Lansdowne 2.0

Investing in a City-owned landmark

Lansdowne is one of Ottawa’s most iconic gathering places. It’s a space where people can cheer on local teams, attend concerts and festivals, enjoy the farmers’ market, meet friends for dinner, or simply spend time outdoors. As the City owns the land and all buildings at Lansdowne, it is the City's responsibility to maintain these facilities.

Some of the site’s important public facilities, including the stadium’s north side stands and the event centre, are nearing the end of their useful life and no longer meet today’s standards, particularly in the area of accessibility. The nearly 60-year-old event centre and north side stands require extensive and costly maintenance to remain operational, with costs only increasing as more time passes.

Lansdowne 2.0 is a strategic plan to modernize these aging facilities, improve public spaces, add more homes and businesses, and ensure Lansdowne continues to serve as a year-round destination. The plan protects and enhances an asset that belongs to the people of Ottawa, leveraging the City’s investment with significant revenues that will pay the majority of the cost. This initiative is focused on maintaining public infrastructure and creating an improved space for residents, visitors, and future generations.

What’s included in Lansdowne 2.0?

Lansdowne 2.0 is the City’s innovative plan to update the site so it can continue to serve residents and visitors for decades to come. The proposal aims to enhance the experience for everyone who visits or lives on-site and generate revenues to offset most of the cost of construction.

The revitalized Lansdowne will include:

A new and improved event centre: This will replace the aging TD Place Arena (formerly the Civic Centre) and create a more attractive venue for concerts, community events, and professional sports. Core priorities for the new centre include full accessibility and gender-inclusive facilities. The event centre will feature a striking exterior and improved energy efficiency. It is also being designed to specifically address the needs of professional women’s sports, including the Ottawa Charge, with customized dressing rooms and training spaces.

The event centre will accommodate up to 7,000 people for concerts and 6,600 for hockey. This total capacity includes 5,850 seats combined with popular modern viewing areas where fans can gather together to watch while standing. Based on consultation with event organizers, tourism officials, and others, this size is strategically planned for the Ottawa market, positioning the facility between the more intimate National Arts Centre and larger venues like the Canadian Tire Centre and a potential new downtown arena.

Modern north side stadium stands at TD Place: These will offer upgraded seating, wider concourses, additional washrooms, and significantly improved accessibility for fans and visitors. Like the south side stands, the new stands will no longer have a roof, though the City is exploring options to provide some weather protection.

New housing: The project will introduce hundreds of new residential units to Lansdowne, contributing to Ottawa's housing needs. The City will earn revenue from the sale of air rights (the rights to build above the land) for these towers, which will help fund Lansdowne 2.0 and affordable housing in Ottawa.

Revitalized Public Spaces: Lansdowne 2.0 will feature reinvigorated public areas and green spaces including the return of the Great Lawn for festivals and concerts, and the reintroduction of a berm for play, relaxation, concert viewing, and tobogganing. These spaces are intended for year-round community activities, events, and recreation. New pathways, seating areas, and outdoor venues will enhance the visitor and resident experience.

Public Art Program: $2 million of the total project budget will be dedicated to creating dynamic public art installations, celebrating Ottawa's diverse culture.

These upgrades are designed to replace aging infrastructure, improve accessibility and sustainability, and support tourism, small businesses and local jobs, making Lansdowne a more inclusive and vibrant year-round destination.

The proposed construction plan is also being created in close collaboration with local businesses and residents. All major events, such as outdoor markets and CFL, NSL, CPL, PWHL, OHL and CEBL games, would continue during construction under the proposed plan.