Proximity to the university has meant that the neighbourhood has been a haven for professors and students, although rising housing prices are driving out the latter.

Many neighbourhood businesses line Bank Street, including several pubs, the Mayfair Theatre, and some Lebanese stores towards the Southern end.

As part of a 2004 Bank Street redesign, inlaid metal maple leaves were added to the sidewalks inscribed with the names of Canadian folk musicians.

Other new features included the removal of overhead powerlines, "traffic calming" measures, and the addition of more brick to the sidewalks.

Shortly after Confederation in 1867, a bridge was built over the canal increasing access from the larger city to the north.

Since the 1920s, the streetcars have been replaced by buses, stores have changed, and Carleton University has been constructed on the site of an old garbage dump.

Brighton Beach was officially closed in 1970 due to adherence to new City of Ottawa pollution standards.

"Old Ottawa South" is quite central and close to downtown by modern (post World War II) standards.