A parking structure on Beausoleil Drive is about to become a 20-storey apartment building. If you live in or near Lowertown, here is what has been announced, and what hasn’t.
Ottawa Community Housing (OCH) is building 159 rental homes at 200 Beausoleil Drive, at the corner of Beausoleil and Chapel Street, next to two existing OCH high-rises. The tower sits on a six-storey podium and replaces the parking structure on the site. Of the 159 homes, 149 are one-bedroom and 10 are two-bedroom, and 32 will be accessible.
What’s in the building
OCH’s project page lists a wellness centre, a games room, an arts and activity room, ground-level amenity space and a seventh-floor terrace. There will be one level of underground parking and bicycle parking; the page doesn’t say how many parking spaces.
The design follows Passive House principles, which means a very well-insulated, airtight building meant to keep heating and cooling costs down. OCH also describes it as all-electric, with no fossil fuel combustion on site, and built to barrier-free standards.
Who is paying, and when it opens
The federal government is putting in up to $63 million combined from Build Canada Homes and CMHC. OCH’s release says that federal funding is conditionally approved, subject to due diligence. The City of Ottawa is also a funder. The project was one of eight Ottawa projects the federal government announced in April 2026, totalling about 1,100 rental homes.
The builder is Laurin Construction, with Diamond Schmitt Architects and KWC Architects. The City approved the site plan in December 2023, OCH awarded the construction contract in July 2026, and a ceremonial groundbreaking was held on August 19. Completion is targeted for 2028. Timelines on projects like this can move, so treat 2028 as a target rather than a promise.
What we don’t know yet
The announcements don’t give rents or say how tenants will be selected. OCH’s materials describe the homes as affordable rental housing, and the page doesn’t spell out the details, so anyone interested should watch OCH’s own announcements closer to opening rather than rely on a third party.
Why it matters if you live nearby
For neighbours, this is a multi-year construction site on a street that already has two high-rises. For the area as a whole, it adds 159 homes close to Rideau Street, the ByWard Market and transit, on land that was already built on rather than greenfield. If you own or are thinking of buying in Lowertown, projects like this are worth following on the City’s development application map. If you’d like help weighing what’s being built near a particular address, you can reach me through the contact form.
Sources: Ottawa Community Housing: 200 Beausoleil Drive; OCH groundbreaking release (August 19, 2026); OCH construction contract release (July 6, 2026); Prime Minister of Canada: Build Canada Homes in Ottawa (April 23, 2026); ReNew Canada.