Discover Downtown

Downtown Oshawa offers two hotels for your visit to Oshawa. LaQuinta Inn and Suites and the newly opened Holiday Inn Express and Suites. 

On the first Friday of each month between 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., hundreds gather at Downtown Oshawa's Robert McLaughlin Gallery (RMG) to celebrate local creative talent at RMG Fridays. The RMG is the largest public gallery in Durham region, occupying an inspiring 36,000 square-foot building designed by world-renowned architect Arthur Erikson. It features a permanent collection of over 4,500 works of art, with five galleries of diverse and changing exhibitions and two art studios.

The Oshawa Public Library, McLaughlin Branch is also located Downtown and offers a dedicated teen area, quiet study space, internet terminals in addition to multi-language books, information and quality programming.

Sandwich Board signs represent an important and affordable tool for business owners to advertise their businesses, particularly during the summer season, in the downtown.

Council has adopted a 3-year Pilot Project to permit Sandwich Board Signs in the C.B.D. (Central Business District) Zones in the Downtown that permits business owners to place sandwich board signs on private properties and within the public boulevard including the sidewalk.

Sidewalk cafés in Downtown Oshawa create spaces for people to meet, relax and dine.  The sidewalk café season operates from April 14th - October 31st, 2022. 

In order to operate a sidewalk café, one must obtain a licence.  If you are interested in applying for a sidewalk café licence, please email [email protected] or call 905-436-5617.

The Tribute Communities Centre is front and centre as Durham Region's premier sports and entertainment facility, hosting major concerts including Sir Elton John, Bob Dylan, the Tragically Hip and Kiss to name a few. Music can also be heard at the historic Regent Theatre that is home to the Ontario Philharmonic. 

Hosting an Event in the City of Oshawa

The City of Oshawa is an amazing place to host a special event or festival. We have a wide variety of venues including parks, arenas and facilities.

The City of Oshawa has made a commitment to further enhance and expand  events within our City. Annually, the City of Oshawa hosts and/or facilitates many events and tournaments ranging from one-day celebrations to multiple-day festivals. These festivals and events range in attendance from 100 to over 30,000 with spectators attending from the local area and beyond.

This Event Planning Resource Manual contains important items and guidelines that an event organizer needs to consider before and during the application process. We have included many municipal, regional and provincial resources to assist you. This resource along with the Community Events Team and many specialists throughout the City will work to assist you with the successful implementation of your event.

Visit the community calendar for a full list of events.

Downtown Development Charges

No Development Charges shall be imposed with respect to any Development (DC By-law Section 2.5):

On lands wholly within that part of Oshawa partially known as the Urban Growth Centre and as depicted in Schedule “D” to this By-law:

Respecting an Apartment Dwelling Unit or a Townhouse Dwelling Unit, except back to back Townhouses, on lands within that part of Oshawa as shown as the shaded portion of the map in Schedule “F” to this By-law: 

City of Oshawa Development Charge By-law No. 60-2019, as amended (Schedule B.3), provides for a downtown exemption area for Residential and Non-Residential development charges and specifies a number of specific use exemptions for Non-Residential development charges; and exemptions for industrial, temporary and agricultural buildings. 

City of Oshawa By-law No. 60-2019, as amended, provides for an exemption for Apartment Dwelling Units in the areas as shown in Schedules E, F and G to the By-law. Per City of Oshawa By-law No.60-2019, as amended, Back-to-Back Townhouses and formerly Group Dwelling Units are considered Townhouse Dwelling, Stacked Townhouses (two bedrooms or less) are considered Apartment (two or more bedrooms).

Downtown Parkland Dedication - Cash-In-Lieu

Under Section 13, the by-law states that notwithstanding any other provision of this by-law to the contrary, this by-law does not apply to:

Development on lands wholly within that part of Oshawa known as the Central Business District Renaissance Community Improvement Area and as depicted in Schedule “A” to this By-law”:

There is a downtown exemption area for Cash-in-Lieu that is similar to the downtown exemption area for City’s development charges. For mixed use and other exemptions, refer to By-law 91-2007, as amended. CIL applies to areas outside of subdivisions only. Cash-in-Lieu rates for Retirement Homes are the same as Apartment Cash-in-Lieu rates.

Supporting small and family-owned businesses in downtown Oshawa is even easier during the holiday rush! The City of Oshawa is offering free on-street parking in the downtown starting at noon daily from Monday, December 13 up to and including Friday, December 31. Parking will be free all day on December 25, 26 and January 1 due to statutory holidays.  

Fees for on-street parking still apply between 8:00 a.m. until noon, Monday through Friday. On-street parking will continue to be free after 6:00 p.m. during the week and all day on weekends and statutory holidays.

Reminders:

• Paid parking will still be required for off-street municipal parking lots and parkades.
• On-street parking is not permitted on Oshawa streets between the hours of 3:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m., from December 1 to April 1.
• In addition to the 3:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. winter seasonal parking regulations, vehicles parked on Oshawa streets at any time while salting/snow clearing is underway may be ticketed and/or towed.

Visit www.oshawa.ca/parking for more information.

There is plenty of parking in Downtown. Tokens can be purchased at Service Oshawa at City Hall for use at on street parking meters, municipal surface lots and municipal parking parkades. 

• Map of Oshawa Municipal Parking System
• Parking Fees and Rates

The City of Oshawa has implemented a program to assist downtown businesses with daily cleanup of their street facing entrances. While other priorities or weather may occasionally impact the service level of the program, the goals are as follows:

• Clean up will consist of staff going on properties to remove any debris left behind by undesired behaviours observed in the downtown area. This will include the front of properties and some alleyways. Work will be performed manually and/or using motorized equipment.
• Cleanups will occur 7 days a week in the early mornings with shifts starting as early as 6:00 a.m.
• Any circumstances or areas that present a safety issue to staff will be avoided and staff will return at a future time.
• Program will run until winter control operations require staff to redirect their resources elsewhere.

In order to participate in this program, we ask that the business owner, or representative thereof, read and sign the agreement and return it to Service Oshawa.

•  Downtown Cleanup Program Agreement

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, many cities and towns have witnessed an increase of mental health challenges, addictions and housing needs among residents, while local businesses also face additional unprecedented challenges. 

A senior staff Task Force has been convened to address the immediate issues happening in downtown Oshawa. This Task Force consists of representatives from Durham Region Social Services, Durham Region Health Department, Durham Regional Police Service (DRPS), Lakeridge Health, and the City of Oshawa.

The livelihood and health of the downtown Oshawa community is very important. We are working diligently to address the concerns of local residents and businesses, and will continue to share information as it becomes available.

To learn more about downtown Oshawa support offered by the Region of Durham, visit their website.

Respect-Gets-Respect Workshop

On August 25th, 2021, The Gap Committee in collaboration with the Back Door Mission and the
Region of Durham hosted a 3-hour workshop called "Respect-Gets-Respect." This initiative was held
for community members to share their recommendations on how we can live together using a
framework based on values and respect. A summary of that workshop can be accessed here.