Statement from Peggy DuCharme, Executive Director, Downtown Rideau B.I.A.
photo credit: Julie Oliver, Ottawa Citizen
We here in Downtown Rideau are thrilled to have our main street, Rideau Street, reopened after many years of construction. Thankfully, the street will be open in time for the final week of shopping before Christmas and the Holiday Season — a time of year that many businesses rely on to bolster sales to help them sustain during the slower months of January and February. We look forward to the spring or summer when we can host an actual celebration event on Rideau Street when public health officials authorize it is safe to do so.
We would like to thank Downtown Rideau customers for their support of #ShopLocal during this pandemic — shopping in-store, online, pick-up and delivery. I especially wish to thank Downtown Rideau businesses and employees for their continued efforts in creating a safe, flexible and welcoming shopping environment and for providing options for customers during COVID-19.
In total, Rideau Street has been under construction at three different sections along its length since 2012 (8 years). This last section was closed for 5 years during construction of the CF Rideau Centre expansion, LRT Rideau Station and completion of the Rideau Renewal public realm streetscape. The 2016 sinkhole on Rideau Street during LRT Rideau Station construction delayed the construction timeline (adding another 1-1.5 years to the street’s closure).
#StayingSafeTogether #MyRideau #RideauStreet #DowntownRideau #ArtsFashionTheatreDistrict #WhereCultureLives
