The forrested slope on the south side of the Primrose staircase up Nanny Goat Hill has been cleared. The stone retaining walls that reminded me of Machu Pichu have also been removed. A multi-level infill house is proposed for the site, with entrances on the Upper Lorne side and onto the landing of the staircase. The previous staircase used to have an entrance onto its staircase also. Continue reading Stairway to Development
The forrested slope on the south side of the Primrose staircase up Nanny Goat Hill has been cleared. The stone retaining walls that reminded me of Machu Pichu have also been removed. A multi-level infill house is proposed for the site, with entrances on the Upper Lorne side and onto the landing of the staircase. The previous staircase used to have an entrance onto its staircase also. Continue reading Stairway to Development
The old St Agnes school south of Gladstone on Bell has been in private ownership for some time. It unfortunately had that “abandonned” look to it, which the neighborhood did not need. The school, now owned by the adjacent Polish Catholic church, is undergoing major renovations as a educational, community, and recreational centre for the Polish community. It is nice to see quality renovations underway, including new windows and additional window walls being cut into the old brick exterior. The dilapidated Bell Street towers apartment buildings across the street have also seen better days. Apparently the new owners are going … Continue reading St Agnes Resurrected; will Bell ring?
The old St Agnes school south of Gladstone on Bell has been in private ownership for some time. It unfortunately had that “abandonned” look to it, which the neighborhood did not need. The school, now owned by the adjacent Polish Catholic church, is undergoing major renovations as a educational, community, and recreational centre for the Polish community. It is nice to see quality renovations underway, including new windows and additional window walls being cut into the old brick exterior. The dilapidated Bell Street towers apartment buildings across the street have also seen better days. Apparently the new owners are going … Continue reading St Agnes Resurrected; will Bell ring?
Substantial-sized infill semi-detached homes under construction in Dalhousie south, near Carling. The foundation has a substantial ledge, which suggests the exterior may be brick. There is a detached garage in the rear, with access of the rear lane. In a well done move, the back of the garage, which faces the back of the house, has been finished with quality detail so it looks like a small house in the back yard rather than a garage. The arrival of larger single homes in the neighborhood (rather than triplex or quadplex infills) bodes well for neighborhood stability as it is more … Continue reading infill in Dalhousie South
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
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
This infill is once again in the very modern boxy style common today. It is constructed from pre-made wafer panels that include the exterior sheathing, insulation, and interior sheathing . Is is on the north side of Eccles, between Booth and LeBreton. I am getting to like this style more and more. I much prefer it over the blah-design of so many infills made of plastic siding and low-slope asphalt shingle roofs. Design and quality matters. Does anyone know why Eccles Street is so often pronounced Eck-Less? Ever since I moved here 30 some years ago, it has puzzled me … Continue reading Infill on Eccles
This infill is once again in the very modern boxy style common today. It is constructed from pre-made wafer panels that include the exterior sheathing, insulation, and interior sheathing . Is is on the north side of Eccles, between Booth and LeBreton. I am getting to like this style more and more. I much prefer it over the blah-design of so many infills made of plastic siding and low-slope asphalt shingle roofs. Design and quality matters. Does anyone know why Eccles Street is so often pronounced Eck-Less? Ever since I moved here 30 some years ago, it has puzzled me … Continue reading Infill on Eccles
Last night I had the pleasure to attend the public meeting held by Ashcroft to unveil their proposal for developing the Soeurs de la Visitation site on Richmond Road, just west of Island Park Drive. This is a five acre site, still occupied by the cloistered convent buildings even if the nuns are leaving. The meeting was well attended (about 300 people) in a very hot church basement. The Ashcroft slide show was a thorough review of the planning process leading up to the proposed plan. They then went through the plan in a lot of detail. It was good consultation, … Continue reading Our Lady of the Condos development
Last night I had the pleasure to attend the public meeting held by Ashcroft to unveil their proposal for developing the Soeurs de la Visitation site on Richmond Road, just west of Island Park Drive. This is a five acre site, still occupied by the cloistered convent buildings even if the nuns are leaving. The meeting was well attended (about 300 people) in a very hot church basement. The Ashcroft slide show was a thorough review of the planning process leading up to the proposed plan. They then went through the plan in a lot of detail. It was good consultation, … Continue reading Our Lady of the Condos development
[note: I’m back from some travels, and blog postings will resume on a near daily basis] The gods of planning wars have unleased their dogs in Little Italy, Chinatown, and West Wellington, key areas in the west side action beat. Lets examine several of the beasts in the pack: Note how the “common, recognizable” names of the former neighborhoods (Dalhousie, Hintonburg, Mechanicsville) are being replaced by the marketing names of the Business Improvement Associations. These groups — funded by city taxes levied on commercial properties on their behalf — plaster their monikers on lampposts and decorative arches. They ensure the benches, lampposts, … Continue reading Gentrification
Mastercraft-Starwood acquired the Aquerello site on Champagne Avenue at Hickory some months ago. This site is immediately north of the Arnon proposed office towers at 853 Carling, and immediately south of the current and soon to be redeveloped humane society site. The new condos will border the OTrain on the east side of their site. Their proposal is for high condo buildings positioned to view Dow’s Lake. Recall that Hickory Street is likely to be continued across the Otrain corridor cut as a pedestrian street, which will also improve access to the Otrain station there for all the new developments … Continue reading Hickory-Champagne Condo Site
Recall the previous post showing the very trendy mod front and rear exterior shots of the new infill project proposed for Elm Street west. What looks from the front and the rear like two houses on the double wide lot is very deceptive. There are actually four houses in total. There are two back to back units on each lot. Front garages are forbidden by the city in this area. The driveway comes down between the two front houses and there are four carports inbetween the front and rear houses. The houses cantelevor over the carports or have a carport … Continue reading Making Infill Work – details
About two years ago a developer bought the lot directly behind my house. The lot faces Elm Street. It is a double lot, about 56′ wide x 100′. The current tiny house on the lot is shown in the photo, directly behind my 28′ lot. I love the little house because it has no windows on the back. I have total backyard privacy. I immediately contacted the developer and insisted that he hear me out when it came time for him to redevelop the lot with infills. So earlier last summer he sat in my backyard and I waved my … Continue reading Making Infill Work
This boutique-scale condo is proposed for the corner of Scott and West Village Private. Yesterday’s post dealt with the conflicting planning documents, and how each party relies on the document (level) that best suits their arguments. I was surprised at the hearing how often the proponent was asked extremely detailed questions about the building. Would the side bedroom windows of the condo have a view across park and then obliquely across the street into the second and third floor windows of the houses on WVP? Did the proponent have a detailed traffic plan from a consultant showing the impact of … Continue reading 1946 Scott Street condo and house prices
For edutainment, I went to the Committee of Adjustment hearing on this condo a few weeks back. The six storey condo is proposed for the corner of Scott at West Village Private (WVP). Also at the intersection is Lanark Avenue. Directly across the street is the Metropole condo, the tallest in the city. The proponent wanted several variances. For example, reduced side yards and building the structure closer to the street. It turns out that the builder was being forced to ask for these by the City, because the zoning requires certain setbacks but the Community Design Plan (CDP) for … Continue reading 1946 Scott Street condo
This picture was posted earlier in fall 2009 of a house demolition on Willow, opposite St Anthony school. The lot is phonominally deep, but narrow. New house under construction. I was really surprised at how far set back on the lot it was. As shown, it is set well behind the line of the existing houses on the street, violating one of the key design characteristics in the city’s infill housing guidelines. I was also surprised to see a garage at the front, since other projects in the Preston area have been turned down if they have front garages. Continue reading Infill on Willow
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
the Cornerstone women’s housing apartment building (42units) will be built at the corner of Booth and Eccles, on the site of the former Desjardins/IGA/Loeb grocery store Diane Holmes, Royal Galipeau, Jim Watson, Sue Garvey, and Yasir Naqvi Sue Garvey speaks to the large turnout that came to launch the project Continue reading Cornerstone Project launched
Canus Plastics, on Lisgar, half block east of Bank Street, is slated to become another condo tower as residential infill and intensification continues in the downtown. The building is by Starwood Mastercraft, who are also building condos on Parkdale and 125 Champagne (the latter being the Acquerelo site) near Carling OTrain station. Click on the map to enlarge for readability, or go to their site http://www.sohovipclub.com/. Continue reading Lisgar street condo coming
You gotta give it to this Willow Street property owner who took a really big hammer to renovation. Continue reading Willow Street Reno
The renovated house in the top picture is on Armstrong Ave in Hintonburg. I love tiny houses, there is something so doll-house-like, so intimate, so cute about them. Maybe it’s the little-child in me wanting to curl up in a cupboard. Hidden behind the renovator’s trailer to the right of the blue and white house there is a foundation in the ground for another thin house infill. I hope the vacant lot, now for sale, gets some more tiny infill houses rather than a McMansion. I would love to see more tiny houses built in the city. I feel there … Continue reading Small Houses
The issue of Ottawa Business Journal (OBJ) out this past week has a major story on the development pressures along the Carling-Bayview OTrain corridor, parallel to Preston’s trendy Little Italy. They interviewed me (tiny bit, amongst more illustrious others) following my postings about developments at the Champagne/Hickory/Carling area. You can read their story at http://www.ottawabusinessjournal.com/295971895949675.php Last week I attended the Civic Hospital Neighborhood Assoc meeting. First item was the new development by Domicile at the corner of Hickory and Champagne Avenue (shown below). The site is now a one storey industrial building, and is zoned for 4 storey redevelopment. A month or so ago, … Continue reading Condo mania on OTrain corridor
A new condo is planned for 1433 Wellington, a half block east of Island Park Drive. It is almost opposite the recent Domicile building at the corner of Picadilly. The site is currently a small strip mall. I think a new mid-rise condo is a big improvement over the strip mall and worthwhile bit of intensification. The building will have vehicular access from the side facing the Loeb/Metro store. The building exterior is very much in the same style as the building at 200 Lett Street at the corner of Wellington, the first condo built in the current LeBreton Flats … Continue reading West Wellington Condo Mania
