City of Ottawa
An illustration of what the Lyon Station entrance on Queen Street might look like after construction.Queen Street will soon be under a spotlight in the downtown core as the city announces its plans to make the new pedestrian destination Ottawa’s “showcase” street, where the LRT Confederation Line will run underground.
The elements of the two-year renewal project were announced March 9 in preparation for construction to begin this spring on Queen.
Pedestrians and LRT users are the main focus of this new design, the goal being to provide them with the highest level of service.
Somerset Coun. Catherine McKenney told Centretown News via email that the showcase street distinction was given to Queen because it will be one of the most travelled streets in the downtown core.
McKenney says the street design will be improved for LRT users by widening the new brick sidewalks, raising pedestrian crossings at intersections and adding benches and bike racks.
“The wider sidewalks are the most important feature of the design because pedestrians will be going to and from the transit stations in very high numbers,” she says.
There were no specific criteria for choosing a showcase street and this title was specifically created for the Queen redevelopment.
The plan is based on the 2013 study Downtown Moves: Transforming Ottawa’s Streets, which looked at ways to create more vibrant, safe and inclusive streets in the city. The study concluded that making Queen into a transit showcase street in time for the opening of the Confederation Line should be a priority development for the city.
Queen Street will also now be considered a so-called “complete street” – along with Churchill Avenue in Westboro and Main Street in Ottawa East – even though separate bike lanes are not in the plan.
Unlike other complete streets, Queen will offer a shared lane with markings to indicate where cyclists will be travelling.
Complete streets are those that are built for all users and not just vehicles, says Mitch Vandenborn, the president of the Centretown Citizens Community Association.
He says the association did not specifically provide input for this project, but was involved with the city in consultations regarding the Centretown Community Design Plan, which focused on implementing more complete streets in Centretown.
“Complete streets are something that we support and want to see more of in Centretown,” he says.
The two-year construction period is expected to end in the spring of 2018.
Work will be ongoing during the Ottawa 2017 celebrations commemorating Canada’s 150th birthday.
Vandenborn says the association will be keeping an eye on the construction and how it affects the people in Centretown. The association hopes to work with the city and McKenney to ensure there are safety considerations for the community while construction is going on.
“As happens quite frequently in Centretown, construction can really muck things up for pedestrians,” he says. “We want to be able to manage that disruption so that it isn’t too disruptive for local residents and businesses.”
The city notes in the Queen Street renewal plan that its goal is to minimize the negative construction effects on the businesses and residents as much as possible.
The Sparks Street Business Improvement Area represents several businesses on Queen affected by this construction including Starbucks and GoodLife Fitness.
These businesses have had to deal with construction on Queen since the beginning of the LRT project, says Kevin McHale, the program and events co-ordinator of the BIA.
McHale says businesses have been holding their own during the current construction and are looking forward to the impending commuter traffic when the transit line opens.
This showcase street is intended to offer a safe and friendly environment for all commuters and ensure vehicles no longer rule the road.
“It’s a good balance of everything you need downtown,” says McHale. “Vehicles can still move, a biker can move, and people can move. It’s all good.”