Information and FAQs: 180 Argyle Ave Renovations

There are 800 unhoused families in Ottawa. The City of Ottawa is sheltering many of them temporarily in hotels and motels. While the City has recently opened a new 125-unit transitional family housing facility at 377 O’Connor, the need remains high. The YMCA wants to do our part to tackle the homelessness crisis.

In 2019, a burst pipe in the Taggart Building’s housing tower (Shenkman Residence) caused a flood which forced the Y to vacate the 4th and 5th floors of the building. In response to community need, the YMCA is turning these floors into additional transitional housing space for families, along with the 3rd floor and a wing of the 2nd floor (previously occupied by Corporate Services).

We are pleased to be one of the largest providers of transitional housing in Ottawa, serving the full spectrum of youth, adults, families, and seniors, many of whom are newcomers to Ottawa. The YMCA of the National Capital Region’s residence on Argyle Avenue already provides housing for approximately 250 individual youth and adults at risk of homelessness.  

This renovation will increase our housing capacity and provide much-needed larger spaces for families, providing a safe and stable place to thrive for up to 67 newcomer families. We hope you will join us in welcoming these families to the Shenkman Residence as the YMCA of the National Capital Region helps them navigate the challenges of their new life in Canada.  

Construction will start as early as September 8, 2026, and take approximately six months. Work will focus on the 4th and 5th floors between now and the end of December. After that, the workers will proceed with the 2nd and 3rd floor renovation. Floors 4 and 5 could be occupied by families as early as the end of December.

HFA members will notice "construction hoarding" (fence or barrier between a construction site and the public) at the front of the building at 180 Argyle Avenue. This will not impede access via the main lobby or the parking garage. There may be occasional noise or dust from the construction, but these will be limited.

In the new year, when work begins taking place on the 2nd and 3rd floors, you may notice construction in the hallway overlooking the pool as additional offices are built — all HFA spaces will remain safe and accessible during this work.  

Taggart Family YMCA Health, Fitness & Aquatics Members are encouraged to sign up for the new monthly renovation e-newsletter to stay informed about updates (you may unsubscribe at any time).

Although the work will take place on the floor above the Dr. Roly Albert Child Care Centre - Taggart Family YMCA and in an adjacent wing (current Corporate Services), the impact will be minimal. In 2027, after-hours access to one or two Child Care rooms will be needed for plumbing work related to the 3rd floor renovation, but will not impact Child Care hours.

As information for parents, children will be now be escorted to the play yard via the main staircase (instead of the Corporate Services staircase) from September 8, 2026 onwards.

A quiet mid-day naptime is protected by Ministry of Education regulations. We will ensure there are no loud noises, like drilling or hammering, during that time.

As a priority, the construction teams will take steps to manage materials carefully and ensure the play area is not affected.

Child care parents who park in the spots closest to the western corridor in the garage will notice that those spots are now accessibility parking spots (moved from the east side of the elevators). Parents who do not have an accessibility parking pass are kindly requested to park in alternative spots when doing child care drop-offs and pick-ups. Parents dropping off and collecting their children will continue to enjoy a 30-minute grace period for parking.

Child Care families are encouraged to sign up for the new monthly renovation e-newsletter to stay informed about updates at 180 Argyle Avenue (you may unsubscribe at any time).

Residents will be asked to use the main lobby (Health, Fitness & Aquatics) doors to enter and exit the building during HFA hours, as the construction hoarding (fence or barrier between a construction site and the public) will block the Housing entrance. After hours, normal practices apply and the Housing entrance will be open (except for regular curfew between midnight and 5 AM). At all times, Housing residents and other users will be able to use the exterior accessibility ramp.

Residents may notice some noise and dust, as well as more tradespeople coming and going in the Housing tower. The elevator may occasionally need to go on service to help move people and equipment to the floors under construction. No current residents will be required to relocate either temporarily or permanently as a result of this renovation.

Minimal water shutdowns to do plumbing work will require Housing residents to use ground floor or 2nd floor washrooms for short periods at a time. Advance notice will be provided. There is no expectation of a full-building shutdown requiring the use of porta-potties.

Housing Residents are encouraged to sign up for the new monthly 180 Argyle renovation bilingual Y e-newsletter to stay up to date (you may unsubscribe at any time).

There are regularly a wide range of people coming into the Y, from members, to residents, to staff, to contractors. As per the Y’s Child Protection Policy, all visitors sign in and are escorted in secure areas. Child Care key cards are provided to child care staff, parents, and other employees as needed, e.g. for maintenance. The secure Child Care areas will continue to remain secure.

We remain committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for all staff, program participants, members, residents, and visitors. Existing visitor policies and procedures will continue to apply throughout the renovations. Our construction manager, Terlin Construction, is experienced in managing construction projects in occupied buildings. They are committed to upholding the highest health and safety standards for all building users.

If staff have concerns, they should bring them to the Joint Health & Safety Committee. If other building users have concerns, they should report them to any staff member, who will bring them to the Facilities Manager.

Collège Boréal will have uninterrupted access to their spaces in the building during renovation. The preliminary Fall schedule has been shared with the construction manager to ensure any noise is kept to a minimum during class hours. There will be no change in availability or parking for instructors or students. (Students may continue to use the paid parking on a first-come, first-serve basis.)

Communications will go out well in advance if we anticipate noise or other disruptions during Collège Boréal operating hours.

The Lunch Club still have access to the Community Room on Fridays. There will be no change in availability or parking for the members.

Communications will go out well in advance if we anticipate noise or other disruptions during a regular Friday Lunch Club meeting.

While more tradespeople will be coming in and out of the building, most of the material handling will be done via a telehandler (similiar to a crane) stationed outside the building on Argyle Avenue. The telehandler will hoist materials in and out of the windows on the floors under construction. This will greatly reduce the construction workers’ reliance on the elevators.

Corporate Services, People and Culture, and Youth Programs staff have already begun relocating to new leased offices at 240 Catherine St (where our Language Assessment and Referral Centre [LARC] already operates).

All Housing and Facilities staff will remain in Taggart Building, working out of new offices primarily in the former Youth Programs offices in the south end of the 2nd floor next to the basketball gym. (Offices near the gym will be soundproofed.)

To meet our timeline, workers may start as early as 7 AM and work as late as 9 PM (weekdays only). Construction noise will be intermittent. For example, there will be noise during the demolition phase and for some work on building infrastructure such as plumbing.

The noise will be limited to the 4th and 5th floors until December, at which time the work will proceed to the 3rd and then 2nd floors. Dust will be managed in the spaces under renovation and will be limited in other parts of the building.

We are aiming for any water shutdowns longer than a couple of hours to be outside of business hours. We are not anticipating power outages. We’ll keep you posted and will provide as much notice as possible.

The impact on parking will be minimal. Accessible parking spots in the garage will be moved from the east side to the west side of the elevator bank, so that six contractor spaces and a materials storage area may be provided near the exit ramp.

If there is ever a reason to briefly close one of the exits for a couple of hours, a person will be there to redirect traffic and explain what to do.

All paid street parking will continue to be available.

• A telehandler (similar to a crane) will be stationed on Argyle Avenue to move materials in and out of the building via the windows on Floors 2 to 5.
• Intermittent road closures may take place on Argyle while the boom is in operation – these are expected to be early in the morning for the most part.
• A longer-term sidewalk closure on the south side of Argyle is anticipated and a permit sought. Please note that a covered safe walking area will be provided to the building from both sides.

Construction manager, Terlin Construction, is experienced in managing construction projects in occupied buildings. They are committed to upholding the highest health and safety standards for all building users and neighbourhood residents.

Area residents are encouraged to sign up for the new bilingual monthly e-newsletter regarding 180 Argyle renovations to stay up to date (you may unsubscribe at any time).

In response to community need, we hope to welcome up to 36 families to move in by December 31, 2026, with another 32 scheduled to move in approximately March or April. These families will be primarily newcomers to Canada and will benefit from all the wraparound services the YMCA provides.

We will hold an open house to celebrate when the work is complete and the families are moved in: you are warmly invited to attend.

The YMCA of the National Capital Region is grateful to you for your understanding and patience as we go through this renovation process. We hope you will join us in welcoming these families to the Shenkman Residence as the Y helps them navigate the challenges of their new life in Canada.

The YMCA of the National Capital Region is grateful to you for your understanding and patience as we go through this important renovation process to the housing tower at 180 Argyle Avenue.

For more information:

All interested individuals are invited to sign up for the new bilingual monthly e-newsletter regarding 180 Argyle renovations to stay up to date (you may unsubscribe at any time).

Please send your additional questions to Liz Sutherland, Associate Vice-President, Housing and Facilities at: renovation@ymcaottawa.ca