As Ottawa grows taller, there is a proposal to build a high-rise next to an existing heritage house. The City of Ottawa has received an Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment to permit the construction of a 28-storey apartment building comprising of 326 residential units and 94 underground parking spaces adjacent to the Alexander Fleck House at the Bronson Avenue and Laurier Avenue, according to city documents. “It’s just a great spot which will be attractive to a lot of renters,” Guy Whissel, CEO of Longwood Building Corporation / Heritage Investment Group, told CTV News Ottawa. “It’s a big building and the configuration of it is what excited me the most, because it’s really unusual. And it’ll stand out right on the edge of the entrance to the downtown core,” he says. The location, at 593 and 601 Laurier Avenue West, is right on the edge of the escarpment next to Lebraton Flats. “Oversees the library, the new home with the senators, and it’s a great location,” Whissel says. According to Whissel, the existing heritage house will be preserved. “We engaged architectural companies, to give us advice on how to do the preservation. It’ll need quite a bit of work.” “That is probably my favorite part of the idea,” says area resident Adam Bernards. Bernards and others in the area say they are mixed about the development. “I think that there’s a benefit to people actually living in downtown Ottawa. I don’t feel great about there being large construction projects happening all over downtown, especially if they’re going to be, disrupting traffic,” he said. “If they’re affordable, then sure,” says Carleton student Emma Bruce. Area Coun. Ariel Troster says there is a plan to do a public consultation before the project goes to committee in March.
