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Downtown

We spent HOURS/DAYS/WEEKS working with a pedway working group to align hours, expectations, lighting, o/m, jurisdictional issues and ensure that everyone who had a pedway had a clear understanding of things.

This was then reflected in new way finding, signage and communicated to property owners.

Obviously COVID has impacted things, but to move away from the work that was done is frustrating.
 
Pedway access was one reason why I switched gyms from the YMCA to the new GoodLife in Commerce Place in late November. But even so, the fact that they shut down some of the pedways before 6 pm every night (looking at you ECC and Commerce Place) or that the below-ground access to ATB Place (which connects to the LRT) is always closed gives me fewer reasons to even bother walking in downtown anymore when I can easily go to Old Strathcona, 124 St, Alberta Ave, Beverly or our suburban malls.
 
Sorry if this sound curt, but why not just walk outside, or is there no access from outside between buildings? Are the sidewalks closed? How is going to a different neighbourhood going to solve this problem?
 
No @Greenspace , not curt at all. I will use the pedways to avoid certain weather conditions (too cold, too icy, too hot, snow, rain, thunderstorms, etc), not having to put on a jacket or change my footwear just to grab a coffee, not having to wait for traffic signals, I can avoid the seemingly endless street construction and the dirty streets, overall convenience and a general feeling of safety. I'll always walk outside to explore areas such as Rice Howard Way, Churchill Square, ICE District, RAM or the 4th St Promenade. But access to those pedways are one reason why I've lived near downtown for decades. True, going to a different neighborhood such as Old Strathcona will not solve this problem, but if downtown is becoming more hostile to people like me or the security is too short-staffed or too incompetent then I might as well just hop in my car and drive to somewhere else.
 
Understood. I have a love/hate relationship with pedways. For years and years their development was done at the expense of good pedestrian street interaction and clean, well-maintained streets. I think both can co-exist (for many of the reasons you mention is why I use them) and if they're here they certainly should be open.

I know in the past 2 years without people downtown (aka office workers) it's a monumental task to keep some of the private pedways safe. For example, seniors in Churchill Manor rely on them particularly in the winter (theirs was closed for 2-3 days before Christmas due a fire being set in the pedway). But I also wonder if people are using pedways because they don't feel safe on the streets at certain times which is even a larger problem than some pedways being closed. It's the opposite of what we've been trying to achieve Downtown for the past 10-15 years.
 
Coming soon to Downtown - self-serve convenience/grocery. I know of one location so far.

Very cool! Here's a video I found showing a walk through their store in Toronto. Do you know what location they're going in?


This isn't like one of those Amazon stores where you just walk in and walk out. These stores rely on customers (who must register as members) to self checkout.

It would be super convenient to have a store like this open 24/7, but I can foresee a lot of ways this could go wrong. For example, what happens if a non-member waits in the airlock? Do they just lock the doors and stop all traffic in and out of the store until a security guard/police officer can arrive?

Assuming their tech is sophisticated enough, theft by members should be manageable. With multiple camera angles for every area of the store, an automated system can flag shoplifting. The trouble is dealing with false positives, since there is no staff physically present to verify that someone was shoplifting.
 
No @Greenspace , not curt at all. I will use the pedways to avoid certain weather conditions (too cold, too icy, too hot, snow, rain, thunderstorms, etc), not having to put on a jacket or change my footwear just to grab a coffee, not having to wait for traffic signals, I can avoid the seemingly endless street construction and the dirty streets, overall convenience and a general feeling of safety. I'll always walk outside to explore areas such as Rice Howard Way, Churchill Square, ICE District, RAM or the 4th St Promenade. But access to those pedways are one reason why I've lived near downtown for decades. True, going to a different neighborhood such as Old Strathcona will not solve this problem, but if downtown is becoming more hostile to people like me or the security is too short-staffed or too incompetent then I might as well just hop in my car and drive to somewhere else.
I totally get it and agree. I often use the pedways downtown too. What is particularly annoying is how random and unannounced the closures can be. You are walking along at the same time and the same route and you normally go and then encounter a locked door.

Normally, I go all they way through from Enterprise Square to City Centre. One day a security guard comes up to me and tells me its closed. So, I had to make a sort of detour half way. Good news, its is open again.

I used to often go across from Commerce Place to Scotia Place, but during COVID that pedway was closed. I realize there are security and other issues, but surely all the security guards they have in these places can handle this. Part of attraction of downtown is to easily go from one building to another without always putting on winter coats and boots. At this point, we don't need more things to make downtown even less lively or attractive.
 
Coming soon to Downtown - self-serve convenience/grocery. I know of one location so far.

I suppose it is better than nothing, but a space with little or no supervision in our downtown with all its social disorder issues. I see this not going well.
 

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