1201 replies to this topic

[Brantastic]

Quite a large deck is being constructed outside of Frankie's Diner, Merchant Headquarters has inventory spilling out onto the street, seating and planters have expanded outside Chocolat Favoris and it looks like Garrick's Head is constructing a small patio outside too. I've gone for walks along Government Street everyday since it was pedestrianized and have been making an effort to spend money on Government Street to show my support for the changes. I was going to get a coffee at Murchie's yesterday but the lineup went out the door. As much as I'm loving the changes, I do feel more needs to be done to animate the block between Fort and View. More seating, planters, street murals, entertainers, something! I'm quite surprised the Bastion Square Market is not running this year while other markets in town are. This seems like the perfect opportunity to expand the market onto this block of Government Street.

Not on Government Street, but the Yates Street Taphouse has been constructing a large wooden deck on several parking stalls. Pagliacci's and 2% Jazz have new seating in parking spaces outside their storefronts as well.

[Nparker]

 

I've gone for walks along Government Street everyday since it was pedestrianized and have been making an effort to spend money on Government Street to show my support for the changes.

Funny, I have been doing just the opposite.

[Greg]

Funny, I have been doing just the opposite.

 

As one would expect from a contrarian. 

[Greg]

Not directly on Government, but Pags has spread onto Broad Street...

 

 

 

[Nparker]

As one would expect from a contrarian.  

I can assure you my decision to "boycott" a partially closed Government Street was given a lot more thought and consideration than the consultation with merchants of this area by CoV council before making this "temporary" change.

[Greg]

I can assure you my decision to "boycott" a partially closed Government Street was given a lot more thought and consideration than the consultation with merchants of this area by CoV council before making this "temporary" change.

 

That's almost certainly true, but the pictures above do suggest that at least some of the merchants are actually embracing the situation. If you want to attribute this to "broken clock syndrome" rather then quality decision making, you won't get an argument from me.

[aastra]

You know you're a committed contrarian when you do the opposite of whatever the casual contrarians are doing.

[Nparker]

Sometimes one has to make painful decisions as political statements against atrocious and deceitful governments.

[Mike K.]

What really surprises me is the mayor had formally said we had been looking at the no car thing “wrong,” and that during her trip to Germany she realized the answer wasn’t to completely block vehicles. Isn’t that what we’ve done?

[Nparker]

Lisa Helps making contradicting statements to suit her agenda at any given time? Say it isn't so? 

[marks_28]

What really surprises me is the mayor had formally said we had been looking at the no car thing “wrong,” and that during her trip to Germany she realized the answer wasn’t to completely block vehicles. Isn’t that what we’ve done?

 

Well cars are still able to travel from Humboldt north to View. Only one block has been completely blocked off.

[Brantastic]

Funny, I have been doing just the opposite.

I've read hundreds, if not thousands, of your posts by now and I'm really mystified by you - someone who gets around only on foot who advocates fervently for automobile infrastructure while being actively anti-pedestrian, anti-cyclist, and anti-transit. Pedestrianize the most popular pedestrian street in the city after decades of talking about it? Just another example of council's devious leftist agenda! Provide cyclists with their own protected bike lanes on a small fraction of the total street network so they're not sharing lanes with motor vehicles 160 times their weight, capable of several times their speed? Her worseship at it again! 

[Victoria Watcher]

providing one $7000 ping pong table when merchants have been crying out for $3000 pool tables?

the mayor in overdrive again.

speaking of ping pong tables the only bar located next to one has decided not to re-open for some reason. and we thought that ping pong table would bring the masses to their door.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 19 June 2020 - 03:34 PM.

[aastra]

 

Pedestrianize the most popular pedestrian street in the city after decades of talking about it?

 

I think this is the key point. All along I've been saying we just need to try it (on Government Street), instead of always talking about it. One way or another, answer the question of whether or not it can work.

 

And now the irony is, we're finally doing it at the precise moment when it really wouldn't be a fair and decisive test.

[spanky123]

That's almost certainly true, but the pictures above do suggest that at least some of the merchants are actually embracing the situation. If you want to attribute this to "broken clock syndrome" rather then quality decision making, you won't get an argument from me.

 

I think what is surprising is that merchants are embracing solutions on streets that were not supposed to be part of those solutions!

Edited by spanky123, 19 June 2020 - 03:43 PM.

[Nparker]

I've read hundreds, if not thousands, of your posts by now and I'm really mystified by you...

What can I say, I'm a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma...

Just to keep this a bit more on topic I should probably clarify my position on the whole Government Street closure to vehicles. It's not that I am entirely against partial closure of the street per se, but as aastra alluded to above, this is "the precise moment when it really wouldn't be a fair and decisive test". Why was this not tried when cruise ships were a daily summer occurrence?

Also, Council's reasoning that the closure is all in aid of Government Street merchants when clearly they weren't consulted is rather specious. 

[Victoria Watcher]

one of the reasons government street merchants are opposed to the closure is *cruise ship shuttle bus traffic delivered right to the street. with none this year it’s not such an issue.

[aastra]

Come on, as if they couldn't be driven in as near as possible and then advised where the stores are? In some of the Alaskan towns the passengers will be walking all over the place, up and down every street. It's not as if cruise passengers are generally disinclined to walk around.

 

pic from https://cruisecritic.com

[Victoria Watcher]

^ they should just make a canal in that street and drive the ship right up it.

[aastra]

You must be joking.

 

What about the power lines?