Lowertown

Welcome to Lowertown in the heart of downtown Ottawa.

Lowertown is a small neighbourhood in Ottawa that rests upon the Ottawa River, Rideau River, and Rideau Street. It includes the Byward Market, which you can read more about HERE.

  • Lowertown is a diverse and interesting place in Ottawa, made up of student living, family homes, entertainment, dining, and essentially everything else you could imagine.

    Lowertown’s culture is a mixed bag of every type of person. The area is quick moving, busy all hours of the day and night, and features no shortage of things to do and see!

  • Lowertown has a population of about 13,000 people.

    Lowertown is a highly diverse place, with plenty of immigrants, French and English speakers, and a great variety of diverse foods, churches, and more.

  • There are a vast number of schools in Lowertown for all ages, in all types (French, Catholic, Public). Below is a full list of them.

    List of schools in the Lowertown area:

    • St. Brigid Elementary School - JK-G6.

    • Immaculata High School - G7-G12.

    • Centennial P.S - JK-G6

    • Fisher Park P.S / Summit A.S - Alternative Program with Core French - G7-G8

    • Glashan P.S - MFI REG EFI - G7-G8

    • Lady Evelyn A.S - ALT - JK-G6

    • Lisgar C.I ENS IMM GR9-G12

    • Queen Elizabeth P.S - EFI - G7-G8

    • Viscount Alexander P.S - EFI REG - JK-G6

    • York St P.S - REG - JK-G8

  • Lowertown is typically known to be an area with more community assistance. The middle of Lowertown has plenty of homeless shelters and community enrichment projects.

    Because of this, Lowertown is flowing with community support and excellent programming for its citizens.

    A full list of Lowertown Community Centres and Community Enrichment Programs:

    • Lowertown Community Resource Centre

      • 40 Cobourg

    • Lowertown Good Neighbours Food Bank

      • 145 Beausoleil

    • Lowertown Community Garden

      • 1G1 Patro St

    • Patro d’Ottawa Community Centre

      • 40 Cobourg

    • Lowertown Pool

      • 40 Cobourg

    • Centre Espoir Sophie Cultural Center

      • 145A Murray

    • St. Brigid’s Centre for the Arts

      • 310 St Patrick

    • Wellness Living Center

      • 122 Clarence

    • Andrew Fleck Children’s Services

      • 195 George St

  • Lowertown has some great options to spend some outdoor time with your pets. That being said, the closest vet is out of the area and there are limited pet stores.

    Pet Stores

    Cricket and Company

    • 21 Murray St

    Vets

    The nearest vets will be in Centretown or Vanier.

    Dog-Friendly Parks

    • Stanley Dog Park (just across the river in New Edinburgh)

      • 183 Stanley

    • Bordeleau Park

      • 349 Bruyere

  • Lowertown has a reputation for being one of the more unsafe areas in Ottawa.

    Although there are plenty of young adults in the area, and plenty of children, it is also a hot spot for crime in Ottawa, as reported by recent studies of crime in the city.

    Because of this, children will need to be closely watched if they are outdoors, and most likely will need supervision going to and from school.

    That being said, plenty of children live in the area. There are tons of parks, pools, daycares, and more fun to be had in the area. Even better, there are literally hundreds of things to do with your child in Lowertown - from museums to themed restaurants to escape rooms - there are so many fun things to do!

  • Lowertown has some great shopping options. Byward Market is a part of the area, meaning that the open-air markets, as well as locally owned shops, are all within walking distance. There is also the Rideau Centre mall in the area!

  • Centretown is not just home to shopping and dining - it is also filled with rich history!

    Some of the great historic landmarks in the area:

    • Byward Market

    • York Steps

    • Rideau Canal

    • The Connaught Building

    • Totem Pole (35 George St)

    • National Gallery of Canada

    • Royal Canadian Mint

    • Cartier Bridge

    • Major’s Hill Park

  • Lowertown has a great variety of grocery options in the area!

    Loblaws 353 Rideau

    Kaz Kitchen + Grocery 207 Guiges

    Continental Delicatessen 57D York

    Fairway Trading Co 9 Byward Market Sq

    XMarket Rideau 73 Rideau

    Wedel Touch of Europe 5 Byward Market Sq

    La Bottega Nicastro 64 George St

    Byward Fruit Market 36 Byward Market St

  • Lowertown is home to the Byward Market, one of the hottest nightlife locations in the city. There is a huge variety of night clubs, bars, and restaurants that run late into the evening!

    Walking along any street in the Byward will warrant you a ton of options for a fun night out.

  • Lowertown is home to the Byward Market, which is filled to the brim with unique restaurants of all different types.

    You can also find restaurants along the rest of Rideau street outside of the market!

  • Lowertown has a great variety of homes, from condos and apartments to single-family homes, halfsplits, and everything in between.

    There is no one type of home, but the area is split. In the core, near Byward Market, and along Rideau street, there are primarily apartments and condominiums. Into the outskirts, you will find more full and halfsplit homes, as well as homes split into apartments.

  • Lowertown is home to a great number of parks!

    Lowertown Community Garden

    • 1G1 Patro

    Bordeleau Park

    • 349 Bruyere

    Raphael Brunet Park

    • 303 St Patrick

    Linear Park

    • 153 King Edward

    MacDonald Gardens Park

    • 541 Rideau

    Rose Park

    • 310 Bruyere

    Cumberland Park

    • 187 Bruyere

    Cathcart Park

    • 219 Cathcart

    Bingham Park

    • 145 Cathcart St

    Major’s Hill Park

    • Mackenzie Ave