By Jamie Irving
Urban renewal: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Everyone has their idea of what makes a great neighbourhood.
When I moved to Ottawa almost six years ago, I had an idea of what I was looking for.
I wanted to be downtown — but not just anywhere.
There were two big things I was looking for. First, I wanted to live in a place with some character. And second, I wanted to live in a place with a sense of community.
Elgin Street fit the bill. There was a movie theatre, little diners, specialty grocery stores, and a few good pubs — everything I was looking for, all within walking distance.
But it’s just not the same street any more.
The community feel of Elgin Street is still there, but it seems diminished.
And with every new franchise that appears, the little character left is slowly being sucked away.
Servers in plaid shirts and aprons are being replaced with people clad in purple polyester and matching golf visors.
The movie theatre is gone and restaurants like Ed’s Diner and the Party Palace have disappeared.
All my old haunts have been replaced with franchises like Harvey’s, the Second Cup, Starbucks, The Great Canadian Bagel and — of course — McDonald’s.
These franchises were not designed for Elgin Street locals.
They are there for people who visit the street, those who work in the area, who go to school, or who come downtown to go drinking on the weekends… and then go home to the suburbs.
The old Elgin Street was diverse, and this gave it character. The new Elgin Street specializes in corporatized hangouts and fast food.
On the other hand, it is argued that all these new businesses have helped to revitalize Elgin. I suppose this has enabled some of the old standards like the Mayflower, the Manx and the Elgin Street Diner to stay in business.
The cost of trying to renew Elgin Street may turn out to be too high for those of us who live there. It may revitalize the local economy — but at what expense?