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  #61  
Old Posted May 29, 2023, 7:23 PM
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Originally Posted by TorontoDrew View Post
I just had a look at their website, reminds me a little of Eataly in Yorkville, a kind of dining and market experience. I checked out Eataly for the first time a few weeks back, such a tough place to visit on a Keto diet. So many good looking fresh pastas I've never seen before ready to take home.

[IMG]Yorkville in December, Toronto. Eataly on Bloor Street by Greg S, on Flickr[/IMG]

source: https://d1jie5o4kjowzg.cloudfront.net

Went last year and it was decent. Newer Italian version of Movenpick Marché that was around for a long time until closing recently.
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  #62  
Old Posted May 29, 2023, 9:54 PM
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Originally Posted by jigglysquishy View Post
Nutana is absolutely the best neighbourhood in Saskatchewan. The high street is so strong that a lot of folks refer to the neighbourhood as Broadway.

Cathedral is the closest equivalent in Regina, just not nearly the scale of Nutana.
Cathedral does have the advantage of a full service grocery store since Broadway lost Extra Foods last year. Although I'm hopeful with the densification underway around Broadway that a store will be back someday.
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  #63  
Old Posted May 30, 2023, 1:23 AM
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In Surrey it's Ocean Park and Cloverdale.

I love Commercial Drive but I wish it was a bit more attractive strip. The homes/apt right off the main drag are quite nice but a lot of the actual buildings on Commercial are rather unappealing.

In Toronto I always loved Cabbagetown and Ottawa's Somerset & Elgin areas.
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  #64  
Old Posted May 30, 2023, 5:27 PM
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Commercial Drive could use a new name. The name seems like one you would find in a business park.
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  #65  
Old Posted May 30, 2023, 9:40 PM
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Originally Posted by TorontoDrew View Post
Commercial Drive could use a new name. The name seems like one you would find in a business park.

Yeah it's kind of a dumb name when you think about it (sort of like "Avenue Road" in Toronto), but at this point it's pretty well cemented into the identity of the neighbourhood all the same. A new name would be unnecessary and unpopular.
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  #66  
Old Posted May 30, 2023, 10:46 PM
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Originally Posted by jigglysquishy View Post
Nutana is absolutely the best neighbourhood in Saskatchewan. The high street is so strong that a lot of folks refer to the neighbourhood as Broadway.

Cathedral is the closest equivalent in Regina, just not nearly the scale of Nutana.
It is pretty conventional to refer to a neighbourhood by its anchoring corridor. I don't think the Broadway district is an outlier in this regard. I agree with your sentiment though.

One thing I like about Saskatoon is that it actually has a fair number of neighbourhood high streets for a city its size. This comes as a result of the city originating as an amalgamation of a few different settlements back in the very early 1900s. Saskatoon has four prewar strips outside the downtown proper. I don't think this is bad for a city of 300,000. Not counting 2nd Ave N in City Park, as this feels more like a functional extension of Downtown than something distinct. Nor am I counting Idylwyld Drive north of 33rd -- it's prewar, but fully stroad.

Listed according to my subjective ranking of vitality:

1. Broadway in Nutana -- the oldest section of Saskatoon, dating originally from the late 19th century. As mentioned - the most conventionally attractive neighbourhood in Saskatchewan. If you have heard of anything approaching "urbanity" in Saskatchewan, this is probably it.
2. 20th Street in Riversdale -- second oldest non-downtown strip. Long downtrodden but home to increasing numbers of gentrifying boosters. A curious mix of forwardly Instagrammable food and retail, and pawn shops and social services.
3. 33rd Street in Mayfair. A true "streetcar suburb" (yes, we had streetcars until the 50s when everyone except Toronto got rid of them). Has a raw edge but with a particular cluster of antique shops and artisan grocery. Also, the only strip on this list with a full-service grocery store.
4. Central Ave in Sutherland. Sutherland was once an independent town that Saskatoon annexed in the 50s, and retains some level of distinctiveness when compared to Saskatoon. Traditional home of Saskatoon's greasiest student-frequented watering holes.

Last edited by phone; May 30, 2023 at 10:57 PM.
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  #67  
Old Posted May 31, 2023, 1:41 AM
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^ Great post, and totally agree. The existence and intactness of these streets is a real asset to Saskatoon.

That Broadway and 20th are both close and relatively well-connected to Downtown strengthens them further. They form a trifecta of core districts that defines the city centre, and as the connectivity improves and the gaps in the cityscape fill in it's going to make for a really great spread of urbanity. The potential is great.

It's also remarkable that, arguably, the anchors of both Broadway and 20th St are their historic main street movie theatres (Broadway and Roxy Theatre) that are still intact and operating (albeit with some differences in mandate and programming than what they were built for). Not many cities of our size can attest to still having 1 of these, let alone 2.

I've long mused about 2nd Ave N evolving into City Park's high street. It would require work on its public realm (it's verging on stroad today) and redevelopment of some key sites with compatible building forms, but it could become high street #5. The Monarch building was a step in the right direction. So maybe someday!
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  #68  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 5:19 PM
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Vancouver's Gay Village

A quick walkthrough Davie Village in the West End:


WARNING: The walker is some kind of goofball who will not shut up with his insufferable commentary and incessant, nonsensical chuckling.


Video Link
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  #69  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 5:56 PM
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Davie is certainly a vibrant area but it's a pretty unattractive street and ditto for Commercial. Certainly pedestrian friendly but with no architectural or historical character. They both have the streetscape that would feel perfectly at home at your nearest strip mall.
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  #70  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 7:04 PM
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There is an element of historical architecture along Davie and along Commercial Drive, and the storefronts are colourful and give off an artistic expression, or at least are colourful. To compare Davie and Commercial to strip malls is ridiculous. Not sure why somebody would say something so blatantly false.
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  #71  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 8:39 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jigglysquishy View Post
Nutana is absolutely the best neighbourhood in Saskatchewan. The high street is so strong that a lot of folks refer to the neighbourhood as Broadway.

Cathedral is the closest equivalent in Regina, just not nearly the scale of Nutana.
I agree on Nutana and the Broadway mixed use strip. It's a great area. (Sorry to hear the grocery store closed down recently).
According to realtor.ca, prices for housing range from $170k for a small condo to between $1M-$3M for a large house/mansion including up to $1.7M for a newer luxury condo.

That's gotta be some of the highest prices in Saskatchewan overall, besides acreages or new homes just on the outskirts of the Saskatoon city limits around Greenbryre Golf & Country Club.
https://www.realtor.ca/map#ZoomLevel...0&Currency=CAD
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  #72  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 9:28 PM
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This is a good overview of downtown Vancouver neighborhoods, great use of maps, views, clips, with plenty of explanation, etc..

Downtown Vancouver BC - Where to Live!!!
Living in Vancouver BC

Video Link
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  #73  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 9:34 PM
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I wonder if we should consider Mt Pleasant/Fairview, and Kits as Downtown neighbourhoods at this point.
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  #74  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 11:33 PM
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Originally Posted by ssiguy View Post
Davie is certainly a vibrant area but it's a pretty unattractive street and ditto for Commercial. Certainly pedestrian friendly but with no architectural or historical character. They both have the streetscape that would feel perfectly at home at your nearest strip mall.
Agree with you. These are really unattractive streets that tourists would not even bother checking out. It started out with shacks pretending to be shops, and City policies have not encouraged owners or developers to make these strips more attractive, hence rundown low-density buildings remain here in perpetuity. This is not only a scourge that affects these couple of streets, but a city-wide problem. The very long Kingsway is another great example. I can go on and on.

Some strip malls look more attractive than many of these streets in Vancouver's "urban villages".
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  #75  
Old Posted Jul 24, 2023, 11:48 PM
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Commercial and Davie are good examples of places that amount to being more than the sum of their parts. While the architecture and streetscaping are largely utilitarian, built form & use are more important and this is where their strength is. Most importantly, they have a fine-grained built form that begets vibrant, well-used, pedestrian-friendly streets; and anchor communities & businesses that give them character and a sense of place. These are places with a lot more depth than their surface-level appearance.
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  #76  
Old Posted Jul 25, 2023, 12:12 AM
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Originally Posted by phone View Post
It is pretty conventional to refer to a neighbourhood by its anchoring corridor. I don't think the Broadway district is an outlier in this regard. I agree with your sentiment though.

One thing I like about Saskatoon is that it actually has a fair number of neighbourhood high streets for a city its size. This comes as a result of the city originating as an amalgamation of a few different settlements back in the very early 1900s. Saskatoon has four prewar strips outside the downtown proper. I don't think this is bad for a city of 300,000.
2. 20th Street in Riversdale -- second oldest non-downtown strip. Long downtrodden but home to increasing numbers of gentrifying boosters. A curious mix of forwardly Instagrammable food and retail, and pawn shops and social services.
...
Agreed, ToonTown is doing pretty good when it comes holding on to its commercial strips.
I can really see how much potential 20th street has for infills and higher density mixed-use. They could build 5 over 1 structures all along there.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Echoes View Post
^ Great post, and totally agree. The existence and intactness of these streets is a real asset to Saskatoon.

That Broadway and 20th are both close and relatively well-connected to Downtown strengthens them further. They form a trifecta of core districts that defines the city centre, and as the connectivity improves and the gaps in the cityscape fill in it's going to make for a really great spread of urbanity. The potential is great.

It's also remarkable that, arguably, the anchors of both Broadway and 20th St are their historic main street movie theatres (Broadway and Roxy Theatre) that are still intact and operating (albeit with some differences in mandate and programming than what they were built for). Not many cities of our size can attest to still having 1 of these, let alone 2.

I've long mused about 2nd Ave N evolving into City Park's high street. It would require work on its public realm (it's verging on stroad today) and redevelopment of some key sites with compatible building forms, but it could become high street #5. The Monarch building was a step in the right direction. So maybe someday!
That's a salient point. Saskatoon kept 2 of its historic movie theatres which helps anchor the neighbourhoods. Let's hope Saskatoon/Saskatonians have the vision to build on these strengths and these areas will continue to improve and densify over time.

I just checked StatsCan and Saskatoon now has ~25% visible minority population (Regina too!), almost 30% of which are South Asian. That's great that many immigrants have moved to Saskatchewan's largest city/Metro. People from the East might be shocked that Saskatchewan is quickly diversifying.

Can you guys tell me about this place? PIE
https://goo.gl/maps/Vj7hh8E2wxfT36TS7

Last edited by Wigs; Jul 25, 2023 at 12:29 AM.
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  #77  
Old Posted Jul 25, 2023, 12:32 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MonkeyRonin View Post
Commercial and Davie are good examples of places that amount to being more than the sum of their parts. While the architecture and streetscaping are largely utilitarian, built form & use are more important and this is where their strength is. Most importantly, they have a fine-grained built form that begets vibrant, well-used, pedestrian-friendly streets; and anchor communities & businesses that give them character and a sense of place. These are places with a lot more depth than their surface-level appearance.
Indeed. They're both great neighbourhood streets with cool bars, restaurants and retail catering to people that live there.

Comparing Commercial Drive to a suburban strip mall is one of the weirdest takes I've read on this forum.....and I've read a lot of bad takes here over the years.
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  #78  
Old Posted Jul 25, 2023, 2:01 AM
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Yeah, and even if they're not conventionally attractive, neighbourhoods like these (or say, Kensington Market in Toronto, or most of Tokyo, etc) are certainly nothing if not visually stimulating. It's what I might call "ugly beautiful" - beneath the tawdry appearance, there's still plenty of visual interest, things to look at, and a clearly defined aesthetic.

That said, if this is what qualifies as ugly, I'd hate to think what that makes the other 99% of stuff in our cities:


https://www.flickr.com/photos/ffwoodycooks/48102404178/
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  #79  
Old Posted Jul 26, 2023, 1:33 PM
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Yeah, despite the ugly one-storey commercial blocks, Davie is a vibrant street and a great place for a stroll.

Here in Montreal you can add two or three floors of apartments onto existing retail buildings. It doesn't require the ground-floor business to close during construction. (Examples here, here and here.) Is this possible in Vancouver? It would be great way to densify and improve all the retail streets without demolishing anything or displacing any businesses.
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  #80  
Old Posted Jul 26, 2023, 2:18 PM
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Likely depends on the existing structure of the building - easier on overbuilt masonry structures than newer stick frame / light metal structures. I suspect it's particularly easy in Montreal based on the intended building envelopes on main streets with respect to neighbouring buildings. There's quite a few examples in Toronto as well, though they do tend to displace the existing retail tenants (not always) but also ensure small-scale CRUs remain. These types of structural improvements would also discourage larger land assemblies, at least in the short term. More likely to fly in outlying urban neighbourhoods than right downtown though.

A few I can think of offhand but I know there's more:

https://goo.gl/maps/L2URF1a1EsTxTavq9

https://goo.gl/maps/rELVsTwNds3eUeeNA

https://goo.gl/maps/io8rXUCq1s7s138G9

Of course I've gotten downvoted brutally on reddit for suggesting this idea, because apparently we should be tearing down all of our old retail streets for new condos.
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