Pedestrianize Gore Park *Proposition Stage*

[Sean]

To write to the interested parties:
Mayor Fred: fred.eisenberger@hamilton.ca
Ward 1 (Brian McHattie): bmchattie@hamilton.ca
Ward 2 (Bob Bratina): bbratina@hamilton.ca
Ward 3 (Bernie Morelli): bmorelli@hamilton.ca
Spectator Letters to the Editor (be sure to cite the original article title): letters@thespec.com


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Eric McGuinness
The Hamilton Spectator
(Oct 2, 2007)

Mayor Fred Eisenberger wants to give downtown a boost by creating a pedestrian mall on both sides of Gore Park, detouring all but bus traffic off King Street East between Catharine and James streets.

"This is an issue whose time has come," Eisenberger declared yesterday.

The mayor told council's public works committee: "I'd like to start the public debate. We need to take large, dramatic steps to make things happen."

He said he also wants to look at similar plans in other downtown cores which have become busy routes for through traffic.

"I want to look at a way to invigorate downtown cores, not just Hamilton but Dundas and Stoney Creek.

"We are looking at opening the expressway (Red Hill Valley Parkway next month). That gives some hope there are alternate ways of moving around the city, especially the downtown area."

Committee members went along, directing staff to add the Hamilton scheme to a five-year review of the Downtown Transportation Master Plan, which begins with a public information centre at the convention centre from 5 to 8 p.m. tomorrow.

They also directed staff to report on cost and implementation.

In an interview after the meeting, Eisenberger said: "I'd like to have something happen in less than a year, even sooner if we could do it on a part-time basis, if we get agreement.

"I've talked to people throughout the community and had nothing but support."

Eisenberger said he was inspired by the Hungarian city of Debrecen, population about 205,000, "whose downtown core was struggling with the same kinds of issues."

A pedestrian mall there, served by a light-rail line, "generated an enormous amount of investment, inspired a whole new view of what their downtown was.

"It brought a whole lot of people in."
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Let's hope this actucally goes somewhere... and fast!

[Sean]

Here is my letter to Mayor Fred as well as the COuncillors for wards 1, 2 and 3:
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Mayor Fred,

I am beside myself with joy after reading the piece in today's Spectator about your plans to pedestrianize The Gore. This is exactly the type of idea that our city needs to seriously run with.

The South leg of The Gore is already begging to be converted. It is a perfect location for pedestrian friendly patios, and even for makeshift vendor stalls on weekends (and maybe eventually every day). This conversion should be a no-brainer, and should happen as soon as possible. I have read that the Downtown BIA is still murmuring about adding parking to this stretch. This is absolutely unnecessary. Please let me know if there is any way I can help to convince them that we have enough parking in Hamilton. Parking will not bring people downtown; creating pedestrian friendly streets most definitely will. We are already seeing the positive effects of pedestrian friendly areas in International Village and on James North. I will be glad to send messages to any BIA members if you can provide contacts.

Your ideas about the North leg are spot on as well. Such a move would have a dramatic turnaround effect on the entire downtown. There will be a lot of opposition to closing King to private automobiles, however the downtown has plenty of lane capacity to take up the slack. With a little creativity, we could accomplish closing the North leg to all but transit and taxis -- and do it with minimal time and money spent.

One idea is to convert at least part of Main to two way so that it can accept some of the overflow from King. I'd propose doubling the right-turn lane from Main onto Queen. From Queen to Bay there would remain three Eestbound lanes. This would free up street space from Queen to Bay for wider sidewalks and a two-way bike lane linking Hess Village to the core. At bay, one lane would turn left and only two would continue Eastbound. This is where Main Street would be come two way. And it would continue two way as far as Wellington (or even for the entire Eastbound stretch). This would allow Westbound traffic on King to escape to Main easily at wellington, continue to Bay, and rejoin King on the way to Westdale/403/Dundas/etc without sacrificing lane capacity on main coming into the core from the 403.

I don't mean to focus on details, but I wanted to outline at least one possibility for making the pedestrianization a reality with a minimal sacrifice in car capacity.

We have also already seen some push-back based on the argument that "there aren't enough pedestrians to justify the change". This argument makes little sense. There are few pedestrians now because the area currently caters to cars, making it relatively uncomfortable for pedestrians. The pedestrians are not going to appear until we give them a place. We cannot wait for pedestrians before creating the pedestrian space; we will end up waiting forever!

Thank you for showing your support for revitalizing our downtown. This would be a huge step in the right direction, and the sooner we can make it happen the better. Please keep me posted regarding any progress, and let me know if there is any way that I can help make this a reality: by writing to any and all opposition, spreading the word to friends and neighbours, or anything else that might help even a little bit.

Again, I have copied Councillors McHattie, Bratina and Morelli because this affects their wards the most and because I spend most of my living/working/playing in these wards. I have also copied the letter to the forums at http://www.hammerboard.ca for public viewing and commentary.

Thanks again
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[Sean]

Here is my letter to the spec:
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Re: "Some think mayor's 'dramatic' plan goes too far"

Mayor Fred is right on track with his push to pedestrianize The Gore. If we give it the proper treatment, Gore Park could become one of the greatest public spaces in Canada, and would definitely put Toronto's Dundas Square to shame. Drewitt and Mokrycke both suggest 'taking it slowly' but time has shown that these approaches do not work. Mokrycke cites a lack of "people or commercial activity downtown right now" as a reason to move slowly, meanwhile the Gore is already full of people at most times of the day. Drewitt suggests planting trees and replacing the bus lanes with parking spaces in lieu of full pedestrianization (despite the fact that many of our city blocks already have more space dedicated to parking than to buildings). I think both are missing the point: pedestrians will not use this space until we make it pedestrian friendly. A 'baby-steps' approach will not generate pedestrian activity -- and increased pedestrian activity is the key to driving commercial activity and investment. If we wait until the pedestrians show up before taking any steps toward accommodating them, we will wait forever. Nobody will come unless we give them a reason to; now is the time to stop building our city for cars and start rebuilding it for people.
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[Chips]

This is a fantastic idea...something the we've needed for a long time! Here is my letter to the mayor (I encourage everyone who things this is great to do the same!):

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Dear Mayor Fred Eisenberger & Councilor Brain McHattie,



My name is D.T. I am a constituent in Ward One (Herkimer & Locke). I read about your ambitious plan today to convert the downtown gore into a pedestrian friendly mall/park. As a tax paying citizen who wants nothing more then to see the downtown revitalized, all I can say is Great! You have my full support on this issue!



I too have visited a few European cities and have seen the vibrant street life that can be created by café’s and pedestrian only downtown areas. Hamilton is in a unique position as we not only have the space available right in the downtown core, but also some beautiful architecture that would go a long to making a great pedestrian friendly space. Add a light rail stop into the mix, and I think this would put Hamilton well on its way to being one of the most livable cities in Ontario!



Thanks for your forward thinking and hopefully there aren’t too many naysayers who would like to see gore park kept only as a bus stop!

[guest]

I do not think it is a good idea. You guys are cyclists... Majority of people drive. Free parking does bring business... Look at the bigger malls in Hamilton.... Going on with this Utopian project may produce some fun when weather is nice, but otherwise the area will be deserted, another nest for bums and crime.

[Sean]

I drive, I bike, I walk.. I am a human and I'd like to have a downtown that is human scaled. Pedestrianizing gore between James and Hughson does not sacrifice any parking spaces...

I saw a letter in today's spec about how it was a mistake to remove parking in Hess Village -- if that's the main argument against pedestrianizing, then it's a moot point in this case.

I'm not too sure what this has to do with being a cyclist...? Basically the argument is that we need to create a space that is welcoming to people, otherwise people will never come...

[Jon Dalton]

Free parking does bring business... Look at the bigger malls in Hamilton....

Following that logic, King St. should look just like Upper Wentworth. Should we build downtown just like the suburbs? Oh wait a minute, Jackson Square, never mind.