Ottawa police plan new storefront operations centre in Rideau Centre

A new Ottawa Police Service storefront police station will open in the Rideau Centre early next year, according to a new report.

The Ottawa Police Services Board will vote Monday on a recommendation to sign a lease with CF Rideau for a new Neighbourhood Operations Centre at 50 Rideau Street (the Rideau Centre), Unit 107.

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Staff say the storefront location in the Rideau Centre is located along Rideau Street at the intersection of William Street, and is directly adjacent to a principal access point to the Rideau Centre and across from the Rideau O-Train station. The Neighbourhood Operations Centre would be 2,629 square feet and provide a space for meetings for police, community partners and stakeholders. 

"The storefront location is being proposed by City colleagues, and with the support of the Community Engagement Team and the OPS, to provide increased OPS visibility, enhanced operational deployment, and community engagement in the downtown core and, in particular, the Byward Market neighbourhood," says the report for Monday's Ottawa Police Services Board meeting.

"The location is in the centre of high activity and high population density area and would allow the NRT to continue its functions with minimal downtime, while increasing their visibility throughout the day."

Ottawa police launched a Neighbourhood Resource Team in the ByWard Market in 2020. The report says since the team's launch three years ago, "calls for service in the neighbourhood have increased, and business owners and members of the community have requested support to revitalize the area post-pandemic."

Staff say as an "initial step" to revitalization, a "Neighbourhood Operations Centre" in the ByWard Market is being proposed.

"The centre will provide the OPS, and partner agencies and services in the future, with a dedicated location in which to strategize, prioritize, and plan proactive and reactive activities to best meet the needs of the Community," says the report.

"Establishing a more permanent location in the Byward Market will increase police visibility in the Market and will provide the OPS with access to a more reliable space in which to meet with community partners to collaborate more effectively on a whole-of-service delivery for the Byward Market area."

The city of Ottawa's Community Engagement Team, Ottawa Police Service and Chief Eric Stubbs looked at various locations in the ByWard Market area over the summer.

"50 Rideau Street, Unit 107, was identified as the most appropriate space."

CF Rideau approached the city of Ottawa's Corporate Real Estate Office to consider available space for the Neighbourhood Operations Centre, according to the report.

"The new ByWard Market Neighbourhood Operations Centre is a City-driven initiative in response to community and City official concerns. The Centre will support ongoing creative and collaborative approaches to various issues arising in the ByWard Market. The Ottawa Police Service is proud to be a partner in this initiative," police said in a statement to CTV News Ottawa on Thursday.

"The ByWard Market Neighbourhood Operations Centre will serve various purposes, including as a meeting location for the OPS, community partners and stakeholders who are involved in addressing crime and social disorder in the Market. It will also be a location for stakeholders, partners and OPS members, including our frontline officers assigned to the ByWard Market, to fulfill their duties, like reports."

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe campaigned on a promise to open a community resource centre in the ByWard Market. During the summer, police said they had been looking for a location for the new storefront police station.

Sutcliffe says a new police operations centre in the Rideau Centre is "part of the solution" to address challenges in the ByWard Market area.

"This is right next to the ByWard Market and I think it will make a big difference. I've spoken with many residents and business owners and employees who work in the ByWard Market and they want to see solutions and I think this is part of the solution," Sutcliffe said Thursday morning. "It's not the solution on its own, but it's part of the solution for the ByWard Market."

Some downtown Ottawa businesses are supportive of the plan.

"There’s always crime rates. Just yesterday there was a shooting on York Street so it’s good to have the security close by," Waleed Ahmed of NRML Clothing said Thursday.

"Our store is one of the stores that is often raided, sometimes we have had some bad customers coming through and stealing items. Having a station close by could save us some merchandise."

Resident Aaron DC says the plan has "pros and cons."

"There’s been a higher uptick in the homeless population because there isn’t affordable housing so I could see why it would provide comfort but also it has its limits," Aaron said.

"It seems like a small space so I wonder how physically helpful that would be for that space and how they would convert it so it would be worthwhile."

The lease between the Ottawa Police Service and CF Rideau will last for five years, starting Feb. 15, 2024. The price tag for the lease, including operating costs, is $245,944.95 in the first year.

The Neighbourhood Operations Centre will not be publicly accessible at first, with staff saying public access will be considered in future years once additional agencies and service providers can be brought on board.

With files from CTV News Ottawa's Natalie van Rooy