An Ottawa commission has given its blessing to the latest proposed overhaul of Lansdowne Park, paving the way for the city council to approve it in principle and launch a public consultation.
At the end of more than eight hours of meeting on Friday, the city’s finance and economic development committee voted in favor of a staff report on the plan, which was presented by Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) last week and was dubbed “Lansdowne 2.0. “
The proposal proposes several major changes to the Glebe City Park, which is struggling to attract visitors, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first phase will see the Civic Center arena, home to OSEG-owned Ottawa 67 and Ottawa BlackJacks, relocated from its current location under the TD Place grandstands on the north side. It will be reduced to 5,500 seats, in part to attract the medium-sized cultural events that currently surround the nation’s capital.
Once this is over, the stands on the north side will be completely replaced, and the new stands will have about 3,000 fewer fans.
Above all, there will be 1,200 new housing units, including apartments for rent and apartments. Preliminary drawings show three tall buildings dominating the center of Lansdowne, and OSEG has promised that 10 percent of the units will be accessible.
The entire project will cost approximately $ 330 million, but both OSEG and city officials say it will pay for itself through a complex funding structure and will ultimately be revenue-neutral.
Ottawa Redblacks fans strolled through Lansdowne Park last August before the CFL club’s first home game since the COVID-19 pandemic was announced. The pandemic has severely reduced the number of people visiting Glebe City Park. (Natalia Goodwin / CBC)
Deadlines in question
Friday’s vote allowed the council to approve, among other things, $ 8 million in spending on the next steps – which include starting the redevelopment process, seeking offers for air rights to the towers, conducting traffic and legacy surveys, and starting wider consultation.
However, some residents who live nearby said the ambitious transformation was proceeding too quickly, with Capital ward Coun. Sean Menard – who represents the district – organized a public meeting last Tuesday to hear feedback.
Approximately three dozen delegates signed up to speak on Friday, including Glebe residents and business owners, tourism officials, a former city police chief and even CFL commissioner Randy Ambrose.
Several told the committee, while supporting elements of the OSEG plan, that the time between its unveiling and Friday’s vote was too short – and that the community should be consulted first.
With the final decision on Lansdowne 2.0, the fall of the next city council, fears that even approving the plan will generally make it difficult if they want change in the future, said Alex Cullen, former councilor and president of the Federation of Ottawa Citizens’ Associations.
“Making decisions today burns him,” Cullen said. “This is the fear of our members and this is not good public policy.”
“The hostility to this site is already too great,” said Anthony Caricato, chairman of the Lancedown Park Commission of the Gleb Community Association, referring to the unpleasant feelings that plagued the site’s initial redevelopment a decade ago.
“And it doesn’t help that we’ve been given nine days to consider such a subsequent asset change across the city.”
Carolyn Mackenzie, president of the Community Planning Association, suggested that nine days were not enough to master the complexity of financing – which includes incurring pre-payment and partial payments through property taxes generated by housing units and new retail outlets. .
“Let’s have a serious discussion,” she said. “There are a lot of things you don’t like here. I believe there are a lot of things you don’t like here.”
Menard tried to submit a proposal to delay the process, but none of the commission wanted to submit it. He really said he would take it to a full council at the end of the month.
Mohna Chaturvedi, left, and Pranav Pandi, right, hug while taking selfies at Lansdown Park on Christmas 2021 (Justin Tang / Canadian Press)
“We fully expect the proposal to change”
Others, especially those speaking from a business and tourism perspective, told the committee they supported the revival plan and its deadlines.
“We need more locals to deal with this, especially on weekdays. Our weekends are very busy, “said Dean Stressman, who runs the Sunset Grill franchise in Lansdowne.
“I was hoping we would have more events [but] our behind-the-scenes facilities for artists are outdated and inadequate. So some tours and artists will pass us by. “
I am convinced of that [OSEG has] very strong understanding of what the fans want. – CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrose
Patrick Burke, executive director of the Glebe Business Improvement Area, said that while local business owners have differing views on the specifics, the belief in the need to revive is “almost universal.”
As for Ambrose, he told the committee that he regularly hosts Ottawa Redblacks matches as an exemplary Canadian football experience – but the TD Place stands on the north side are “dirty” and “do not meet modern CFL standards”.
“I am convinced of that [OSEG has] a very strong understanding of what fans want and are looking for, “he said.
During several hours of follow-up questions from councilors, Steve Willis, the city’s general manager for planning, real estate and economic development, repeatedly claimed that apart from the $ 8 million cost, nothing in Friday’s report was set in stone.
Willis said the money would help employees gather information on some of the concerns residents have raised and then provide them with concrete answers.
“We felt it was important not to talk about things in common. We had to give [residents] something to chew on, “Willis said.” We totally expect the proposal to change. And the next council will make a series of decisions that will shape that. “
If the deadlines in the staff report on Friday are met, construction of the first phase, the new stand-alone event center, could begin by the summer of 2023.
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