[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="599" caption="Light well, Outrement Station, Montréal Metro"][/caption] As rail-starved Ottawans wait for the latest attempt at light-rail transit to creep slowly towards completion, one question remains unanswered: who will design the stations? Admittedly, this has little to do with the actual nuts and bolts of the proposed system, or to do with the all-important dilemma that is funding its construction, but it is an important question nevertheless. After all, this system will be used by tens of thousands of people every day, so it seems only logical that stations should be pleasant and interesting places to wait for a train, right? The current Transitway system seems to be the antithesis of this philosophy. Right now, stations range from dank and unpleasant (St. Laurent), to utilitarian (the majority, like Hurdman and Lincoln Fields), to mildly pleasing (Dominion comes to mind). Transitway stations betray their 80s heritage at a glance: concrete abounds, and the ubiquitous red tubing and glass that makes up nearly every shelter quickly becomes depressing and repetitive.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="599" caption="Jane's Walk 2009 in the Byward Market"][/caption] With 35 captivating neighbourhood-based walks on the program, this year's edition of Jane's Walk promises to be the most deliciously diverse version of the festival yet. We don't have the space to preview all of the tours on offer this weekend, but we do want to draw our readers' attention to several of the walks with a strong Spacing connection. From the outset of this blog, the people behind Apartment 613 have been huge supporters of Spacing Ottawa and it is no surprise ...

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600" caption="Did Montréal get the best Centennial legacy of them all?"][/caption] 1967 was a good year— the “last good year” according to Pierre Berton. Canada’s centennial sparked centennial-project craze across the country. I first started to think about the lingering legacies of Centennial celebrations on a visit to St. Paul, Alberta. I was on a little road trip checking out ‘big things on the side of the road’ and stopped in St. Paul to visit the town’s UFO landing pad. Reading the accompanying plaque I discovered that the UFO landing pad was a centennial project. For the citizens of this Albertan town, welcoming out-of-planet visitors was the perfect way to celebrate Canada’s birthday and Canadian hospitality. While countless arenas, community centers and parks were built in honour of the Centennial, Berton outlines other more extraordinary celebratory acts. Men grew ‘centennial beards,’ one man attempted (unsuccessfully) to lead a dog team from Tuktoyaktuk to Edmonton, and a team of paddlers embarked on a canoe trip/ race following the historic route of the Voyageurs from the North Saskatchewan River to Montreal, all in celebration of the nation’s birthday. Berton also noted this more anarchist style ‘centennial project’: “It almost seemed that every man and woman in the country was determined to mark the anniversary with a personal effort, even if to somebody it meant throwing a hammer through the window of the U.S. Consulate in Toronto. A note from the anonymous vandal attached to the hammer announced that this was his centennial project” (39).

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="599" caption="Popcorn and a Prime Minister: the old home of Place de Ville cinema"][/caption] The answer to last week's quiz is the Podium Building at Place de Ville. It seems it was a tough one; we had no right answers. Place de Ville was once home to the Place de Ville Cinemas operated by Famous Players. The theatre opened in 1971 and closed in 1996. It opened as one of the replacements for the Capitol Theatre, which once graced the corner of Bank and Queen, a short distance away. The old cinemas are  hidden behind office space which now encircles them. This allows the offices access to the natural light provided by the windows, while the cinemas are encased, an arrangement which reduces their perceived bulk.  The Place de Ville Cinema is unique in the city as the cinemas are piggy-backed. Cinema II accessed from the ground floor had 437 seats and Cinema I had 751 seats. The primary feature of the multi-story foyer was a mural of images of the old Capitol Theatre which rose up next to the multi-level escalator.

Ottawa-the national capital, often overshadows Ottawa-the place to live. This is particularly true in architecture, where institutions like parliament, the Museum of Civilization and the National Art Gallery of Canada grab all the attention. Today, Apartment613 is featuring a photo essay by photographer Steve McCullough that explores some of the structures that - while not national treasures - help to give the city its unique style. Steve uses his camera to bring out the extraordinary in the everyday, even capturing the infamous City Center in an attractive light. Frequently voted the ...

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="599" caption="The Rideau river near the Herzberg Building, Carleton University"][/caption] Every five years or so, Carleton University revisits its master plan. The most recent draft edition was released in September 2009. Though the campus has long failed to take advantage of its spectacular setting, its administrators have always understood the power of the site, as most brochure shots of the institution are traditionally taken from the air. From this perspective you get a sense of the way Carleton relates to both the Rideau River and the Rideau Canal. On the ground the visual effect is much different. The site is  heavily insulated with ring roads and parkways which separate the campus from its natural setting. There have been sporadic attempts to connect portions of the campus to the surrounding waterways, but in the end, the powers-that-be have always judged that the ring road was of more importance than, for example, allowing the Loeb Building to reach out to the banks of the Rideau River.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="599" caption="Canadian Museum of Nature: Victorian, haunted, under renovation, and *not* the answer"][/caption] No one has correctly guessed the correct answer to last week's puzzler. To refresh memories, here it is again: While I currently sit unassumingly at the base of the city, stripped down, but encased, I once played host to spectacles and even the Prime Minister. What structure am I? So it's time to break out the cheat-sheet and make with the extra hints: I am not the Musuem of Nature (Victoria Memorial Building) I am located in the northern ...

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600" caption="Courtyard behind Sussex Drive"][/caption] When you're getting to know someone you think might have prospects it often a good idea to spend some sunshine hours with them before moving on to dinner and a movie and whatever might come next. Going for a walk can be a great strategy. Let them choose the route, maybe end up somewhere for a coffee, and spend a while with them where you can get a sense of who they are before there are any expectations. One person we thought Ottawa needs to go on a daytime stroll with and get to know of a little better is George Dark, chair of the Strategic Design Review and Advisory Panel. That's the panel charged with making sure the design of the new Lansdowne will do Ottawa proud. How important is that? Well, some argue that Lansdowne Live might be the biggest city-building project we've seen in decades. So this thing we've started with George might be very serious, indeed. But beyond getting paid for it, we wondered -- why should a Toronto landscape architect care what a long-neglected site 400 kilometers away from his office really ends up looking like? Why should we trust him to care about us?