Against the backdrop of traffic rushing along Sussex Drive, tourists visiting the “Ottawa” sign, and the Peace Tower rising in the background, Ottawa launched its new Arts, Culture and Entertainment (ACE) District on June 17 in the ByWard Market.
The new district, a collaborative endeavour between the City of Ottawa and the Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG) is part of ongoing efforts to revitalize the city’s downtown core. In addition to the ByWard Market, the ACE District will encompass Rideau Street, Sparks Street, Centretown, LeBreton Flats and the Bank and Elgin Street corridors.
The initiative also coincides with the beginning of Ottawa's bicentennial celebrations, which will continue through the summer and fall.
Alex Badzuk, OAG director and CEO, says the impetus for the district dates back to the pandemic, when the arts community began to visualize how the city could bring life back to the downtown core.
“At the Ottawa Art Gallery, we started to ask the question, ‘what can we do to lean into some of the challenges?’,” she said. “We decided we were going to make a bold move – if we were going to bring art into the public realm, into our downtown core, could that change the way we perceive it?”
Alex Badzuk, OAG director and CEO, at the launch of the ACE district on June 17, 2026. Photo by Amanda McLeod/Ottawa Lookout
Working with artist Eric Chan, also known as EEPMON, the OAG partnered with Les Suites Hotel, and in June 2024, EEPMON’s mural titled Chaos Bloom was unveiled on the Les Suites parking garage facade on Daly Avenue.
Badzuk says that was the beginning of an advocacy movement for the creation of ACE.
“What was a fairly mundane, forgotten street on Daly suddenly came alive with this incredible artwork,” she explained. “We were able to use that as an exemplar to workshop with a lot of folks as to why the arts need to be a part of the solutioning around the revitalization of Ottawa’s downtown.”
Badzuk says the goal is for the ACE District initiative to be one aspect of a thriving downtown, alongside key components such as housing, transportation, and measures to improve affordability.
“Having done that work, we were able to get this notion of an arts, culture and entertainment district as one of the pillars in the downtown action plan,” Badzuk said.
Catherine Callary, vice-president of destination development at Ottawa Tourism, says the impact of public arts initiatives often extends beyond the initial visual or auditory experience and can, in fact, improve other aspects of a community.
“There’s a ripple effect that happens from initiatives like the ACE District,” said Callary. “It becomes a positive feedback loop. Business is not separate from tourism, which is not separate from the arts and culture, which is not separate from local restaurants and culinary experiences.
“All of these things are interconnected, and they drive and support each other – and I think that’s what the ACE District is trying to do.”
In remarks at the launch, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said that “if we want a stronger Ottawa, we need a stronger ByWard Market and a stronger downtown.”
“For every dollar invested in arts and culture, it leads to about $29 in economic activity.”
In an interview with The Lookout, Badzuk echoed the mayor.
"There are a lot of economic studies that really do show that when you bring art into the core, it manifests and triples the investment possibilities…and as we move forward, we’re going to be looking at that to map how successful we are.”
Following the opening speeches, a walking tour through ByWard offered participants a glimpse of the new art installations and several live performances.
Led by a lively five-piece band, the crowd first stopped at The Lookout Bar, where interdisciplinary artist and graphic designer Sam Loewen’s 2019 piece Country Queers has been reconfigured into an 18-by-18-foot mural fixed on the outside wall.
Loewen, who began his career in Lethbridge, Alta. and studied at the University of Lethbridge before moving to Ottawa to continue his career and studies, says the Ottawa arts community is vibrant and needed.
A local band led the crowd to each nearby installation after the launch of the ACE District in the ByWard Market on June 17, 2026. Photo by Amanda McLeod/Ottawa Lookout.
“[The community] is eager, hungry. People want to see art happen in Ottawa. They don’t want to see creatives leave for Toronto or Montreal, and generally speaking, public artwork is so important to creating the fabric and patterns within our downtown communities and urban hubs,” said Loewen.
“As a participating artist, there really is a pinch me moment where it’s crazy that the bar I went to the first weekend I moved to the city now has my work on it. It’s a full-circle moment,” he continued.
Loewen’s mural will be one of a handful of installations that will make up the Arts Corridor, a major component of the overall initiative.
Artist Sam Loewen with his mural, "Country Queers", painted on the exterior of the Lookout Bar in the ByWard Market. His mural is a featured installation in the ACE District. Photo by Amanda McLeod/Ottawa Lookout.
Also included are Mi’kmaq artist Jordan Bennett’s mural There's a Little Bit of Home Here, There’s a Little Bit of Home Everywhere, which now adorns the exterior of the York Street parking garage and artist Meryl McMaster’s photograph Edge of a Moment on the exterior of the Dark Fork restaurant.
The OAG describes the corridor as “a curated public art route connecting three major cultural anchors” — the OAG, the National Arts Centre and the National Gallery of Canada — “through bold, contemporary art installations in unexpected downtown spaces.”
In addition to the corridor, the ACE District’s other main components are the Asphalt Art Initiative mural on York Street West and ByWard Market Square and the SoundScape Festival, which will take place in late August in the corridor beneath the Plaza Bridge at Elgin and Rideau Streets.
While the launch has been welcomed by many, some closer to the Market have expressed concerns.
Amber, who asked for her last name not to be used, lives and works in the Market. She is optimistic that creating an arts district could bring more life to the area.
But she has concerns about a revitalization plan for the main ByWard Market building, which could be converted into a food hall. Current tenants might be forced to move, which she believes could impact the existing culture that’s rooted there.
“I love the initiative, but simultaneously they're planning on renovicting all of us here in this building within the next couple of years,” she said of the plan. “We’re going to be kicked out by, I think, 2028, for construction so they can put, I believe, a food court in here, as if it’s not half a dozen restaurants who have been here for over a decade.”
“I love to see the effort into making the area nicer, and we support art. We have about 50 local artisans [in our store]…we’ll try to stay in the neighbourhood, but it’s rough out there for retail,” she continued.
Marcel Cleroux, the last remaining fresh fruit and vegetable vendor in the Market, says he’s been working there for so long that he “was born there” and has seen many changes over the years.
“We preferred when it was full. Now, a lot of people are complaining about parking. Let’s say you’re going to Farm Boy, or wherever, there’s free parking, you don't have to worry about that,” said Cleroux. “Here, it’s all fresh fruit, all from the garden, but by the time you pay parking – or find a parking space, that’s even worse.
“Is this going to draw any business? It’s hard to say. It looks good, don’t get me wrong – everybody’s making an effort, but people are still expecting [more].”
The ACE initiative will continue beyond the 200th anniversary year of Bytown. Badzuk says the long-term goal is to “just keep going” with each specific neighbourhood having a different artistic atmosphere.
“It’s really seen as a legacy project for the 200th anniversary. There’s going to be a lot of things that come this year that will disappear, but the idea is that the ACE District is a legacy that’s moving forward.”
