Latest news with #CoreAreaPlan
Ottawa Citizen
30-05-2025
- Business
- Ottawa Citizen
Miguelez: The right kind of housing could enhance Sussex Drive
This article was written in response to ' Sussex Drive deserves better from the NCC, ' May 27: Article content The NCC is in the process of updating its 2005 Core Area Plan, a strategic planning document intended to guide the future evolution of the nine square kilometres at the centre of the nation's capital for the decades to come. The proposed three big moves — turn towards the water, make great spaces and create connections — are already evident in new NCC projects such as River House, Kìwekì Point and the soon-to-be-opened Westboro Beach pavilion. Article content Article content In order to respond to the directive of our shareholder, the Government of Canada, to contribute to solving the housing crisis, we are also re-examining how NCC lands in the core of the capital can be used for housing — an approach that has the added advantage of increasing the resident population and dynamism of our downtown. One of many such sites, two blocks on Sussex Drive across the street from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and the French Embassy, is currently zoned in our 2005 plan for institutional use, with the intention that those sites be developed for diplomatic or other public buildings. Article content NCC staff are proposing that these sites could instead be imagined in the revised 2025 plan for a wider variety of building uses, including housing, but also commercial and retail. Such buildings, with a height of no greater than five storeys, reflective of the New Edinburgh Heritage Conservation District and the dignity of our ceremonial route, could serve a variety of functions including residential apartments or town homes, offices and ground-level services such as cafés and restaurants that integrate to the surrounding neighbourhood and workplaces. Our proposed idea would be consistent with the city's Official Plan, which permits housing in these blocks as part of the Parliament and Confederation Boulevard Special District. Article content Interestingly, although the blocks in question are now vacant, as recently as the late 1960s they housed apartment houses, a fire station, a hotel and various shops. In hindsight, we know that the demolition of these places, like at LeBreton Flats, was a mistake that led to too many decades of vacant lands that deprived the capital of housing, energy and built heritage. Article content
Ottawa Citizen
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Ottawa Citizen
Macklem and McNee: Sussex Drive deserves better from the NCC
A row of luxury apartment buildings on Sussex Drive, directly across from the Prime Minister's official residence and a block from Rideau Hall, is being proposed by the National Capital Commission, buried in their upcoming Core Area Plan. Despite the NCC's mandate to ensure Canada's capital remains a source of pride for all Canadians, and a legacy for generations to come, the agency apparently believes a major apartment complex is appropriate for the three blocks of the ceremonial route nearest to the Governor General's residence. We have to disagree. Article content Article content Article content This proposal should be excised from the Core Area Plan before it comes up for approval at the June meeting of the NCC board. There are three critical reasons why such a development doesn't belong here: national significance, security and traffic congestion. Article content Sussex Drive is more than just a road. It is one of Canada's most iconic ceremonial routes, lined with diplomatic missions, national institutions, and heritage properties. Given this, we question the rationale for eliminating what little green space is left, especially in light of the NCC's role as the 'principal steward of nationally significant public spaces' in the capital. The current calm green squares of parkland, so close to Rideau Hall, 24 Sussex Drive, the French Embassy and South African High Commission, enhance the ceremonial route for residents and visitors alike. Article content Article content The NCC has said it wants to attract more tourists to the area. Tourists do not visit Ottawa—or Sussex Drive—to admire apartment blocks. They come for the historical resonance, the public parks, and the dignified architecture. Article content In terms of security, the proposed building site is also alarmingly close to several of Canada's most sensitive properties: the Prime Minister's residence, the Governor General's home at Rideau Hall, the Official Guest Residence, and multiple embassies. Introducing a large residential population so close to these significant addresses raises serious security questions. For locations charged with national and international diplomacy, any additional security burden is not a trivial matter.
