Council approves $418.8 million plan for new arena, north-side stands at Lansdowne

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City Council approves Lansdowne 2.0

Ottawa residents, businesses skeptical of Lansdowne 2.0

City Council approves Lansdowne 2.0

The multi-million-dollar Lansdowne 2.0 plan passed its final test Friday, as Ottawa City Council voted 15 to 10 in favour of proceeding with the plan to build a new event centre and north-side stands at TD Place.

Voting in favour were Mayor Mark Sutcliffe and councillors David Brown, Allan Hubley, Isabelle Skalski, Laura Dudas, David Hill, Steve Desroches, Clarke Kelly, Stéphanie Plante, Marty Carr, Cathy Curry, Glen Gower, Tim Tierney, Catherine Kitts, and Matthew Luloff.

Voting against were councillors Laine Johnson, Sean Devine, Jeff Leiper, Rawlson King, Theresa Kavanagh, Ariel Troster, Jessica Bradley, Shawn Menard, Riley Brockington, and Wilson Lo.

A special council meeting lasting several hours at Ottawa City Hall debated the $418.8 million Lansdowne 2.0 project. The finance and corporate services committee voted 8-3 last week to approve the plan.

“I’m very happy. 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,” said Mayor Mark Sutcliffe following the council meeting. “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.”

The project would see a new 6,600-person capacity event centre built at the eastern edge of TD Place stadium, and a new 12,400-person capacity north-side stands for TD Place. The Lansdowne 2.0 plan also includes a plan for Toronto-based developer Mirabella Development Corporation to build two residential towers with 770 units for condos, rental units and a hotel.

The proposed construction timeline would see work begin on the new event centre early in 2026, with competition in 2028. Construction on the new north-side stands would run from 2028 to 2030 and the residential development would begin after 2030.

The City of Ottawa said major events in the arena and the stadium, the farmers’ market, and the Christmas Market will continue without disruption during construction.

Much of the debate Friday centred around the new events centre and the concerns raised about capacity by the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) and the Ottawa Charge. Sutcliffe said he believes there is a way forward for the league.

“Let’s be clear, there’s a way forward for the PWHL in Ottawa. Everybody wants the PWHL to be successful in Ottawa—OSEG, the city, the Ottawa Senators, the fans—so, there’s a way forward in the current arena, in the new events centre we’re building at Lansdowne, at Canadian Tire Centre, at the new arena on LeBreton Flats, at some combination of all of those things, there’s a way forward for the PWHL,“ he said.

”If there’s that much support and demand for women’s hockey in Ottawa, and I think there is, then it’s going to be successful in Ottawa. We just have to work out the details of how that will happen. We’re going to work very hard with the PWHL to bridge whatever gap remains and make sure that they are viable in the city.”

Multiple motions put forward

Several councillors put forward motions related to the project, some of which passed.

The following were passed unanimously:

• A motion by Coun. Shawn Menard to increase the affordable housing contribution from the project by $5 million to a total of $19.4 million
• A motion by Coun. Laura Dudas to review public transit options
• A motion by Coun. Isabelle Skalski to advance lease negotiations with the Ottawa Charge and explore solutions to the team’s continued viability
• A motion by Coun. Stéphanie Plante to preserve approximately 1.14 acres of park space during the next phase of the municipal land strategy
• A direction to staff by Coun. Glen Gower to review and present options to City Council to strengthen governance and oversight of the Lansdowne project and partnership, and consult with Members and report back as part of the 2026-2030 Term of Council governance review process

A motion by Menard on the future use of the horticulture building was split in two, with councillors unanimously carrying a portion of the motion to keep the building open during the 18-month construction period set to begin in 2026, but the second half of the motion calling on keeping the building open throughout Lansdowne 2.0 construction was defeated by a vote of 10 yeas to 15 nays.

A motion by Coun. Cathy Curry that 40 per cent of the 1 per cent increase to the municipal accommodation tax be directed to the Lansdowne reserve and that a minimum of $2 million from the tax be allocated to the budget annually to offset the debt servicing cost of Lansdowne 2.0 passed by a vote of 15 yeas to 10 nays.

A motion by Coun. Ariel Troster to keep the final seating capacity at the new area flexible until after more discussion with the PWHL, including possibly increasing the size to accommodate a growing Ottawa Charge fanbase, failed by a vote of 11 yeas to 14 nays.

City manager, OSEG meets with PWHL

The City of Ottawa and the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) met with officials from the Professional Women’s Hockey League this week after the league raised concerns about the smaller size of the arena.

PWHL vice-president Amy Scheer told councillors last week the proposed 6,600-person venue would not be “financially viable” for the Ottawa Charge moving forward.

OSEG president Mark Goudie told councillors Friday he met with Scheer earlier this week to “clear the air” following last week’s meetings. City Manager Wendy Stephanson said she had a meeting with the PWHL at the request of Scheer to discuss the issues around capacity and the lease negotiations.

The current arena has a capacity of approximately 8,500 fans, while plans for the new arena call for 5,850 seats and a capacity of 6,600 people.

“Over the last several decades, what you’ve seen across North America is stadiums being built that are too big for women but fit men,” Scheer told councillors last week.

“In like the most cruel twist of fate, we sit here today seeing the absolute reverse where the arena is being built that is too small for women and perfect for the men. Honestly, in four decades of working in professional sports, this might be the most disappointing thing I have ever seen. In just two short years, we have built something extraordinary. A women’s hockey league that fills arena, inspires fans and fuels civic pride and we’ve done it with one arm tied behind our backs.”

Attendance figures provided by OSEG show only four of the 13 Ottawa Charge games at TD Place during the 2024-25 season had the capacity exceed 6,600 fans. The average attendance for the Charge was 6,191 during the regular season and 6,892 for the playoffs.

A memo to council last week said the PWHL identified a $1 million gap in financials on a new deal to play at a new event centre at Lansdowne.

Goudie was asked why the city and OSEG are proposing the PWHL play some games away from Lansdowne.

“The Charge is important to our city; it’s important to our culture (and) our vibrancy. As a CEO, but as a citizen of Ottawa as well, I want to see them here for as long as they can be here,” Goudie said.

“From a financial perspective, it would probably be more money for the partnership to use those Saturday nights for concerts and other things.”

The PWHL said last week it could not commit to a lease agreement with the City of Ottawa beyond 2031 due to its collective bargaining agreement with the players.

Stephanson said last week that any changes to the current plans for the event centre, including an additional 2,000 seats, would add up to $100 million to the cost and delay the project two to three years.

The Unionized Building and Construction Trades Council of Eastern Ontario & Outaouais Region has expressed “very serious concerns” that the construction company was awarded to a non-local company. EBC Inc. would receive the contract for the new event centre and north-side stands. The company is headquartered in a suburb of Quebec City, and has had an office in Ottawa for more than 12 years.

Auditor General warns of ‘unforeseen costs’

Ottawa’s auditor general has warned the Lansdowne 2.0 project faces financial risks from tariffs and cost overruns, construction delays and rising expenses for the Ottawa Redblacks and events at TD Place

In a report released earlier this week, Auditor General Nathalie Gougeon warned the $36.1 million contingency fund in the budget for the new event centre and north-side stands is a “minimum buffer for a project of this magnitude and duration.” Gougeon said cost escalations, the risk of tariffs and the length of the construction timeline could leave the city at risk to take on additional debt.

The audit also notes that since Lansdowne 2.0 “depends heavily” on the coordination of multiple workstreams, including the arena, north-side stands and Mirabella’s residential development, any delay “in a single component can lead to increased costs and schedule risk throughout the project.”

“Progress on the city’s construction schedule is directly linked to Mirabella’s ability to advance its residential development,” the auditor general writes.

“Delays in completing the North Side Stands could prevent the air rights sale from closing and trigger penalties payable by the city.”

According to the auditor general’s report, the draft purchase and sale agreement with Mirabella has penalties if the city does not complete construction of the north-side stands. The city must confirm the feasibility of completing the north side stands by December 29, 2028, or pay a $1 million payment to Mirabella. If the city fails to complete the transaction for any reason by the final closing deadline of July 31, 2031, the penalty increases to $13 million.

Ottawans react

Michael Estabrooks, owner of Irene’s Pub on Bank Street in the Glebe, says an update to Lansdowne is required, but the new plan takes the wrong approach.

“It’s a necessary evil, but I think they’re going about it all the wrong ways,” Estabrooks said.

“They’re rushing the process, and I don’t think that they’re hearing the tone of the community and the needs of the space itself, and I don’t think that they’re curtailing it to the future market.”

Estabrooks says his business is directly impacted by the success of sports teams at Lansdowne, and for the pub owner, the loss of seating is an issue.

The construction of Lansdowne 1.0 affected Estabrooks’ business, and he says he’s worried this pattern will repeat as the city moves ahead on Lansdowne 2.0.

“The construction is a huge concern; it’s a looming concern of ours,” Estabrooks said.

Kanata resident Tracy Coghlan says she would like to see city funds spent on other initiatives.

“I just think money needs to be spent elsewhere, and it’s a lot of money to spend on that,” Coghlan said. “It’s already so nice and beautiful the way it is.”

Ottawa resident Scott Mcansh says he’s in favour of the commercial and residential intensification aspects of the project but has concerns over its price tag.

“It would intensify the commercial infrastructure, which make life better for everyone who lives here,” Mcansh said.

“I’m all for more density. I’m just not for throwing hundreds of millions of dollars at it.”

With files from CTV’s Josh Marano.