What Small Canadian Cities Do You Want To See As Bigger Centres - Page 4

JHikka · #61 Posted **Sep 7, 2011, 6:51 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boreal

Nationally, Saint John, NB.

Good luck. We haven't had a growth in our population since the 1970s. 68K live inside of the city and another 60k live just outside city limits, so our tax base is already low, so we're currently facing the possibility of raising our taxes even higher. We already have the highest in New Brunswick, for a lot of poor services.

If this city has a growing population in my lifetime i'll be utterly shocked, the way we're going. I've never seen a municipal government so inadequate and unknowing of anything and everything.

ue · #62 Posted **Sep 7, 2011, 7:41 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by armorand93

Winnipeg 2 million? That means 2400 buses! LOL

I'd like to see Gimli and Brandon become larger, preferably Gimli. Few mid-rise hotels and some more suburban development btwn the Industrial Park/Highway 8 and the town itself. Lets say... 30,000 people?

I should add that with those populations, I'd like to see the following for the Big Six:

1. Toronto - 11-12,000,000
2. Montreal - 7-8,500,000
3. Vancouver - 6,000,000
4. Calgary - 5,000,000
5. Edmonton - 4-4,500,000
6. Ottawa - 3,000,000

Quote:

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Nanaimo-Comox? Those cities are hardly adjacent to one another.
[IMG][/IMG]

Er, yeah, geography error. Sorry for that. I was thinking of Courteney instead of Nanaimo I think.

armorand93 · #63 Posted **Sep 7, 2011, 8:30 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by kool maudit

my point was that the essential underpinnings of demographic projections can change very rapidly. mark's error is parading around saying things like "germany won't exist in 50 years" based on current birth rates and immigration policies; you can't trace those lines to the point of extinction. people* behave erratically and with great force when backed into a corner.

(*germans, for instance).

HEY!!! As a German-Canadian, I find that funny

halifaxboyns · #64 Posted **Sep 7, 2011, 9:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by someone123

This is the main reason why obstructionism is so bad. When you have NIMBYs adding years of appeals to every new development and effectively eliminating most of the land supply in the core prices get driven up considerably and the suburbs become the more affordable option. The end result is that large numbers of people end up being pushed into less desirable, less efficient, and less environmentally sound developments because of comparatively small special interest groups.

The cities that continue to sprawl are going to be at a disadvantage as gas and municipal servicing costs go up and up. They just won't be attractive places to live and they will tank because skilled workers are mobile -- they will just pick up and find a good place to live. The good places to live will have lots of amenities close by and great transit options.

Halifax is in a relatively good position because it has a big urban core with lots of infill opportunity. As you say areas like the Peninsula would be easy to serve with streetcars/LRT. It is still an open question whether we'll see more emphasis on building a great core with a great supporting transportation system or whether the effort will instead be disproportionately diverted toward unsustainable suburban development as it has been in the past.

I'm confident that in the case of HRM, the HRM by Design process could create an as-of-right development process that would encourage infilling of the regional core to create more population. I would be shocked if an as-of-right development process wasn't created, especially if a streetcar was built, that didn't push more density around such a system. If they didn't, I suspect the development community would.

There may be a lot of nimby action in HRM, but I suspect that it will begin to decline as those nimbys just get tired of always loosing.

Xelebes · #65 Posted **Sep 7, 2011, 10:19 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by BretttheRiderFan

I remember as a school project last year I took the growth rate stats from 2001-2006 for the top 100 CMAs and CAs and calculated populations of metropolitan areas in 2061

It's still on my desktop, just give me a minute.

This is based on 2001-2006 growth rates, obviously these cities probably won't be at the same growth rates for 50 years but cool nonetheless

EDIT: I only put the metros with growth rates that put them at 100,000 by 2061

For a total of 52 million.

vid · #66 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 12:27 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by GregHickman

Good luck. We haven't had a growth in our population since the 1970s. 68K live inside of the city and another 60k live just outside city limits, so our tax base is already low, so we're currently facing the possibility of raising our taxes even higher. We already have the highest in New Brunswick, for a lot of poor services.

If this city has a growing population in my lifetime i'll be utterly shocked, the way we're going. I've never seen a municipal government so inadequate and unknowing of anything and everything.

City councils represent the people in the community. If the problem is city council, then the problem is residents of Saint John.

Although, Thunder Bay has a very progressive council and very backwards citizens.

Razor · #67 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 2:34 AM**

I think Niagra falls should go full bore Vegas...I mean the Campy lil Museums, souveneir shops are interesting the first time...They should adopt lax Nevada style laws just for the city, and every-one can say "What happens in the falls, stays in the falls".

The actual falls would make a nice lil back drop to a strip full of shows and Casinos...Lose the souveneir shops..Have more show-biz there.
Anyways, I'm being a lil facetious, but why not. The energy is already there.

What's Niagra falls right now 85k as far as residents?..It would be kewl to see it grow into a small Vegas sized city of about 500k...Build it up towards St. Catherines..

Taeolas · #68 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 3:18 PM**

The Falls as the Canadian Vegas. That sounds like a good idea. As you said it's already getting close to that; among other things it is already known as a Marriage destination.

Does it have an area that could be set up as a "Strip" nearby?

Looking at the New Brunswick centres, I'd love to see all 3 of them bigger. Moncton is well on that way, St John has its own issues but if it could get over them it has some growth potential. Freddy is just doing its current Slow and Steady growth, but it does feel like it's picking up in recent years. It's still outgrowing though instead of infilling, but it's small enough (and the Valley kept it contained so much before) that it can stand some more out growth for now. And even with Freddy's outgrowth, we are seeing some (slow) densification going on internally.

MolsonExport · #69 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 4:11 PM**

^clifton hill. already a strip of gaudy ugliness. wax museums, dracula castles, cotton candy, and dave&busters.

caltrane74 · #70 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 4:36 PM**

Clifton Hill for your amusement

http://accessniagara.com/blog/2005/05/31/next_generation_of_amusements/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zoltan_ranosztay/6114959989/sizes/l/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/52842624@N04/6061347543/sizes/l/in/photostream/

Razor · #71 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 4:46 PM**

Yup the falls already is a destination, but the problem is once you've been there once or twice you had your fill...Imagine if they added more shows and Casinos..

caltrane74 · #72 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 4:50 PM**

At the minimum I'm at the falls every two months. - I don't think I've gone more than 2 months without going to the falls..

My main activities when there:

1. Gambling (70%)
2. Eating - US Chain Restaurants are my favorite - Ihop/TGI - Fridays/ Appleby's/ (%5)
3. Clifton Hill - Check out some of the fair (10%)
4. Sightseeing ( 5%)
5. Shows / Sporting Events (10%)

Bdog · #73 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 4:51 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

^clifton hill. already a strip of gaudy ugliness. wax museums, dracula castles, cotton candy, and dave&busters.

Don't forget Nightmares - the scariest haunted house in Canada...

flar · #74 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 5:00 PM**

It's pretty common for Hamiltonians to go to the Falls for a night out, work parties, a bit of gambling, etc. I probably went there more than 5 times a year on avg. when I lived in Hamilton.

caltrane74 · #75 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 6:28 PM**

There might be room for one more 40 to 50 storey hotel tower in Niagara Falls....

I'm basing this on the sheer size of the crowds that greet me at Fallsview Resort, Fallsview Blvd, Clifton hill, and Casino Niagara.

north 42 · #76 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 6:37 PM**

We go to the falls every year in late summer or early fall. We always find new things to do, as well as things we like to do every time we're there. This weekend we're riding our bikes down the beautiful Niagara Parkway to Niagara on the Lake.

I don't think they could handle any new big hotel towers at the moment though, they're pretty oversaturated now as it is.

Taeolas · #77 Posted **Sep 8, 2011, 7:40 PM**

Yeah that's why I suggested/asked if the Falls had a space they could set up a Vegas style Strip on. The existing Falls/casinos could probably be left similar to Freemont street, while the Falls Strip could be where new big resorts are set up, ideally close to/along a major highway and close to an airport.