Construction will soon begin on a new 5,850-seat arena and north-side stadium stands at Lansdowne Park, the result of a recently approved $419-million redevelopment project that divided Ottawa city council for weeks.Roger Greenberg, the executive chairman of the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) which is the city’s partner in the deal, told CBC News that a new arena is long overdue.“The market has told us that this facility is past its prime. It won’t fall down necessarily, but it’s inaccessible … it needs to be redone,” he said after the city council vote on Friday.“I’m very happy that the majority of councillors supported that view.” Managing partner of Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) Roger Greenberg, left, executive director of OSEG Foundation Janice Barresi, centre, and OSEG CEO Mark Goudie, right, are shown on the first day of Lansdowne 2.0 delegations on Nov. 2, 2023. (Francis Ferland/CBC)Supporters of the plan are calling it an investment in the city — one they hope will pay off in the long term. But critics don’t believe that pay off is guaranteed. Local businesses, tourism industry pleased Catherine Callary, Ottawa Tourism’s vice-president of destination development, says the state of the current arena has made attracting major sports and cultural events to the city a challenge. “This is something that counteracts that issue that we’ve been having,” she said. She anticipates a revamped site will “be a really big player in Ottawa’s economy.” Callary pointed to the World Men’s Curling Championships, the Pacific Four Series and the Volleyball Nations League that took place in 2024 as examples of events that brought an influx of tourists to the city.”Those combined injected $17 million back into Ottawa’s economy,” she said. “I think that when we are able to invest in ourselves as a city, that has long-term benefits.”Catherine Callary, with Ottawa Tourism, says she’s hopeful Lansdowne 2.0 will attract more sporting and cultural events to the city. (Francis Ferland/CBC)But for existing local sports teams who play at Lansdowne, like the Ottawa Charge, concerns around capacity remain for the new arena, which will have approximately 3,000 fewer seats. In a statement to the CBC, the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) said “no meaningful discussion on capacity ever took place,” with the city, or with OSEG, despite the league repeatedly raising it as a concern. “While today’s outcome is disappointing, our focus remains on delivering an exceptional experience for fans this season and continuing to grow the game,” the statement said. The current arena has about 9,500 seats, while plans for the new arena include 5,850 seats, with standing room that would boost capacity to 6,600 fans.The plan was passed by a 15-10 vote, with amendments to work with the PWHL to keep the Ottawa Charge in the city. “We’re so excited for the success that they have had and and we feel confident that they will be able to come to a resolution,” said Sueling Ching, president and CEO of the Ottawa Board of Trade. Overall, she said she looks forward to the development, which includes two towers with two storeys of retail. Ching told the CBC that based on city projections, she expects the redevelopment will create nearly 5,000 new jobs.”We feel as though this project is very aligned with our desire to see a more diverse economy, to leverage a cultural centre in that area and to use it as an asset for attracting both top talent investment and enhancing our visitor economy,” she said. Amit Kumar, the owner of Sunset Grill at Lansdowne, said he’s looking forward to the long-term benefits that Lansdowne 2.0 will bring. (Anchal Sharma/CBC)But Ching acknowledged that construction, which may take up to nine years to complete, may be a nuisance for the businesses already there.”That’s always something that businesses have to navigate. But we feel as though the investment in future development is the best overall for everyone in the long term,” she said.That’s the main concern for Amit Kumar, the owner of Sunset Grill at Lansdowne. Kumar said he only recently took over the business, but was aware of the potential construction before he bought it in the summer.”I’m not sure how that’s going to obstruct our business,” he said, adding he hopes to benefit from the redevelopment once it’s complete.”It’s progress, right? And there’s going to be, I’ve heard, a couple new residential buildings coming up on the north side of the stadium. So for us, eventually, it’s going to mean more business.”LISTEN | This is Ottawa on Lansdowne 2.0:This is Ottawa21:19Lansdowne 2.0 is a go. Now what?Ottawa City Council has greenlit a project that’s been red hot with pushback. So now that Lansdowne 2.0 is a go, what does it mean for residents, visitors, festivals, sports teams – and the city’s financial future?Darrell Cox, executive director of the Glebe BIA, shares Kumar’s optimism. He said the majority of businesses in the area are supportive of the project, and they’re already looking at ways to mitigate the impact of heavy truck traffic when construction begins. “This is going to be an inconvenience, but I don’t see where you’d be foreseeing any business closures because of the construction,” Cox said, adding that, like Kumar, other businesses in the Glebe are excited at the prospect of two new residential buildings at the site. “That’s millions of dollars of new retail revenue for our stores.”Critics say plan is flawed, fight isn’t over Carolyn Mackenzie, a member of the City of Ottawa’s planning advisory committee, has been a longtime critic of the project, but says she was not surprised by council’s final vote last Friday. “I would say that in some ways, the final decision was quite predetermined around the council chambers some time ago, which is really … not the way it’s supposed to work,” she said. According to Mackenzie, the present financial risk of the redevelopment plan outweighs any potential future reward. “They say we’re going to get all this profit, primarily from the retail and [ticket sales from the Ottawa Redblacks] that will go toward … reimbursing taxpayers. But we’re going to have to wait 20, 30, 40 years down the road to see that,” she said. Carolyn Mackenzie says she was disappointed by Friday’s city council vote. (Nykolas Robitaille/CBC)She added that it’s not clear when money for affordable housing, which would be redirected from the tower deal, would be available to the city. Neil Saravanamuttoo, the executive director of City Shapes, who led a petition for a referendum on Lansdowne 2.0, was also disappointed by the vote. “There’s a lot of people that care deeply about this decision who are very upset with the results and are not prepared to let this go just yet,” he said. While he accepts that the project will move forward, Saravanamuttoo told the CBC he feels city councillors should justify their vote. “A number of people are going to make this into a 2026 election issue to the best of our ability,” he said.
Ottawa businesses hopeful Lansdowne 2.0 will be an economic boon. Critics aren’t so sure
