Idea to turn 17th Avenue S.W. into a pedestrian walkway lives on, despite BIA pumping the brakes
Last summer, a thread on Reddit drummed up support for closing 17th Avenue S.W. to cars and making it a pedestrian walkway.
In response to the online postings, the Business Improvement Area (BIA) polled its 730 members.
BIA executive director Tulene Steiestol says 85 per cent of respondents said 17th Avenue isn't the right place for a pedestrian mall and that coming just as a years-long construction project has concluded isn't the right time.
"The words that we heard, if we were to do any kind of closure, is it would kill us. It would destroy us. We would be shut down," Steiestol said.
"There is and was no plan to close 17th Avenue. We heard loud and clear it would impact businesses in a negative way."
But that hasn't stopped the idea from percolating back to the surface.
Christopher Chiasson, who moved to Calgary two years ago from Toronto, where he worked as executive director of the Cabbagetown BIA, started an online petition calling for the "pedestrianization of 17th Avenue on select weekends in the summer months."
"There's no way we would know if it's going to be beneficial if we don't experiment with it," Chiasson said.
"There's always the opportunity that by closing off traffic to cars, you maybe don't get that traffic from those travelling by vehicle, but you actually invite a whole new audience of potential attendees and visitors and shoppers."
Florist Marika Styba owns Peaseblossoms Flowers on 11 Street S.W.
Her store is part of the 17th Avenue BIA.
Styba says most of her customers come by car, and she's seen sales drop as bike lanes diminished parking and a long construction project limited traffic to the area.
She says even a part-time closure of the artery would further hurt business.
"We already have a lot of barriers to having people come down and visit us as small businesses. Parking is really critical for access, not just for local area customers, but people who come from all over," Styba said.
"To have a car-free zone works in certain places, but certainly not in areas like 17th Ave."
Trolley 5 Brewpub owner Ernie Tsu says closing 17th Avenue on weekends through the summer would benefit businesses like his, which attract a lot of foot traffic and have large patios.
Even so, Tsu says he's not sold on the idea.
"It can't just be about the restaurants, it's got to be about all the businesses, and I think retail needs to be engaged before anything like this is, you know, looked at," he said.
"I mean, Trolley 5 is here because of all the amazing retailers that are on the street as well. So, it would have to be beneficial for all of the retailers and everybody that's on 17th for this to work."
The BIA also says closing 17th Avenue even temporarily would put people in the area at risk.
The four-lane corridor is a dangerous-goods route through Calgary, as well as the area's main thoroughfare for emergency vehicles.
By 7 p.m. Wednesday, Chiasson's petition on change.org had garnered 148 signatures.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Hackers release corporate data stolen from London Drugs
Retailer London Drugs says cybercriminals who stole files from its corporate head office last month have released some of the data after it refused to pay a ransom.
Toronto man falls off his chair after seeing $70M Lotto Max win in his bank account
A Toronto man who won $70 million in a recent Lotto Max draw literally fell off his chair when he saw the funds in his bank account.
Montreal-area high school students protest 'sexist' dress code
Approximately 50 Montreal-area students — the vast majority of them female — were suspended Wednesday after their school deemed the shorts they were wearing were too short. On Thursday, several students staged a walk-out to protest what they believe is a "sexist" dress code that unfairly targets girls.
McDavid scores in 2OT to lift Oilers over Stars in West Final opener
Connor McDavid tipped Evan Bouchard's shot from the boards past Dallas Stars goalie Jake Oettinger 32 seconds into the second overtime to give the Edmonton Oilers a 3-2 win in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final..
'Looking over our shoulders': A killing looms large in a little B.C. town
Something shifted in the pretty little village of Lumby, B.C., after Tatjana Stefanski vanished. It used to be the sort of place where parents let their kids roam free or play in the local creek, but everything has changed.
What is 'slapped cheek disease' and should parents be concerned?
Despite its rough name, experts say most cases of 'slapped cheek disease' are mild and not a cause for concern.
American Airlines retreats after blaming a 9-year-old for not seeing a hidden camera in a lavatory
American Airlines has distanced itself from a court filing in which the carrier said a nine-year-old girl should have noticed there was a camera taped to the seat of an airplane lavatory.
Unknown Newfoundland soldier from the First World War heads back home from France after 100 years
Canadian soldiers and government officials arrived in northeastern France this week for a historic mission: returning an unknown Newfoundland soldier back home.
Calgary Philharmonic takes action following investigation into 'deeply troubling' comments by 2 musicians
The Calgary Philharmonic has confirmed its taking action after controversial online comments made by two members of the orchestra.