Category: Booth St

Booth St, Dalhousie, design15 Comments

Just how fast do they go?

Westsideaction

Residents frequently complain about speeding traffic.  Signs are only marginally effective, if the engineers design the roads to invite higher speeds. And make no doubt road design is not some innocent bystander in this. For years we have been making our roads wider, flatter, smoother, better lit, and pretending innocence when traffic goes faster. It is faster by design. The first step in fixing the problem is to measure the problem. You can’t fix what you didn’t measure. Some Councillors are buying Speed Boards for their Wards. These boards tell motorists what speed they are doing. There is  evidence that motorists slow down when … Continue reading Just how fast do they go?

Booth St, Dalhousie, streetscaping10 Comments

90 Minutes to a Better City

Westsideaction

Every neighborhood has one. A few have several. The rare really lucky neighborhood may have many. I’m talking about guerilla gardeners. People who go out and plant — usually with their own plants — bare spots in the City. It’s a tough love situation, since in many cases the plants won’t be getting ongoing care or watering, there being a general shortage of taps on city boulevards. In Dalhousie, Ida has been responsible for two great gardens on Somerset and the Plant Rec Complex garden at Preston/Somerset. Stephanie and others did the Chaudiere Park gardens. Other gardeners have done their bits, … Continue reading 90 Minutes to a Better City

Booth St, design, infill, intensificatioin5 Comments

Infill that works

Westsideaction

Complain, complain, complain. It’s too bi-i-i-g. It’s too ta-a-a-a-ll.  It’s not the same as now. It’s not compatible. We hear those whines every day when the subject of infill or new development comes up. It’s not always that way. It’s just that good projects that are welcome in the neighborhood don’t get good press. So here’s a good news story. On Booth Street there is a blight that has cursed residents for years, Cousin Eddy’s Garage and Uncle Chado’s body shop. The city trees in front of the garages mysteriously died so we could all admire their ugliness and garbage-strewn … Continue reading Infill that works

Albert St, Booth St, Bronson, Preston street1 Comment

City counts cars

Westsideaction

  It took numerous calls and some arm twisting by the Councillor, but the City is now conducting traffic counts on Preston, Bronson, and Albert.  The unique value of these is to count cars while Booth Street south of Albert is closed due to construction. The City always says it cannot close Booth south of Albert to through traffic because, like dammed water, it would flow around and flood the adjacent streets with cars. And push those streets to the breaking point, resulting in traffic chaos. To anyone who bothers to go out on the streets at rush hour (and that is all … Continue reading City counts cars

Booth St, Dalhousie, Gladstone, parks2 Comments

Complementarity in sculptures

Westsideaction

The City recently reopened Piazza Dante, a small urban parkette in front of St Anthony Church, corner of Booth and Gladstone. Two carved granite pillars flank the main entrance to the piazza from Gladstone. If they look familiar, well, they should. Their cousins mark the entrance to Preston Street at Primrose: When the Preston Street sculptures — Postcards from the Piazzas, by c j fleury –were being made, the granite carvers misread the order and produced four columns instead of two. With some quick thinking by the City, the artist, and Preston BIA, the additional columns were purchased, finished,  and used as gate … Continue reading Complementarity in sculptures

Albert St, Booth St, traffic volume, Uncategorized9 Comments

Road to nowhere

Westsideaction

Booth Street … what did our neighbourhood do to deserve such an abused street? Legally a local collector, it is of course abused by thousands of motorists daily who use it as a shortcut between the Queensway and Chaudiere Bridge. Every year on Nov 11th we notice it is deserted, which establishes that it is used by civil servants (who don’t work that day) and not by private sector, teachers, or university profs (who do work that day). But who the motorists is, is of less import than the fact that the street shouldn’t be carrying the volume of traffic it does. And … Continue reading Road to nowhere

Bayview, Bayview Otrain, Bluesfest, Booth St, NCC, O-Train8 Comments

Preston Extension open (for how long…)

Westsideaction

Recall that last week the Preston extension (running north from Albert to a legal crosswalk over the transitway to NCC paths along the River) was suddenly gated and locked. We still don’t know for sure who did it, but the NCC seems willing to take the hit. Then, the next day the gate was open. I am told that the chain/lock were cut rather than unlocked. On Tuesday evening, the path received heavy use for patrons heading out to Bluesfest, where they could catch The Long Waits and The NeverEnding Lineups. About dusk I headed out to check out the route. Upon first seeing … Continue reading Preston Extension open (for how long…)

Bayview Otrain, bike path, Bluesfest, Booth St, cycling in Ottawa, pedestrians, Preston street16 Comments

Popular bike and ped route “locked shut”

Westsideaction

Several years ago a gate was installed at the north end of Preston, where it crosses NCC land. There is a paved path (actually a derelict bit of the transitway from pre-1980’s) that leads to a legal marked crossing of the current transitway and then out the Ottawa River bike paths. The gate was installed by contractors during water main construction a few years ago. On Monday, it was locked shut. I went out Monday evening to view the scene. I met cyclists coming up from the River, having crossed the transitway, and were then forced to return and recross the transitway to search … Continue reading Popular bike and ped route “locked shut”

Booth St, intensificatioin5 Comments

Cornerstone Opens

Westsideaction

Cornerstone is a sheltered housing building on Booth Street near Somerset. They had their official opening and tours on Wednesday. If you couldn’t be there, here are some shots of what’s outside and inside the building. I am really pleased with the exterior façade of the building. Streets like Booth are perched on the verge of going downhill (witness Cousin Eddy’s garage empty lots/burned out house,  just down the street) or gentrifying (witness Z6 condos, Cornerstone, and a new condo going up at the corner of Booth/Somerset). A quality exterior, superior landscaping, eyes on the street, diversity of people, make for a better neighborhood. … Continue reading Cornerstone Opens

Albert St, aquaduct, bike path, Booth St, Claridge, condos, design, DOTT, Fleet Street, LeBreton Flats, LRT, OLRT, Preston street6 Comments

LRT Stations (part iv) LeBreton

Westsideaction

There is currently a bus transitway station at LeBreton Flats. The proposed LRT station is essentially at the same location, except it extends further west under Booth Street and is a few feet south of the current station, allowing room for landscaping and breathing space between it and the aqueduct. On the aerial photo above, note also the pedestrian crossing of the aqueduct off to the left side of the picture, this is the old Broad Street right of way and ped bridge. The site analysis drawing, above, shows the proximity of the current LeBreton residential neighborhood. Blue arrows show view planes, but both are rather curiously … Continue reading LRT Stations (part iv) LeBreton

Booth St, Bronson, cycling in Ottawa, little Italy, O-Train, oc Transpo, pedestrians, Preston street, Uncategorized17 Comments

Be careful what you wish for … the story of Carling Avenue

Westsideaction

Life, especially when it comes to municipal planning in Ottawa, is full of inadvertent disasters. Sometimes these come from the law of unintended consequences, whereby something ostensibly for the good turns out to be awful. Other times is results from good wishes, which when delivered, make you wish you had never asked in the first place. That sounds like something from Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and the proposed reconstruction of Carling between the O-Train and Bronson is looking a bit grimm to me today. In a city whose new mantra is taxpayer dollar value, we are looking at an expensive road scheme that will be … Continue reading Be careful what you wish for … the story of Carling Avenue

Booth St, condos, green roofs, infill7 Comments

Z6 grows a shell

Westsideaction

The Z6 condo under construction at the corner of Balsam and Booth is finally showing some signs of its final look. The picture above shows the brickwork on the Balsam side. It is considerably less-detailed than promised in the advertising picture, but that’s just quibbling. The building is a breath of fresh air on Booth Street and in the centre of the neighborhood which dearly needs a shot in the arm, a visible testimony that someone has faith in the community’s future. The remaining yellow panels will be clad in various metal sidings. The building appears to have an interesting mix … Continue reading Z6 grows a shell

Booth St, City Hall1 Comment

Watson Pushes Envelope

Westsideaction

  A good politician manages to turn adversity into advantage. Responding to criticism that new (again) Mayor Jim Watson would go to anything, including the opening of an envelope, he brought this up at his inauguration speech at the Shenkman Hall. The wording in his prepared speech is: “listening to the families I speak with at the church bazaar or the backyard BBQ. Some people poke fun at me for that, but it’s a point of pride for me. Over the next four years, I will join you in your communities and church basements, at your farmers’ markets and fairs, … Continue reading Watson Pushes Envelope

Booth St, Chinatown, sidewalks, somerset street, streetscaping, Uncategorized

Tex-Mex with a touch of China

Westsideaction

  Somerset Street will be reconstructed from Preston up to Booth next year (city budget permitting). After the underground utilities are replaced, the street gets repaved and new sidewalks, ped lights, trees, benches, garbage cans, the whole shebang gets set up for the next decades. Many of those streetscaping decisions are being made right now, and it is fun being on the committee debating the colour palette of the paving blocks, the crosswalk designs, selecting the benches, etc.  So … what Chinatown should look like is much on my mind. It is rather ironic therefore that the Southern Cross restaurant, which serves tex-mex food from its … Continue reading Tex-Mex with a touch of China

Booth St, infill, intensificatioin, Uncategorized3 Comments

Any news, anyone?

Westsideaction

If you frequent Booth Street, you will recognize this “garage” on the east side, between Somerset and Gladstone. It’s Cousin Eddy’s and (Uncle?)*   Chado’s Auto Body. Here’s another view: It’s all known by the municipal address 357 Booth Street. The general state of disrepair has been a source of despair. Note the burnt out hulk to the right: according to this Citizen article,   http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=606c1117-859b-4168-83b8-f72616bab4a5&k=34712   it was also owned by “Cousin” Eddy Aoun, who torched his own rental property to evict the tenants he thought were dealing drugs. Such neighborhood concern did not extend to the mysterious loss of trees along the … Continue reading Any news, anyone?

Booth St

Parallel paths in life and death

Westsideaction

  The two memorials shown are in Beechwood cemetery. Booth and Rochester were powerful early families in the city. The streets named after them are parallel, one block apart, on the city’s west side. The Booth tombstone is a list of children who died young. Wealth was no guarantor of life. Nor was wealth a guarantor that one’s tombstone would be maintained: the head is missing from the Rochester statue. Continue reading Parallel paths in life and death

Booth St, Dalhousie, infill

Goodbye Desjardin’s IGA/Loeb

Westsideaction

The former Desjardins IGA / Loeb store on Booth Street at Eccles has been closed for several years. Demolition is now underway, making way for the new Cornerstone housing project, a four storey 40 unit apartment residence. The new Cornerstone residence, coupled with the now-under-construction Z6 condo building (16 of 26 units sold) will give a modern new face to tired Booth Street. Both buildings have traditional brick exteriors with modern design touches. The last large remaining eyesore on the street is the blighted zone known as Cousin Eddey’s garage/ Chado’s auto repair. The only saving grace there is that … Continue reading Goodbye Desjardin’s IGA/Loeb

Booth St, Dalhousie, infill

Goodbye Desjardin’s IGA/Loeb

Westsideaction

The former Desjardins IGA / Loeb store on Booth Street at Eccles has been closed for several years. Demolition is now underway, making way for the new Cornerstone housing project, a four storey 40 unit apartment residence. The new Cornerstone residence, coupled with the now-under-construction Z6 condo building (16 of 26 units sold) will give a modern new face to tired Booth Street. Both buildings have traditional brick exteriors with modern design touches. The last large remaining eyesore on the street is the blighted zone known as Cousin Eddey’s garage/ Chado’s auto repair. The only saving grace there is that … Continue reading Goodbye Desjardin’s IGA/Loeb

Booth St, condos, infill, intensificatioin

Laying the foundations for Z6 Condo on Booth St

Westsideaction

Foundation forming boards still in racks as delivered into the hole by crane. Note the footings are in place around the perimeter, and part of the back concrete wall forms and re-bars have been put in place. west side The building will have a round corner facing the Balsam/Booth intersection. The square elevator base has been poured, with rebar in place to support the elevator shaft walls. Continue reading Laying the foundations for Z6 Condo on Booth St