Claridge Homes will soon boast owning both of Ottawa’s tallest residential buildings after the city’s planning committee endorsed the construction of a second highrise tower at the gateway to the
Little Italy neighbourhood
.
The committee approved the construction of a 50-storey mixed-use tower at 862 Carling Ave. on the northwest corner of Carling and Preston Street. The site is directly across the street from the city’s current largest highrise, the
45-storey Claridge Icon condo tower
.
The site is currently occupied by a low-rise service building a surface parking, with a frontage of 32 metres along Preston Street, 37 metres along Carling Avenue to the south and 39 metres along Sidney Street, a dead-end street to the north.
The Dow’s Lake O-Train Station is less than 100 metres west of the site.
Once constructed, the tower will contain 503 housing units with a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments. The building will feature 300 square metres of retail space fronting onto Preston Street on the ground floor. It will have parking spaces for 196 vehicles and 482 bicycles.
“The site is at the gateway feature of Preston Street, a mainstreet corridor, and within an area experiencing significant redevelopment activity due to its proximity to Dow’s Lake Station along the O-Train Trillium Line,” according to a staff report that recommended the required zoning approval.
The report notes the
future site of the Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus
, which is currently under construction, is immediately south of the site, along with the scenic Dominion Arboretum and Dow’s Lake.
The original application in 2021 called for a 60-storey tower, though that was later amended to 50 storeys in July.
City staff held a public consultation in January 2022 where residents “expressed concerns that the area cannot support the proposed level of density, noting that existing infrastructure and community services are already strained,” according to the staff report.
“Several questioned whether any of the new units would be affordable or subject to rent control. Others pointed out that there is currently no walkable food market in the neighbourhood and suggested that, if possible, the city negotiate for a grocery market to be included as one of the commercial tenants,” the report states.
“Many residents believe the project would lead to increased traffic congestion, reduced parking availability, overcrowding of public spaces and additional strain on local schools, health care facilities, and other essential services, ultimately diminishing the quality of life in the Little Italy and Dow’s Lake neighbourhoods.”
Residents also expressed “serious concern about the cumulative construction impacts” of the project in combination with the new Civic Hospital project.
“Many noted that the neighbourhood is already bracing for years of disruption, and adding a 50-storey construction site would bring prolonged dust, noise, truck traffic, and lane closures lasting half a decade or longer.”
Staff said they passed some of those concerns onto the builder, but were supportive of the project.
According to the city’s official plan, the site is in an area designated as a “hub” and close to an O-Train station, “making it suitable for highrise development with heights up to 55 storeys.”
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