Ottawa City Council approved two major developments that will create a mixture of residential and commercial buildings near light-rail stations in Ottawa.
The council approved official plan and zoning amendments for five high-rise buildings next to the Pimisi light-rail-transit station, east of Booth St. The multi-phase project will include towers between 25 and 45 storeys.
The development will include a variety of apartment sizes, affordable housing and a child-care facility, as well as a range of commercial uses, including restaurants and a grocery store. The fully built development will feature about 1,600 dwellings.
The council also approved official plan and zoning amendments needed to develop 900 Albert St. with three high-rise towers on a three-storey podium. The buildings will be 65, 56 and 27 storeys. The mixed-use development is located 50 metres south of Bayview Station, where the Confederation and Trillium light-rail lines meet. It will feature 1,241 residential units, along with 1,059 parking spaces in six levels of underground parking. The building plan includes a new sidewalk and cycling facility along the Albert Street frontage and a public plaza at City Centre Avenue.
In addition, the council agreed to defer the city’s portion of development charges for a one-million-sq.-ft. warehouse that will be occupied by Amazon at 5225 and 5371 Boundary Rd. The charges are valued at $7.9 million and the developer, Broccolini Construction, will pay the city after the facility is completed, in about one year.
The warehouse operation will create about 600 permanent full-time jobs, resulting in significant rural economic development on lands that the city identified as an area of opportunity in the 2016 Ottawa Employment Lands Review. Construction will also create more than 1,500 jobs involving more than 30 trades.
