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The first phase will include 192 underground parking spots, and 32 surface spots, as well as parking for nearly 200 bicycles. There is also a privately owned public park included in the plans.

Zoning approval, which designated how big the building will be and where on the site it sits and how much parking it requires, was granted by the city in June 2017. RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust, which owns the property, now needs its site plan control application approved, a process that, according to Leiper, could take six to nine months.

“These are more technical considerations,” said Leiper, “like where the garbage door is, and some of the materials they’re going to use, and landscaping.”

If the site plan is approved this year, says Craig, excavation could begin as early as this fall, or perhaps the spring of 2020. He estimates it would take two years from then before the first phase is completed. The overall project, which will see four more mixed-use buildings — two at 36 storeys and two at 22 storeys — may take 15 to 20 years to complete.

RioCan Real Estate Investment Tr

“People accuse me of being against everything,” said Leiper, “but I support this. Approving it was a relatively smooth process.

“We’re seeing all these really tall buildings going up on Scott Street, right next to single-family homes. But this is a relatively isolated site — you’re right on the arterial main street. This is a much better use than a big surface parking lot.”

Leiper added that OC Transpo is expected to up its game in the area with improved service on the No. 85 route on Carling Avenue. According to Brockington, the second phase of LRT in Ottawa, in 2021, will be accompanied by buses-only lanes along much of Carling Avenue, from Broadview to Bronson avenues.