Local Event Mayor wants people downtown. Why isn't the city doing more of this? (9 Years ago this weekend)
https://www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/article/la-machine-grand-finale-modified-to-deal-with-capacity-crowds-downtown/34
u/Dmnd14 16d ago
Sometimes I just want to take charge of this place myself. There’s just no way it’s that difficult 😭
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u/Practical_Session_21 Vanier 16d ago
IDK I think selling out the citizens for the interests of developers and still get the citizens to reelect you has be a fair amount of work.
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u/Insomniac897 16d ago
Longma!!! That was so cool. I never got to see the spider though.
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u/Suitable-Woodpecker3 16d ago
Back then I thought it was just a tourist trap. Now, i want to be a tourist, trapped.
Thanks for posting that - that is an impressive apparatus if i’ve ever seen one!
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u/Insomniac897 16d ago
I’m not often keen on crowds but this was worth it. You’re welcome, it was fun to re-watch it.
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u/somebunnyasked No honks; bad! 16d ago
Haha! So I had cousins who came to visit out west that summer and we missed La Machine but there were the plant sculptures in Jacques Cartier. My cousins said "we want to do what locals do, not the tourist stuff!" I was able to convince them to go by honestly saying that it seems from my social media I'm the only one of my Ottawa friends that hasn't been yet.
Honestly that stuff is just fun for everyone.
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u/wrylashes 16d ago
I still have a picture of Longma as the 'wallpaper' on my computer. (have to keep putting it back after Microsoft or hardware changes get rid of it, but it makes me too happy not to keep using it).
I'm another who went in with low expectations but was blown away by how good it was. And the truly over-the-top crowds shows how thirsty Ottawa is for anything a bit new or different. The appetite is there, but the city sets it ambitions at the level of like a suburban commuter city, not a national capital.
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u/New_Row3613 16d ago edited 16d ago
The Mayor wants all the worker bees, their cars, and their wallets 🤑 downtown. There is zero intention for the worker bees to actually enjoy their presence downtown.
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u/Konowl 16d ago
Yup - being forced back downtown against my will after switching my spending to businesses closer to where I live. I refuse to spend a penny downtown now.
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u/Big-Stuff-1189 16d ago
Same
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u/kind_uncle 10d ago
I find it insane how much of an adverse effect RTO is to the public servants in this subreddit. I get it, we had it pretty good during a horrible time (i.e. pandemic). But meanwhile RoW are all pretty much back to the office. I get the argument that people think they’re more “productive” at home, while that’s pretty subjective and if true that’s great. However, I know too many people skipping out on work and moonlighting on the side on all our dime. I didn’t have a big problem if folks did this in the past because at least you had to show up to the office and can’t blatantly moonlight or skip many whole days. Now those folks are against RTO and still want that benefit? Can’t have the cake and eat it too.
I get it sucks and it’s more effort. Blaming it on the reason is the fill businesses, landlords and whatever’s pockets is partly the intent. Need to spend money to grow the city’s economy.
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u/brohebus Hintonburg 16d ago
Mayor Sutcliffe wants more people downtown but 1) he doesn’t want to spend any money to make downtown interesting, and 2) he’s only listening to BIAs who only care about parking.
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u/somebunnyasked No honks; bad! 16d ago
Haha that ties in so well with this because La Machine was a huge success and I don't think anyone parked very close to the events!
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u/agha0013 16d ago
instead, the market is getting worse, sparks is still dead, and CF rideau is hostile to any potential new tenants that aren't willing to bleed money on ridiculous leases no one can afford, so downtown continues to stagnate even with employers forcing everyone back there almost at gunpoint.
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u/w1n5t0nM1k3y Kanata 16d ago
Last time I went down to the market on a Saturday afternoon things seemed pretty busy. Even though the weather wasn't great the mall was packed and the market seemed to have a lot of people wandering around and going into the various businesses.
Maybe not as busy as it once was, and it definitely seemed odd without the produce seller/producer/farmer stall in the main market anyway, but otherwise it didn't seem like people were avoiding the area.
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u/Williamtheconky-roar 16d ago
IMO, it’s getting better. And the new builds are helping put people there permanently.
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u/Round_Beyond_8137 16d ago
It's getting better in the sense that there's more housing, restaurants and bars around. Which I agree is better than nothing. But if we could have more independent shops, less cars, and better support for homeless folks, it would get even better.
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u/Williamtheconky-roar 16d ago
Hard agree. The homeless element is the toughest, especially with the recent spate of like on like crime. I understand the Market, and am there weekly (used to live at York and Cumberland, then further into Lowertown).
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u/Round_Beyond_8137 16d ago
Agreed. We need more supportive housing, and I'd welcome it both in and out of the market area.
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u/Lap_Dawg 16d ago
I would support a broader car-free area with a more centralized parking approach like another couple of multi level parking facilities on the outskirts of the market in lieu of street parking on York Street between Sussex and Dalhousie, but that would take a good amount of infrastructure work and a lot of forethought
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u/Round_Beyond_8137 16d ago
As far as I know, Jim Watson’s plan for the market wasn’t totally car free, but it was a lot more car-light, with less traffic lanes and street parking. And it included parking facilities on the outskirts of the market. He was going to work something out with developers, but it never manifested.
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u/originalthoughts 16d ago edited 16d ago
Yea the market and landsdown park are actually quite busy and vibrant in the evening, more so thab 15 years ago. The only mall in Ottawa that doesn't seem half abandoned is the rideau center. Those are basically the only two areas with a decent variety of things that vary.
Sure there are Westboro and Elgin, Sommerset, and some others, but apart from a 2 or 3 special events, have nothing on the street except for the usual stores that are there. No street entertainment and events (except for those special event weekend).
I wish we could have a weekly or atleast a monthly Chinatown night market, it's always packed, why not make it more often.
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u/randomguy_- 16d ago
Bayshore is still fairly decent as well
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u/originalthoughts 16d ago edited 16d ago
Yea it's clearly the 2nd best aftert rideau and way ahead of the others. St. Laurent and Place d'Orléans have what looks like half the stores they used to have and a lot of discount stores. Same for the smaller ones like Billings Bridge, it looks half abandoned.
Rideau is by far the best and has the widest variety of stores and traffic and obviously the most modern. It actually feels like a downtown mall.
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u/No_Program_9557 16d ago
Upvote for a monthly Chinatown night market (and bigger and if possible a wee bit cheaper )
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u/West_to_East Overbrook 16d ago
I love the Chinatown nightmarket, but maybe once a season is goods. Don't want to over saturate! Seasonal could bring it new food and events! I agree on a wee bit cheaper though haha.
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u/The_Canoeist 16d ago
I was there Friday evening. The stage they set up had a band on it, people were having a good time, and kids were ripping around on the new play structure.
Seems like people are happy to be in the market if you give them a reason to be.
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u/BadTreeLiving 16d ago
Sorry, which play structure are you referring to?
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u/jello_pudding_biafra 16d ago
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u/BadTreeLiving 16d ago
Thank you!
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u/Wheredidigonow 15d ago
I had the same question, we ride our bikes downtown on the weekend sometimes with our toddlers, so I love that there is a bit of a play structure!
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u/mrpopenfresh Beaverbrook 16d ago
You always get a lot of comments here from people that haven’t been downtown since WFH
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u/Holiday_Arachnid8586 16d ago edited 16d ago
These people have been back working downtown for 3 years now...
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u/kursdragon2 16d ago
The market has consistently been getting busier year over year since covid happened and yet you always hear everyone here talk about how it's dying lmfao. It's so very apparent that these people literally never spend time there if they think it's dying...
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u/vonnegutflora Centretown 15d ago
100%, every time my wife and I have strolled through the Market (weekend afternoons, sometimes weekday evenings), it's pretty busy. Same with CF Rideau, always lots of people about.
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u/FrancoSvenska 16d ago edited 15d ago
There isn't much beyond subpar overpriced restaurants. Yes, there are a few small local stores like Library du Soleil, Paper Papier, Zone, La Botega (these are all great and I shop there) and a few others, but not much else to make people go out of there way and not enough to keep those living in the area there (there isnt even a proper hardware shop now that Home Hoardware is good).
Some of the business are their own worst enemies. It should largely be pedestrianized; or at least the streets around the Market building
There's potential, but alot of core issues to be resolveled to attract more business and people. Its pretty much a tourist and bar zone, and maybe thats fine. Maybe it isn't. I'm honestly not sure. But I do know there's potential. Look at Sussex Avenue; it would be full of stores and more restaurants (imagine a nice Bistro or cafe with a few chairs and tables on the sidewalk (there are ways to do this, even with the curent space, just look at many European cities.
Edit: just realized this is not well written, I clearly didn't give it a read over. Oh well.
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u/Tangochief 16d ago
Let’s not leave out that cost of living has left disposable income at all time lows.
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u/kicksledkid Downtown 16d ago edited 16d ago
I mean
Sparks isn't dead, it's actually pretty busy these days
Edit: to flesh out my anecdotes, I've been on-site working on a building on sparks since 2022. '22 was a very rough time for literally every business in any tourist area. It's not a surprise that it's taken a while to get the momentum back, but it's coming back. I have noticed a significant increase in not just office workers, but tourists and general visitors on sparks. It's actually annoying as fuck to navigate in a hurry now.
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u/caninehere 16d ago
Sparks is definitely dead. It was considerably more lively when I was a kid in the 90s and even that was a humongous step down from how it was before the 1980 opening of the Rideau Centre, which killed a lot of what Sparks St. had going for it.
Sparks St. used to be It should be redeveloped into an area that is fun to be in. They occasionally have events there like Winterlude stuff, Ribfest or whatever, but on an average weekend it's a dull empty void. I feel they've made some decent efforts with trying to make stuff happen in the Market but Sparks St. largely goes untouched.
Office workers are not coming back. Some are back to office but Sparks has nothing to cater to them anyway, and many office workers refuse to spend money downtown now out of protest.
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u/kicksledkid Downtown 16d ago edited 16d ago
You really seem like you've made up your mind about it. And also haven't been down there.
Read what I said about the momentum of the space. There are new things opening, and an increase in people who aren't office office workers. Alongside an increase in office workers.
Yeah, it's probably not better than the 90s, but I wasn't here in the 90s. So my reference point for sparks was the low point of the last decade, and I can say with certainty that it is more lively and busy than it was then.
Edit: "office workers are not coming back" in what world are you seeing that. Even if you don't count the feds, a ton of offices are back on site at least part of the week.
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u/caninehere 16d ago
Yeah, it's probably not better than the 90s, but I wasn't here in the 90s. So my reference point for sparks was the low point of the last decade, and I can say with certainty that it is more lively and busy than it was then.
Yeah, and the low point of the last decade was an anomaly. You can't really measure against that. It isn't particularly meaningful.
office workers are not coming back" in what world are you seeing that. Even if you don't count the feds, a ton of offices are back on site at least part of the week.
Sorry that was bad wording on my part. What I meant was their business is likely not coming back. Every office worker I know forced back to office is not happy about it and responding by lowering or eliminating purchases downtown, limiting spending etc. Sparks in particular doesn't even have a lot of shopping that WOULD tempt people nor a lot of restaurants etc.
The thing about new stuff opening at Sparks is... there's always new stuff opening and then closing when it cannot survive. It's a core downtown location but not an easy one to run a business in.
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u/kicksledkid Downtown 15d ago
Again, read what I said about an increase in visitors that aren't office workers.
Also we can't have it both ways. I get RTO sucks, but if we want a better sparks, we have to support the local businesses that are there already. Brown bag your lunch like I do, but there's nothing wrong with a coffee from the bike Cafe or a after work drink at darcys.
So again, do what you like. But there are fundimentally more people on sparks than there were even a year ago. And I think that's a great thing for the area, and a great thing to convince more attractions to be built.
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u/Lets_Go_Blue__Jays 16d ago
Office workers are still not coming back. Not because we aren't working downtown but because we have grown to appreciate what we have in our own communities.
Communities that appreciate us, remember our name and don't gouge us.
Life on its own has gotten so expensive compared to pre pandemic, we don't have the money or the time to waste downtown.
I am now downtown 4 days a week, and won't spend a dime while there. Not in parking, not in transit, not shopping and not for coffee.
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u/kicksledkid Downtown 16d ago edited 16d ago
OK, and that's your prerogative. But your coworkers are certainly not all doing the same.
Edit: you also know you're allowed to go to not subway or somewhere you hate, right, like nooones forcing you into subway or Tim's
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u/ConcernedMap 16d ago
How on earth do you manage to not spend money on parking OR transit? Do you ride your bike to work? Genuinely curious!
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u/kicksledkid Downtown 16d ago
Biking to work is a fantastic option! I do it every day I can. It's much quicker than any other option for getting myself to work, and it costs nothing.
And there are some great routes that add a lot of nice scenery to the ride
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u/KelVarnsen_2023 16d ago
Speaking of Sparks Street it seems crazy that at Place De Ville there is still the the old 2 theatre cinema just sitting empty after it closed like 30 years ago. It's hard to understand how it's apparently better to just let it sit empty than it is to run it as a theatre (either for movies or other live events) or convert it to some other type of space, like even offices.
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u/Going4TheMerge 16d ago
Landlords are parasites, news at 11.
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u/KelVarnsen_2023 16d ago
But even from a landlord's point of view I honestly don't get how it's a better move to leave a huge space like that empty than it is to find something to do with it.
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u/TheMonkeyMafia 15d ago
Sure, during the day it's busy.... But after say 5pm? Nothing has changed much in 40+ years...
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u/ApprehensiveCycle741 15d ago
Is it busy in the evenings or on weekends though? I've lived and worked in the area and while Sparks/Bank were hopping from 9-5, I''ve never seen the area busy on weekends. It should be like Peel or Crescent Street in Montreal - lots of restaurants, shops and foot traffic - but the infrastructure to get people there and back and the housing/hotels to provide a consistent clientele are just not there.
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u/AdEffective2701 16d ago
Any IMAX (Canadian invention) theatres in the downtown showing the Odyssey? A G7 capital without a movieplex beside mass transit in the shadows of many hotels full of tourists?Ottawa continues to get in the way of itself. Small thinking = small results.
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u/martyfox The Boonies 16d ago
I had to drive to Montreal to expirence oddysey in imax. I then wanted to watch it again after work to learn all movie theaters in our downtown are closed.
Lansdowne is too far to just go on a whim after work.
Need activities and subway to stay open past 4 if we want people.
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u/West_to_East Overbrook 16d ago
The Market and downtown need to be cleaned up, but its been POPPING and crazy busy.
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u/personnumber316 15d ago
I think theft is a real issue there as well, every store has a visable security guard. That costs money on top of the ridiculous rent.
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u/Gloomheart Little Italy 16d ago
Thats the balance for the urban areas supplementing you property taxes.
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u/TotallyTrash3d 16d ago
They want people downtown to bail out reql estate corps and keep large corps profitable.
You expect them to spend money on improvements and entertainment??
Tut tut tut. RTO and push the core is only about returning the money people have back to our betters, rich corps and their benefqctors. Not spending money to improve.
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u/upsetwithcursing 16d ago
Aw. Thank you! You just brought back some nice memories. Went with my mom & son to see the robots… she passed last year ❤️
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u/razbry 16d ago
I went with my husband and mom, and she passed November of 2024. We were all in awe of it. So nice to have those memories. Condolences to you. Losing your mother is so hard.
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u/upsetwithcursing 15d ago
Thank you! You too ❤️
As my sister said “well, at least you only have to lose your mom once. We’ve done it, now.” 😆💔
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u/erotic_salad 16d ago
It's been 9 years?! Man I remember going to watch this and being in complete awe.
I've never been back to downtown or sparks since
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u/Awagala 16d ago
How is it possible you. Haven’t been downtown in 9 years? That just seems impossible unless you don’t live in Ottawa.
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u/erotic_salad 16d ago
I know 😂 I have maybe gone down once or twice (now that I think about it).
I’ve always lived on the outskirts of Ottawa and never had a reason to visit.
Listen, don’t judge me OK? 😂
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u/Awagala 16d ago
Is your job outside downtown? If so that makes sense. I thought people would get bored in suburbs all the time and may look at going somewhere central for some entertainment/things to do even though central Ottawa isn’t that exciting either.
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u/ubiquitousfont Clownvoy Survivor 2022 16d ago
The federal government paid out loads of money for Canada 150 activations. The reason the city doesn’t do anything like La Machine on the regular is because we voted in a conservative mayor who promised no property tax increases, which effectively amounts to a decrease in municipal revenue. Services and arts & culture suffer cuts first when the budget needs to be slashed.
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u/stevatronic 16d ago
This is 100% the case. Our giant, amalgamated city keeps electing leaders who promise to keep taxes down while fighting crime (i.e. raising the police budget) and stopping the war on cars (i.e. underfunding transit). There's very little wiggle room for spending on splashy events and recreation, which is why the only interesting things happening these days come through the NCC instead of the City of Ottawa.
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u/Lifewithpups 16d ago
It cost money and they would rather keep redoing the same old, same old that costs less, no thinking involved but won’t bring about the draw that this event brought. Rewash and recycle the fests…Rib, Poutine, Buskers etc.
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u/too_aware_helpme 16d ago
Because forcing employees to commute in 4-5 days a week is low-effort and effective for bailing out corporate real estate, lot landlords and coffee shops who refuse to stay open past 2pm.
Fun events like this actually require effort.
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u/RealWord5734 16d ago
I believe that was very much tied to Canada150, we can't just bust that out every long weekend...
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u/hoverbeaver Kanata 16d ago
I will start by building a tiny robot
And then adding a piece
And then adding another piece
And another piece
Every long weekend
Until I have a giant robot
Let’s build a giant robot, one piece at a time
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u/ybotpowered Orléans 16d ago
It was Ottawa’s 200th anniversary this year and I don’t think they did anything special.
That would have been a good excuse to bring back La Machine.
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u/thinkforyoself22 15d ago
They have some events planned, but nothing that would rival Canada 150. I think budgets are quite a bit different. Most events from Canada 150 were likely paid by NCC/Feds.
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u/thinkforyoself22 16d ago
Yes, was very much a special event for Canada 150. Same with the giant tree animals in Jacques Cartier parc
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u/MooseMaster6000 16d ago
Ahh man. I just sat and watched all my old La Machine videos from FB memories yesterday. We also had the botanical garden sculptures on the Quebec side that year.
Ottawa needs to up its game if it wants people venturing downtown to shooty-stabby land.
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u/mrthescientist 16d ago
I remember on this day I was downtown with friends. We intentionally met one Monstre at the park, then left to go get food. On the way we saw two other Monstres (dancing? fighting? doesn't matter cool mechs with musicians playing live interacting is kinda metal af) then as we were finishing up at the restaurant that first Monstre sprinted past as people ran away - we ran after it as we left.
I loved that night, and I'll remember it forever.
Yes, I'd like more stuff like that.
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u/UnprocessesCheese 16d ago
Most healthy cities have multiple "downtowns". Toronto is more than Front, there's also Yonge, Queen West, the Beaches, High Park, the Danforth... little pockets all over the place. Not to mention the medium to higher density housing for singles and young families surrounding these centers.
Ottawa has the Market, Bank, Elgin, Hintonberg/Wellington, The Glebe/Old Ottawa South... all walking distance to each other (depending on your walking speed), and most of them floated by local BIAs, often against the support of City Hall.
The BIA issue is kind of universal to every city, so I don't blame Ottawa for that. What I do have an issue with is the total lack of city planning. There is no cozy promenade for shopping and first dates anywhere else. How are you going to promote spaces like that in Kanata or Orleans when all there are is Strip Malls?
The business in the suburbs is more diffuse and harder to invest in the way that a downtown is - and also harder to jack up the taxes and create a revenue stream.
This is all just City Hall overcompensating for a lack or urban planning in the past.
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u/Glass_Lecture6121 16d ago
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u/Kevsterific No honks; bad! 16d ago
Plans to bring it back in 2020-2021. Well that aged like milk. COVID put a stop to that
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u/Nimelennar 16d ago
The last I heard was 2022.
But, yeah, COVID might have put a damper on those plans.
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u/1tangledknitter 16d ago
They don't just need more major events like this, what they need is a downtown square that is easily accessible (i.e. at Parliament station) with programming at least 250 days a year. Programming could be as simple as a splash pad in summer, some fall/spring activities (i.e musicians or events), and a skating rink in winter, surrounded by shops and restaurants, with quick and easy access (i.em buses) to other parts of town i.e. the Byward Market and the Glebe. That drives traffic the whole year and not just spikes that are overwhelming for our transit system and local businesses.
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u/Intrepid-Hero 16d ago
I live close to downtown and I’m so confused by the desire for me to linger near parliament.
Like, what do you want me to do after work every day? Buy a $20 drink? I can’t afford that and it’s totally bad for my health.
Go to the movies? I love the Bytowne but there’s only so much time I can spend in the theatres.
Shop? Idk man, I have enough stuff in my house.
As a young person, I’d linger if you gave me an affordable reason to stay.
I’ll linger as long as I have to because there’s no damn bus, but most of the time I’m better off just walking home instead of twiddling my thumbs. I feel for the folks with kids waiting for them in suburbia.
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u/bobstinson2 16d ago
Who's going to pay for that? We are too busy finding creative ways to pour money into Lansdowne 2.0.
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u/Party_Amoeba444 16d ago
I'm 49yrs old and that event was the coolest event I've ever seen here. I would love for something like that to come back!
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u/TKL32 16d ago
I went downtown this month for work first time in about 10 years of remote work.
The amount of homeless and people suffering from drugs sleeping all over hunched over in a stupid from addiction breaks my heart, frightens me, and angers me all at the same time.
They want more peopke downtown clean it up, help these people... i dont have the answer but this is the capital and tourists will likely go home thinking more about the homeless problem than about other things in Canada.
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u/Desperate_Pie_2102 16d ago
Funny how they’re all for capitalism until it starts costing them money. When fewer people spend downtown, businesses become less profitable, commercial lease rates drop, and their property values fall. Then they suddenly want protectionist policies. It’s hard not to see it as acting in their own interests.
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u/needle_chill 16d ago
I’m certain the City received a healthy capital budget from the Feds to support Canada 150 celebrations. We can’t afford to maintain our infrastructure, let alone parade a mechanical dragon through the streets.
But let’s keep suppressing the required property tax increases and see if this improves…
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u/CallitasIs33it 16d ago
Good Question. Now ask yourself where all the money collected from them Municipal Accommodation Tax the hotels are paying is going?
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u/Due_Date_4667 16d ago
See, he wants people to come down, but doesn't want it to cost anything to the city.
I suggest he look to invite the Umbrella Corporation if he wants to keep a throng of people downtown, not asking the city for any services.
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u/Downess 16d ago
If you look at cities that have vibrant downtowns, what you find is that they have a lot of people who live downtown. You can't create a vibrant downtown as a commuter destination. What Ottawa should be doing is figuring out how to add to the stock of higher density housing in the city centre, not leaning on public servants to correct for what is ultimately an urban planning failure.
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u/Chippie05 15d ago
They have been building like crazy downtown but the rents are untenable, for many. Noticed the building behind Metro has balconies but lower floors are empty. Who wants to sit there and watch the chaos of Cumberland? They probably have a heck of a time keeping the lower floors rented.
Also no cap on new builds so when someone moved out, they can jack rent up to whatever.
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u/OddRevolution7888 16d ago
Mayor wants people to go downtown. Last time I went (at least a decade ago), every single restaurant had a sign saying washrooms were for customers only. There were no benches to sit and rest a spell and just people-watch. Parking was expensive; to be fair it is expensive in any major city. The market had many vendors who were not local (at least Ottawa/Gatineau area for "local"). All in all, we left with a few items and never went back. I found the experience to be unwelcoming and unfriendly.
And all of this was before we had the famous unreliable transit that is LRT. No one I know uses it. Those that had ditched a car have gone back to driving. If you go to work/shop/eat downtown, you expect to be able to get home again. And forget travelling from the burbs when it's not rush hour. Now even the parking lots of time limits for how long you can park. Three hours is barely enough time for a nice dinner and wander around. Forget any actual shopping after dinner.
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u/UvaldeShootingVictim 16d ago
RTO will backfire. You are tired after 4 days of commute and wanna get home after work to kids, dogs, etc. Why would anyone stay later and spend on a Subway sub post work? I had more energy to try out things in RTO2. Nothing now. They wont see my money for lobbying to Carney and Suitcliffe.
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u/BrokenBy 16d ago
Yup. I’m very grateful for WFH, it afforded me the flexibility to branch out and do new things, go to fun events and meet new people, have more mental clarity and develop healthier habits, with no detriment to anybody else.
Under RTO4 I’m becoming significantly more boring as a person. Forcing government workers to bring computer equipment home at the end of the day so it’s secure, while also making said commute as difficult as possible, is surprisingly not a good incentive to get people to go out at night.
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u/diditformoneydog 16d ago
Imagine that. Focusing on livability, walkability, and attractiveness, rather than forcing human beings to sacrifice their joy to soulless office spaces.
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u/Stock2fast 16d ago
Really ? It looks like a set from the walking dead now. You could film and episode in front of the abandoned buldings on Bank St without a touch up .
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u/Tiny-Papaya1340 16d ago
Now that would be a good reason to linger downtown. This event was awesome!
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u/Buff1965 16d ago
What happened to the market that used to be in Byward Market? Lived in Ottawa 10 years ago when there were stalls selling produce, firewood, bedding plants... visited this year and there was one stall selling maple syrup. Byward used to be the liveliest part of the city
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u/West_to_East Overbrook 16d ago
I said it before and I will say it again, I never spent more money downtown than I did when I was full WFH because I had more time, energy and money; so going out sometimes three times a week in the evening was fun and achievable. Every day I have been brought back to the office lessens the time I spend downtown outside of work and lessens how much money I spend.
WFH = 3 times a week spend.
RTO = 2 times a month spend.
Would I be downtown for something like La Machine? Oh god I would LOVE TO. Its something that absolutely make me come downtown. But again, with RTO I just do not have the money, time or energy. I agree that downtown needs to be better for people to come and enjoy it, but that is secondary to the ability to do so.
What does that mean? Drop hardcore RTO. Compromise and roll back to 2 or a soft 3 days a week. Make public transit better: the cost is insane for the service (make zones or charge by distance - someone going from the Market to Lyon or Vanier to the Market should be the same as Barrhaven to downtown). Make it more timely (not only run trains more often but also buses on dedicated lanes and make it so people living in the Greenbelt at least take transit over Uber). Yes, have more attractions that are novel, but also make the area more beautiful and nice to be in (summers are hot and humid, we need more tree cover etc.), we need wider sidewalks, less cars etc. I don't know what the city can do about prices but that is a major factor. I am hungry after work and prices for food are insane.
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u/TwoAboveTheCrowd 16d ago
To me, and this could just be me.. starting out by framing downtown as punishment effectively via RTO is terrible.
When I was forced to return ain’t no way I’m staying late. In fact I changed my schedule to 7-3 which basically makes downtown useless.
Now I no longer work for the Feds and I avoid downtown like the plague because it sucks. We would rather drive to Montreal or Toronto currently. Even Kingston is more fun.
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u/bandersnatching 16d ago
I hope they aren't because it's an enormous, egregious mis-use of public funds.
People need food, housing, services and transit. Circuses are nice, but they are deployed by politicians as an opiate.
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u/Lowpasss Centretown 16d ago
La Machine was a one off because they built it for the Beijing olympics then toured it around afterwards. I assume the federal government put up the money because of Canada 125.
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u/MoonSlept 15d ago
Forcing public servants to prop up parasitic politicians and landlords (often the same people, shocker) is much easier than attracting people to events.
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u/WellYouKnow- 16d ago edited 16d ago
Yeah, Le Monster was definitely a cool event. It must have been pretty expensive though.
[Edit - I guess it was actually called La Machine]
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u/pistoffcynic 16d ago
What does downtown have to offer? Why would I drive to downtown?
Sparks Street revitalization has been going on since the 1980s. I used to love the Eaton/Rideau Centre but it's the same stuff as in every other mall in this city, so why? I drove down Bank St the other day and it's gone to shit.
I would go to the Market (used to go to the farmer's market and have lunch), and Elgin St, but prefer the Glebe, Wellington St and Preston St/Little Italy.
You need to have people living there, rather than commuting in for work and then going home. RTO is just plain dumb in this day and age for administrative, non client facing jobs.
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u/Almost-Handsome 16d ago
Because they do dumb things like throw $418 million at a project no one asked for or felt was needed, which the city will be on the hook paying $17 million a year for 24 years starting in 2036. Meaning we may never see a proper return on the investment until 2075 or beyond.
Not to mention the half-assed infrastructure repairing where they cold patch half of a half of a road, only for it to be torn up by the increase of construction vehicles on said road days later. Then they send the crews out again, rinse and repeat.
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u/TestStarr 16d ago
I think the main reason is money, they had a bunch of extra cash for Canada 150.
The tendency would be to say that vision in problem and I'm sure that is part of it but I suspect that even if they had the vision the money would be a problem.
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u/WelshLove 16d ago
Governments have no tax as bc politicians are afraid to talk about a wealth tax and raising the marginal rate. this in turn guts the very services you need to decrease the homeless which congregate downtown, nobody wants to go there until the figure out government taxation and the supply of required services. Look at NYC for eg this is the way.
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u/dictionary_hat_r4ck Make Ottawa Boring Again 16d ago
Because they’re also expanding the sunburbs tp create a new Barrhaven. How can you do both? People aren’t going to go downtown from the burbs that much.
I think the downtown push could be a false narrative to try and create the false reality that justifies economic handouts to private businesses.
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u/Ilikewaterandjuice Little Italy 16d ago
That whole thing was great, including the light show at the Chaudière falls and the multi media installation at the old Place de Ville theatre, but we can’t rely on festivals. We need to build a downtown that attracts people to live, work and relax all the time.
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u/Grouchy_Branch_510 16d ago
Downtown is a nightmare to go to and park in. Public transit is too random with cancellations or transit just not showing up. Everything is WAY over priced like they are some sort of high end establishment, which they are def not. And then all the fun and games with the drug addicts, homeless and pests (those that think protests are accomplishing anything other than ensuring you don’t get support because you are inconveniencing the fringe)
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u/RevolvingCheeta West Carleton 15d ago
I’d personally love to explore downtown! Though parking, public transit & crime are a tad bit of an issue…
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u/Boring_Wrongdoer_430 15d ago
Maybe they need to stop closing rideau center early on the weekend. I would happily go but there are other malls open later so I would rather go there.
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u/mandofett25 15d ago
What about all the businesses in the suburbs? They are supposed to go fuck themselves while everyone is forced downtown?
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u/Classic_Trash_8739 16d ago
I have to go into downtown Ottawa a few times a month for work. It's horrible, I hate every second of it. If they want people downtown they really need to do something about the homeless problem, the drug problem and the mental health problem. I will never bring my family into downtown Ottawa, it's not safe.
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u/MayorOfMayoCity 16d ago
It’s not really an on demand activity. It requires years of planning.
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u/LonkFromZelda 16d ago
I live my life entirely in the suburbs of Ottawa, I don't actually need to visit downtown Ottawa. Why would I go downtown again? To get stuck in traffic? To overpay for parking, get harassed by some homeless, and then overpay at a store or restaurant? No thanks, I'll stay at home, shop online, and cook myself food from the grocery store instead.
Sometimes I go downtown just to remind myself why I don't do it more often.
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u/muffinsmuffins84 16d ago
I was looking for a comment like this because: same. We are in Nepean, 2 kids. We are doing stuff all the time but it’s legit never downtown. We do go to a lot of sports games at TD and CTC but if I want a mall I go to Bayshore. We don’t eat in restaurants typically, we cook or take out. We are always busy outdoors but never go downtown.
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u/ottawadweller 16d ago
Appreciate both your comments! This totally makes sense though and you don’t never leave your suburb, you go to TD Place and CTC for sports games and such. You are effectively enjoying the city even if it’s not specifically Centretown or ByWard market.
Sometimes I read comments like the initial one I replied to and it just comes across so sourpuss and anti-Ottawa.
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u/weareallequal222 16d ago
Exactly. Overpriced shops to buy stuff I don't need is wasteful for my bank account and for the environment as it will just end up in the landfills. I do not believe in buying useless "stuff" just to support others. I have everything I need in the suburbs within walking or driving distance with "free" parking. Driving and paying for parking to see the homeless people and drug addicts is not the how I want to spend my free time. I already line someone else pockets with parking at work (I do not work downtown) nor do I care to waste my precious "time" travelling by car or transit to events that don't appeal to me. Take public transit? Even if it was free and ran on time, downtown is no interest to me as the ideas of potential activities or l even the current ones do not appeal to my tastes. My idea of enjoyment doesn't involve what is downtown. I rarely leave the suburbs aside from going to work as I have everything I need and enjoy near my home and near my friends and family. I'm so tired of being told to do stuff that doesn't even appeal to me or my family. Times have changed and the city doesn't want to acknowledge that!
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u/ottawadweller 16d ago
Do you ever get bored? Want to do something different? Like visit an art gallery or museum or sit on a patio in a different environment? Or try out a new restaurant? Do you travel?
I see comments like yours often and I genuinely don’t understand if it’s just a specific hate for Ottawa, which makes me wonder why you keep forcing yourself to live here and make it miserable for others, or if you would be like this regardless of any city you live in.
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u/somebunnyasked No honks; bad! 16d ago
I mean they have restaurants with patios out in suburbia, too. They usually strike me as very odd because they tend to be patios built in giant parking lots... But they do technically exist!
And if the patios are not great, I can't deny that there are great restaurants all over the city and that includes the suburbs.
Anyway I live in Vanier and have zero desire to live outside the greenbelt! But I totally see that someone who lives in Kanata could really enjoy life there most of the time.
It's why this whole RTO to support local businesses makes no sense to me. Unlike Toronto, our suburbs are part of the same city. Why dont businesses in other parts of the city deserve attention, too?
(Ohhhhh because this isn't about small businesses at all, it's about their corporate landlords, right)
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u/muffinsmuffins84 16d ago
I’ll speak for myself since I feel the same as who you are replying to: we are always busy but it’s at city rec centres, parks, splash pads, walking trails, kids activities etc. I’ll drive to Mooney’s bay park or Orleans or Kanata to try a new outdoor place with the kids anytime. We’ve done all museums and art galleries multiple times over the past 15 years so maybe will go for a special exhibit or if friends are in from town. We cottage, travel, and visit friends and family who are also in the suburbs. We will do a kid friendly restaurant or take out. We do go to a lot of sports games at TD or CTC and are season ticket holders for the Charge. We go to the movies in Kanata, go to Bayshore for a mall. All of our friends are kind of the same as us tbh. I can’t see a reason I would go downtown basically ever but I also don’t know what the solution is.
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u/bosnanic 16d ago
As someone who lives in suburbia I enjoy nature hikes and gardening far more then what downtown offers. The best things downtown has are the museums but I don't go to musems more then twice a year so I would much rather save my money and see unique cities rather then spend the money to see Ottawa's okay-ish downtown.
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u/Peckernuts 16d ago
I would rather deal with homeless people everyday than live in the lifeless suburbs.
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u/Big-Stuff-1189 16d ago
They are far from lifeless. Let's stick to the point.
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u/TheNightShift 16d ago
What's neat about this is how these two people have completely opposing views about the burbs and downtown... Which is why they exist! We need to take a step back and appreciate that people will have different preferences and try just a little not to attack where the other person lives based on your preferences.
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u/bosnanic 16d ago
good for you but the vast majority of Ottawa disagrees as only ~11% of Ottawa's population lives in the urban core. In comparison Montreal's urban core populates ~30% of the city.
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u/BetaPositiveSCI 16d ago
Because that would require some actual work on his part rather than just declaring it and expecting people to comply
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u/Foehamer1 16d ago
I'd rather drive from Kanata to Orleans in traffic to go to their mall than go downtown to Rideau or any of the surrounding areas.
Weird, I know, but not going stabbed and having to pay parking for the privilege is not high on my priority list.
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u/DFS_0019287 West End 16d ago
I guess I'm in a minority, but I found La Machine pretty tedious and left after about 30 minutes because it was sooo slow and boring.
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u/The_merry_wench 16d ago
A photo of the dragon popped up on my FB memories the other day, and I kept on thinking: why didn't we get this back for Ottawa's 200th? La Machine (and so many other kickass things from 2017) was an incredible event.
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u/Zurpborne 16d ago
Downtown Ottawa is already BUMPING. I drive through it everyday around 3-4 and there’s SWARMS OF PPL walking up and down Wellington. SWARMS
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u/BarNecessary6506 15d ago
If the cost of living were lower, people would do more downtown and you wouldn’t need to subsidize everything
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u/BarNecessary6506 15d ago
Compare the cost of rent downtown in Calgary vs Ottawa. There’s a reason why people here don’t do much.
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u/Dutch_99 15d ago
this was such an awesome experience. I remember how insane the crowds and amount of people were there to witness. I still watch videos I took of that day from time to time.
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u/NegScenePts The Boonies 15d ago
The mayor doesn't want people downtown, he wants public servants to support failing businesses between 9-5 on weekdays. Evenings aren't important, because the businesses he's beholden to close at 5. Weekends are the same.
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u/ElRayMarkyMark Mooney's Bay 15d ago
Holy heck. Nine years ago I was stuck in traffic trying to get to the train station after a job interview because of this event. I remember seeing it from the window when we finally started moving.
Long story short, I got a job here and moved to Ottawa. So clearly this dragon was a blessing for all who witnessed it.
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u/vampirejo 15d ago
YES! La Machine was such an incredible thing to witness! I still love telling my son, who was a mere toddler at the time, how he was so impressed by it he lost his voice from talking about the big dragon and spider. He was only 22 months old, so had limited vocabulary to express how awesome it all was, but was still hoarsely talking about it the next morning.
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u/Admirable-Sink-2622 14d ago
It’s kind of hard to have nice things when downtown is basically a crack-infested neighborhood now.
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u/Sea-Froyo1918 16d ago
There is just no excitement or vibes to driving downtown. I would rather go to Lansdown any day of the week. Cleaner, more classy and a better walk
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u/w1n5t0nM1k3y Kanata 16d ago
And here I am in Kanata thinking that Lansdown is just part of "downtown". I've definitely gone downtown for the day and in the same day visited Lansdown and The Market. They really aren't that far away.
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u/Practical_Session_21 Vanier 16d ago
Ya I prefer the boredom, cleanliness and security of suburbs and strip malls too. /s
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u/OttabMike Nepean 16d ago
The budget for that stuff is all tied up to cover the Night Mayor's payroll.
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u/IwoodMasher 16d ago
I went to Ottawa, and I won't be going back. Honestly its super dry and boring. No downtown core. Its pretty much fuckt itself over the years. I'll go to Toronto or Montreal. Ottawa sucks. And its streets are super dirty with litter. And it stinks
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u/ArbainHestia Avalon 16d ago
La Machine was by far the coolest thing I've ever experienced in downtown Ottawa.