The heart and soul of downtown Ottawa.

About Rideau
Street.

There’s no shortage of options along

Rideau Street.

Located near the city’s main attractions, world-famous Parliament Hill and Byward Market, Rideau Street has the oldest and richest history of anywhere else in Ottawa, dating back to the first settlement in 1826. Officially designated as Ottawa’s Arts, Fashion, and Theatre district, it has spectacularly transformed into the pulse of the city keeping the good vibes going day and night. Today, it continues to keep Ottawa alive with endless shopping, dining, arts and culture, and entertainment experiences for all ages. 

Explore the

business community

Aside from the fascinating historical landmarks to explore, there’s something for everyone along Rideau Street whether you’re planning a fun-filled day trip or a high-spirited night out. From world-class shopping to fine dining restaurants to mom & pop shops to hidden gems, this must-experience area is home to 600+ thriving businesses that help make it all possible. Check out our Business Directory to find your new favourite place.

Check them out

Our History

From its strong beginnings as the primary commercial area in the city to the development of the latest hotel and retail attractions, Rideau Street has an incredible history.

1826
Commercial District
Rideau Street played a central role in Ottawa’s commercial and retail sectors since just after the area was first settled, over 188 years ago. Lt. Col. John By arrived in 1826 to begin construction of the Rideau Canal and Rideau Street, forming part of an original route to Montreal.
Learn More
1857
Civil Servants
As the settlement in ByTown grew, it officially became Ottawa in 1855. Rideau Street continued to thrive and in 1857 Queen Victoria declared Ottawa the capital of Canada.
Learn More
1889
The Department Store Era
The introduction of the department store in the late 19th century had a significant influence on the appearance and structure of Downtown Rideau.
Learn More
1916
Architectural Landmarks
The construction of three important buildings anchoring the western limits of Rideau Street at Sussex Drive had a significant impact on the appearance and structure of Rideau Street.
Learn More
The 60’s and 70’s
Suburban Competition
In the years following the Second World War, Downtown Rideau, like many other downtown districts, faced increasing competition from new suburban shopping centres, many of which were anchored by department stores.
Learn More
1983
Rideau Area Project
As Downtown Ottawa faced a rapidly declining consumer market share throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the local, provincial and federal governments took decisive action to improve the situation.
Learn More
1993
Redevelopment
In the early 1990s, with the recognition that the Rideau Area Project and the Rideau Transit Mall had failed, a further $4.2 million dollar investment in Rideau Street was made by Downtown Rideau property owners, businesses and the City of Ottawa.
Learn More
2011
Redevelopment of The Shaw Centre
Redevelopment of the Shaw Centre (formerly the Ottawa Convention Centre) began with the demolition and closure of the former Ottawa Congress Centre in 2008.
Learn More
2013-2016
Rideau Centre Revitalization and Expansion
Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited made a significant investment in a major revitalization and expansion project at Rideau Centre that took place between September 2013 to August 2016.
Learn More
2013-2018
Introduction of Light Rail Transit
The City of Ottawa built a world-class Light Rail Transit (LRT) system called the Confederation Line to respond to traffic congestion throughout the city and to encourage car commuters to switch to transit.
Learn More
2015-2017
National Arts Centre Revitalization & Expansion
Opening its doors in 1969, the NAC was built in brutalist architectural style with a geometric concrete structure and minimal tall narrow windows.
Learn More
2015-2017
Development of Hôtel Le Germain Ottawa and ArtHaus
The Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG) Expansion and Arts Court Redevelopment project is part of a long-standing vision for the revitalization of Ottawa’s downtown funded by the City of Ottawa, the Province of Ontario, the Ottawa Art Gallery, and the University of Ottawa.
Learn More
2015-2019
Ottawa Art Gallery Expansion and Arts Court Redevelopment
The sleek, modern design of this complex is a collaboration between Groupe Régis Côté Architectes and LemayMichaud Architecture Design.
Learn More
Today
The importance of Downtown Rideau today as Ottawa’s Arts, Fashion & Theatre District and retail centre stems from its historic role as the primary commercial district of early Ottawa.
Learn More
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1826

Commercial District

Downtown Rideau has played a central role in Ottawa’s commercial and retail sectors since just after the area was first settled, over 188 years ago. Lt. Col. John By arrived in 1826 to begin construction of the Rideau Canal and Rideau Street, forming part of an original route to Montreal. Just one year later in 1827, Rideau Street emerged as the primary commercial district serving the residents of Lower Town and Upper Town, which it neatly divided. Underground sewers and drains were installed on Rideau Street in 1850, followed the by a sidewalk on the north side and a public water well at the intersection of Rideau and Dalhousie streets the next year. Gas lamps first appeared along Rideau Street in 1854, yet despite the significance of the street, it remained unpaved until 1895. Until that time, merchants were forced to sprinkle water on the street twice a day to keep dust from entering their stores and spoiling the merchandise.

1857

Civil Servants

As the settlement called ByTown grew, it officially became Ottawa in 1855. Rideau Street continued to thrive. In 1857 Queen Victoria declared Ottawa the capital of Canada. With this distinction came the Parliament Buildings and an influx of federal civil servants. Nearby, Rideau Street’s clientele was thereby expanded by these new residents.

1889

The Department Store Era

The introduction of the department store in the late 19th century had a significant influence on the appearance and structure of Downtown Rideau. In 1889, T. Lindsay and Co. opened Ottawa’s first multi-purpose department store where Rideau Centre stands today. By 1901, the north side of Rideau Street accommodated three such businesses and each store was located in a multi-storey building fronting on two streets — Rideau and George. This marked the beginning of Rideau Street’s reign as the premier-shopping district in Ottawa, as it became known for its many high quality department stores. A.J. Frieman’s Department Store, now home to The Bay, was Ottawa’s largest. Ogilvy’s, located on the SW side of Rideau at Nicholas emphasized quality and personal service. Two other department stores—Caplan’s, on the north side of Rideau at Nicholas, and Larogue’s, on the NE corner of Rideau at Dalhousie, served a broad clientele on both sides of the Ottawa River. By the 1920s, Rideau Street was home to upwards of 50 thriving, family-owned retail establishments. These retailers included L.E. Stanley, McKerracher-Wanless, Beardsley’s Shoes, Dworkin Furs, Edelson Jewellers, Letellier Shoes and Trudel Hardware, with many remaining in full operation until the 2000’s.

1916

Architectural Landmarks

The construction of 3 important buildings anchoring the western limits of Rideau Street at Sussex Drive had a significant impact on the appearance and structure of Rideau Street. The Transportation Building, (located at 10 Rideau Street, is now an office tower attached to the Rideau Centre) erected in 1916, represents a variation on the Chicago Style of architecture introduced in the 1880’s using innovative technology that led to the construction of tall commercial buildings. Ottawa’s main rail terminal, Union Station (located at 2 Rideau Street, is now the federal government’s Conference Centre), was completed in 1916. In that same year, the Chateau Laurier Hotel (at 1 Rideau Street) was built, carrying a reputation as the most luxurious hotel in Ottawa. To this day, their reputation remains, with the Chateau Laurier remaining the host to a great many parliamentarians, foreign dignitaries, and celebrities. All three of these buildings remain prominent assets of Downtown Rideau and the  intersection of Rideau Street and Sussex Drive continues to be one of the most prestigious commercial addresses in Canada and the world.

The 60’s and 70’s

Suburban Competition

In the years following the Second World War Downtown Rideau, like many other downtown districts, faced increasing competition from new suburban shopping centres, many of which were anchored by department stores. By the 1970s, this increase in retail competition was compounded in Downtown Rideau when the federal government moved 18% of its downtown workforce to Hull, Quebec. For the first time in its 187-year commercial history, Downtown Rideau began to experience a loss of downtown shoppers and many of its family-owned businesses began to close.

1983

Rideau Area Project

As Downtown Ottawa faced a rapidly declining consumer market share throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the local, provincial and federal governments took decisive action to improve the situation. The number, location, and size of regional shopping facilities in Ottawa became restricted and a massive investment into public transit downtown was made. In particular, $166 million was spent on the Rideau Area Project—a joint undertaking of the local, provincial, and federal governments along with a consortium of private developers in 1983. The centerpiece of the Project was the redevelopment of a 35-acre parcel east of the Rideau Canal in Downtown Rideau with frontage on both Rideau Street and Colonel By Drive. On this site, the Rideau Centre and Ottawa Congress Centre (now the Ottawa Convention Centre) were built, along with the 475 room Westin Hotel. This made the Rideau Centre the largest regional shopping facility in Ottawa with 1.1 million square feet and over the years has included department stores, including Eatons and Sears, as well as 140 retail outlets. To this day, it consistently performs as the 4th highest sales per square foot shopping centre in Canada, while the Ottawa Convention Centre remains Ottawa’s premier trade and convention facility. At the same time, the Rideau Area Business Improvement Area was formed to market the district under the Downtown Rideau brand to represent its business community. In an attempt to connect the shopping centre with retailers on Rideau Street, and to ensure a high volume of transit consumers for the district, the city closed Rideau Street to through traffic and created the Rideau Transit Mall for transit use only. For added comfort and convenience, the Transit Mall included all-weather protected sidewalk enclosures on Rideau Street between Sussex Drive and Nicholas Street. Unfortunately, the Transit Mall and Sidewalk Enclosures attracted loitering and vagrant activity that resulted in a negative economic impact on Downtown Rideau businesses.

1993

Redevelopment

In the early 1990s, with the recognition that the Rideau Area Project and the Rideau Transit Mall had failed, a further $4.2 million dollar investment in Rideau Street was made by Downtown Rideau property owners, businesses and the City of Ottawa. The purpose of this project was to restore Rideau Street to its previous function as a commercial main street, major east/west artery and an open-air, pedestrian-friendly area. Among the primary physical renovations to Rideau Street was the removal of the Transit Mall and Sidewalk Enclosures, which obstructed views of business storefronts, as well as the straightening of the roadway and the re-introduction of cars back to the street. In addition to cars, two-way traffic was also returned to the streets parallel to Rideau (that were used to divert cars off Rideau) and streetscaping elements were added to complement the architectural character of Downtown Rideau’s historic buildings. These efforts had the effect of returning Rideau Street to a conventional “main street”, by knitting Downtown Rideau back into Ottawa’s bustling urban fabric both functionally and visually, visually. It also succeeded in creating a new pedestrian-friendly atmosphere attracting more Ottawans and visitors to Rideau Street.

2011

Redevelopment of The Shaw Centre

Redevelopment of the Shaw Centre (formerly the Ottawa Convention Centre) began with the demolition and closure of the former Ottawa Congress Centre in 2008. The new Shaw Centre, now a world-class, state-of-the-art facility in a prestigious location, sits along the UNESCO World Heritage Rideau Canal and in full view of the Parliament Buildings. It tripled its floor space on the same footprint in Downtown Rideau with over 200,000 square feet of world-class meeting

space—100,000 of which is continuous column-free space. The new facility opened in April 2011 with total capital investment of $159 million, including $50 million each from the federal and provincial governments, as well as $40 million from the City of Ottawa (the balance was debt-financed). Within its first year, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of all goods and services produced at the Shaw Centre rose from a projected $63 million in June 2009 to over $200 million in December 2010. The new Shaw Centre resulted in the following ROI:

  • Employment impact double from 1,200 to 2,900 full time jobs
  • Tax revenues exceeded $65 million
  • Visitors generated $82.4 million
  • Local trade generated $14.2 million
  • 118 FTEs in the local retail industry
  • $11.3 million in revenues and 141 FTEs in local restaurants and bar

2013-2016

Rideau Centre Revitalization and Expansion

Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited made a significant investment in a major revitalization and expansion project at Rideau Centre that took place between September 2013 to August 2016.The Redevelopment Project included:

  • A complete interior renovation with a fresh, contemporary look featuring premium finishes, including new quartz flooring, enhanced lighting, glass guardrails and modern amenities.
  • A new 35,000 sq. ft. dining hall offering a one-of-a kind dining experience for Ottawa shoppers featuring 16 premium branded eateries, seating for 850 and state-of-the-art scullery using reusable dishes, glassware, and metal cutlery instead of disposable products.
  • A stellar and exclusive line-up of the industry’s best-in-class retailers, including Nordstrom and Simons.
  • An expansion that added 230,000 sq. ft. of leasable area over 4-levels, plus a new 3-level underground parking garage.
  • A new exterior façade that reinvigorated the area along Rideau Street, including a refurbished Ogilvy Building heritage façade.

2013-2018

Introduction of Light Rail Transit

The City of Ottawa built a world-class Light Rail Transit (LRT) system called the Confederation Line to respond to traffic congestion throughout the city and to encourage car commuters to switch to transit. The LRT is a state-of-the-art system and Ottawa’s largest transportation infrastructure project since the building of the Rideau Canal in 1826. The Confederation Line is a significant part of OC Transpo’s integrated transit network as it connects the existing Bus Rapid Transitway (BRT) with a 2.5km downtown tunnel moving Ottawa faster and more comfortably than ever before. The LRT Rideau station is located under Rideau Street and integrates with the Rideau Centre making it the most important transfer station, providing transfers between the Confederation Line and the city’s urban bus routes east and south. At a cost of just over two billion dollars, it is the largest infrastructure project awarded in the history of the city and has resulted in significant reinvestment and property redevelopment in Downtown Rideau.

2015-2017

2015-2017 National Arts Centre Revitalization & Expansion

Opening its doors in 1969, the NAC was built in brutalist architectural style with a geometric concrete structure and minimal tall narrow windows. The entrance from Elgin Street has now been replaced with more visually appealing glass and wood, with the inviting Equator café tucked just inside. Diamond Schmitt Architects were responsible for the stone tile floor design of the renovated spaces to echo the building’s original triangle and hexagon design patterns.

In the fall of 2017, the second floor of the north atrium opened, as did the transformed Fourth Stage. In February 2018, the NAC opened the expanded Panorama Room, a 600-seat venue for large events overlooking the Rideau Canal. It also features newly renovated washrooms (triple the original number) as well as a revamped and relocated Box Office, now on the bottom level.

The new showcase architectural feature of the NAC is the 20-metre high Kipnes Lantern, at centre, which will act as a digital display for the theatre, showcasing performances and days of significance. The NAC now offers picturesque views of Confederation Park as well as the East Block and Peace Tower on Parliament Hill. Plus, its abundance of natural light makes it a very popular spot for photo shoots.

2015-2017

Development of Hôtel Le Germain Ottawa and ArtHaus

The Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG) Expansion and Arts Court Redevelopment project is part of a long-standing vision for the revitalization of Ottawa’s downtown funded by the City of Ottawa, the Province of Ontario, the Ottawa Art Gallery, and the University of Ottawa.

The OAG opened to the public in 2017 and features:

  • Environmentally controlled exhibition and curatorial spaces, event and education facilities, and a café and gift shop (5,860 square metres gross floor area).
  • A 120-seat Black Box Theatre for the University of Ottawa and four classrooms (1,481 square metres gross floor area).
  • A 250-seat multi-purpose screening room with retractable seating and projection booth for film and digital presentations, lectures, and other functions.
  • A rooftop terrace and outdoor courtyards.
  • A new, barrier-free main entrance on Daly Avenue, new loading docks, and elevators that connect the OAG, the University of Ottawa Theatre Department, and Arts Court on all four levels.

The Arts Court Redevelopment was completed in 2019 and features:

  • Improved east-west pedestrian connectivity through Arts Court, linking it to the new OAG, the University of Ottawa, and to the future Light Rail Transit station at Rideau Centre.
  • Renovation of existing spaces vacated by the OAG to provide improved facilities for creation, production, exhibition, and performance for some of Ottawa’s leading artist-run centres currently programming at Arts Court, including Saw Gallery, Club Saw, Saw Video, Independent Filmmakers Co-Operative (IFCO) and Artengine (2,014 square metres gross floor area).
  • Enhancements to the courtyard facing Nicholas Street.

2015-2019

Ottawa Art Gallery Expansion and Arts Court Redevelopment

The sleek, modern design of this complex is a collaboration between Groupe Régis Côté Architectes and LemayMichaud Architecture Design.

For family-run business Groupe Germain Hospitalité, the construction of this 120-room boutique hotel underneath an 82-unit condominium adds to their growing list of distinctive mixed-use developments, allowing them to strategically locate and market their hotels.

The mixed-use formula makes it possible for smaller hotels to locate in central downtown locations that would otherwise be too costly. Hôtel Le Germain Ottawa makes up the first 12 stories of the tower, with the bottom four floors housing the hotel lobby, meeting rooms, other amenities, and eight floors of guest rooms. The top eight stories of the tower consist of ArtHaus, private condominiums developed by DevMcGill. They also share two levels of underground parking.

Today

The importance of Downtown Rideau today as Ottawa’s Arts, Fashion & Theatre District and retail centre stems from its historic role as the primary commercial district of early Ottawa. Located just one block east of Parliament Hill and the Rideau Canal, Downtown Rideau continues to provide a focus for the region’s shopping, hotel, and meeting activities.

The proximity of Downtown Rideau’s main street, Rideau Street, to many of the capital’s local and national landmarks and attractions further enhances Downtown Rideau’s role as the centre of activity in the City of Ottawa.