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Prominent heritage building at Bank and Albert streets sells for nearly $3M

September 2, 2025

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A well-known heritage office building at a major downtown intersection is changing hands for nearly $3 million. Ottawa-based electrical contractor TWZ Group has agreed to purchase the 7,434-square-foot, three-storey building on the southwest corner of Bank and Albert streets from Toth Equity for $2.93 million, broker Brent McElheran told OBJ last week. Designed by prominent Ottawa architect W.C. Beattie, the building was completed in 1935. It served as the headquarters of the Ottawa Hydro Electric Commission, the forerunner of Hydro Ottawa, for the next 22 years. In 1957, the hydro commission sold the building to a trust company that was later acquired by TD Bank, leading to one of its enduring quirks – there are still vaults on all three floors. Toth Equity later bought the building and owned it for more than four decades. The rectangular-shaped building is one of the most notable examples of the art deco style of architecture in downtown Ottawa. The province declared the exterior, known for its distinctive moulding, a heritage site in 1992. The City of Ottawa says the building’s “prominent corner location and facades that face two streets reinforce its importance” as a designated heritage site. In recent years, the building was home to one of the largest Bridgehead coffeehouses in downtown Ottawa. The coffee chain closed the Bank and Albert store in February 2024, and the 2,034-square-foot ground-floor retail space remains empty. Chmiel Architects occupies the second floor and the new owners plan to set up an office on the top floor, McElheran said. The broker of record at Royal LePage Team Realty McElheran & Associates said he is in talks with TWZ Group about becoming the leasing agent for the property. As the City of Ottawa and other employees ramp up their return-to-office strategies, McElheran said he believes there will be no shortage of potential tenants interested in taking over the vacant space, which sits at one of the highest-profile intersections in the downtown core. “As more people are getting back to the office, I think that corner is a very, very good corner strategically,” he said, adding potential users could include businesses ranging from another coffee shop to a medical office. “I think there’s just a world of possibilities that could go on the ground floor. It feels like the downtown core, every time I’m down there, seems to be getting busier. I’m optimistic that we’ll continue to trend in the right direction … of getting bodies back downtown.” The building, which was on the market for more than three months, was originally listed at $3.3 million before the price was lowered to the $3-million range, McElheran said. “As soon as we dropped it, we got a lot of interest,” he added. “The market spoke, and we were able to sell it quite quickly.” The veteran broker said office resale activity in downtown Ottawa isn’t quite as frothy as it was a few years ago despite a series of interest rate cuts since the middle of 2024. “Pricing that people had in their minds during (20)21, ’22 and part of ’23, those prices have definitely come down,” McElheran explained. “It just feels like the market is more cautious when buying.”