City council votes to move forward with Lansdowne 2.0

After months of debate, shovels will be in the ground for Lansdowne 2.0 before the end of the year. 

City council passed the highly controversial project on Friday in a 15-10 vote in what was a mostly respectful debate as councillors passionately argued for or against the project. 

Barrhaven West Coun. David Hill spoke about the benefits and said the consequences of doing nothing could be dire. While some raised fears about the Ottawa Charge potentially leaving the city due to capacity concerns, Hill said such a concern is still present if teams had to continue playing in outdated facilities. 

“Saying no to Lansdowne 2.0 does not simply translate to having an extra $419 million bag of gold that we can spend on other projects,” Hill said. “It simply means that we lose that opportunity for the revenue that will be generated through that partnership. 

“We put at risk a partnership that may well default or go insolvent within the next week or more, we don’t know, but that comes with the potential loss of teams,” he continued. “That comes with the potential loss of the Charge.”

There were also many arguments that now was not the time to spend so much money on a single project when there are plenty of other investments needed in the city. For example, the downtown core is dealing with a perfect storm, with a social service crisis and reduced transit service. Across the city, community centres are aging and in need of repairs.

Somerset Ward Coun. Ariel Troster said she felt public lands should be used for the public good instead of lining “the pockets of corporations” while driving ticket sales up. 

Meanwhile, Gloucester-Southgate Coun. Jessica Bradley said she felt the city would be “holding the bag” if its finances didn't work out the way it had hoped. 

Impact on the Charge 

One of the key points of contention was the reduced number of seating in the new TD Place arena. The current site currently has about 9,500 seats, but designs for the new building show only 6,600. 

The women’s hockey team Ottawa Charge, one of the fastest-growing teams in the PWHL, has been speaking out against the project and stated that fewer seats could make the team no longer viable and force them out of the Capital. 

In response, Mayor Sutcliffe said such rhetoric was only a negotiation tactic, since the team is in renewal talks with the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG). But the team argued that Sutcliffe has had “no meaningful discussion with the league. They called Friday’s vote "disappointing." 

"The PWHL has been clear with the mayor, the City, and OSEG that a significantly reduced capacity arena has always been the primary obstacle to a long-term agreement," the league said in a statement released hours after the decision.

"These concerns were raised as early as April 2024 with OSEG and June 2024 with Mayor Mark Sutcliffe. Despite repeated commitments to revisit the issue, no meaningful discussion on capacity ever took place and OSEG chose to move forward with its current plans."

Four of the 13 Ottawa Charge games at TD Place last season had sold out at a capacity that exceeded 6,600 fans. But the league said despite the obstacle, they remain committed to Ottawa and its fan base. 

Osgoode Coun. Isabelle Skalski put forward a motion asking the City to work with OSEG and the Charge to help with lease negotiations, including pursuing other solutions, that could include having the team play at other arenas as well. The motion passed. 

Also during the council meeting, Somerset Ward Coun. Ariel Troster pleaded with her colleagues to take the Charge “at its word.” She put forward a motion for architectural drawings to be shared with the Charge and to come up with a plan to help their growth, but it was voted down.

OSEG has said it would be near impossible to add more seats at this point, but Roger Greenberg, chair of the organization, said they were committed to finding a solution. He said that could include working with the Ottawa Senators and their arena, currently at the Canadian Tire Centre but aiming to move to LeBreton Flats in the future. 

Those sentiments were applauded by Sutcliffe, who said he wants to see women’s hockey in the city become so successful that they can play at an NHL-sized arena. But a new arena at LeBreton Flats is still upwards of a decade away. 

Other motions and revisions tabled 

During the six hour-long meeting, a handful of councillors joined Skalski and Troster in putting forward motions to try and improve some of the concerns surrounding the project. 

Capital Ward’s Menard put forward a motion with the Mayor to increase the funds going to affordable housing from  $9.75 million to $19.4 million. It passed. 

Menard also put forward a “Better Lansdowne” motion that would have essentially put an end to Lansdowne 2.0 and instead worked to rehabilitate and upgrade the current buildings and amenities, but it failed. 

Menard has been one of city council’s loudest opposers to the project. Lansdowne is within his ward.

Another motion from Menard prevented the Aberdeen Pavilion from being closed for 18 months while construction was underway on the new stadium. It passed, but a second part of the document that would prevent the historic building from being closed for the entire eight-year construction project did not. 

City staff have indicated there is a possibility the GoodLife athletic facility could move into the space if it is unable to secure space elsewhere in the redeveloped community. The fitness facility is currently located in a stretch of retail next to the current area, which will be removed. 

The farmers market and Christmas market can continue without disruption, but the CityFolk Music Festival has indicated it will probably be in search of a new home. 

Stittsville Coun. Glen Gower tabled a motion to strengthen governance and oversight of the project, which also passed. 

There has been lots of concern from community groups that better transit service was not included in the Lansdowne 2.0 design plans. Orléans West-Innes Coun. Laura Dudas passed a motion that will have staff and OSEG take a review of public transit options in the area. 

Part of the solution could include new funding sources to strengthen service or shuttles to and from the event venue.

To touch on concern over the loss of greenspace – particularly from Lansdowne’s “Great Lawn” – Rideau Vanier Coun. Stephanie Plante suggested a greenspace swap that would preserve about one acre of parkland at 160 Lees – next to Springhurst Park. 

While it passed, area Councillor Menard referred it back to city staff since that area is planned for community housing. 

The vote 

There were no real surprises as to how the vote ended up. Councillors who previously said they were in favour or against Lansdowne 2.0 voted the same way they originally stated.

Alta Vista Coun. Marty Carr, who said just days ago she was undecided, voted in favour, but bashed city staff for its failed communication on the file. She said while not a perfect plan, it would cost the city more to do nothing.

"This whole discussion, this file of Lansdowne, has become pretty convoluted and a bit of a communications disaster," she said. 

Skalski – who said during this spring's byelection that she would vote against Lansdowne and “could think of other ways” to spend such a large sum of money – voted in favour.

All councillors who voted in favour of the plan were from suburban and rural areas, with the exception of Barrhaven East Coun. Wilson Lo, who voted no after being concerned about the finances. Almost every single urban area councillor was opposed except Carr and Plante. 

Yes votes: Couns. David Hill, Steve Desroches, Tim Tierney, Matthew Luloff, David Brown, Allan Hubley, Isabelle Skalski, Laura Dudas, Clarke Kelly, Stephanie Plante, Marty Carr, Cathy Curry, Glen Gower, Catherine Kitts and Mayor Mark Sutcliffe.

No votes: Couns. Shawn Menard, Jeff Leiper, Laine Johnson, Sean Devine, Rawlson King, Jessica Bradley, Riley Brockington, Theresa Kavanagh, Ariel Troster and Wilson Lo.

After the council meeting, Mayor Sutcliffe said he was pleased with the results. Just before the vote he said he was not dreading the long day that was about to unfold because he was an optimist and believed it would be a good deal for taxpayers. 

“I think councillors had a choice between moving Ottawa forward or dragging our feet and trying to turn back the clock on what we’ve already done in the past,” Sutcliffe said in a media availability. “We had a chance to move Ottawa forward and we took that opportunity today, and I’m really delighted about that. 

“I’m excited about the future of our city and I’m excited about the future of Lansdowne. This is a great project that is going to attract more people.”

Work will begin with a new 6,600-person capacity event centre built where the great lawn is currently located, which will be completed in 2028. Once that is complete, work will begin on the new north-side stands until approximately 2030. Following that completed construction, two new residential towers will be built.