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  #41  
Old Posted Nov 19, 2007, 6:14 PM
DC83 DC83 is offline
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Maybe they could turn the actual street into a rink rather than part of the park?

I'd like to skate along King St (the south leg of course haha) up to Infussions, buy a hot chocolate (I'd assume they'd open a lil booth right beside their patio) and continue to skate around.

They could seperate the street into different sections/rinks: one for little kids, one for playing hockey, and one for everyone else!

Pedestrianizing Gore has so many opportunities rather than just a street people can walk on, which is what most Hamiltonians perceive this idea as.
Look how many ideas we've come up with already!!

Wintertime = Ice Rinks / Winterfest / New Years Party a-la Times Square or Nathan Phillips Sq
Summertime = Festival Grounds (different festival every week a-la Montréal)
Springtime = Kid's Easter Parade/Party
Fall = Halloween Bash such as the one in TO on Church St / Rememberence Day Ceremony the likes the Gore used to see

If they just left it as a street to walk on 75% of the year, then maybe the stores along Gore wouldn't get as much business.
BUT if they were to hold events in the Gore all year long, retail would boom!
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  #42  
Old Posted Nov 19, 2007, 8:09 PM
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that's part of the problem...i'm not sure the downtown BIA knows how to run good events.
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  #43  
Old Posted Nov 19, 2007, 10:27 PM
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quebec freezes some of their streets for skating during carnaval. that would be cool.
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  #44  
Old Posted Nov 20, 2007, 3:15 AM
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I just watched a movie tonight and they had the main street of the downtown frozen for an ice rink at Christmas.
Frig, that would be sweet for the south leg of Gore.
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  #45  
Old Posted Nov 20, 2007, 4:29 AM
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Imagine a shinny tournament only with tennis balls for the sake of the windows nearby. It would draw people for sure and it would liven things up. Gore park would have to be altered though.
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  #46  
Old Posted Dec 10, 2007, 10:56 PM
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From Downtown BIA....



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  #47  
Old Posted Dec 11, 2007, 12:38 AM
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sounds like they're finally doing some homework instead of just hanging onto the back bumper of their beloved cars.

Yea, the more I think about it, I'm not sure about the north leg of King...at least not yet. 2-way, for sure. 1-way is just ridiculous.

South leg should be closed, but programming should become year-round. I still think they are hindering the full potential of the south leg by limiting it to June-September. People/musicians/businesses will know that come September there will be nothing happening again. That's no incentive for someone to open a new business that will be open 12 months a year. They need the human beings on the street all 12 months.
If anyone was out last Friday to the tree lighting just ask yourself why that couldn't be the norm all year. it was amazing. I didn't hear one person complaining about the south leg of Gore being closed and them having to waste time looking for parking. everyone was enjoying our downtown.
Buses should remain on the north leg of King. the BIA of all people should know this, but most of their shoppers/diners come from the transit system or nearby office towers.

I hope some of the BIA people were there on Friday and again on Saturday. Hordes of people in Gore Park. Heaven forbid.
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  #48  
Old Posted Dec 11, 2007, 1:24 AM
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I agree 100% with what raisethehammer about gore park and making it people friendly. My idea would be to convert king there two way with a dedicated bus lane at gore so they still have the same presence there.

Is King going to be two way for sure? If so, when? I think I heard 2012 somehwere.
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  #49  
Old Posted Dec 11, 2007, 11:04 AM
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The BIA's recommendation seems very fair to me.
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  #50  
Old Posted Dec 11, 2007, 12:34 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by matt602 View Post
The BIA's recommendation seems very fair to me.
I agree. I do not support shutting of the North leg of King St, nor do I support pedestrianizing downtown Stoney Creek -- there's just not enough foot traffic in that stretch.

Although it's not ideal, I like the idea of a pilot project AS LONG as they do it properly. They suggest events throughout the summer months, but these events need to be more than "Music in the Gore". They need a draw. Once they find the right event(s), they'll realize the potential in this project.

Did everyone else email the BIA about this? I know I did. I hope our rants helped them change their mind -- it seemed to work for the Centre Mall project.
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  #51  
Old Posted Mar 5, 2008, 2:48 PM
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Provincial Grant Could Move Busses Out Of The Gore
Mar, 04 2008 - 3:10 PM

HAMILTON (AM900 CHML) - Hamilton's Mayor suggests it could be the money that the city needs to move forward with a plan to move city busses away from Gore Park.

Fred Eisenberger confirming that the city has recieved a provincial grant of 7.5 million dollars, for capital projects related to the transit system.

The funding was initially suggested last fall, within the McGuinty Government's economic statement. Eisenberger adding that Hamilton's share was confirmed in a letter from the Minister of Transportation on Friday.

A proposal to move busses away from the "gore" will be before Hamilton politicians in the next couple of months. The Mayor suggests it will focus on portions of MacNab and Hunter Streets, tying into the existing GO Station.

Ward 2 Councillor Bob Bratina adds the funding could accerelate the process by about two years.

http://900chml.com/news/news_local.c...news_local.cfm
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  #52  
Old Posted Mar 18, 2008, 1:08 PM
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(from the article Steeltown Posted in 'one-way streets')

Gore Park

It's still up for discussion what parts of King Street East would be closed to make a pedestrian-friendly area around Gore Park. This city is seeking input on how large that area should be and how the space should be structured. Here's a look at the three concepts the city is seeking input on tonight.

Pedestrian mall: Vehicles would be prohibited from the street. Opportunities for delivery vehicles at designated times, transit and cycling would all be considered.

Shared space: Pedestrians and vehicles would share the space, with those on foot taking priority. There would be no boundaries, like hard curbs, to separate traffic and pedestrians, and a lesser priority would be placed on signs and lights to direct traffic. Rather, the concept relies heavily on person-to-person signals to navigate the road. City staff cite Hess Street between King and Main streets and university campuses as an example of the concept.

Pedestrian Sundays: Part of the street would be closed for a designated time and open to pedestrians only. City staff say the concept is already used in several cities, including Buffalo, Toronto and Vancouver.

Which way is the best way?

The two sides of the two-way conversion argument: Pros: * Two-way traffic offers increased access to neighbourhoods and shops * Makes the area more pedestrian-friendly by slowing traffic down * It's easier to navigate Cons: * The one-way system has been working for more than 50 years * Conversion is an unnecessary expense when council is pinched for cash * One-way traffic moves faster

http://thespec.com/News/Local/article/341323
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  #53  
Old Posted Mar 18, 2008, 8:40 PM
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Wow. The "Cons" could have been pointed out by a grade 6 geography student.

Downtowns aren't supposed to be quick flowing traffic areas. Apparently the City doesn't understand this. That's what highways are for. You get on them and they whisk you off to other places.
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  #54  
Old Posted Mar 19, 2008, 2:41 AM
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anyone else make it to the meeting tonight?? great panels depicting a pedestrian Gore and King St. They should be up on the city's website soon.
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  #55  
Old Posted Mar 19, 2008, 2:45 AM
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And when they do post them online I'll copy and paste the images here. Usually it's the next day or two they upload the panels. I remember going to the Transportation Master Plan and the next day it was posted on the city's website.
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  #56  
Old Posted Mar 19, 2008, 2:54 AM
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they are proposing different versions for the Gore Plaza. Full closure on both sides. Open space concept on both sides - people, transit, bikes all mixing on narrow streets with 'courtesy right of way' being the operating model (like George St in Hess).
Closure of King from James to Wellington.
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  #57  
Old Posted Mar 19, 2008, 3:05 AM
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wow...what a painful 4 minutes that was. I made the mistake of turning on CH news to see what they had to say about the meeting tonight since I saw them there.
Same old BS.
I would love it if CH, the Spec and CHML all went out of business tomorrow. Pieces of Hamilton's history that I would happily 'demolish'. It might force residents to actually have to seek out good info instead of being spoonfed such crap everyday by a bunch of institutions that have zero vision for our city.
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  #58  
Old Posted Mar 19, 2008, 10:19 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by raisethehammer View Post
they are proposing different versions for the Gore Plaza. Full closure on both sides. Open space concept on both sides - people, transit, bikes all mixing on narrow streets with 'courtesy right of way' being the operating model (like George St in Hess).
Closure of King from James to Wellington.
Are you sure about James to Wellington? I thought it was only James to John, as an extension of Gore Park.

Boundaries aside, I don't think they should rush to any single decision right now. There are too many other factors that play into the plans for Gore Park. Will there be an LRT line? If so, will it use King St? Where will the bus terminal be? These are all multi-million dollar projects, and I'm worried that somehow, the first thing built will mess up plans for things to follow.

Gore Park, the LRT and the bus terminal all have to be planned together. Unfortunately, we didn't see a lot of that integrated planning at the info centre. I'm not saying that we needed final designs, but a few combination concept plans would have been nice.

On the plus side, some good ideas were being thrown around. While I still prefer a MacNab terminal, I made a point to bring up a Hunter Street terminal (in front of the GO Station), and maybe diverting the LRT through it. These ideas should sound very familiar to posters here. The consultants thought that it "could work." I almost feel sorry for them, because every time they present something, they find themselves presented with more options.

Maybe the decision makers should come by here for some ideas.
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  #59  
Old Posted Mar 19, 2008, 11:16 AM
raisethehammer raisethehammer is offline
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yes, they said this will be done at the same time as rapid transit implementation.
James to Wellington was one of the options.
James to John was another option.
partial closure and full closure were other options too.
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  #60  
Old Posted Mar 20, 2008, 5:39 PM
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info from the public meeting the other night:

http://www.myhamilton.ca/NR/rdonlyre...ds20080318.pdf
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