2.0 Existing Conditions

Stores along St. Joseph do not directly compete with Place d’Orléans
There is a range of shopping centres along St. Joseph Boulevard (Figure 2). The 70,000 m2 (750,000 sf) two-level Place d’Orléans regional shopping centre is obviously the dominant retail centre along the Boulevard. Although it lies at the edge of the study area, its influence on the local retail environment must be taken into consideration in evaluating the current commercial hierarchy and in any plans for the redevelopment of St. Joseph Boulevard. The centre offers close to 200 stores with major department store anchors Wal-Mart and The Bay. In addition, it has a supermarket (Market Fresh) and a major national sports merchandise outlet (SportChek), along with a 450-seat food court. Other major national and regional tenants include GAP, Eddie Bauer, Roots, The Home Company, HMV, Aldo, and The Body Shop. Given the concentration of clothing/apparel retailers and department store-type retailers, the retail stores along St. Joseph Boulevard are not well suited to compete in these retail categories. Rather, such storefront locations are more suited to other retailing categories.

Asking retail rental rates along St. Joseph are lower than many other market areas in Ottawa
Despite the limited volume of available retail space currently being tracked in the St. Joseph Boulevard market, past retail surveys indicate that asking net rental rates generally range from $107-$161 pm2 ($10-$15 psf), with space at Le Carrefour Plaza currently asking $215 pm2 ($20 psf). This range of rental rates is somewhat lower than similar retail street front and community shopping centre space in the Ottawa market.

Figure 2: Location of shopping centres along St. Joseph

House prices within the St. Joseph Boulevard corridor are on par with other suburban markets in Ottawa
The Ottawa housing market, not unlike most metropolitan areas in Canada, has recorded strong levels of new home construction and resale activity over the past few years, peaking in 2001-2002. Ottawa housing starts approached 8,000 units in 2001, up significantly from the approximately 4,800 units started in 1997. This year, the market is poised to surpass the 2001 total with annualized figures projecting 9,000 units to be started in Ottawa. In terms of sales of existing homes, the volume of sales has increased annually since 1997 (with the exception of a slight decline last year), projected to surpass 14,000 in 2002. The average resale house price has also increased since 1997, exceeding the $200,000 level, up from around $145,000 in 1997 and $160,000 in 2000.

A recent survey of house prices reveals that the St. Joseph Boulevard corridor is on par with most of the other suburban housing markets in Ottawa in terms of average house price sales in the six standard housing categories. In addition, along with the majority of the other communities across the City, Orléans has recorded modest appreciation of values across almost all sectors of housing.

RLP Survey of House Prices
(source: 2002 Q1 Royal LePage Survey of House Prices)

Site size and configuration are key redevelopment issues along St. Joseph Boulevard
A review of property assessment data for St. Joseph Boulevard illustrates the current built form of the boulevard, as well as revealing potential sites that are suited for redevelopment. A key issue with regard to the potential development/redevelopment of sites along the St. Joseph is the orientation of land parcels. The topography of the area, which slopes steeply down to St. Joseph Boulevard from the south side, as well as to the rear of the properties on the north side of the boulevard, acts as a barrier to development. The cost of preparing some sites for development (i.e. excavation, grading) is prohibitive to many low-density forms of development. In addition, the small total lot area of many of the parcels make anything other than small-scale infill or redevelopment difficult given the small parcel footprint and available site coverage, along with issues related to parking and vehicle access.

Large, vacant land parcels are the best candidates for intensification, but do not predominate in the St. Joseph Boulevard corridor
Vacant land parcels offer the fewest constraints to development, given the obvious absence of built form on the site. A total of 21 vacant sites was identified, although 16 are less than one acre in size. The largest vacant site is a nearly three acre industrial site located on Youville Drive, with 480 feet of frontage. Thirteen vacant commercial sites lie along St. Joseph Boulevard, but none are more than two acres in size and nine are less than one acre in size.

Large land parcels offer the greatest flexibility in terms of redevelopment potential, given the wider range of building orientations and opportunities for access and parking for vehicles.

a. Districts

The study area can be divided into four basic districts (Figure 3), as follows:

• The Industrial District – The St. Joseph corridor within the Industrial District includes some vacant land parcels and an array of land uses including:
  • Industrial (MetroPhotonics in the former Canadian Tire Store);
  • Retail commercial (plaza format, auto dealer, gas station);
  • Service commercial/office (plaza format, Aphrodite Medical Health Centre);
  • Residential (detached houses); and,
  • Institutional (Pentecostal Church, Maison Notre Dame de-la-Providence).

Industrial uses do not predominate here. This district is also characterized by substantial greenspace associated with creeks and the escarpment.

• The Neighbourhood Commercial District – This ‘central’ area includes a wide range of commercial activities, including:
  • Retail commercial and restaurants;
  • Service commercial, offices and medical centres;
  • Auto repair facilities;
  • Some older detached residential uses and a townhouse development (reverse frontage); and,
  • Institutional uses.

The predominant use in this district is retail and service commercial in a multi-unit plaza format. Most have front yard parking. Some of the first generation detached homes have been converted to other commercial/institutional uses.

Figure 3: Land use districts in the study area

• The Main Street Area – This district appears to be more historic and displays a distinctly different built form. The range of uses is diverse and includes:
  • Institutional (the historic church, manse and associated cemetery);
  • Retail commercial (plaza format, stand alone and main street);
  • Service commercial/office (plaza format, stand alone and main street); and,
  • Residential (accessory apartments).

There is no predominant land use, although the historic church does provide a visual focus. There is a remnant of the older main street built form, but that appears to be slowly evolving to more modern formats.

• The Residential Hinterland – The residential areas surrounding the study area are also quite diverse. They include low and medium density house forms, typically detached, semi-detached and townhouses. There are several new townhouse developments close to St. Joseph Boulevard.

b. Official Plan Designations

The Official Plan designations correspond to the observed land use districts. The following provides a description of the key objectives and concepts articulated in the Official Plan (organized by district and designation):

• The Industrial District – The Industrial District has two land use designations, Industrial and Residential:
  • Industrial – The key principles of the Industrial designation are as follows:
    • To create employment opportunities;
    • To permit a range of industrial uses as well as accessory recreational, open space, commercial, office and community uses. Freestanding commercial uses may be permitted when they are within walking distance of transitway stations;
    • Ancillary uses will be limited to limit the proliferation of non-industrial land uses within the industrial areas; and,
    • Open storage may be permitted where not adjacent to residential uses or major roadways.
  • Residential - The key principles of the Residential designation are as follows:
    • To permit a range of residential uses, with permission for accessory functions and services; and,
    • Medium and high density residential uses are to be encouraged along arterial and major collector roads, and in proximity to shopping and community facilities.

Figure 4: Existing Official Plan designations

• The Neighbourhood Commercial District – The Neighbourhood Commercial District has one designation:
  • Neighbourhood Commercial Facilities - The key principles of the Neighbourhood Commercial Facilities designation are as follows:
    • To permit a range of retail and service commercial uses geared to satisfy the day-today needs of residents;
    • To permit (may permit) a limited number of ancillary businesses, institutional, professional offices and accessory residential uses;
    • Neighbourhood facilities to offer between 3,000 and 10,000 square metres of GLA for commercial uses;
    • To promote development as independent plazas, enclosed malls or planned groups of retail stores; and,
    • Residential units may be allowed in the rear of or on the second floor of a commercial building, subject to a test of land use compatibility and the provision of adequate parking.
• The Main Street Area – The Main Street District has two land use designations, Core Activity Area and Residential:
  • Core Activity Area - The key principles of the Core Activity Area designation are as follows:
    • To establish/promote a community focal point, located at a transitway station;
    • To include a concentration of well integrated, high density mixed use developments with a variety of compatible commercial, community, recreational and institutional opportunities. Residential uses may also be permitted;
    • Encourage government facilities, cultural and entertainment uses, as well as convention centres and hotels;
    • Development to be compact to facilitate pedestrian movement. Residential and commercial densities will be high;
    • Convenient and safe pedestrian/cycling facilities to be provided;
    • Parking areas that are not located underground shall be located at the periphery of the site;
    • Building access to be oriented to transitway stations; and,
    • At least one formal Urban Park will be provided within each Core Activity Area.
  • Residential - The key principles of the Residential designation are as follows:
    • To permit a range of residential uses, with permission for accessory functions and services; and,
    • Medium and high density residential uses are to be encouraged along arterial and major collector roads, and in proximity to shopping and community facilities.

Figure 4 illustrates existing Official Plan designations.

c. Zoning

The St. Joseph Boulevard Corridor is zoned for primarily commercial land uses, with the Cc1-Commercial Community zone predominant. The current zoning regime has been successful in producing the existing built form – there are very few anomalous developments and also very few special exceptions to the Zoning By-law. It would appear that the introduction of a broader array of office and higher density residential redevelopment opportunities would require a change in the current policies. Much of the zoning permits those uses conditionally, and most often as an ancillary component of a more retail/service commercial development.

Figure 5: Existing zoning

The following provides a summary of the zoning regime as illustrated on Figure 5:

• The Industrial District – The Industrial District includes the following zoning categories:
  • Mg – Industrial General Zone;
  • In – Institutional Neighbourhood Zone;
  • Ic – Institutional Community Zone;
  • Cc1 – Commercial Community Zone;
  • Cn – Commercial Neighbourhood Zone;
  • Ch – Commercial Highway Zone; and,
  • Rs3 – Residential Single Dwelling Zone 3.
• The Neighbourhood Commercial District – The Neighbourhood Commercial District includes the following zoning categories:
  • Ch – Commercial Highway Zone;
  • Cc1 – Commercial Community Zone;
  • Cc1 (E1) – Commercial Community Zone, Exception 1;
  • Cc1 (E3) – Commercial Community Zone, Exception 3;
  • Cn – Commercial Neighbourhood Zone;
  • Cn (E21) – Commercial Neighbourhood Zone, Exception 21
  • Cn (E29) – Commercial Neighbourhood Zone, Exception 29; and,
  • Rr1 – Row Dwelling Zone 1.
• The Main Street Area - The Main Street Area includes the following zoning categories:
  • Cc1 – Commercial Community Zone;
  • Cc1 (E2) – Commercial Community Zone, Exception 2;
  • Cc1 (E22) – Commercial Community Zone, Exception 22;
  • Cc1 (E26) – Commercial Community Zone, Exception 26;
  • HCc1 – Commercial Community Zone (Holding);
  • Cd – Commercial District Zone; and,
  • HIc – Institutional Community Zone (Holding).

Additional detail with respect to the zoning categories is provided in a summary table in the Appendix.

The demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the population in the St. Joseph Boulevard corridor were compared to other shopping districts in the City. A variety of urban and suburban shopping districts were selected and include: Bank Street, Merivale Road, Montreal Road, Somerset Street and Wellington Street.

The census tracts surrounding each area were aggregated to form the market area. The 1996 census data for these market areas were analyzed to compare and contrast the demographic characteristics of these different areas of the city (2001 Census data released to date only provides population and dwelling counts, which has been incorporated into the analysis). In addition, each of these areas may be compared to the overall Ottawa Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) to view trends in socio-economic variables within neighbourhoods compared to city-level data.

Figure 6 illustrates the boundaries of each market area, with defined census tract edges.

Figure 6: Comparison of market areas

St. Joseph Boulevard

Bank Street

Merivale Road

Montreal Road

Somerset Street

Wellington Street

Population growth has been good
The population of the St. Joseph Boulevard market area was just under 80,000 in 2001, representing a 5.6% increase over 1996, in line with the Ottawa CMA growth rate of 5.3%. Of the comparable markets, only the Somerset Street area recorded a similar increase in population, at 5.5%. The other four areas posted population increases ranging from 1%-3.7%.

A higher average household size
St. Joseph Boulevard has the highest average number of persons per household (pph), at 3.2 pph. The Ottawa CMA average is 2.6 pph, while the comparable market areas range from 1.8-2.5 pph. This is, however, more reflective of the housing types found in each of these areas rather than household composition.

A younger population
The population profile for the St. Joseph Boulevard market area is younger than the Ottawa CMA, with 40% of the population under the age of 25 compared to less than 34% for the CMA. Similarly, only 9.4% of the St. Joseph Boulevard market is 55 years of age or older, compared with 18% for the CMA. Of the comparable market areas, Merivale Road has the next largest proportion of its population under the age of 25 (at 31% - well off the 40% in St. Joseph Boulevard). None of the comparable market areas comes close to the less than 10% share of population over the age of 55 in the St. Joseph Boulevard – Somerset Street is closest, but at still nearly a 20% share of the population profile. In conclusion, in terms of population profile, St. Joseph Boulevard is unique among the market areas analyzed.

Higher average household incomes
In terms of average household income, the St. Joseph Boulevard market is well above all of the comparable areas, including the Ottawa CMA. The average household income for St. Joseph Boulevard of $76,200 exceeds the Bank Street market area by nearly $10,000 (Bank Street has the highest average household income of each of the five comparable areas); additionally, the Ottawa CMA average household income of nearly $ 56,800 is roughly $19,000 below that of St. Joseph Boulevard.

An important distinction can be made regarding average household income and average household income per capita. Since the St. Joseph Boulevard market has a much higher ratio of persons per household in comparison to the other markets, the average household income per capita is in fact lower than two of the comparable areas, Bank Street and Somerset Street and on par with Wellington Street. Using average household income per capita as a measure, St. Joseph Boulevard exceeds only Montreal Road and Merivale Road, as well as the Ottawa CMA. Average household income per capita is an important determinant of retail spending within a trade area and is a more accurate measure than strictly the average household income, which does not account for the average number of persons per household, a key factor in terms of household consumption of retail goods and services.

A predominance of detached homes
The housing stock in St. Joseph Boulevard is largely comprised of single-detached homes (64%) – to a much greater extent than any of the comparable market areas. Of the five comparable market areas in the city, Bank Street has the next highest proportion of the housing stock as single-detached homes, at just over 50%; Somerset Street has the smallest share of single detached homes in its housing stock, at just 12%.

In contrast, St. Joseph Boulevard has the smallest proportion of its housing stock as apartment dwellings, at 6.4%. Somerset Street and Montreal Road have the highest share of apartment dwellings, at 78% and 60%, respectively. Townhomes make up a significant share of the St. Joseph Boulevard market, at nearly 23%.

A predominance of owner occupied homes
The small proportion of apartment units in the St. Joseph Boulevard market area is representative of the fact that only 12.5% of households are renters, compared to 87.5% that own their home. This level of ownership contrasts significantly from the other markets, where home ownership varies from a low of 23% at Somerset Street to a peak of 60% at Bank Street, in terms of the overall households.

The housing stock is comparatively new
The St. Joseph Boulevard market area housing stock is overall the newest of each of the comparable areas and the Ottawa CMA itself. Nearly 62% of the homes were constructed during the 1980s and a further 15% during the 1991-1996 period. In total, over three-quarters of the housing stock is less than 20 years old. In contrast, of the comparable areas, the amount of dwellings constructed during the 1980-1996 period ranges from just 8% at Bank Street to around 19% at Montreal Road. The Ottawa CMA has about one-third of its housing stock constructed during the 1980-1996 period.

Just over 5% of the housing stock in the St. Joseph Boulevard market was constructed pre-1970. This further indicates the relatively young age of the dwelling stock compared to the more mature comparable areas of the city such as Bank Street (82% of the stock constructed pre-1970; 65% constructed pre-1960) and Wellington Street (73% pre-1970; 58% pre-1960).

Population and Households – 1996 and 2001 Census of Canada

source : Royal LePage Advisors and 1996 and 2001Census of Canada

St. Joseph Boulevard currently operates as a major arterial roadway, with a 4 lane urban cross section. Parking is permitted on both sides after 7:00 PM Monday to Saturday. There are no cycling lanes along the road. The posted speed limit along St. Joseph Boulevard within the study area is 50 km./hr. At major intersections, there are additional auxiliary turn lanes. Within the study area there are 6 Intersections controlled by traffic control signals, and 8 intersections controlled by stop signs. All intersections with stop sign controls are “T” intersections.

St. Joseph Boulevard, west of Orléans Boulevard

St. Joseph Boulevard currently operates below its capacity
The most recent traffic counts were obtained from the City of Ottawa for the major intersections within the study area. The counts determined that the two way Average Annual Daily Traffic volumes counts were approximately 20,000 vehicles per day. For comparative purposes, Merivale Road north of Viewmount Drive is a similar 4 lane arterial roadway which has an Average Annual Daily Traffic volumes count of about 29,000 taken during 1998 traffic counts.

Planned right-of-way widths reflect a suburban arterial model
The Official Plan of the former Regional Municipality has identified St. Joseph Boulevard between Jeanne d’Arc Boulevard and Place d’Orléans Drive as being protected for a 34 metre right-of-way. The actual right-of way width is approximately 32 metres along most of the roadway, with isolated sections in the older areas having a right-of-way width of approximately 25-28 metres (Figure 7). When compared to more urban areas within the City of Ottawa, both Bank Street within the Glebe Community and Montreal Road in the former City of Vanier are protected for a 23 metre right-of-way in the Regional Official Plan.

Figure 7: Existing right-of-way dimensions

Collision reports do not indicate major operational problems
Collision data was obtained from the City of Ottawa for key intersections and St. Joseph Boulevard between Jeanne d’Arc Boulevard and Place d’Orléans Boulevard. The accident reports were obtained over the three year period from 1999 to 2001. There was a total of 36 reported collisions over the three year period, of which 9 occurred during the weekends. There were no fatalities. The accident data determined that over the three year period between 1999 and 2001, the majority of the accidents occurred at major intersections and not along the roadway resulting from vehicles turning into the adjacent retail/commercial stores. The majority of the accidents occurred during the weekday peak AM and PM hours.

A moderate level of transit service is provided along St. Joseph Boulevard
Several OC Transpo bus routes travel along St. Joseph Boulevard. Regular OC Transpo service is provided by the following routes:

• Route 127 - between Grey Nuns Drive and Orléans Boulevard; and,
• Routes 125, 127 and 131 - between Orléans Boulevard and Place d’Orléans Drive.

Peak hour (express) service is provided by OC Transpo along the following routes:

• Route 34 - between Jeanne d’Arc Boulevard and Grey Nuns Drive;
• Routes 32 and 34 - between Grey Nuns Drive and Orléans Boulevard; and,
• Route 32 - between Orléans Boulevard and Belcourt Boulevard.

Figure 8 shows the location of bus stops along St. Joseph Boulevard. The figure also shows which stops are placed in designated bus bays. The City of Ottawa is in the process of removing bus bays along major arterial roadways where it has been determined that due to the volume of traffic, buses have difficulty merging back into traffic from the bus bays. A separate public process must be followed when making changes to the roads.

Figure 8: Location of existing bus stops

There is a plethora of overhead wiring in the St. Joseph Boulevard corridor
St. Joseph Boulevard has overhead utility poles and lines located on both the north and south sides of the roadway, along with approximately 44 lines crossing the road. The lines crossing St. Joseph Boulevard comprise of 12 distribution lines of which 4 are fiber optic, and the remaining functioning as service lines. Rogers has upgraded their facilities along St. Joseph Boulevard within the past year.

Hydro poles and wires along St. Joseph Boulevard

The City of Ottawa has no programs that place utility lines underground, and currently has no plans to bury the utility lines and services along St. Joseph Boulevard. Other neighbourhoods around the City of Ottawa have the utility facilities located on overhead poles, which remain on overhead poles after the roadway is reconstructed or widened.

The City of Ottawa was planning to resurface a portion of St. Joseph Boulevard within the limits of the study area in the fall of 2002. The resurfacing has been delayed until the spring of 2003 as a result of discussions with the Public Advisory Committee (PAC). The PAC wishes to have a full discussion on the merits of overlays for St. Joseph versus road reconstruction and burial of overhead servicing when this study is brought forward to the City’s Planning and Development Committee.

Discussions with representatives of the utility companies which have overhead facilities along St. Joseph Boulevard, determined that burying the utility lines which cross the road could not be completed prior to the resurfacing of the roadway due to time required to complete the design, coordinate with other utility companies, order materials, and have available labour and funds for the project.

Currently automobile oriented environment
St. Joseph Boulevard is typical of many suburban retail corridors. Commercial development has evolved over time on a site-by-site basis, sometimes converting existing residences. Uses are largely automobile oriented, as St. Joseph provides one of the key east-west arterials across the City. While residential neighbourhoods abut the corridor, housing and commerce have been largely designed as single purpose districts with little integration.

The purpose of the revitalization strategy is to help with the evolution of St. Joseph Boulevard into a great main street. Great main streets typically have a number of common characteristics:

• An urban structure that enables immediate integration with adjacent neighbourhoods;
• A street that is a “public room”, created by buildings, usually with more than one storey, that contain the street;
• Lively public space with buildings and uses that animate and enliven the street;
• Comfortable pedestrian areas - safe with “eyes on the street”, shade, sheltered from wind;
• The result of a gradual evolution over time through infill and intensification; and,
• The location of important urban squares, parks and public places.

This section compares St. Joseph Boulevard to other commercial districts in Ottawa.

A finer grained urban structure
Bank Street in The Glebe is a “classic main street”. It is an urban mixed-use corridor through a neighbourhood with a grid of closely spaced streets. Over a length of 800 m, there are 8 intersections.     

Bank Street

Montreal Road

Montreal Road in Vanier has a similar condition with very closely spaced streets that intimately connect this main street to the adjacent neighbourhoods. Merivale Road is at the other end of the spectrum from Bank Street and Montreal Road. Connecting streets were actually closed over time, creating a veneer of impenetrable commercial uses that were only accessible along arterial roads. Some blocks are 800 m long. Others are more typically 400 to 500 m. There are often only 1 or 2 intersections over a stretch of 800 m.     

St. Joseph Boulevard

Merivale Road

The urban structure of St. Joseph Boulevard is in between the “classic main street” and suburban commercial corridor. The block distances are widely varying from 100 m west of Place d’ Orleans to 250 m, 350 m and 800 m.

Bloor Street, Bloor West Village, Toronto

Somerset Street, Ottawa
In urban areas, the close spacing of intersecting streets helps to intimately connect the residential hinterland to the main street district. In more suburban areas, the adjacent residential neighbourhoods are not as well connected to their nearby shopping districts as a result of widely spaced intersecting streets. The suburban district becomes less pedestrian oriented than the urban district and evolves into a place for cars.

An identifiable public room
Buildings along most great main streets line the edge of the road-right-of-way with a continuous line of building frontages. At more than one storey, they enclose the public space of the street and form the public room. The face-to-face distance between buildings is typically in the order of 25 m. On St. Joseph Boulevard, the building frontage is not continuous. Plazas are a typical building type that accommodates parking lots, landscape and buffers, eliminating the reality of a continuous building front. While some buildings are more than one storey, the inconsistency of setback and building form results in an environment that is not enclosed by the buildings. The face-to-face distance between buildings varies from 25 m east of Edgar Brault Street to 70, 80 or 100 m where there are commercial plazas opposite each other.

Lively public spaces
Great main streets typically have a wide variety of shops, services and restaurants. Doors, display windows, sidewalk displays and outdoor cafes enliven the public space with interest and activity all day, and well into the evening. Pedestrians find an appealing mix of shops that encourage walking and shopping. The mix of shops and services along St. Joseph Boulevard does not necessarily enliven the public realm with interest and activity. There is one outdoor café, many automotive oriented businesses and offices that do not contribute particular pedestrian appeal to the street. If the shopping trip is multi-purpose, the shopper is more inclined to drive from plaza to plaza, than to walk.

St. Joseph Boulevard

Comfortable pedestrian areas
Pedestrian areas in the most appealing shopping districts are comfortable: lined with shops with interesting displays, shade trees, planters, flower poles, benches, and transit shelters.

Somerset Street, Ottawa

Bank Street, Ottawa
Pedestrian areas on St. Joseph are not defined with buildings, are not lined with trees that shade the sidewalk and don’t have planters filled with flowers and shrubs. Benches are simply elaborate forms of advertising and transit shelters, when they are provided, are glass boxes. Nothing in the public realm is particularly special - no special lights, planting, paving, signs and transit shelters.

Gradual development, intensification
The most appealing main streets have evolved over time with development that gradually infills and intensifies. Historically, development occurred on small lots with individual buildings. In a highly spaced grid, the “rules” of construction were easy to follow: buildings located at the edge of the sidewalk, filling the width of the lot, with servicing in behind, to a height that matched the adjoining building, with a façade that matched the cornice, pattern of windows, sign band, columns and base panel. The result was a fine-grained texture of development. On St. Joseph, building lots were assembled to form large parcels to accommodate plazas. The plazas incorporate extensive front yard parking, resulting in a distinctly different character than found on most classic main streets. The environment is scaled for the car, not pedestrians, with large expanses of paving.

A variety of urban squares, parks and public places
Classic main streets are also the location of key urban squares, parks, public places and public or institutional buildings. St. Joseph is the location of the St. Joseph Catholic Church, a focus of the community, especially east of Bilberry Creek. However, over the distance of 3.5 km, one obvious public space is not enough. Additional focal points need to be added to provide a sense of uniqueness and comfort.   

St. Joseph Boulevard, transit stops

St. Joseph Boulevard, Catholic church

The analysis of the market, land use, planning, transportation and transit contexts revealed several key issues that provided the foundation for the urban design guidelines. The following is a summary of the key issues and observations:

1. St. Joseph Boulevard is well located and highly accessible
The St. Joseph Boulevard corridor is well located and highly accessible. An area with these locational and accessibility attributes should intensify naturally and, over time, evolve into an urban centre.

2. St. Joseph Boulevard must evolve into a more urban model
In the short to mid-term St. Joseph Boulevard will maintain its function as a major arterial road across the City, carrying traffic volumes in the order of 20,000 vehicles per day. Over time, as redevelopment occurs and the character of the street is changed, the speed and efficiency of traffic operations may be balanced with other road corridor functions typical of more highly urban models.

3. The demographic profile of the area represents some positive opportunities
In assessing the St. Joseph Boulevard market relative to each of the comparable market areas and the Ottawa CMA, the following observations are evident:

• St. Joseph Boulevard exceeded all of the comparable areas in terms of population growth during the 1996- 2001 period;
• The average number of persons per household in the St. Joseph Boulevard market is well above any of the comparable areas;
• The population age profile for St. Joseph Boulevard is generally younger than any of the comparable areas;
• Average household incomes in the St. Joseph Boulevard area are well above the comparable market areas, although the average household income per capita is similar;
• The housing stock near St. Joseph Boulevard is predominantly single detached housing and row housing, contrasting from the comparable areas which have a generally smaller share of single detached homes and a larger proportion of apartment dwellings; and,
• The housing stock near St. Joseph Boulevard is younger compared to other areas.

4. Improvements to transit service can boost redevelopment potential
St. Joseph Boulevard is adequately served by transit, a key to successful intensification. Improvements to transit stops can contribute to the overall perception of quality and convenient transit service. Further, enhanced transit service will reduce reliance on automobiles and promote pedestrian activity.

5. Redevelopment opportunities should focus on medium to higher density residential uses
The trade area has a growing population, and it is relatively wealthy. It can support a broader mix of uses. Higher density residential uses are key to the success of a new mixed-use district along St. Joseph Boulevard. This will increase density and the number of shoppers that can support the remaining commercial and retail uses.

6. In the longer term, retail opportunities should complement the Place d’Orléans Shopping Centre
The demographic profile of the St. Joseph area is oriented to retail consumption patterns offered at the nearby Place d’Orléans regional shopping centre. As a result, St. Joseph Boulevard street front retail mix is not suited to compete with the range of offerings at the regional mall. Rather, retailing along St. Joseph Boulevard in the traditional “main street” form is more suited to provide niche product, personal convenience retailing, and professional offices, along with restaurants. These types of commercial uses would attract consumers making multiple stops – as opposed to “one-stop shopping” at Place d’Orléans.

7. The urban structure of the St. Joseph Boulevard corridor needs to evolve into a more urban model
St. Joseph Boulevard is a strip commercial district. It has an extremely poor visual quality – it is unorganized, there is no streetscape amenity, some buildings are poorly maintained and obsolete. The area’s poor image not only obviates the redevelopment of adjacent sites for higher order land uses, it represents a self-perpetuating cycle of decline. St. Joseph Boulevard lacks the fine grained block structure that is typical of classic urban main street districts. Significant steps will be required to connect the residential community to the commercial and civic focus of St. Joseph. The area must intensify in nodes with a broader mix of uses. The length of the St. Joseph Boulevard area at 3.5 km is too long to redevelop as one continuous retail shopping area. The success of this new district hinges on creating an appealing and comfortable pedestrian environment. St. Joseph Boulevard has very wide grass boulevards that could be the location of significant and unique landscape treatment and public amenities.

8. The market analysis indicates that redevelopment by the private sector will occur incrementally
Some of the conclusions of the market analysis included:

• The physical nature of St. Joseph Boulevard does not lend itself to large-scale redevelopment. The steep topography on either side of the boulevard limits lot depth in some areas and increases development costs (particularly compared to conventional greenfields).
• Rents along St. Joseph Boulevard remain below the economic levels required to justify new commercial construction. These rents are generally on par with retail rents based on current availabilities in comparable market areas. As a result, the potential for retail infill development will likely be niche-driven (e.g., specialty service, restaurants, etc.) and relatively small in scale.
• Relatively little medium and high density residential development has taken place in the study area. While the Ottawa market has seen an increase in higher and medium density development virtually none of it has taken place in the Orléans community, which continues to represent a strong family housing market, predominantly single-detached.
• It is anticipated that the potential for infill residential projects would (like the retail market) represent a niche opportunity for higher-intensity development that recognize a location near transit, shopping and community services.
• In summary, the redevelopment opportunities along St. Joseph Boulevard are limited in part due to the physical character of the area, relatively new built form in place, the competitive market environment and established socio-economic conditions. Redevelopment will likely take place incrementally as the area is already well served by an established retail hierarchy and existing propensity for lower-density residential development. Future redevelopment along St. Joseph Boulevard would benefit from enhanced transit, shopping facilities and community facilities.

9. Current planning policy does not support mixed-use redevelopment
Current planning policies do not support the redevelopment of this area as a high density mixed use, urban centre. Current policy provides substantial disincentives for the redevelopment of the area for a variety of land uses. A simplified and flexible zoning regime may result in more appropriate development that is influenced by guidelines for built form, not necessarily use. The Revitalization Strategy needs a commitment to an Action Plan that marries public and private sector initiatives, including Community Improvement policies, a flexible zoning regime, reduced parking standards, built form guidelines and financial incentives for redevelopment.

10. Redevelopment to be led by the public sector
It is considered crucial that the public sector provide stimulus for redevelopment. As this area of Ottawa reaches a greater critical mass and the key infrastructure improvements are implemented, the financial feasibility for redevelopment can improve and more redevelopment will take place.

11. The dominance of overhead wires in the streetscape has been identified by many participants in the study as a core issue that will obviate redevelopment
There is no question that the hydro poles and wires dominate the streetscape. Their visual dominance, however, is in part, a function of the desolate character of the entire public realm. Many, successful urban districts have overhead wires on hydro poles. They are less obvious because of the diversity of conditions along the street. Buildings line the street edge with interesting facades, storefronts have outdoor displays, and signs, banners, trees all help to divert attention to hydro poles.

12. Aesthetic improvements can be made incrementally, without comprehensive redevelopment and without burial of overhead servicing
While the entire area suffers from an image problem, a phased approach to upgrading the streetscape can be implemented over time that will also act as both a preview of a future condition and as a catalyst for change in the medium term.

13. Pioneers and champions required
All redevelopment scenarios require some individual landowners to initiate the change. New development activity, and a new image will perpetuate more change.