site is the final remnant, now being redeveloped by Claridge as Edinburg Common). But one way or another, these types of road-building projects were products of their era, the apex of the automobile age. The original plan, in fact, was to have a Décarie-style expressway along King Edward, but that would've meant destroying the entire block between King Edward and Nelson (there would be no Bytowne cinema today, just an on-ramp). That's how Action Sandy Hill was born in 1969. Back then they led the good fight... now they're just a bunch of grumpy old NIMBY's.

Originally Posted by Acajack

The logical bridge route is Montée Paiement to Aviation Parkway, which will necessitate a change in the parkway’s heavy truck ban (still doable though). All of the studies over the years have shown this to be the number one choice, but the main stumbling block is NIMBYism from people in Manor Park, even though the new bridge would actually be quite a distance from anyone’s “back yard”.

Yes, that is the logical choice. Politics will continue to cloud the issue but at the end of the day, the Aviation Parkway not only feeds directly into the 417 and therefore is the perfect downtown bypass without the wasted time of a long detour for trucks, but also, being an NCC parkway, iot has AMPLE GREEN SETBACKS protecting adjacent areas from noise and visual impacts. Unlike any other alignment, starting with King Edward but even Trim Road, where trucks would literally be under everyone's nose. It really is the only place for trucks to go.

Originally Posted by Acajack

*BTW, does anyone on this forum know that francophone media in the region always refer to this bridge as Cartier-Macdonald rather than Macdonald-Cartier? Eeeeeeenteresting.

One day, I'd like to mix a track called "Julie Trottier et la circulation", with her voice-over traffic shpiel over those electro beats she has going in the background. Ever notice how she speaks a little faster when she's doing the traffic shpiel? And she refers to the bridge as Cartier-MacDonald about 50% of the times...

[Acajack]

Julie is indeed “très spéciale”.

The common name for the bridge on the less intello, commercial francophone radio stations is actually “Cartier-Macdo” I think.

[Marcus CLS]

I am new to this site and threads. How can Councillor Holms be for Intensification and against local projects given that she is the "rep" for centretown. This is completely against city plans for intensification "inside the green belt"

The inter city ward councillors in Ottawa are so screwed up about whether they will get elected again they refuse to consider intensification over paving over Corn fields in Barrhaven et al.

While T.O. is building 50 story plus condos Ottawa reduces a 35 to 20 or a 10 to 6 because of the nimby's. The truth of the matter is if we can save some of the cornfields outside Ottawa by allowing more high rise condos. I am all for it, but the nimby's are rich, self centered people who care about nobody but themselves and not about a sustainable intelligeant growth of a city
.

[lrt's friend]

One thing I have learned very recently, intensification cannot exceed the capacity of your transportation network. A 50 story building can be built near a subway station but you cannot do the same next to the #2 bus route. Unless we are planning rapid transit within walking distance, it just won't work. This is why we are so desparately in need of a new rapid transit plan. This will dictate where intensification is most appropriate and some sort of electric rail (LRT or subway) will allow development immediately next to or right over stations.

[AuxTown]

I think if and when it (LRT) happens we will finally see the potential of Lebreton Flats. The two towers going up there are only the tip of the iceberg and I think there is potential to change the current site plan to allow for much taller (and more interesting) structures. I can't believe that Claridge will be the only builder for all of the phases....or maybe I just don't want to believe it.

[lrt's friend]

Just think how shortsighted the Urbandale LRT plan was to eliminate a station on Lebreton Flats to save money for building the downtown tunnel. If we want high density development on Lebreton Flats, there has to be a rapid transit station there.