Ottawa's downtown hotel scene has a new set of owners, and one of them is a familiar face in the city's real estate world. Mike McGahan, the CEO of CLV Group, is among the buyers who have taken an ownership stake in the reStays hotel, according to a report from the Ottawa Business Journal.
Who is Mike McGahan
McGahan has been a major player in Ottawa real estate for years, leading CLV Group, one of the city's largest property management and development firms. CLV Group has a long track record in Ottawa, managing thousands of residential rental units and commercial properties across the National Capital Region. McGahan's involvement in this deal signals continued interest from established Ottawa developers in the city's evolving downtown core.
What is the reStays hotel
reStays operates as a hotel property in downtown Ottawa, and the change in ownership puts it under the control of a buying group that now includes McGahan. Details on the full ownership group and the size of the transaction were not fully disclosed in the initial report, but the move fits into a broader pattern of Ottawa investors and developers taking stakes in hospitality properties as the downtown core continues to shift and adapt.
Why this matters for Ottawa
Downtown Ottawa has seen plenty of change in recent years, from office-to-residential conversions to shifts in how hotels and short-term accommodations operate near Parliament Hill and the ByWard Market. A local figure like McGahan stepping into hotel ownership adds another layer to that story. CLV Group's history of large-scale property management in the city means this deal could bring a level of operational stability and local knowledge to reStays that outside investors might not offer.
For Ottawa residents, changes in downtown hotel ownership might not seem like everyday news, but they matter. Hotels are part of the fabric that supports tourism, conferences, and events downtown, from Bluesfest to Winterlude to the steady flow of government and business travel the capital attracts year-round. Ownership stability, or new investment, can shape how these properties are maintained and marketed to visitors.
What to watch next
It is not yet clear whether the new ownership group plans changes to how reStays operates, or whether this is part of a larger set of acquisitions in the downtown hospitality market. Ottawa's real estate watchers will likely be paying attention to whether McGahan and CLV Group expand further into hotel properties, given the company's dominant footprint in residential and commercial real estate across the city.
As downtown Ottawa continues to navigate its post-pandemic identity, deals like this one offer a small but telling sign of where local capital is flowing next.
Source: Ottawa Business Journal
