The Great Canadian Skyline Thread! - Page 241

logan5 · #**4801** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:06 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by lio45

You can't understand that that pic (in which things like a gas station and a surface parking lot are visible alongside the main artery) along with the knowledge that the area is actually squarely downtown in a city of 2.5M might trigger reactions like "feels a bit suburban-ish" ?

No one is saying that trees, grass, and open spaces aren't nice or enjoyable.

Just note that there isn't a single blade of grass to be seen in the St. John's pic, let alone a tree. And that's only a tiny city of 200k.

If you're used to that as downtown, it's normal that that pic (NW end of Georgia looking west) will display some unarguably suburban characteristics to you. It's not a crime to point it out. Might even be a compliment. In many ways and to many people I'm sure it's more inviting than that grey, dense, compact, canyon-like street in St. John's.

It would be nice to be able to make innocent remarks on this forum without people feeling attacked.

Eh. I'm not convinced your remarks are so innocent. All due respect, but it's obvious to everyone that there's no comparison between the 2 downtowns, yet you insinuate that those 2 pictures define the 2 cities downtowns.

lio45 · #**4802** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:11 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Thats the part i found really funny, because that only represents a small fraction of the streets / corridors in St. John's, including the downtown surroundings.

Maybe I'm wrong but I'd think that in St. John's you have to go outside the ring road (Empire Ave) (it's a bit ridiculous that I know these things from memory yet have never set foot in Newfoundland) to find detached single-use commercial buildings like the White Spot restaurant and gas stations with the pumps on the side of the streets and enough room for several cars fueling up at the same time.

And sure, ok, it's on the edge of downtown. Still, to me it's normal to get at first sight a very suburban-ish vibe from the bottom left part of the picture we're talking about. And the rest of the pic (with the grass, trees, and all that street level space) does not feel super urban either.

Which, again, is not supposed to be an insult. Unless on this forum, grit, graffiti, street level windows with bars, garbage bags outside doors, trash whirling with the wind, homeless people sleeping on the curb, concrete everywhere, smog, the smell of urine, the absence of trees and grass, and all the other typical caracteristics of extreme urbanity are unambiguously desirable, because this is SSP?

Thanks LeftCoaster for the context info...

MonkeyRonin · #**4803** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:17 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metro-One

That is how many streets in St. John's? I am sure I can find some pretty suburban streets pretty close to the one pictured above and I am pretty sure that downtown Vancouver has many more solid streetwall corridors than St. John's (which much of downtown Vancouver is). So you know, thats where I'm coming from.

That's nice, but whatever the context and however urban the adjacent blocks are doesn't make that stretch any less suburban-looking. I mean, even this little bit of Manhattan isn't exactly good urbanity: https://maps.google.ca/maps?ll=40.717798...txobIajCpWmUAPbXQ&cbp=13,143.54,,0,-1.52

lio45 · #**4804** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:17 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by logan5

Eh. I'm not convinced your remarks are so innocent. All due respect, but it's obvious to everyone that there's no comparison between the 2 downtowns, yet you insinuate that those 2 pictures define the 2 cities downtowns.

The caption for the pic was "The busiest stretch of road in Downtown."

A guy innocently remarks that what's visible in the pic feels quite suburban.

To give people an idea of where that guy's coming from, and explain why his remark wasn't that unreasonable, I share a pic of the "main stretch of road" of his downtown. (Of a tiny city of 200k.)

Maybe the Easterners' reaction (the three of us) wouldn't have been the same if that pic hadn't been labeled "the busiest stretch of road in Downtown Vancouver". In THAT context, no wonder it strikes the viewer as suburban.

SkahHigh · #**4805** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:20 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonkeyRonin

That's nice, but whatever the context and however urban the adjacent blocks are doesn't make that stretch any less suburban-looking. I mean, even this little bit of Manhattan isn't exactly good urbanity: https://maps.google.ca/maps?ll=40.717798...txobIajCpWmUAPbXQ&cbp=13,143.54,,0,-1.52

Lol that looks like a street in Downtown New Orleans

logan5 · #**4806** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:26 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by lio45

The caption for the pic was "The busiest stretch of road in Downtown."

A guy innocently remarks that what's visible in the pic feels quite suburban.

To give people an idea of where that guy's coming from, and explain why his remark wasn't that unreasonable, I share a pic of the "main stretch of road" of his downtown. (Of a tiny city of 200k.)

Maybe the Easterners' reaction (the three of us) wouldn't have been the same if that pic hadn't been labeled "the busiest stretch of road in Downtown Vancouver". In THAT context, no wonder it strikes the viewer as suburban.

The busiest stretch of road in St. John's is almost certainly not Water Street. It looks like it would be Queens RD, which looks pretty desolate.

lio45 · #**4807** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:34 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by logan5

The busiest stretch of road in St. John's is almost certainly not Water Street. It looks like it would be Queens RD, which looks pretty desolate.

New Gower St. -- my guess as to the busiest in downtown St. John's -- looks insanely suburban in select areas, actually. And overall not very urban at all.

I mean just look at this:

https://www.google.com/maps/@47.558725,-...3m4!1e1!3m2!1sA4b74CTDfxHDXwWofT425A!2e0

But what I'm trying to explain is that if I posted a picture of this Ultramar captioned with "here's the busiest street in DOWNTOWN St. John's" I am certain that on this forum I'd be flooded with "wow, that feels surprisingly suburban for a downtown" comments. And those people would be right.

GlassCity · #**4808** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:34 AM**

This is hilarious. Regardless of all other arguments, this one "suburban" block is 170 metres long. And the north side of it is a tower. This is taking nitpicking to a whole new level.

lio45 · #**4809** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:41 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by GlassCity

This is hilarious. Regardless of all other arguments, this one "suburban" block is 170 metres long. And the north side of it is a tower. This is taking nitpicking to a whole new level.

It's not nitpicking at all. People share pictures of their cities. Other people, sometimes from thousands of km away, comment on them.

"This 170 meter long block feels surprisingly suburban considering I was just told it's on the busiest street bar none of the downtown of this metro of 2.5M" is a perfectly valid and reasonable comment.

I'm just defending the right of people to post reasonable comments on here. I don't personally care how urban or not Vancouver is.

This, however, is not very urban:
https://www.google.com/maps/@49.291408,-...3m4!1e1!3m2!1sOykm-DD0WvwK-HKxySy8bA!2e0

logan5 · #**4810** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:49 AM**

For us West Coasters, busy streets are usually not very urban. It's the more traffic calmed streets where you find urban-ness.

Nouvellecosse · #**4811** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:51 AM**

I wouldn't feel bad. There are equally suburban parts of central Halifax and it's an actual East Coast city.

Metro-One · #**4812** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:52 AM**

Again, just hilarious this entire conversation, I'm done.

Klazu, finally one of your fantastic photo updates was recognized on the Canadian section, with hilarious consequences!

lio45 · #**4813** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:57 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Again, just hilarious this entire conversation, I'm done.

Klazu, finally one of your fantastic photo updates was recognized on the Canadian section, with hilarious consequences!

Finally? His fantastic pictures usually earn a lot of compliments on this forum. They're great, so it's not surprising.

And you know what, you're right, that Chevron gas station is the epitome of urbanity. I apologize for being wrong at first, but I've now seen the error of my ways. I'm done too.

Metro-One · #**4814** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:01 AM**

Just to sum up my thoughts on this entire conversation in a sarcastic manner:

Man, I hope all of Montreal downtown doesn't look like this...

https://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ll=45....4-ftJuGMY_mHhkBAw&cbp=12,283.37,,0,-1.51

because you know, I come from this:

https://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ll=49....vecAyRZ_xigIKOAoQ&cbp=12,274.71,,0,-6.81

I am just saying, you wouldn't think to see such places in the downtown of a city of 4.5 million...

I wonder if there are any gas stations in or on the edge of any other Canadian downtowns???

VivaPhysicality · #**4815** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:09 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by logan5

For us West Coasters, busy streets are usually not very urban. It's the more traffic calmed streets where you find urban-ness.

I think that's how this conversation got off track.

West Georgia is Downtown Vancouver's busiest street for vehicular traffic, and that's why it was wrong to compare it to the most urban looking street wall in St. John's.

"Busy" can mean different things in different contexts, so it's understandable, but hopefully it's now understood that West Georgia is not what Vancouverites consider to be our pinnacle of urban street life.

SkahHigh · #**4816** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:10 AM**

^not the best streetview to illustrate your point though, there's a construction site at that spot because they're demolishing the Bonaventure Expressway to transform it into a boulevard. Anyway, I get your point. Montreal has a bunch of gas stations in Downtown to answer your question. They're diminishing though.

That discussion is quite ridiculous. Who cares? Van is easily in the top 10 of the most urban-feeling cities in North America... A stretch of road won't change that or people's opinion...

O-tacular · #**4817** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:12 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Just to sum up my thoughts on this entire conversation in a sarcastic manner:

Man, I hope all of Montreal downtown doesn't look like this...

https://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ll=45....4-ftJuGMY_mHhkBAw&cbp=12,283.37,,0,-1.51

because you know, I come from this:

https://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ll=49....vecAyRZ_xigIKOAoQ&cbp=12,274.71,,0,-6.81

I am just saying, you wouldn't think to see such places in the downtown of a city of 4.5 million...

I wonder if there are any gas stations in or on the edge of any other Canadian downtowns???

Lol! Don't take it personally Metro. He also argued emphatically that Calgary's urbanity ends at the edge of the CBD even though he admits to never having visited.

O-tacular · #**4818** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:15 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by SkahHigh

^not the best streetview to illustrate your point though, there's a construction site at that spot because they're demolishing the Bonaventure Expressway to transform it into a boulevard. Anyway, I get your point. Montreal has a bunch of gas stations in Downtown to answer your question. They're diminishing though.

That discussion is quite ridiculous. Who cares? Van is easily in the top 10 of the most urban-feeling cities in America... A stretch of road won't change that or people's opinion...

So now they're American too?!? JJ

Metro-One · #**4819** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:15 AM**

Well yeah my post was meant to be ridiculous. Same thing in Van, I think that gas station is one of the only few left in downtown Vancouver. I just find it silly that a street suddenly becomes suburban just because it is not a street wall and has a couple lots left to be developed / is not fully pedestrian orientated. Every downtown has those, and there will always be select routes in and around a city core that are more for vehicles, and many others more for pedestrians.

GreaterMontréal · #**4820** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:16 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Just to sum up my thoughts on this entire conversation in a sarcastic manner:

Man, I hope all of Montreal downtown doesn't look like this...

https://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ll=45....4-ftJuGMY_mHhkBAw&cbp=12,283.37,,0,-1.51

because you know, I come from this:

https://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ll=49....vecAyRZ_xigIKOAoQ&cbp=12,274.71,,0,-6.81

I am just saying, you wouldn't think to see such places in the downtown of a city of 4.5 million...

I wonder if there are any gas stations in or on the edge of any other Canadian downtowns???

this will be the future Bonaventure urban boulevard. looks like crap right now because of the elevated highway, but will look like this once finished.

http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/montre...spectaculaire-pour-entrer-a-montreal.php