Ethiopian embassy residence at Island Park faces demolition or heritage designation

The 1927 Georgian Revival residence at 575 Island Park Crescent — owned by the Embassy of Ethiopia and vacant for years — has become the centre of a dispute between the embassy, which wants to demolish it, and the City of Ottawa, which wants to preserve it as a heritage property.

The two-and-a-half-storey red-brick house originally served as the official residence of Ethiopia's ambassador to Canada. The embassy purchased it in 1993. In recent years it has deteriorated significantly: the structure shows roof rot and delamination, cracking, sagging ceilings, and mould growth on interior walls.

The embassy is seeking a demolition permit, citing feasibility and economic concerns. An engineering assessment commissioned by the embassy in April 2026 concluded the structure is not economically salvageable; the firm, Gadient Structural Engineering, recommended demolition with reconstruction as the most practical and economically reasonable option, stating the cost to repair, remediate, and restore the residence would likely equal or exceed the cost to demolish and rebuild.

But Ottawa's heritage staff assessed the condition concerns as cosmetic and aesthetic, not warrant enough for demolition in entirety. The city argues the Georgian Revival residence meets four of nine criteria defined in Ontario Heritage Act Regulation 9/06 — more than the two required for designation. The property sits among other historically significant houses in the Island Park area.

On June 10, city council directed staff to issue a notice of intention to designate (NOID). The embassy filed an objection on July 10, with a 90-day deadline of October 9 to resolve the dispute. The built heritage committee will review a staff recommendation to proceed with designation at its meeting on September 15 (today). Heritage staff met with embassy representatives to discuss the objection and understand the scope of work required, but maintained their position unchanged.