Quote:
Originally Posted by jjavman
Totally agree!
A lack of vision is an understatement. How did this city get to present age without a comprehensive downtown vision?
There are certainly lots of restaurants and bars for attraction, plus a sports centre.
What is lacking is a clear policy by the city, so that building developments may proceed quickly, without the hindrance of self interest groups.
Also lacking is a clear parking policy. We have a hybrid system now and the ever decreasing meter spaces are difficult to grab with 2 way traffic on Water, and Duckworth Street (You see a space on the opposite side, but it's gone before you can turn around). The city keeps touting parking garages, but nobody wants to avail of a garage when they want to run into a shop for 10 minutes!
I would love to see a one way circle using Water and Duckworth because they are narrow and have little shops which need parking support.
Leave Harbour Drive 2 way, as it's wide and mostly shopless.
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I also think the problem with DT, and the city as a whole, is parking- There is too much of it. This is a result of poor regional planning, single use zoning and minimum parking requirements.
Next time you walk around DT (lolz, who walks in St. John's?) or use Maps/Street View count the number of off street parking lots, garages and alleys. To name a few:
-Portabellos
-Courtyard by Marriot
-Cochrane St between Duckworth and Water
-Duckworth at King St
-Duckworth at Holloway St
-Prescott at Duckworth
-Prescott at Gower/Bluedrop building
-Garage at 330 Duckworth,
-3 lots near Duckworth and Bates Hill
-Water St at Soloman's Lane
-Water Street at the Courthouse
-Alleys behind 280 Duckworth, Basho, BMO at McBrides Hill.
-All of Harbour Drive
These make up a lot of the downtown area and are usually not full.
Parking lots are not nice places for people and kill the streetscape. They have little economic value, like a business, or add to the area, like a park or a house. They cost a lot to maintain and drive up rent. They also kill walkability by spreading buildings further apart and letting cars cross the sidewalk at dips and ramps even though sidewalks are suppose to be a pedestrians safe space. They are also ugly and uninspiring.
Now think about how many spaces are for people. There is almost no public space outside of the War Memorial/Harbourside Park area. Not surprisingly, this is usually the place you can find people hanging out. There is nothing near the main shopping and commercial area. There are maybe a 6 benches and almost no green space throughout the rest of DT. The sidewalks are even too narrow for two couples to pass each other comfortably. It's like we don't want people to stay DT.
We have a sprawling region were we prioritize car use and funnel people in and out of areas a quickly as possible. That's great for the big box store next to a highway. But that doesn't make a very nice city. A cool, hip and vibrant city has areas where people want to hangout and live. This promotes people spending money or workers sharing ideas. Innovation happens and attracts businesses. There is room for public events and that will attract more locals and tourists and more businesses. We need to let people transform areas.
Downtown St. John's isn't particularly nice and is built for the cars to get you out of there at 5 pm so it's no surprise that the area can't compete with offices in the suburbs that also have little to offer other than just office space.
So what should be done?
-Decrease parking requirements. This will help reduce sprawl and car culture across the city. Land use will be more efficient especially downtown. Most booming cities have already done this.
-Rezone surface lots to mixed use to allow infill development. Allow storefronts with residential and cheaper Class B or C office space above to promote small businesses.
-City buys back certain lots and turn into a plaza or park. They also rent space for kiosks or food trucks and host events. The lot a Soloman's Lane on Water St would ideal for this. The movie nights at this site is very popular and shows there is demand for more public space.
-Increase onstreet parking fees to push all full day parkers to the underused garages or other forms of transportation. Leave onstreet spots for people who need it for short visits. Extra revenue should be put back into making the area better like transit, greenery or public wifi.
-Add a levy for buildings that want to keep offstreet lots. Use that money in the area.
-Add benches and planters. Plant trees and install fountains or other public monuments. Give people places to mingle. Then you have people who will probably buy an extra coffee or visit one more store. Or maybe bring a guitar and entertain people. Plants also make us feel good and has been proven to have economic benefits.
-Redesign Duckworth and Water streets to prioritize active transportation and public transit so there will be less cars in the area and less demand for parking. Make the streets so people think they can cross where ever they want when a store catches their eye. There are enough car roads in the area, you can spend an extra few minutes and go around or slowly through the area.
-City stops allowing more Class A office space to be built when the existing stock can't be filled. This also counts for west end of downtown. More highrises aren't the answer. They look nicel in photos but vertical sprawl can also happen. Great cities are often made of low rise-high density areas. ie Copenhagen, Paris, Amsterdam, San Francisco.
-Converting some office space into housing stock is the great idea if the area was made more appealing for residents.
"A good city is like a good party - people stay longer than really necessary, because they are enjoying themselves." - Jan Gehl
TL: DR
Downtown St. John's has too much parking and needs to be made nicer for people to attract residents and businesses.
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