Freiman Mall (French: ''Mall Freiman'') is an enclosed shopping

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...

between Rideau and George Streets in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada, east of

Sussex Drive Sussex Drive (french: Promenade Sussex), also known as Ottawa Regional Road93, is an arterial road in Ottawa, Ontario, the capital of Canada. It is one of the city's main ceremonial and institutional routes. Travelling roughly parallel to the Ott ...

and west of William Street. The adjacent Hudson's Bay department store abuts the Freiman Mall on both its north and south sides, and can be accessed from the Freiman Mall interior in

downtown Ottawa Downtown Ottawa is the central area of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is sometimes referred to as the Central Business District and contains Ottawa's financial district. It is bordered by the Ottawa River to the north, the Rideau Canal to the ea ...

History

The current location of the Freiman Mall was once a public street called Mosgrove Street, located immediately to the east of the

Freimans A.J. Freiman Limited, or Freimans ( ), was a landmark department store at 73 Rideau Street in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, founded in 1918 by Archibald J. Freiman. Archibald Jacob Freiman was born in Lithuania in 1880, and emigrated to Hamilton, On ...

department store which was adjacent to the ByWard Market and the former Metropolitan department store. The street was later renamed Freiman Street after the department store and its founder,

Archibald Jacob Freiman Archibald Jacob "Archie" Freiman (June 6, 1880 – June 4, 1944) was a Lithuania-born Jewish Ottawa businessman and Zionist leader. According to Bernard Figler, Freiman was the most influential Canadian Jew of his generation. His wife was noted ...

. The Freimans department store was acquired by the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...

(HBC) in 1972 and rebranded as an outlet of the company's (then) "The Bay" chain. In conjunction with the development of the

Rideau Centre The Rideau Centre (french: Centre Rideau) (corporately styled as CF Rideau Centre) is a three-level shopping centre on Rideau Street in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It borders on Rideau Street, the ByWard Market, the Rideau Canal, the Mackenzie Ki ...

across the street, the City of Ottawa agreed in 1981 to close Freiman Street and to lease the land to the HBC for a term of 99 years in exchange for the construction of an enclosed, public pedestrian passageway connecting Rideau Street to George Street and the ByWard Market, to be open 24 hours per day. Under the terms of the lease, HBC was entitled to install three kiosks related to its store within the new Freiman Mall. The company and the city would share operating and security costs, with the city's share based on the proportion of public (non-retail) floor area and the amount of time the mall would be open past the store's operating hours. The Freiman Mall was officially opened by Ottawa mayor

Marion Dewar Marion Hilda Dewar, (February 17, 1928 – September 15, 2008) was a prominent member of the New Democratic Party (NDP), mayor of Ottawa from 1978 to 1985 and a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1987 to 1988. Early life Dewar ...

on May 12, 1983, at which time a

commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

was unveiled within the mall honouring A. J. Freiman and his family. In order to reduce the city's share of the operating and security costs, the lease was amended in 1992 to allow HBC to encroach into the Freiman Mall with its merchandise displays, as long as a minimum -wide public passageway was maintained. So as to reduce security costs, the lease amendment also allowed the company to close the Freiman Mall during a portion of the night.

References

{{reflist Pedestrian malls in Canada Shopping malls established in 1983 Buildings and structures in Ottawa Shopping arcades in Canada Hudson's Bay Company 1983 establishments in Ontario