Westboro (Ottawa)

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This article is about the neighbourhood in Ottawa, Canada. For other uses, please see Westboro.

Westboro is a neighbourhood of Ottawa, Canada, often referred to as Westboro Village. Located along the Ottawa River, the neighbourhood is bordered on the east by Island Park Drive, and on the west by Woodroffe Avenue. The Southern border can be stretched up to Carling Avenue. Westboro's northernmost point is a little more ambiguous.

The neighbourhood got its start in the late 19th century, when flyers were published proclaiming 'Move to Westboro,' and offering prospective residents 'views of the Laurentian Mountains.' This slightly creative name for the distant geological formation along the Eardley escarpment is now better known as the Gatineau Hills. The Gatineau Hills can be seen across the Ottawa River.

19th Century descriptions of the neighbourhood refer to its location along the Macadam Road to Bells Corners. That road is now known as Richmond Road, and where it slices through Westboro it is the commercial heart of the Village-like neighbourhood, once the centre of the old Nepean Township. The old Town Hall on Richmond Road used to house the bell that later became the symbol of the former city of Nepean, now a part of the city of Ottawa. The Maplelawn Garden, boasting the second oldest building in Ottawa (built in 1831) and designated a National Historic Site, is located at the western edge of the village.

The other prominent street in Westboro Village is Churchill Avenue. For many years this street was known as Main Street, but was named in honour of Winston Churchill following World War II. Just a few blocks to the west, another street was originally named River Road since it bisected the neighbourhood and lead down to the beach on the Ottawa River. That street was renamed Roosevelt Avenue for similar post-war reasons.

Westboro existed as a police village from 1903 to 1949 when it was annexed by Ottawa. An Ottawa streetcar line used to run along what is now a narrow grass strip along Byron Avenue, bringing Ottawa residents to an area once considered cottage country. Many cottage-like residences still exist today, especially by the Ottawa River north of Scott Street.

Today, Westboro is a thriving community with an increasingly lively street scene. Several condominium projects are encouraging densification and promising to bring more life into the neighbourhood. The village features many large murals painted by a local artist. The free annual Westfest music festival is held in June. The neighbourhood attracts nature-loving residents with its unrivalled selection of outdoors stores such as Mountain Equipment Co-op, Bushtukah, The Expedition Shoppe and Trailhead and its proximity to cycling trails, whitewater rapids in the Ottawa River and skiing, hiking, and cycling trails in the Gatineau Hills.

The neighbourhood is served by two stations of the rapid-bus Transitway: Westboro and Dominion.

Westboro encompasses a large part of the western part of Ottawa, and many smaller sub-neighbourhoods. Including the core Westboro village located north of Richmond Road, there exists the following sub-neighbourhoods: