City and partners launch new ACE District to showcase vibrant arts, culture, and entertainment downtown

The City of Ottawa, in collaboration with the Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG), has launched the city’s first Arts, Culture and Entertainment (ACE) District.  

This new initiative represents a shared vision to connect Ottawa’s unique downtown cultural and entertainment assets and experiences – supporting a lively, safe, and resilient downtown where culture is visible, every day and for everyone. 

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe and OAG Director and CEO Alexandra Badzak today officially marked the launch at a public event in the ByWard Market, which highlighted downtown’s many cultural assets and spaces and included a tour of new public art installations and pop-up activations. 

The ACE District encompasses several iconic downtown areas, including the ByWard Market, Rideau Street, Sparks Street, Centretown, LeBreton Flats, and the Bank Street and Elgin Street corridors. It creates a distinct identity that connects the world-class institutions, popular festivals, and diverse local creators and businesses that call downtown Ottawa home.  

By introducing a unique brand, creative wayfinding, digital platforms, and new programming and placemaking, the ACE District will make local arts, culture and entertainment easier than ever for residents and visitors to explore and enjoy.  

Today’s launch in the heart of the ByWard Market demonstrated the ACE District in action and highlighted three new cultural initiatives: 

• The Arts Corridor: A curated public art route connecting three major cultural anchors, the OAG, the National Arts Centre, and the National Gallery of Canada, through bold, contemporary art installations in unexpected downtown spaces.
• Asphalt Art Initiative: A massive, colourful street mural on York Street West and ByWard Market Square.
• SoundScape Festival: A six-week summer event series transforming the unique corridor beneath the Plaza Bridge (at Elgin and Rideau streets) into an immersive, lively performance venue. 

Residents and visitors can expect to see more cultural and entertainment programming and placemaking initiatives across downtown as the ACE District evolves and becomes more established in the coming years. 

Why create a new district?  

The City of Ottawa and its downtown partners recognize that a thriving cultural sector is essential to a healthy city centre. Culture brings people together, drives tourism, supports small businesses, and makes our streets feel safer and more welcoming. The establishment of an ACE District was identified as a catalytic action in the Ottawa Board of Trade’s Downtown Ottawa Action Agenda to support downtown renewal and the creative economy.  

As the inaugural ACE District Secretariat, the OAG will steward the day-to-day implementation of the district's activities supported by the City and an Advisory Table of engaged cultural and business organizations and interest holders. 

The City is proudly supporting this work with a $600,000 funding contribution to the OAG, made possible through the $18.5-million allocation for downtown revitalization under the Ontario-Ottawa Agreement. 

“Our artists, venues, festivals, and cultural institutions are among the reasons why Ottawa has the best quality of life in Canada. The ACE district is a wonderful new way to celebrate our culture and show it off to visitors and residents. I’m very excited to see the district launched and grateful to our partners who made it happen.” 

Mark Sutcliffe, Mayor of Ottawa 

“I’m incredibly excited to see ACE move from an idea, to a framework, to something people can now experience in the streets of downtown Ottawa. At its heart, ACE is about celebrating the extraordinary cultural assets already here — from national institutions to grassroots festivals — and creating new ways for creatives, institutions and businesses to work together so the whole ecosystem can thrive.” 

Alexandra Badzak, Director and CEO, Ottawa Art Gallery / ACE District Secretariat 

"The launch of Ottawa's ACE District is an important milestone in the ongoing renewal of our downtown core. A vibrant city centre depends on more than offices and infrastructure — it depends on people, experiences, and a sense of place. By connecting our cultural institutions, local businesses, festivals, and creative talent under a shared vision, the ACE District will help attract visitors, support economic activity, and create a more dynamic and welcoming downtown for residents and visitors alike. The Ottawa Board of Trade is proud to have championed this initiative through our Downtown Ottawa Action Agenda and looks forward to seeing its impact grow in the years ahead." 

Sueling Ching, President & CEO, Ottawa Board of Trade 

“The ACE District connects downtown Ottawa’s cultural and entertainment assets into a more cohesive and accessible experience. By making it more intuitive to discover and navigate everything from public art to major attractions, it strengthens the appeal of the downtown core and supports increased foot traffic and activity across local businesses. Ottawa Tourism is proud to support the launch of the ACE District and partner with many of the artists and creators helping to bring it to life." 

Michael Crockatt, President & CEO, Ottawa Tourism 

Arts Corridor 

Led by the Ottawa Art Gallery 

Arts Corridor is a curated public art initiative commissioned by the Ottawa Art Gallery that will connect three of Ottawa’s major cultural anchors, the OAG, the National Arts Centre, and the National Gallery of Canada, through a series of bold, contemporary art installations in unexpected locations across the downtown core.  

Supported by a $600,000 investment from the City of Ottawa, the initiative will deliver approximately 8 - 10 commissioned artworks across multiple sites, ranging from large-scale vinyl façade installations on landmark buildings to experimental projections and participatory public works.  

OAG has curated works by an impressive array of artists from across Canada, including several from Ottawa and the host nation, that will roll out in phases culminating on Ottawa’s Anniversary weekend in September.  

Arts Corridor is conceived as a legacy initiative for Ottawa’s 200th anniversary and a meaningful contribution to downtown renewal, with all works installed and publicly presented through the fall of 2026 and beyond. 

For more information on the Arts Corridor initiative, contact: info@oaggao.ca 

Asphalt Art Initiative

Led by the ByWard Market District Authority 

The Bloomberg Philanthropies Asphalt Art Initiative is a global grant program that funds cities to commission large-scale visual art installations on streets, intersections, crosswalks, and plazas, with the dual goals of revitalizing public spaces and improving traffic safety. Having supported 100 projects across North America and Europe, the program responds to growing evidence that art-based street interventions can deliver positive and meaningful outcomes.  

In Ottawa, and thanks to the leadership of the ByWard Market District Authority and the City of Ottawa in collaboration with the Ottawa Art Gallery, the initiative is funding a bold new asphalt mural on York Street West and ByWard Market Square, bringing colour, movement, and placemaking to two of the ACE District’s most-visited public spaces. The artwork will be created by Clear Eyes Collective, whose creative vision will reimagine these key streetscapes as a striking public art experience.  

The mural is designed to remain in place until 2028 and will not only help to celebrate Ottawa’s and the ByWard Market’s 200th anniversary years but also make a lasting contribution to a more vibrant and safer downtown. 

For more information on the Asphalt Art Initiative, contact: info@bmda.ca 

The SoundScape Festival 

Led by Immersive International 

Ottawa Tourism and the City of Ottawa are proud to present the SoundScape Festival, produced by Immersive International, as a marquee Ottawa 200 event. SoundScape Festival commemorates the founding of Bytown and celebrates Ottawa's rich history, culture, and community through an immersive and unforgettable experience. The SoundScape festival is a four-week summer 2026 event series that will transform the architecturally striking corridor beneath the Plaza Bridge into a world-class immersive performance venue.  

The series is being crafted by the team at Immersive International, a global experiential design company that has been producing events around the world for 20 years and has recently opened its first North American studio in Ottawa. The festival will feature three headline showcase events, bookended by a Pride week celebration on August 27 and Ottawa’s 200th Anniversary celebrations on September 26, with a continuous ambient installation activating the site between headline dates.  

Programming is being developed in collaboration with the National Arts Centre, the Ottawa Art Gallery, the Bytown Museum, and other local cultural institutions. The inaugural SoundScape series presents a new immersive production model integrating projection mapping, spatial design, and live performance to deliver a high-quality, distinctive, participatory audience experience. The events are designed to attract both residents and destination visitors and position Ottawa as a leading city for high-impact, creative, cultural programming. For more information on the SoundScape Festival visit ottawa200.ca  

For more information on the SoundScape Festival, contact: victoria.evans@immersive.international