Quote:
Originally Posted by StNorberter
The stores in the underground are convenience based ( dollar store, ticket kiosk, restaurant, hair salon).
People frequent them because they want a snack, want sushi, need a haircut etc. The get little to no business from the "oh, I need to stop in here crowd". It's the business crowd that supports these businesses, I wouldn't expect there to be much if any loss of business - It will always be quicker for me to go underground from Royal Bank to Richardson bldg than it would be street level. The apocalypse for the underground businesses that everyone predicts won;t come to pass.
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And I would, as would leasing agents, disagree. A big driver in convenience retail is just that... sheer numbers and the "epiphany". The epiphany that you need a haircut or just ran out of toilet paper at home, or that you perhaps would like sushi rather than eat what you planned to have at your desk. This is based largely on the sheer volume of foot travellers, and if that number goes down, it isn't good.
For large landlords and REITs, these minute differences are huge, because they multiply over every property they own.
And as I said earlier, tenants cycle, so your goals are:
1) tenant retention
2) Attractive leasing
3) signing new, higher calibre tenants
You're never helping #1 with reduced foot traffic, although it may not change too much...
But you can forget 2 and 3.
Even if the tenant never leaves (there is a small chance they do), you'll never get a better rental rate out of them, and Winnipeg has comically low rental rates downtown. This is why development is so expensive... the rents don't cover the costs to build. Although the underground only services so many buildings, it services THE building... Winnipeg's flagships at the most important corner. It may not, but it also may, set a rental rate trend downward, which isn't good for the city. The layperson guffaws at that, but that is what tenants, landlords, and leasing agents look at.
And as per #3, strong, vibrant businesses will not replace the dormant shops going nowhere that sometimes struggle to stay open.
There will always be people going underground, there will always be favourable factors, but what major player would sit idly and accept those while ignoring the items I list above? Zero.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GarryEllice
But why would any of that change if pedestrian crossings were added at street level? Large numbers of people use the Graham and Portage skywalks despite the fact that all the intersections have pedestrian crossings. Why would the situation be any different at Portage & Main?
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Simple. When it's nice out, people walk outside. I know I do.
Nobody is suggesting the underground will be a ghost town. In fact, it may not make a difference at all to the layperson's eye. But the statistician will notice a difference, and suddenly a number goes on paper.
A number on paper makes a huge difference in the business world, and could here as well.
What people forget is that tenants want the barriers up more than landlords. I'm sure the landlords like the idea of a vibrant core. But landlords have to protect their tenants, and the undergrounders are likely pressuring their landlords.
Keep in mind, I'm not a doomsday prophet. These are legitimately likely effects. But I still want the barriers down... but I want it done right. The City has an opportunity to not only impress the citizens of Winnipeg but to pertner with Landlords to deliver an experience at Portage and Main, and this would help bypass any struggles underground easily.
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