The Lady Grey Wall is one of the Capital’s most important and least known structures. Reaching 10 metres at its highest point and running along 580 metres of the Ottawa River, this retaining wall holds the escarpment together. It also features a riverfront promenade, which gives access to buildings fronting on Sussex Drive and the Ottawa Rowing Club.

With the wall reaching the end of its lifecycle, the NCC undertook a major project that rebuilt the wall from the ground up, improving resiliency and ensuring safety over the next 50 to 75 years.

The project also created opportunities, including:

  • supporting the Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) Energy Services Acquisition Program;
  • transforming the area into a world-class, multi-use riverfront destination.

The project is ongoing, with Phase 1 completed in summer 2026 and Phase 2 starting in 2026–2027.

Impact of work

Public parking on Lady Grey Drive will be closed during Phases 1 and 2. The NCC is working with local stakeholders to ensure minimal impacts.

About the project

The NCC is implementing this project in two phases.

Phase 1: Rebuilding the retaining wall

In 2020, parts of the retaining wall started to collapse near the Ottawa Rowing Club, which led to a partial closure of Lady Grey Drive. While the wall has gone through major repairs over the years, including in 2010, it had reached the end of its lifecycle and was due for a full rebuild.

Phase 1 of the project was from 2023 to 2026, and included:

  • demolition of the old wall
  • removal of contaminated soil
  • reconstruction of the wall

The work also made way for PSPC’s Energy Services Acquisition Program for heating and cooling pipes, a system that offers district energy services to many federal buildings in the National Capital Region, and prepared the area for Phase 2.

Phase 2: Redesigning and activating the promenade

With a newly rebuilt retaining wall, the NCC can now focus on redesigning and activating Lady Grey Drive as a world-class, multi-use riverfront promenade.

Once redeveloped, this destination will play a key role in supporting the NCC’s mandate to animate the waterways and enhance the pathway systems.

Phase 2 will focus on four objectives:

  • enhance site access and connectivity
  • promote active mobility
  • open new views and vistas on the Ottawa River, Kìwekì Point and Parliament Hill
  • activate and animate the shoreline

Process and timeline

The area will be designed in 2026–2027, and construction is set to start in 2027.