Perhaps "stately" was the wrong word, but generally pre-gentrification houses in Westboro are larger, made of better quality/desirable finishes (read brick, stucco vs. flat roofs and vinyl siding), and on better lots. That's just part and parcel of the history of pre-war neighbourhoods in Ottawa being more affluent in the west end. Take as a comparison some homes on major streets in both Westboro and Vanier:
Churchill Avenue, Westboro:
http://bit.ly/d8yiuU
Marier Avenue, Vanier:
http://bit.ly/bTbQQM
As for transit, a bus lane on a city street and an actual Transitway are not the same.
In terms of me calling it the "last place to gentrify" you seem to think I mean it hasn't at all, rather I was referring to the claim in the news piece this thread is based on that it is the last central neighbourhood to be brought up which I think is largely true.
As for ZaZaZa and Bridgehead, the corner of Putnam and Beechwood is territory no New Edinburgher would ever cede to Vanier!
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This is all to say, simply: I think there has been talk of Vanier's revival for a very long time but there are real challenges that have and continue to hold back its progress toward being a desirable neighbourhood.