New Jewish centre coming to Barrhaven

It's something a large part of Ottawa's Jewish community has been working towards for years.

Hundreds of people attended an event to celebrate the ground-breaking of a Jewish centre and synagogue that will be built in the Southwest Ottawa community of Barrhaven.

“It’s very exciting,” said Rabbi Menachem  Blum,  leader of the Ottawa Torah Centre, a Jewish education organization that will be housed in the new building. “A place that will be not just a synagogue but a place of social interaction,” he added. “Family programming is very needed.”

The 12,000-square foot building will include a synagogue, a hall, classrooms, offices, meeting spaces and a Judaic library.

The OTH as well as Ottawa’s Jewish community have grown steadily since the 1990s.

The Jewish Federation of Ottawa says there are now about 15,000 Jews in the capital, with many settling in Barrhaven and Kanata.

“This is a community within Barrhaven is very strong,” said councillor Jan Harder. “We're very blessed to have the Jewish community growing (here).”

The new $4 million facility will meet the growing demand for space and programming.

“Everybody's just so excited to see a continuation of the work, and how much more can be done with a building of their own,” said Ottawa Jewish Federation CEO and President Andrea Freedman.

Among those attending the ground-breaking were community leaders, families and local politicians MP Pierre Poilievre, MPP Lisa MacLeod, and Ottawa mayor Jim Watson.

Construction is expected to begin by the start of July. The new facility is slated to open in September 2014.

With files from CTV’s Claudia Cautillo