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 Market building | |
| Coordinates | 45°25′38″N75°41′32″W / 45.4271°N 75.6923°W /45.4271; -75.6923 |
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| Address | 55 ByWard Market Square Ottawa, Ontario K1N 9C3 |
| Goods sold | Produce, Souvenirs, Food, Jewellery |
| Website | www |
 Interactive map of ByWard Market | |
TheByWard Market (French:Marché By), is a retail and entertainment district in thedowntown core ofOttawa, Ontario, Canada to the east of Parliament Hill and Major's Hill Park. The market buildings are open all year long. Weather permitting, vendors at the outdoor markets along George, York, ByWard, and William streets sell fresh produce, flowers, crafts, and souvenirs.
The district is bounded by:
The market's name refers to the old "By Ward" of the City of Ottawa, from the name of engineer and surveyorJohn By. The district comprises the main commercial part of the historicLower Town area of Ottawa.
According to theCanada 2011 Census, the population of the area was 3,063.[2]
The market is regulated by aCity of Ottawa through the ByWard Market District Authority. The Authority also operates the smaller west-end Parkdale Market.[3] The Authority is run by a nine-member board of directors.[4]
Traditionally, the ByWard Market area has been a focal point for Ottawa's French and Irish communities. The large Catholic community supported the construction of theNotre-Dame Cathedral Basilica, one of the largest and oldest Roman Catholic churches in Ottawa. The shape of the cathedral was taken into account in the design of theNational Gallery of Canada, which was built across Sussex Drive.
The ByWard Market has been an area of constant change, adapting to the increasingly cosmopolitan nature of downtown Ottawa, as well as trends in Canadian society as a whole. Recently, a multitude of restaurants and specialty food stores have sprouted around the market area, making this neighbourhood one of the liveliest in Ottawa outside of normal business hours. A four-block area around the market provides the densest concentration of eating places, bars, and nightclubs in the National Capital Region. The areas beyond this zone also offer boutiques and restaurants in abundance, and are frequented by a considerable number ofbuskers. Having acquired a reputation as the city's premier bar district, the Byward Market is thronged (brimming) at night with university students and other young adults.
Over the years, the city has developed five open-air courtyards immediately east of Sussex Drive, stretching from Saint Patrick Street to George Street. These cobblestone courtyards are filled with flowers, park benches, fountains, and sculptures. Several of the houses surrounding them are historic buildings. On the west side of Sussex Drive is theUnited States Embassy. The building's design, by noted architectDavid Childs, was supposedly widely criticized by surrounding residents, as one particularOttawa Sun newspaper article reported that the bronze building-block sculpture created byJoel Shapiro and dedicated byHillary Clinton was "glaringly and gratingly American", whereas some critics declared that the building's new design "reflected a cautious world view".[5]
The neighbourhood today is markedly heterogeneous; being visited by a mix of young professionals, many families, and tourists. The area is mainlyEnglish-speaking, but there exists a significantfrancophone population as well. The Market is located in close proximity to the downtownRideau Centre shopping mall, toParliament Hill, and to a number of foreign embassies.
In October 2000, broadcasterCHUM Limited opened a new studio complex in the ByWard Market at 87 George Street, known as theCHUM MarketMediaMall. CHUM's then-NewNet stationCHRO moved its primary operations from its original facilities in Pembroke to the new building (including aSpeaker's Corner video booth); the facility also housed CHUM Radio stationsCKKL-FM,CJMJ-FM,CFRA andCFGO. The facility came under CTV ownership when CTVglobemedia bought CHUM Limited in 2006, and then underBell ownership whenBell Media re-purchased the CTV assets in 2011. When a fire broke out at the studio complex ofCTV owned-and-operated stationCJOH-DT inNepean in 2010, destroying it, this meant CJOH moved into the MarketMediaMall complex as well.[6][7][8]
Places adjacent to ByWard Market | |
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