Claridge Royale [245 Rideau St] | 62/84/84m | 18/26/27f | U/C

[1overcosc]

A new grocery store is a great idea. One of my concerns is that the inner city has too many bars, restaurants, specialty shops, etc. and not enough basic staples like groceries, pharmacies, banks, hardware stores, etc. Look at Lebreton Flats for example, a plan to build thousands of residential units without a single place in the area for people to buy toilet paper or eggs. That's far from an ideal urban environment.

[gjhall]

Originally Posted by defishel

Does it mean it will be exclusively a grocery store in that space?

Given that we know that each commercial floor is 90,000 square feet and that there are at least two such floors, I would say it's unlikely. I live near here and I think it would be ideal to have a new expanded grocery store and then either another major retailer stacked on top, or put the grocery store on 2 and have a variety of smaller local shops on the ground floor. Something like what they've done for Loblaws on Queen West in Toronto.

[Jamaican-Phoenix]

Originally Posted by gjhall

Please take a cursory glance at the actual documents on devapps, it has street level retail, trees and setbacks.

I have, and I see a few tries, but no setbacks. These towers pretty much sit at the edge as the rendering shows.

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

A new grocery store is a great idea. One of my concerns is that the inner city has too many bars, restaurants, specialty shops, etc. and not enough basic staples like groceries, pharmacies, banks, hardware stores, etc. Look at Lebreton Flats for example, a plan to build thousands of residential units without a single place in the area for people to buy toilet paper or eggs. That's far from an ideal urban environment.

With this replacement grocery store, I think it will be fine. The Loblaws and Metro get good use in that area. Additionally, Rideau is okay for pharmacies, as there's the Rideau Centre Shoppers Drugmart, and the Rexall in Claridge Plaza. There should be another bank or two, and an urban hardware store like Home Hardware is needed. I also wouldn't mind seeing an urban Future Shop and/or best buy somewhere along Rideau in the future.

[kevinbottawa]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

A new grocery store is a great idea. One of my concerns is that the inner city has too many bars, restaurants, specialty shops, etc. and not enough basic staples like groceries, pharmacies, banks, hardware stores, etc. Look at Lebreton Flats for example, a plan to build thousands of residential units without a single place in the area for people to buy toilet paper or eggs. That's far from an ideal urban environment.

Rideau Street is Ottawa's equivalent of Ste. Catherine or Yonge Street. How many grocery stores do you find on those streets? I'd love to see something that helps to make Rideau Street a destination. The Rideau Centre alone can't make Rideau a destination. I'd love to see something like the long awaited concert hall. Or as I've said before, a new Holt Renfrew as well as a few other stores. Something that attracts people from all over town. The needs of the immediate area are important, but this is your main downtown street. Loblaws is already within walking distance, Shoppers east of King Edward has groceries, and there's a Rexall and Shoppers west of King Edward.

[Skyway]

With 245 and probably more to come, need to start looking at this tunnel option seriously now:

http://www.ssd-ottawa.ca/tunnel-alte...-access-tunnel

[waterloowarrior]

some more stats from the planning rationale

There are 85 commercial parking spaces and 80 public parking spaces.

Here are the floorplates (max in urban design guidelines is 750 m^2) and heights:
Tower A (George/Cumberland) - 452 m^2 GFA - 83.6m / 27 fl
Tower B (George/NE corner) - 407 m ^2 GFA - 86.5 m / 28 fl
Tower C (Rideau) - 388 m^2 GFA - 86.5 m / 28 fl

Spacing between towers all around 20m. Spacing from LCBO property line is between 7.3m and 25m

Amenity areas - landscaped courtyard on 3rd floor, landscaped area along east property line, landscapted area on 5th and 6th floors. 67,823 square feet amenity areas proposed, 37,329 sq feet required in by-law.

5.1m floor heights for the commercial ground floor.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by Jamaican-Phoenix

I have, and I see a few tries, but no setbacks. These towers pretty much sit at the edge as the rendering shows.



With this replacement grocery store, I think it will be fine. The Loblaws and Metro get good use in that area. Additionally, Rideau is okay for pharmacies, as there's the Rideau Centre Shoppers Drugmart, and the Rexall in Claridge Plaza. There should be another bank or two, and an urban hardware store like Home Hardware is needed. I also wouldn't mind seeing an urban Future Shop and/or best buy somewhere along Rideau in the future.

There is a home hardware on George and 6 banks on rideau.

Actually, that is the only part of central ottawa where you can get everyday things. Try buying a screwdriver in centretown.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

Rideau Street is Ottawa's equivalent of Ste. Catherine or Yonge Street. How many grocery stores do you find on those streets? I'd love to see something that helps to make Rideau Street a destination. The Rideau Centre alone can't make Rideau a destination. I'd love to see something like the long awaited concert hall. Or as I've said before, a new Holt Renfrew as well as a few other stores. Something that attracts people from all over town. The needs of the immediate area are important, but this is your main downtown street. Loblaws is already within walking distance, Shoppers east of King Edward has groceries, and there's a Rexall and Shoppers west of King Edward.

I lived on Rideau for a year. I don't see how "destination" is possible with the truckway and STO busway there.

[S-Man]

Rideau Street is Ottawa's equivalent of Ste. Catherine or Yonge Street. How many grocery stores do you find on those streets? I'd love to see something that helps to make Rideau Street a destination.

Yes, the last thing hundreds of condo dwellers need within walking distance of them is a food store. So impractical!

[1overcosc]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

Rideau Street is Ottawa's equivalent of Ste. Catherine or Yonge Street. How many grocery stores do you find on those streets? I'd love to see something that helps to make Rideau Street a destination. The Rideau Centre alone can't make Rideau a destination. I'd love to see something like the long awaited concert hall. Or as I've said before, a new Holt Renfrew as well as a few other stores. Something that attracts people from all over town. The needs of the immediate area are important, but this is your main downtown street. Loblaws is already within walking distance, Shoppers east of King Edward has groceries, and there's a Rexall and Shoppers west of King Edward.

You can make a place a destination while still making it liveable for local residents with a good selection of everyday retail needs. I live in downtown Kingston, which is a major regional tourist draw that people throng over especially in summer, but it's still got lots of good retail for local residents. Food Basics, Metro, two Shoppers Drug Marts, Rexall, IDA, Staples, Vandervoorts (independent hardware store stock full of good stuff for low prices), H&R Block, all five major banks, dentist office, ... and all of that is located right next to restaurants, bars, tourist attractions, etc. True mixed use and mixed function. That's what we need for Rideau Street and our other mainstreets.

[gjhall]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

You can make a place a destination while still making it liveable for local residents with a good selection of everyday retail needs. I live in downtown Kingston, which is a major regional tourist draw that people throng over especially in summer, but it's still got lots of good retail for local residents. Food Basics, Metro, two Shoppers Drug Marts, Rexall, IDA, Staples, Vandervoorts (independent hardware store stock full of good stuff for low prices), H&R Block, all five major banks, dentist office, ... and all of that is located right next to restaurants, bars, tourist attractions, etc. True mixed use and mixed function. That's what we need for Rideau Street and our other mainstreets.

Rideau Street has two grocery stores, two Shoppers Drug Marts, a Rexall, 4 additional pharmacies, 4 of the 5 big banks plus Caisse Pop and National Bank, mulitple dentists and medical clinics, etc etc.

These aren't missing elements.

[c_speed3108]

I like that a grocery store is included. Lower town/sandy hill should have more than one major grocery store.

Downtown needs some of the liveability basics. Some things it has enough of like drug stores, but there are other things like an electronics store or some sort of urban format home centre are practically non-existent at least in any size.

This is problem that is happening with Rideau centre. Too much focus on high end. There needs to be more average people stores. Simons will help that a fair bit.

Not everything has to be a monument or destination people come far and wide for. Some times good regular stuff will be sufficient provided it's done in a long term sustainable way. The year of the bus strike I bought all my Christmas presents at Zellers on Sparks because it was there and I could walk over after work. Normally I would have used a suburban mall when I got off the bus, but I was being picked up sooooo....


I don't think this plan is perfect but I do think there are positives from this -> namely it looks different than the others. I just think it still needs a bit more variety particularly in height.

I don't think Claridge is the worst developer we got. I would probably give that to Richcraft these days (the city had to install a friggin fountain in their Bay street hole). Claridge does at least finish stuff.

[m0nkyman]

Originally Posted by acottawa

There is a home hardware on George and 6 banks on rideau.

Actually, that is the only part of central ottawa where you can get everyday things. Try buying a screwdriver in centretown.

The dollar store across from Hartman's is where to go for a screwdriver. The tricky thing to buy is plumbing, electrical or lumber.

[phil235]

Originally Posted by kevinbottawa

Rideau Street is Ottawa's equivalent of Ste. Catherine or Yonge Street. How many grocery stores do you find on those streets? I'd love to see something that helps to make Rideau Street a destination. The Rideau Centre alone can't make Rideau a destination. I'd love to see something like the long awaited concert hall. Or as I've said before, a new Holt Renfrew as well as a few other stores. Something that attracts people from all over town. The needs of the immediate area are important, but this is your main downtown street. Loblaws is already within walking distance, Shoppers east of King Edward has groceries, and there's a Rexall and Shoppers west of King Edward.

Ste. Catherine has at least a couple of grocery stores.

[Harley613]

Yonge St. has Loblaws, Metro and Sobey's all within a block of each other at Yonge and Carleton...

[eternallyme]

Originally Posted by acottawa

I lived on Rideau for a year. I don't see how "destination" is possible with the truckway and STO busway there.

I know of at least three grocery stores on Yonge Street south of Bloor in Toronto.

[theoldv]

Originally Posted by waterloowarrior

@neilmalhotra 34m
I'm going to have a dig out a pic of our new project on Rideau for the skyscraper crew. Stay tuned they might actually like this one.

i'm kinda new here.. until this point did you guys realize he read this forum?

[J.OT13]

The more I look at this proposal, the less I like it. That said, Claridge have come up with decent to good designs over the years such as Tribeca, Icon (more or less), the Somerset proposal and of course Chapel. If they can put that kind of effort into this project by coming up with a great design, better set backs, at least try for a bit more height (for variation), this could be good. Adding the LCBO site might also help.

A replacement grocery store, although not one of those cache type retailers might still be needed, unless the Market area can step up it's game as apparently needed. I would also like to see a Holt Renfrew. Someone mentioned a concert hall, Place de Ville phase IV would be a better site IMO. It would create a much needed anchor destination on the west side of downtown. Rideau/market already has plenty of cultural institutions such as the National Art Gallery, NAC, Convention Centre, Arts Court, Nouvelle Scène, Bytowne...

[DowntownDensity]

Originally Posted by theoldv

i'm kinda new here.. until this point did you guys realize he read this forum?

This is one of the reasons I've been pushing for constructive input and criticism. It's a fantastic opportunity to engage with and influence one of our city's developers in the direction that suits our interest, not only in terms of what is best for Ottawa overall but also as an outlet for us urban development enthusiasts to be heard and taken seriously. If Mr.Malhotra or others on the Claridge team do read this forum or have an interest in what we have to say about their new proposals, we have a chance to provide input in a way none of the NIMBY community associations can! As the "YIMBYs", we have a responsibility to be constructive in our approach to Ottawa's development and try to facilitate the improvement of new proposals. I'm glad that Claridge has shown some responsiveness to our remarks on SSP and is beginning to have an eye toward bringing better developments to the city (i.e, Icon, Tribeca, and attempting the same through this proposal). It's all rather fun to have this public outlet in the interest of bettering the city, isn't it?

[trhgr]

Found this rendering on the citizen's website, I don't know if it's been posted yet:
.
My first reaction is a big yawn. I'm over being annoyed by the forest of 27ish-storey buildings in this area.... (are we on our way to our own mini City Place....CP???)
I'm not completely over it, though: more than ever I'm wondering if there's anybody in charge of urban planning in this city? Or is it only this guy who absolutely wants to see the peace tower from anywhere. He probably doesn't live downtown anyway.