8.20.2009

Food for thought: Intensification

"It seems the farther you get from the Queen/Elgin/Laurier/Bronson box, the harder it is to get infill over 6-8 storeys approved, thus, the chock-a-block infill in that part of Centretown.

I would love to see some truly tall buildings puncture the Ottawa skyline, but what would really benefit the city is more evenly distributed mid-rise intensification on main streets beyond the core (like the official plan advocates but sometimes has trouble realizing), filling in the gaps between downtown and the various nodes of highrise density sprinkled around the periphery. It isn't going to happen quickly, but momentum seems to be building in certain areas. Bank, Rideau/Montreal, Gladstone, Somerset/Wellington West, Carling, Bronson, etc. are good candidates, but they all remain incredibly gap-toothed."
—Citizen J