Mayor Sutcliffe tour with Better South Keys Centre

Better South Keys Centre has prided itself on reaching out to the local community surrounding South Keys Centre since our inception in the Fall of 2021: neighbours, community associations, local businesses, and of course the city councillors representing the wards of and next to the future redevelopment of the mall.

That’s why we were thrilled when Councillor Bradley of Ward 10 – Gloucester-Southgate, the councillor for South Keys, reached out to us with an idea to show Mayor Sutcliffe the redevelopment area firsthand.

As with our many walking tours, workshops, and discussions over the last nearly two years, we know that seeing the space, comparing images and renderings, and being able to discuss live is very helpful to many in understanding the proposal and the potential of this area to become a true hub for all of South Ottawa.

Mayor Sutcliffe, himself a former resident of the area, was pleased to hear from BSKC representatives Matt Pinder and Laura Gauthier about the proposed changes, the feedback from the community so far, and the next steps. 

We also took the opportunity to walk through the transit tunnel at South Keys to show the progress being made on the Line 2 LRT route and station upgrades and talk about how it will only increase the importance of South Keys as a hub for the South Ottawa region with these improved connections to the airport, Barrhaven, and beyond.

We called upon the Mayor to contact SmartCentres (the owner of the mall) directly to encourage the redevelopment to occur at a faster pace. Councillor Bradley also made it clear that in the coming years we will be seeking funding to make the South Keys Transit Plaza into a beautiful urban park. 

We would like to thank Councillor Bradley for including the Better South Keys Centre group on her tour of Ward 10 and Mayor Sutcliffe for his interest in the redevelopment. BSKC will continue its work connecting the community, developer and city stakeholders and be in touch with Councillor Bradley and Mayor Sutcliffe as the project continues to progress.

If you want to join us, hear about opportunities to have your say, or get updates, please join our mailing list. You can also follow us on X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.