Quote:
Originally Posted by Docere
Does your city have "favored quarter" - i.e. a wedge running from the core towards affluent suburbs. Thinking for example of Chicago's North Side lakefront to North Shore for example.
In Toronto, there's a "favored quarter" area that runs north from downtown. The area looks something like this:
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In Ottawa, I would say the favoured quarter runs along the Rideau Canal. These areas were the first Bytown (before Ottawa was the capital city) business, academic and political leaders’ places of residence and also further down along the waterways, estates (some of them timber or agri-businesses). They were “suburban” properties before suburban became bedroom community, that lay along the canal waterway.
The area: Starting with The Golden Triangle and Sandy Hill, moving south along both sides of the Rideau Canal through The Glebe, Old Ottawa East, Old Ottawa South, Rideau Gardens, Faircrest and Alta Vista, ending at Dow’s Lake, Brewer Park, boundaried by Bronson St. to the west and Alta Vista Drive on the east side of the canal.
There are also pockets of Golden (favoured) areas along the Ottawa River (ie. Rockliffe Park just east of 24 Sussex Dr. encompassing Rideau Hall, the Governor General’s residence) So, in the case of Ottawa it forms a sort of T-shape with breaks in between as the higher end pockets are former commuter trolley villages.
Since moving to Ottawa in 1991, I have always found it interesting how various stages of urban build-up have left these neighbourhoods with quite a distinct and varied look. The 417 cut a swath right through the heart of the core area, which although great for the later burbs, kind of unfortunately ended up detracting from a such beautiful original topography. Around the area of Lees used to be pastoral. As a once commuter using the OCtranspo from the Byward Market to Orleans, I did enjoy that some of the natural space was left in tact in this area.