The federal government has kickstarted a major redevelopment project of a run-down office building on Elgin Street which has outlived its purpose.
In a recent announcement, the Government of Canada opened the door to developers interested in the converting of the Lorne Building and the adjacent parking lot, located at 90 Elgin St., across from the National Arts Centre and Confederation Park.
Public Works Minister Christian Paradis, says that the project will involve both public and private sector contributions as well as “take full advantage of the building’s location on Ottawa’s Ceremonial Route.”
The former home of the National Gallery of Canada, the seven-storey building was originally used as office space, but was modified to accommodate more than 30 gallery areas, as well as a library and auditorium.
After providing a home for the gallery from 1959 until 1987, the building was reverted to office space and is currently being used by a number of different government departments.
According to Public Works, after a developer is chosen, they will then deconstruct the existing building, as well as design, finance and construct the new building.
The site’s prominent position in the downtown area makes this project significant as stakeholders feel that it must be built in a manner that respects the look and feel of the surrounding areas as it is considered to be essential to the realization of the “Vision for Canada’s Capital,” according to Public Works.
“It’s a very important site in the downtown,” says Somerset Coun. Diane Holmes. “So naturally the council would be interested in ensuring that it’s a significant building with good architecture that blends in with the existing architecture of Confederation Square.”
In addition to making sure the new building fits well with its surroundings, Holmes also hopes the development plan, will take advantage of the site’s proximity to one of Ottawa’s social hubs.
“It would be nice to have retail on the ground floor to activate Elgin Street because there is a lot of pedestrian traffic and a lot of tourism traffic,” Holmes says. “Ideally it will be something that brings life and light and colour to the area.."
The redevelopment of the former national gallery is only one small part of a larger federal project to build five new office towers in the Ottawa area over the next five years.
However, the federal government’s ambitious new development plans are causing local building owners to mull over what kind of impact the new building will have on vacancy rates and rental fees.
“The Elgin Street building alone may not be that impactful,”
says Dean Karakasis, the executive director of the Building Owners and Managers Association of Ottawa.
“If they build five towers it may have a larger impact.”
Karakasis says he thinks it is still too early in the game to tell exactly what kind of impact the redevelopment will have, but adds that he is optimistic about the direction the new project is headed.
“It certainly affords opportunities for people to come and replace old stock with new stock,” he says.
“Those opportunities are not just financial. It provides us with opportunities to upgrade what the commercial industry does in terms of its environmental footprint as well.”