The Value of Investing in Canadian Downtowns - International ...

Safety
Downtown Ottawa is seen as a safe and secure area. It
was suggested by an interviewee that the federal
government increases the police presence in downtown
Ottawa to maintain high levels of security. However,
downtown Ottawa, around the Rideau Street core faces
challenges with homelessness. It was recently found that
the ByWard Market, Rideau Street, and Montreal Road
areas (on the downtown’s eastern edge) have the highest
concentration of homeless and related social services in the
country. 21 To address this challenge, Downtown Rideau
and its neighbouring Business Improvement Areas
(ByWard Market and Quartier Vanier) have partnered with
many social agencies to develop street outreach, public
awareness, job skills development and employment
programs 22 to improve the situation for homeless people
and to also reduce negative perceptions about safety that
can stem from homelessness, panhandling and so forth in
the core.
Land Uses
As the nation’s capital, Ottawa has substantial areas of
open space, comprising almost a third (32%) of total land
area. Additionally, the downtown has over 28% of its land
utilized for commercial purposes and 19% for institutional
purposes. Currently, 9% of land is designated as vacant and
3% for transportation (largely surface parking lots), which
present exciting development opportunities for the downtown
in the long term.
Open Space 32%
Commercial 28%
Institutional 19%
Vacant 9%
Residential 7%
Transportation 3%
Industrial 1%
Public Realm
There is a strong focus on the public realm in Ottawa. More specifically, one of the key tasks of the NCC is to create
a quality public realm and well designed city. The NCC owns and maintains many parks in the downtown. Combined
with the Rideau Canal, these amenities contribute significantly to the recreational experience in downtown Ottawa –
even on the coldest days. The most recent contribution to Ottawa’s public realm is the “Rink of Dreams” – a 12,500
square foot outdoor skating rink at Marion Dewar Plaza commissioned by the City, the Sens Foundation, and the
Hockey Canada Foundation 23 .
21
Ducharme, P. (2007). Responding to the Impact of Homelessness on Downtown. Retrieved from
http://www.canadiandowntownsnetwork.ca/pdf/respondingtotheimpactofhomelessnessondowntown.pdf. Accessed 2012 January 16.
22
Ibid.
23
Brodie, R. (2012). Rink of Dreams springs to life as community legacy. Retrieved from:
http://www.sensfoundation.com/en/default.asp?sensfoundation=343&urlkeyword=Rink_of_Dreams_Project. Accessed 2012 February 13.
72