Public Realm in Canadian Cities - Developments

[Chadillaccc]

West Eau Claire Park is gearing up for its official reopening. The redevelopment includes separated bike and pedestrian paths, the primary path has been raised around 2 feet to help further protect the area from flooding, a ton of new benches have been added, the area directly south of the Peace Bridge has been turned into the "Delta Garden", an entirely new pathway has been built through the overland flood zone, a pebble beach has been built which steps down into the river, and a deck is being built overlooking the Standing Wave where surfing lessons are taught during the summer.



Source: SurrealPlaces on SRC

Source: SurrealPlaces on SRC

Source: SurrealPlaces on SRC

Source: Me

Source: Me

[someone123]

There are a few more streetscape projects happening in Halifax. Instead of starting by tearing up the streets, the city now tends to do trial runs of new features like widened sidewalks. They recently installed some "stoplets" along Spring Garden Road, platforms at bus stops that extend out into what was previously roadway. Buses will block traffic when loading and unloading. I doubt this is much worse than weaving in and out of traffic, and it's probably less likely to cause accidents.

A lot of Halifax streets were turned into quasi-arterials in the 1960's and 70's but they weren't wide or regular enough for this approach to be very beneficial. Spring Garden Road in particular also transitioned from being a minor neighbourhood commercial street to a major commercial street after WWII, and it still essentially pre-WWII infrastructure, complete with poles for streetcar overhead lines that are no longer in use. There can be large crowds on frustratingly narrow sidewalks.

The stoplets look like this:



Wider view for context:



More info: https://www.shapeyourcityhalifax.ca/...d-enhancements

Argyle-Grafton was completed over the past year and Agricola is coming up next year.

[someone123]

Some other improvements happening:


Source

Construction at the other end:


Source

[SignalHillHiker]

We've finally got a proper one lol

[MonctonRad]

Resurgo monument being installed on the plaza in front of the new events centre in downtown Moncton. The buildings in the background are actually the federal government office complex in the city, across the street from the events centre.



Resurgo is the civic motto for Moncton. It is Latin for "to rise again". It was adopted following reincorporation of the town in the 1870's after it's rebirth as a railway town (Moncton had previously disincorporated after the collapse of the wooden shipbuilding industry).

The motto took on new meaning after Moncton was kicked in the nuts in the 1980s, with the loss of 7000-8000 jobs with the closure of the CNR railway shops, the Eaton's catalogue warehouse and CFB Moncton. Moncton "rose again" in the 1990s based on a new economy devoted to information technology and the banking and insurance sector. We haven't looked back......

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

....

Resurgo is the civic motto for Moncton. It is Latin for "to rise again". It was adopted following reincorporation of the town in the 1870's after it's rebirth as a railway town (Moncton had previously disincorporated after the collapse of the wooden shipbuilding industry).

The motto took on new meaning after Moncton was kicked in the nuts in the 1980s, with the loss of 7000-8000 jobs with the closure of the CNR railway shops, the Eaton's catalogue warehouse and CFB Moncton. Moncton "rose again" in the 1990s based on a new economy devoted to information technology and the banking and insurance sector. We haven't looked back......

"I rise again", if my Latin classes were of any use at all ...

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

"I rise again", if my Latin classes were of any use at all ...

You are indeed correct. That is the proper translation.

[someone123]

Here's a rendering of a new public square/plaza that will be created as part of the Cogswell interchange redevelopment in Halifax:


Source

The rendering is a bit plain but I think it will be a huge improvement. The current pedestrian environment in this part of the city gets about a D-. It is a classic "traffic sewer" arrangement. There aren't even crosswalks or lights so this whole area is like a game of Frogger.

Current situation:

[isaidso]

Nice to see that area get re-designed. Downtown comes to an abrupt and ugly stop as soon as it hits this spot.

[isaidso]

Originally Posted by hipster duck

I never liked this proposal. It basically treats what could have been a terrific opportunity to build an unabashedly urban waterfront precinct into yet another quasi-natural space, which is not something that Torontonians really lack.

The issue is flooding. When the Don River was narrowed and the delta paved over it removed the natural flood protection that existed. When the city gets a big down pour the river overflows its banks and the rail line and road adjacent go under water. Re-establishing a delta will act as a natural sponge and help protect the city from flooding.

It's the same issue in the Portlands. We can't have people living on the Portlands at all if we don't re-naturalize the mouth of the Don. If you look at the renderings its quite clear that there perimeter is the buffer between the buildings and the lake.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by isaidso

Nice to see that area get re-designed. Downtown comes to an abrupt and ugly stop as soon as it hits this spot.

If it's successful, downtown Halifax is going to feel a lot bigger. Not just because of the new buildings built on the interchange lands but because the downtown and North End will be reconnected.

Halifax never had a "main street" but back in 1950 the main commercial corridor ran for 15 blocks or so along Barrington and over to Gottingen Street. In the 1960's and 70's, the Gottingen end got cut off. By the 1980's, Spring Garden Road had grown a lot and Gottingen was completely severed and declined a lot. In more recent years, Gottingen has bounced considerably. In 2025 Halifax, this corridor will probably include all 3 streets again.

Another interesting process is the expansion of major retailers downtown. Around 2000, downtown Halifax was in rough shape. Gottingen was completely bombed-out looking and Barrington was full of lower-rent businesses like used bookstores and pool halls. Now, a lot of the smaller businesses downtown have moved to the North End, West End, or Dartmouth while downtown has been getting larger stores (including chains like Lululemon and Urban Outfitters). I am not a fan of chains per se but I think they are a sign that the area is much healthier, and the small stores are migrating rather than disappearing.

[scryer]

Even just skimming through the Halifax forum, Halifax seems to continually make these small effective improvements. The Cogswell pedestrian addition is certainly one of those things that will make a deep impact.

Halifax is gonna turn into something very special in the next 10 years; I can feel it.

[Wpg_Guy]

The great debacle that is Portage and Main in Winnipeg, closed for almost half a century to pedestrians, the agreement closing the intersection with the city and the property owners expires in 2019, so there is an opportunity to open the intersection back to pedestrians and Winnipegers are up in arms over this issue. Citing major traffic delays and hoards of pedestrians deaths, waste of tax payer money, it's all just so ridiculous, so much so that our mayor who campaigned last term on reopening the intersection and got elected on that mandate has now refereed any future decisions on Portage and Main to a referendum in the next civic election. This has become the major election issue, instead of focusing on Winnipeg as a growing thriving city we are debating letting people cross the street and beautifying the major cornerstone of downtown. The civic infrastructure is falling apart at the intersection, there has been no maintenance in 40 years it's truly a disgrace this is the heart of the city the centre of commerce in Manitoba and the image portrayed of our downtown.

https://voteopenwpg.ca/

Join the movement to revitalize the iconic intersection at the heart of our downtown.
Almost 40 years ago the Winnipeg City Council, desperate for development during an economic recession, closed Portage and Main to force pedestrian traffic into an underground mall in exchange for an office tower from a Toronto real estate developer.

Today, downtown is the home of the Winnipeg Jets, the SHED, and True North Square, the largest private development in downtown’s history. Nearly 20,000 people live and work near Portage and Main and the new developments in The Exchange District, Waterfront Drive, and The Forks will bring hundreds of new residents to the area.

Removing the barriers at Portage and Main and opening the intersection to pedestrian foot traffic will create new economic opportunity and tax revenue, and make our iconic intersection a welcoming and accessible place for us and our children.

On October 24 vote Yes on opening Portage and Main, and invest in a city and a downtown that future generations of Winnipeggers will be proud of.

• Video Link

[TorontoDrew]

I've always thought that Portage and Main ruined the look of your downtown. Reading that people are concerned over traffic congestion tells me they have never experienced true congestion. A few extra minutes to of time in ones car is a small price to pay for improving the streetscape of a city.


Also I didn't know you are getting a new tallest, congrats.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by TorontoDrew

I've always thought that Portage and Main ruined the look of your downtown. Reading that people are concerned over traffic congestion tells me they have never experienced true congestion. A few extra minutes to of time in ones car is a small price to pay for improving the streets cape of a city.


Also I didn't know you are getting a new tallest, congrats.

It does. The underground passages are confusing and grotty.

[TownGuy]

Pretty minor thing but the new lifeguard stations at Cobourg beach are becoming quite the hit. There is a blue and yellow currently, with 2 more on the way. I'm curious to see what colour they will be.

[MonkeyRonin]

New little plaza hidden on Adelaide Place:





http://urbantoronto.ca/news/2018/09/...leria-adelaide

[MonkeyRonin]

Also, the Bentway (under the Gardiner) was completed earlier this summer:





http://www.thebentway.ca/

[Dr Awesomesauce]

Originally Posted by MonkeyRonin

New little plaza hidden on Adelaide Place:

Fabulous!

[Martin Mtl]

Winning design for the Place des Montréalaises, a new public space build above the Ville-Marie expressway.

The city said artist Angela Silver and firms Lemay and SNC-Lavalin were chosen by an 11-person jury because of their concept’s “serenity, calmness, and poetry.”

The project will include a flowered, inclined plane rising toward the Champ-de-Mars park and an “urban forest” at the Champ-de-Mars métro exit. It will also incorporate a pedestrian link between the Champ-de-Mars métro station and Old Montreal that will pass above the Ville Marie Expressway and St-Antoine St. The city will invest 65 m. to build the project, in addition to the already built covering of the expressway that costed 75 m. to the Quebec gov.