Quartier Vanier

B R OUGH T TO YOU BY TH E QUARTI ER VANI ER BUSI NESS I MPROVEMENT AREA

QUARTIER VANIER Just east of ordinary OTTAWA’S NEXT ‘IT’ NEIGHBOURHOOD MAY SURPRISE YOU Opportunities for developers, investors and retailers.

David Seba, owner and manager, Quelque Chose Pâtisserie.

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David Seba, owner and manager, Quelque Chose Pâtisserie.

PHOTO BY MARK HOLLERON

2 QUARTIER VANIER Just east of ordinary

Hip to be here

An opportunity this good and close to downtown can’t last There just isn’t another neighbourhood so close to downtown Ottawa that still offers such untapped potential for mixed-used development, building a business or putting down roots to grow a family.

Really, we’ve looked.

The place to start a small business …

Just ask David Seba, owner and manager of Quelque Chose Pâtisserie on Montréal Road.

David and wife Julia, a pastry chef trained in Paris, decided Vanier was the place to be when they decided to emigrate to Canada from their native Venezuela three years ago. With a strong local customer base and few established competitors in the area, Vanier offered the opportunity to give their small business a strong start.

“The community is very thankful to us for bringing a nice bakery here,” he said. “We took a chance and I think it was worth it.”

Entrepreneurs like David and Julia are investing in Vanier because of its multicultural inclusiveness, quick transportation link to downtown that sees a lot of potential customers passing by the front door and low commercial real estate costs.

Vanier is just a few kilometres from downtown along Montréal Road. It’s also next door to the spanking new Adàwe Crossing.

This bridge connects the Sandy Hill/Overbrook and Vanier neighbourhoods, giving

pedestrians and cyclists their own quick link over the Rideau River.

Compared to other core neighbourhoods, Vanier boasts a strong inventory of available commercial real estate at multiple price points. The area is rich in older properties in the $200,000s and $300,000s that are ripe for redevelopment by those eager to find value.

But with the gentrification train picking up steam, these kinds of deals won’t last.

Or to grow a large one Vanier boasts a dense and growing population. Average household incomes are on the rise as new residential developments attract young families and professionals.

Within a three-kilometre radius of the Quartier Vanier BIA office on Montréal Rd., the potential market includes about 94,000 people spending some $1.16 billion in retail and service businesses each year. At five kilometres, the potential market jumps to 204,000 people spending a total of $3.3 billion.

The challenge is to give residents more local options, to keep more of that consumer spending in Vanier. But as forward-thinking developers put shovels in the ground and efforts to gentrify the area continue to gather steam, the

cost advantage of setting up shop in Vanier versus other neighbourhoods will fade. In fact, it already is.

In Vanier’s office market, for example, available inventory edged down between Q1 2015 and Q1 2016, while average rental costs edged up.

And many new redevelopment projects and opportunities are being marketed in the area that are attracting interest and driving demand – as the appeal of Vanier continues to climb, so will the cost of investing in the area.

Take 250 Montréal Rd. – 1.31 acres of vacant land, offering 344,450 buildable square feet for mixed use, residential office or retail. This property is bound to benefit from the City of Ottawa’s 2018 redevelopment plans for Montréal Road, to create a more upscale and pedestrian friendly streetscape.

Or 282 Dupuis St. This sixstorey building from the early ’90s with its attractive brick façade is also primed to benefit from city improvements on Montréal Road and offers great value in the current market for both owners and tenants.

So don’t wait and find yourself trying to buy in at the top of the market. Vanier’s time has come. Like Hintonburg and Wellington Village before it, this quirky neighbourhood that’s always marched to the beat of its own drum has found a fresh new rhythm.

WE TOOK A CHANCE AND I THINK IT WAS WORTH IT. – David Seba, Owner/Manager, Quelque Chose Pâtisserie

FAST FACT

94,000 PEOPLE SPENDING $1.16 BILLION ON RETAIL, SERVICES, WITHIN A 3-KM RADIUS. vanierbia.com 3

We’ve got a new groove YOU CAN BUY A COMFORTABLE DETACHED HOME IN THE $200,000 TO $400,000 RANGE WHICH IS NOT THE CASE IN COMPARABLE URBAN AREAS. — Subhir Uppal, Broker/Manager, Metro Ottawa-Carleton Real Estate

The gentrification train is picking up steam What you might think we were isn’t who Vanier is today.

This neighbourhood that includes Montréal Road, Beechwood Avenue and McArthur Avenue is shattering outdated stereotypes. Developers with foresight are pumping big bucks into the area because the signs are already clear – Vanier is primed to be Ottawa’s next “It” neighbourhood.

The kickstart of new housing investment

BY THE NUMBERS HOUSEHOLD INCOMES UP

13%

NUMBER OF JOBS UP

6.7%

72% OF HOMES SOLD PRICED UNDER

$400,000 4 QUARTIER VANIER Just east of ordinary

As of 2014, at least $525 million in new investments had been planned. The six largest developments alone account for more than 1,500 new housing units.

New housing means new residents, and related job creation in retail, services, finance, insurance, and other sectors of the economy. Without a doubt, property values, rents, population, diversification and the overall level of affluence of Vanier residents are now all in a growth cycle.

It’s the same cycle we’ve seen in Ottawa before, in the Westboro and Wellington West areas.

Ottawa’s last untapped market The growth of high-end condominium developments is already shifting the look and flavour of Vanier. But at the same time, it remains the last untapped market in Ottawa for young professionals and families in search of affordable housing options near downtown.

Just look at the numbers.

So far this year, of 61 homes sold in Vanier, about 72 per cent of them, or 44, sold for less than $400,000. Compare that to Hintonburg, where only half of the homes sold so far this year were under $400,000. In the Preston Street area, only 24 per cent of homes sold so far this year cost less than $400,000. In the Chinatown area, it’s only nine per cent. Another point to consider – all these other neighbourhoods also saw far less selling activity than Vanier during this period.

“Based on these residential stats of central areas that are in similar gentrification as Vanier, nothing compares to Vanier in terms of affordability and volume,” said Subhir Uppal, broker/manager with Metro Ottawa-Carleton Real Estate Ltd. “You can buy a comfortable detached home in the $200,000 to $400,000 range which is not the case in comparable urban areas.”

And we’re not even looking at the numbers from truly inflated markets like Westboro or Glebe.

Residents with more money to spend Who is buying these homes and moving into those new developments? Running with the last available census data, Vanier’s population grew by 2.8 per cent between 2006 and 2011. The number of jobs jumped by 6.7 per cents. The number of residents with jobs, either within or outside Vanier also rose, by 2.6 per cent.

But the most impressive gains were seen in household incomes.

Up by almost 13 per cent during that five-year period, to $75,617.

That’s still modest compared to the City of Ottawa average of $96,815, but consider that Ottawa is always vying for top spot in the country when it comes to household income. Vanier’s gains illustrate a large and growing market for mid-priced goods and services.

And let’s not forget that one quarter of Vanier’s population does in fact have an annual household income over $100,000.

According to a 2012 employment survey by the City of Ottawa, almost half of the working population within the boundary of the Quartier Vanier BIA work in the federal public service.

And why wouldn’t it?

Consider how easy of a commute it is from Vanier to the government, professional and high-tech jobs downtown –285,000 jobs, just to the east and south.

The opportunity to bring more high-end goods and services to the area shouldn’t be overlooked.

As of 2013, Vanier businesses were capturing less than half of all residents’ annual $820 million in retail and service spending.

Vanier clearly has a population that is growing in size and affluence. Like any urban resident, these people want a greater variety of goods and services nearby. From the small family-run business to the large corporate brand, there is ample opportunity to break new ground and take market share to serve this vibrant community.

Subhir Uppal, broker/manager, Metro Ottawa-Carleton Real Estate Ltd. PHOTO BY MARK HOLLERON

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Lotti Saab, Louis’ Restaurant and Pizza PHOTO BY MARK HOLLERON

6 QUARTIER VANIER Just east of ordinary

Shop & Dine the world

That’s so Vanier It should come as little surprise that almost half of Vanier’s population works in the federal public service. That trend began way back in the early 1900s, when government workers flocked to what were then quiet bedroom communities distant from central Ottawa.

In 1908, three communities – Janeville, Clarkstown and Clandeboye – merged to form the village of Eastview. The city of Eastview was renamed Vanier in 1969, in honour of the recently deceased Governor General of Canada, Georges Vanier.

That threefold flavor lives on today. Montréal Road, Beechwood Avenue and MacArthur Avenue are three quite different neighbourhoods, but these differences add texture to the community and this diversity adds stability.

A cultural mosaic Vanier was once the unofficial Francophone capital of the National Capital Region on the Ontario side of the Ottawa River. But in recent decades, the community has become much more multicultural. French is the mother tongue of less than 40 per cent of residents today.

This cultural mosaic is nothing new. In the late 1960s, Rema Saab’s uncle Louis came over from Lebanon and started up his own restaurant in a converted house at 181 McArthur Ave. Almost 50 years later, Louis’ Restaurant and Pizza is still going strong at that same location, now owned by Rema’s parents and employing multiple members of her family.

Much of Rema’s family has put down roots in Vanier. Her sister runs a beauty boutique next door, her uncle a hair salon across the

Visuelle on Beechwood Avenue. Take a walk through the area and you’ll find 30 beautiful murals that illustrate different events in Vanier’s history.

Vanier is home to the Wabano Centre for street.

Aboriginal Health. This “It’s very friendly people striking piece of organic here, we love the people, they’ve architecture designed by accepted us, it was a very Douglas Cardinal is all the successful place for us to start a more impressive for what business,” Rema said. happens inside its doors.

Wabano is the largest centre Embracing the different of its kind in the region, “Cookie cutter” isn’t a term providing a wide range that’s ever fit Vanier. It’s of medical clinics, social cultural diversity and the social services and youth programs challenges of the past have left for Ottawa’s nearly 40,000 it with a rare mix of community Aboriginal people. services, facilities and artistic Just down the street is the endeavors packed into a small Vanier Community Service area. This is a neighbourhood Centre, which offers a range that’s never boring or lacking. of programs and services for For example, Vanier is home families, youth, job seekers to Richelieu Park. This 17 and recent immigrants. acres of maple forest smack in Over on McArthur the middle of Ottawa boasts Avenue, the Boys and Girls the only operating sugar shack Club of Ottawa clubhouse in the world within an urban recently underwent a $2.8 setting. The sugar bush produces million facelift, thanks to about 400 litres of maple syrup the generous support of the each year, and holds an annual community and donors with Maple Sugar Fest, thanks largely big hearts and deep pockets. to the tireless efforts of local And then there is volunteers.

Heartwood House. This The Muséoparc Vanier hub for social enterprise Museopark is a non-profit is a non-profit charitable organization that operates organization that helps other Richelieu Park and is the only small non-profit charities by francophone museum in Ottawa. working together under one Through extensive community roof. outreach, education programs Vanier is also home to and exhibits, the Museopark many national non-profits preserves and passes on the doing good works, such francophone history of Vanier. as the regional offices of Vanier also has a vibrant the Canadian Diabetes visual arts community and is Association and Plan home to many local artists as Canada, and the head office well as an arts collective, Voix of Oxfam Canada.

WE LOVE THE PEOPLE, THEY’VE ACCEPTED US, IT WAS A VERY SUCCESSFUL PLACE FOR US TO START A BUSINESS. — Lotti Saab, Louis’ Restaurant and Pizza

Bonjour!

Ciao!

Salaam

Hola!

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Who is Vanier? It’s a community of people who are taking pride and action to create new opportunity.

Vanier is becoming a great place to live, work and play, regardless of whether you think a T-shirt is underwear or formal wear. The area is rich with services and programs dedicated to giving youth and young families a strong start.

Millions of dollars of new commercial and residential investment is already pouring into this area. The population is growing, incomes are

rising, and so too are expectations for goods and services that are just a short walk down the street.

This is just the beginning.

Take a stroll through Vanier.

You will see for sale signs, for rent signs, vacant store fronts at prime locations where tens of thousands of drivers and pedestrians pass by every day.

These are all blank slates on which to expand or start a business, to create wealth for

8 QUARTIER VANIER Just east of ordinary

yourself and jobs for others.

But like they say, these deals are going fast.

ABOUT US:

The Quartier Vanier Business Improvement Area (QVBIA) is a not-for-profit organization which represents over 466 Q U E E N S W AY property and business owners across our 3 main streets: Beechwood Village (Beechwood Avenue), French Quarter (Montréal Road) and International Quarter (McArthur Avenue.)

For more info more about the opportunities for developers, investors and retailers in this thriving community contact us!

CONTACT US! 613-745-0040

Just east of ordinary

613-745-0686 INFO@VANIERBIA.COM WWW.INVESTINQV.COM 287 MONTRÉAL RD., OTTAWA, ON K1L 6C2