Lansdowne Park redevelopment

The Lansdowne Park redevelopment was a public-private partnership redevelopment of the Lansdowne Park fairgrounds in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. In September 2007, cracks were discovered in Frank Clair Stadium, and a portion of the south-side stands was demolished due to safety concerns. The City of Ottawa subsequently initiated an international design competition to redevelop Lansdowne Park. However, it suspended the competition when a group of Ottawa businessmen known as the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG), who had been awarded a Canadian Football League franchise on the condition of securing a home venue in Ottawa, proposed a public-private partnership with the City to rebuild the stadium and redevelop the grounds with residential and commercial uses to finance the reconstruction and annual upkeep of the site. Ottawa City Council entered into a partnership with the OSEG group and cancelled its competitive process.

The redevelopment plan was split into two components after the City rejected the portion of the OSEG proposal regarding lands bordering the Rideau Canal. OSEG was assigned the precinct around the Stadium and along Bank Street, while a design competition was held for an 'urban park' to be located along the Canal. The OSEG plan envisioned two towers along Bank Street, new football stadium grandstands, and a new residential and commercial district to the north of the Stadium.

The redevelopment plan was opposed by some Ottawa residents, particularly those near the Lansdowne site. Heritage activists objected to a plan to move the heritage building on the site as its reassembly was in doubt. A court challenge was held in Ontario Superior Court, contending that the City illegally proceeded with the sole-source project. Opponents proposed opening up the redevelopment to a public tender. Other alternatives proposed including building a football stadium at another more suitable location and organizing the park reconstruction solely as a public process. Appeals to the Ontario Municipal Board and the Ontario Superior Court were rejected. An appeal to the Ontario Court of Appeal was launched in September 2011 and dismissed in April 2012. The City of Ottawa started construction in 2012, and anticipated the completion in 2015.