For years, Ottawa has talked about revitalizing the ByWard Market. Plans have been released, consultations held, and visions sketched out for what the historic district could become.
Yet on the ground, little has changed.
Now, city council has approved a $200 million plan to revitalize the historic area, prioritizing pedestrian-friendly streets, new attractions and major infrastructure upgrades.
The latest strategy builds on earlier revitalization efforts and lays out a long-term vision for redesigning public spaces, improving infrastructure and attracting more visitors to the historic district.
According to city documents, the goal is to create a more pedestrian-focused environment while modernizing aging infrastructure and public spaces throughout the market area. Proposed improvements include redesigning York Street Plaza and ByWard Market Square, expanding pedestrian zones such as William Street, and redeveloping the aging Clarence Street parking garage into a community hub.
City staff say the changes are meant to help the market evolve into a vibrant public destination for both residents and tourists.
“The vision is to strengthen the ByWard Market as Ottawa’s premier destination and a vibrant neighbourhood where people can live, work and visit,” a city report on the revitalization strategy states.
Rideau–Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante said the new proposal reflects lessons learned since an earlier revitalization plan was approved by the council in 2021 but failed to yield many visible changes.
“I think the framework has changed a lot since then. We learned a lot about heritage, we’ve learned a lot about housing, we’ve learned a lot about pedestrianization, and we’ve learned a lot about toxic drugs. So I think the new plan kind of reflects the realities more of 2026 than it does of 2021,” Plante told the Lookout.
Plante said she has been working closely with staff on the latest plan for nearly two years and pushed for several amendments to strengthen it.
One major element of the proposal involves the future of the Clarence Street parking garage, which city officials say is nearing the end of its lifespan.
“That parking garage has to come down,” Plante said. “Every dog has its day, right? That one doesn’t anymore.”
In its place, Plante would like to see the parking built underground instead.
“People love their cars, so we have to rethink parking. Look at city hall, our hotels, and the University of Ottawa. It’s all underground now,” she said. “I don't know the logistics around it, but it works well, and it’s profitable. Will people pay more to be underground? I don’t know.”
The Clarence Street parking garage has only a few years left in its life cycle and will eventually be demolished. Photo by Charlie Senack.
Above ground, City planners have floated the idea of replacing the Clarence Street structure with a “destination building” that could include public washrooms, community space and cultural uses. There have also been ideas floated for a daycare that could be open during the day and in the evenings to accommodate non-traditional work hours.
Plante said the redevelopment could also help address one issue she believes has long been overlooked in the market: the lack of family-friendly amenities.
“I have been very consistent. We need stuff for families and kids in the ByWard Market,” she said. “There is no play structure. There’s no place to sit and eat an ice cream, and just pause and relax.”
Creating more spaces for families, she argues, could help support broader changes such as pedestrianizing streets in the district.
The city does not yet have most of the funding required to carry out the revitalization, and the council has directed staff to explore partnerships and funding opportunities with provincial and federal governments.
The ByWard Market building is currently lined with shops, but the city wants to turn it into a more food-focused destination. Photo by Charlie Senack.
The fact that money hasn’t flown yet is not a surprise to Plante.
“We’re kind of like the Eglinton Crosstown of projects at this point,” she joked.
City staff are hopeful shovels could be in the ground by 2028, but said a start date in 2029 or beyond is more realistic.
Because construction on William Street has been deferred to take place with the broader redevelopment, $11.8 million in provincial funding allocated for that project during the 2021 public realm plan will need to be spent elsewhere. It needs to be spent by the end of 2027. Roughly $1.8 million has already been spent on design work for the renewal.
Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said he plans to spend the remaining $10 million on other downtown revitalization projects, then reallocate funds from those pots back to the ByWard Market.
Regardless, Plante believes the city will ultimately need support from higher levels of government to make the revitalization a reality, pointing to the economic role the Market plays for Ottawa’s tourism industry.
But beyond physical upgrades and infrastructure, Plante said the future of the Market will also depend on addressing ongoing social challenges in the area, including homelessness and the impacts of toxic drug use.
“I think you can walk and chew gum at the same time,” Plante said. “We have to. These are human beings. These are people who deserve dignity.”
Supporting a vulnerable community
The downtown core has been a hub for the shelter system with the Shepherds of Good Hope, Salvation Army, and Ottawa Mission all operating within a small radius. Across the city, there are 1,960 total emergency shelter and transitional housing beds, though demand is often higher, leaving some clients sleeping in overflow areas.
Plante has regularly called for housing to be instead dispersed around the city, but noted such a mandate would most likely need to come from the province.
“I'm glad there's acknowledgement from the mayor, his office, and other councillors that there's a problem with redlining service. It doesn't suit the clientele, it doesn't work. It's making up for failures from other levels of government, “ said Plante.
A 2025 survey conducted by the Rideau Business Improvement Area found that 41 per cent of downtown residents reported feeling unsafe while walking downtown after dark. Another 65 per cent stated the area had worsened over two years, with open drug use in public and discarded needles as the primary concerns.
Ottawa is in the midst of a homelessness and toxic drug supply crisis. In 2024, there were over 942 overdose-related visits to local hospitals and 166 opioid-related deaths.
Over the last few years, there has also been a never-ending stream of headlines coming out of the market area, from homicides to rising crime. While trends are down in some spots, Plante said that, looking at the broader area, they're up or the same in others.
According to data in the crime map, when filtering results for the ByWard Market area since Jan. 1, 2026, there have been 88 instances of theft under $5,000, 40 assaults, 22 instances of mischief, 14 of uttering threats, 13 break-and-enters, four instances of indecent or harassing communications, three robberies, and one incident of criminal harassment.
While the issue may seem concentrated downtown, Plante said people from across Ottawa should get on board with rejuvenating the area. The money collected there is then dispersed to help other areas across the city, she said.
For the residents who live there, Plante said the ByWard Market is more than just a tourist trap and hopes it can become an actual community where people want to live and raise a family.
“I would just like for this place to become a place that grows with you,” she said. “You’re not like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to bounce to Orléans because they have more family-friendly things.’ You can find those things here.”
