'There's just no one down here anymore': Sports4 moving from downtown, blames lack of foot traffic
It's the end of an era for one sporting goods store at Bank Street and Laurier Avenue.
"We faced the reality that things weren't going to get better and it's time to move," said Sports4 owner Jim MacFarlane. "There's just no one down here anymore."
For 41 years, it was a prime location but not anymore.
"Lunch hours, it used to be packed with people. It's now barren," said MacFarlane. "It's a tough environment to run a business in and we hoped for change but it hasn't gone that way for us."
Sports4 has already opened its new location in the Glebe. By the end of September, the shop at 151 Bank St. will be no more. There is no word yet on what will take its place.
"I am sad," said MacFarlane. "Forty-one years is a long time and it's going to be so weird to not come here."
This is becoming a larger problem: a hollowed out downtown not recovering quickly enough from the pandemic. The Bank Street BIA is trying to be optimistic.
"When the W.H.O. said the pandemic's over, it doesn't mean it's going to shift back to where it was before. It's not," said executive director Christine Leadman. "We have a changing downtown. For revitalization of the core, there needs to be investment in the core."
It comes on the heels of the federal government's plans to dispose of 10 buildings in the national capital region, including L'esplanade Laurier in downtown Ottawa.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
4th Indian national arrested, charged with murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Homicide investigators in B.C. say murder charges have been laid against a fourth Indian national in connection to the killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside a Surrey gurdwara last year.
'I am angry': Alberta farmers will continue fight over world class motorsport resort
The rolling hills leading to the hamlet of Rosebud are dotted with sprawling farms and cattle pastures -- and a sign sporting a simple message: No Race Track.
Man ticketed after allegedly trespassing again at Drake's Bridle Path mansion to get his bike
A man who tried to access Drake’s Bridle Path mansion earlier this week returned to the property Saturday and was apprehended again for allegedly trespassing, Toronto police say.
Couple randomly attacked, 1 stabbed, by group of teens in Toronto, police say
A man has been transported to hospital after police say he was stabbed in a random attack carried out by a group of teens in Toronto on Friday night.
Millions of Canadians have been exposed to potentially toxic chemicals, and they're not going anywhere
For decades, North Bay, Ontario's water supply has harboured chemicals associated with liver and developmental issues, cancer and complications with pregnancy. It's far from the only city with that problem.
Biden calls Trump 'unhinged,' says 'something snapped' in former president after he lost 2020 U.S. election
U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday called Donald Trump “clearly unhinged” and claimed that “something snapped” in the former president after he lost the 2020 election.
Wildfire that forced evacuation of Fort Nelson, B.C., caused by tree falling on wires, mayor says
The wildfire that prompted the evacuation of more than 3,000 people near Fort Nelson, B.C., was caused by a tree falling on wires, according to the municipality's mayor.
Switzerland's Nemo wins 68th Eurovision Song Contest
Swiss singer Nemo won the 68th Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night with 'The Code,' an operatic ode to the singer’s journey toward embracing their nongender identity.
IN PICTURES Northern lights dance across the night sky in southern Ont.
From London, to Grand Bend, Collingwood and Guelph, here are some highlights of Friday night and Saturday morning's northern lights display.