During the latter half of the 19th Century and until about 1920 Cummings Island was a vibrant commercial hub on the Rideau River between Janeville (one of three settlements that eventually formed Eastview which later became Vanier) and Ottawa. When the City of Ottawa bought the island in 1923 and built a new bridge bypassing the island slightly north of it, the store was moved to a new location now occupied by Tim Hortons at the intersection of Montreal Road and Vanier Parkway. The new site was to become the entry point for what was to be Eastview’s downtown and Vanier’s traditional main street and French Quarter.

The City of Ottawa’s Official Plan and the accompanying Montreal Road District Secondary Plan designate Montreal Road as a Traditional Mainstreet stretching from the Rideau River to St. Laurent Blvd. According to Section 3.6.3 of the Official Plan the Mainstreet designation “identifies streets that offer some of the most significant opportunities in the city for intensification through more compact forms of development, a lively mix of uses and a pedestrian-friendly environment”.

The use of Traditional as an adjective added to the Mainstreet designation is important because it reflects a deliberate planning policy to recapture the historical role of older main streets (those developed before 1945 as defined in the Official Plan) when they served as the focal points of economic, social and civic activities for the surrounding neighbourhoods. Historically, main streets were typically lined with two- to three-storey mixed-use buildings built close together to the street or sidewalk edge with apartments on the upper floors.

Main streets represent an important and fascinating component of Ottawa’s urban history and fabric. During the early years of urban growth, these main streets were the centres of smaller settlements located on principal routes in and out of Bytown – towards the west on Richmond Road, south on Bank Street and east on Montreal Road.

The Village of Janeville was one of these small settlements. The Village was established in 1873 as a planned community “where Ottawa merchants and public servants could establish a peaceful residence, away from the noise and bustle of the city”. Janeville was described in 1879 as the “most flourishing village in the township [of Gloucester] and an important suburb of the capital”. Janeville was centred at the intersection of the newly built Montreal Road and the St. Lawrence and Ottawa Railway line which was eventually removed during the mid-1960s leading to the construction of the Vanier Parkway.

The Montreal Road main street in Janeville ran from the Railway line to Centre Street, now known as Granville Street. This stretch along Montreal Road is retained as the Central Sector in the Secondary Plan reflecting the historic downtown of Vanier/Eastview. The Secondary Plan notes that the Central Sector “has historically been referred to as the French Quarter and its role has been to act as the focal point of the cultural identity of the former City of Vanier”.

In 1908, Janeville joined together with two other settlements including Clandeboye which was a short distance east on Montreal Road and Clarkstown located south of Beechwood Avenue to form the village of Eastview. Eastview was then incorporated as a town in 1912 (population of 3,200) and a city in 1963 and then renamed Vanier in 1969.

As Ottawa continued to grow and expand physically, these outlying communities and their main streets became absorbed into the urban form and eventually annexed by the City although Eastview / Vanier retained their municipal status until it was amalgamated by the Province with the restructured City of Ottawa in 2001.

Vanier’s population has, however, remained stagnant in terms of growth over the past 25 years. Vanier experienced a net decline in population of 8.5% between 1991 and 2016 while the City of Ottawa grew by 38% over the same period (Source: Statistics Canada Census). Vanier has regained some population numbers between 2006 and 2016 when the community increased by a modest 900 persons or 5.6% which was still well below the City’s growth rate of 15.0%. Vanier has also been viewed as Ottawa’s poor cousin in terms of average household incomes and lower housing prices. Its socio-economic profile reflects the city’s historical role as a working-class community. For example, many households displaced by the LeBreton Flats “urban renewal” during the 1960s moved to Eastview (Ottawa Citizen, “Fresh Hope in the French Quarter”: August 8, 2011). This was also the time period when many industries closed down in Eastview when the rail line was removed leaving the City with a smaller tax base.

Montreal Road has struggled economically as Vanier’s main street over past several decades with the changing demographics in the surrounding neighbourhood and competition from newer shopping centres. Rising levels of crime, prostitution and homelessness combined with the large volume of drive through on the part of commuters getting to and from downtown also added to its challenges. While other inner-city neighbourhoods and their main streets like Westboro-Richmond Road, Hintonburg-Wellington Street and New Edinburgh-Beechwood Avenue have experienced recent revitalization (or gentrification), Montreal Road has lagged behind.

The Montreal Road main street is characterized has having several establishments considered to be at the lower level of the retail hierarchy such as pawn shops, payday lenders, strip clubs and tattoo parlours. The well-defined main street physical character has also been broken up by competing land uses and underdeveloped lots with stores in general state of poor maintenance. Where land assemblies have occurred, buildings have been replaced by car-oriented retail plazas with parking lots at the front or with non-commercial developments including high-rise rental and condominium residential buildings and institutional uses. A 2017 consulting study prepared for the Salvation Army in support of its proposed mega-shelter on the block between Granville and Ste. Anne describes the surrounding area as having a “poor store mix and a weak commercial area” including “old run-down and unattractive” stores.

The Quartier Vanier Merchants Association (BIA) was created in 1985 and included the three commercial streets in the City of Vanier: Montreal Road, McArthur Road and Beechwood Avenue. The name was changed in 2009 to Quartier Vanier Merchants Association to better brand the commercial areas by building on Vanier’s French culture and heritage. After the 2001 amalgamation, the BIA boundaries were expanded in 2012 to capture commercial activities beyond the original municipal boundaries. For Montreal Road, the BIA area was extended east of Ducharme Blvd to St Laurent Blvd.

Features of Successful Main Street Revitalization

The City of Ottawa is currently undertaking several important initiatives targeted at revitalizing Montreal Road in Vanier. These initiatives include the reconstruction of Montreal Road and the upgrading of sewers and water mains. The revitalization initiative also includes a functional design study and transportation planning looking at adding cycling lanes and improving transit services. Another critical factor for successful revitalization involves attracting the right mix of businesses and it is this perspective that is the focus of the remainder of my blog.

The key characteristics of a successful commercial revitalization are already identified in the City’s Official Plan definition of traditional main streets – compact development, lively mix of uses and pedestrian-friendly. Main streets, by tradition and design, are pedestrian friendly. If the neighbourhood does not have walk appeal, then it will be difficult to get customers walking from one shop to another. The main street’s walkability is influenced by store density and a diverse store mix. The greater the number and mix of different businesses the greater the choice for shoppers. Successful main streets often have a mix of locally owned vendors especially specialty food stores (e.g. bakeries, ethnic foods), restaurants, cafés, pharmacies, art shops, antique stores, craft breweries and service providers etc. – it is not necessary to attract national retailers or chain stores.

Vibrant main streets also include activities besides retail and personal services such as cultural facilities, educational uses, theatres, arts activities – activities that allow people to experience new and exciting things and to socialize and meet up with others as well as making main streets active in the evenings and weekends. Cultural and recreational activities can promote community cohesion and community pride as well as improve street safety.

Main street businesses are very much tied to their surrounding communities which means. Successful main street revitalization depends on successful residential neighbourhoods. Environments with declining populations and deteriorating housing, crime and neglect do not lend themselves to successful revitalization. Local residents may also be required to travel outside their own neighbourhoods to shop for goods and services that may be typically found in more stable or prosperous main streets. Residents need to claim ownership of their main street and start changing the negatives in their neighbourhoods so the neighbourhood environment is conducive to attracting investors and retailers.

Forthcoming Community Improvement Plan for Montreal Road

Another planning tool that the City of Ottawa has used to encourage main street and community revitalization are Community Improvement Plans (CIPs). The CIP program was established by the Province under the Planning Act in 2007 allowing municipalities to provide financial incentives to land owners and businesses to encourage the economic renewal within designated areas. The City has implemented several CIPs in commercial zones including Bell’s Corners, Carling Avenue and St. Joseph Blvd. The Plans provide what is called Tax Increment Equivalent Grants to eligible projects/property owners. These grants apply to the increase in the property’s contribution to municipal property taxes resulting from the value created through redevelopment. The City reimburses property owners a percentage of the increment in the municipal property tax each year for a defined period of 10 years.

At present, the designated area of the Montreal Road CIP extends beyond Vanier’s Traditional Mainstreet starting at North River Road and ending at the Aviation Parkway. The Montreal Road CIP is targeted for Council approval in November, 2018. I have posted earlier critical reviews of the Orleans CIP focussing on three main issues: 1) when approving CIP applications, City Council does not consider whether or not the projects would have proceeded anyways without the Grant; 2) the projects that have been approved are not well aligned with the primary strategic goals of the Plan, and; 3) there is no accountability of whether or not the Plans are working.

The potential problem of the CIP zone delineation as proposed by City staff for Montreal Road is that it may shift the focus away from the key revitalization priorities for the historical traditional main street of Vanier (i.e. the Central Sector in the Montreal Road Secondary Plan) such as strengthening the history and culture of the French Quarter. The urban fabric and redevelopment opportunities are also very different between Montreal Road on the east side of St Laurent Blvd. which is designated as Arterial Mainstreet compared to west side between the Rideau River and St. Laurent which is designated as Traditional Mainstreet. In addition, a key success factor in neighbourhood revitalization efforts is getting the community to be a part of it. This becomes more difficult to do if the improvement plan spans several different communities.

Role of Quartier Vanier Merchants Association

The Vanier BIA represents the single most important organization to lead the main street commercial revitalization for Montreal Road. There is a wide range of activities that BIAs can pursue to encourage their commercial zone which are well summarized on the City’s website. By undertaking these initiatives, BIAs are able to create a more desirable shopping environment which otherwise would not happen on the part of individual property owner on their own. Equally important is the role that BIAs can play in communicating and engaging the surrounding neighbourhood with local businesses. Commercial revitalization requires the surrounding neighbourhood to be part of it, not apart from it. BIAs can help develop community pride and support to local businesses by marketing and promoting cultural and social events such as neighbourhood walk-arounds, festivals, garage sales etc. Promoting Vanier’s Traditional Mainstreet as Ottawa’s French Quarter also gives the area a unique “brand” distinguishing it from other main streets (e.g. Chinatown, Little Italy)

The Salvation Army and Montreal Road

The planning report prepared for the Salvation Army in support of their proposed 350 bed shelter, one of the largest in Canada, in the heart of Vanier’s Traditional Mainstreet made the following statement:

The Salvation Army is eager to be a part of the positive change already occurring along Montreal Road, with the new centre acting as one of the catalysts for the continued renewal of the Vanier neighbourhood. The state-of- the-art centre will address real and perceived security concerns through excellence in design and environmental design strategies that will ensure the new facility becomes a community facility for all.

However, neither the consultant report nor the City’s staff report to Planning Committee and City Council dealing with the rezoning and Official Plan amendment applications clearly demonstrate how the Salvation Army’s proposed project supports the stated Official Plan policy goals of Traditional Mainstreets and the Montreal Road District Secondary Plan. The reason for this vagueness is simple – the proposed project does not.

While Vanier has experienced revitalization in selected areas like along the Vanier Parkway and near New Edinburgh / Beechwood Avenue (North Vanier), the Montreal Road Mainstreet continues to face significant economic challenges. Should the Salvation Army project be built, it will represent a major setback to the future economic revitalization of the street for the following reasons:

The Salvation Army project takes up a large portion of one of the few blocks with property having significant redevelopment potential within the Central Sector of Vanier’s historical main street and French Quarter. By taking out this block for an institutional use, the community will experience a lost opportunity for a creative, truly mixed-use project built on Vanier’s French Quarter heritage.

The Official Plan places high importance on a pedestrian friendly environment as a key success factor of Traditional Mainstreets. Walkable shopping districts and neighbourhoods means that shoppers and residents have safe, accessible and enjoyable places to walk. Crime reduction or prevention, particularly along low- to moderate-income serving main streets, is critical to a successful commercial district, and is often the issue around which grassroots organizational activity occurs.

Emergency shelters are associated with locations of high crime levels, whether perceived or real. The City recognized this when it established a limit of 4 shelters in Ward 12 in 2008. I also looked at this topic in a previous blog.

Even without the 350-bed shelter, Montreal Road today suffers from high crime levels and visible presence of homeless. The security designs of the proposed project will not enhance the walkability along the main street and surrounding community. In addition, the project will provide not only temporary accommodation for 350 homeless men but also support services to the wider Ottawa homeless community.

Given the size and purpose of the Salvation Army shelter, it is likely therefore that the project’s negative impact on walkability will not be limited geographically to just the immediate site but could well influence several blocks in either direction.