Lady Grey Drive wall and escarpment work underway

By Allen Brown

The Lady Grey Drive retaining wall, built in 1911 with local stone, has undergone several repairs over the years, most recently in 2010. Despite these efforts, parts of the wall started to collapse near the Ottawa Rowing Club in 2020. The National Capital Commission (NCC) therefore has begun a project to replace the wall to improve its structural integrity, re-naturalize the shoreline, and improve public access to the Ottawa River.  

As Lady Grey Drive is designated as a Cultural Landscape, the NCC commissioned a Heritage Impact Statement for the wall demolition and a Cultural Landscape Assessment of the Rideau Corridor. Both studies identified the limestone outcrops along the drive as heritage character-defining elements, and they will be featured in the final rehabilitation design of the wall and Lady Grey Drive landscape.

The original footprint of the drive will be retained, however, the stone cladding that has characterized the sinuous wall supporting Lady Grey Drive for well over a century will not. Instead, the new retaining wall will be built of concrete with a vertical wood-stamped texture. Designs for the lighting, railing design, and landscaping have yet to be finalized.

The project began last summer with the replacement of steam heating and cooling pipes serving the National Research Council and Pearson Buildings on Sussex Drive. This year reconstruction of the retaining wall is underway. The project is expected to be completed by 2026.