HERITAGE OTTAWA
Update
The latest iteration of Lansdowne 2.0 was officially released on October 6 by the City and OSEG. The cost of the project has increased by $86.5 million more than the estimate in 2022 for a total of $419 million. Council is expected to vote on Lansdowne 2.0 on November 10.
LET'S TALK LANSDOWNE! is a community-led event on October 11 from 7 - 9 pm at the Horticulture Building, Lansdowne Park. The aim is to learn more about the final concepts and costs of the massive plan and to allow participants to express their views. The meeting will be broadcast and live-streamed by Rogers at rogerstv.com/letstalklansdowne and there will be live tweets throughout the evening.
LET'S TALK LANSDOWNE! is the only opportunity for broad public engagement after the release of the City's final report on Friday, October 6 and before it goes to City Council.
Background
In 2012, City Council entered into a 30-year partnership (now a 40-year partnership) with the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) for the renewal and revitalization of Lansdowne Park with a new South Stadium Stands, new mixed-use retail and "reimagined" public realm spaces and subterranean parking.
The project, known as Lansdowne 1.0, has lost money every year and the City has never seen a cent from the original "waterfall" of revenue. On April 27, 2022 the City of Ottawa and OSEG released a report on “re-vitalizing” Lansdowne Park yet again, this time centred on rebuilding the north side stands and arena. In their place, new public infrastructure will be constructed that will include a new 5,500-seat “Event Space,” a new 11,200-seat north stadium stands, and three towers ranging from 25 to 40 storeys.
On June 8, 2022 the former City Council, in a 17 to 7 vote, ratified the recommendation of the Finance and Economic Development Committee (FEDCO) to support the new proposal dubbed "LANSDOWNE 2.0." Heritage Ottawa and other community groups had urged FEDCO to allow time for public consultation BEFORE approving the proposal, to no avail.
On October 6, 2023, an updated Lansdowne 2.0 proposal was released that includes a number of high-level changes:
- Cost increase of $86.5 million to $419 million
- New debt to be incurred by the City increased to $312 million (to add to 30 years of debt repayment remaining on Lansdowne 1.0
- Proposed "green" roof on proposed event centre has been scrapped. The event centre will remove 58,000 sq. ft. of public park green space
- Instead of 3 towers of 29, 34 and 40 storeys, there will be 2 towers of 25 and 40 storeys, which will hinder the Heritage Character of the site
- To accomplish this, the City would have to sell air rights over the publicly-owned lands of Lansdowne Park.
Area councillor Shawn Menard has prepared a "Better Lansdowne" response to the report entitled Key Takeaways from the Report: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
HERITAGE OTTAWA RESPONDS
Heritage Ottawa is not opposed to changes to Lansdowne Park to ensure the ongoing sustainability of the site. But as a unique location overlooking the Rideau Canal UNESCO World Heritage Site, it deserves an open and transparent consultation process.
And although we welcomed the proposal’s recommendation that needed repairs and upgrades be made to both the heritage-designated Horticulture Building and Aberdeen Pavilion, Heritage Ottawa continues to urge that the encroachment on the protected views to the Aberdeen Pavilion be reversed, that the proposed east tower be eliminated altogether and completion of appropriate studies related to housing needs, transportation impacts be completed, and a Heritage Conservation Plan prepared.