Raise the Hammer
By Trey Shaughnessy
Published September 15, 2006
I heard the news that the city is finally going to realize the potential of the European style piazza of Gore Park, and eliminate all vehicle traffic from the south leg of King.
That's one step forward. Let's try to make it to two before we step backward again. Kathy Drewitt, the Executive Director of the downtown BIA, wants busses off King Street between James and John...
...so that we can make it a parking lot. Let's call that two steps back.
Immediately two things came to mind. First, Big Yellow Taxi by Joni Mitchell - "They paved paradise/And put up a parking lot" - began ringing through my head.
More important, it recalled a documentary I saw about intelligence. In the early 20th century, the Intelligence Quotient (I.Q.) test was developed to determine one's intelligence. Depending on the score, testees were given a classification. It sounds barbaric today:
| IQ Range | Classification |
|---|---|
| 140 and over | Genius |
| 120-140 | Very superior intelligence |
| 110-120 | Superior intelligence |
| 90-110 | Normal or average intelligence |
| 80-90 | Dullness |
| 70-80 | Borderline deficiency |
| 50-69 | Moron |
| 20-49 | Imbecile |
| below 20 | Idiot |
According to Herbert H. Goddard, the scientist who developed the Intelligence Quotient:
This faculty is judgment, otherwise called good sense, practical sense, initiative, the faculty of adapting one's self to circumstances. To judge well, to comprehend well, to reason well, these are the essential activities of intelligence. A person may be a moron or an imbecile if he [or she] is lacking in judgment.
Think about what Drewitt is proposing: her suggestion lacks good common sense, initiative and good judgment.
A parking lot will at best provide spaces for about 40 cars, give or take. Furthermore, any patrons these 40 cars bring will certainly scare away more than that in pedestrian traffic because of the unfriendliness of the vehicle traffic, like all the potential pedestrians and patrons from the proposed Connaught Plaza's 140-unit condo, one block away.
Who wants to have a cup of coffee in a parking lot?
By making the south leg of Gore pedestrian only, it could bring hundreds of patrons daily walking in the plaza, enjoying the stroll and pleasure of not having to play Frogger with the traffic.
I'll bet Drewitt can see it now, grandiose visions of patrons leaving the Limeridge Mall and the Meadowlands in droves to come to the 40 parking spots at Gore Park.
When will we understand that cars are the problem, not the solution? Not catering to cars has never adversely affected Toronto's downtown. In fact, Toronto's downtown and too-numerous-to-mention neighbourhoods are some of the most desired pieces of real estate in North America, without a parking lot in sight.
Thousands of people stroll along Yonge, College, St. Clair, Dundas Square, Bloor, King, Queen, all because the city decided to put people first. People and people places make the city, not cars.
Gore Park was clearly meant to be a piazza, a square, a plaza, in the style of every European city small and large. It was meant to be a gathering place to socialize, conduct commerce, meet friends, spend family time, and a public forum.
Hamilton needs to make sure that Gore Park takes steps in the right direction, because another backwards move at Gore may erase many good steps we have already taken downtown.
By Jelly (anonymous)
Posted September 15, 2006 14:16:43
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By jason (registered)
Posted September 15, 2006 15:23:51
Also, I've been told by 2 sources now that the downtown BIA is making comments that "we will never host another live music/entertainment event downtown."
this of course, follows their fiasco in a gravel parking lot this past summer (more to come in the next issue of RTH).
I guess turning Gore into a parking lot is one way to remove all possibility of any festivals, events, arts, music, entertainment or FUN from ever happening in the park.
What a joke.
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By Jelly (anonymous)
Posted September 17, 2006 16:32:58
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By jason (registered)
Posted September 18, 2006 11:28:27
i'm convinced that's exactly what would happen with the Gore made car-free. That's why I think they need to move busses and cars from there. Then we bascially eliminate the need for that BIA to do these things...musicians, artists, promoters, entrepreuners would all flock to the new pedestrian-zone with great events, markets and festivals throughout the year. The BIA could stick to sprucing up their storefronts, planting flowers and attracting business downtown. Obviously entertainment isn't their strong point. So let those who know how to 'entertain' have free reign over the Gore...not 35 cars or a once-a year hack of a festival.
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By trey (registered)
Posted April 30, 2008 13:38:11
for the record Kathy Drewitt lives in Caledonia.
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Newsfeeds
By Ryan (registered) - website
Posted September 15, 2006 09:54:09
Even John Dolbec, the CEO of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce, is slowly starting to come around to the idea that the economy benefits when the streets support pedestrian life.
Here's an excerpt from the September 8, 2006 Hamilton Spectator article "Gunplay on James":
But Hamilton Chamber of Commerce CEO John Dolbec says James North has begun a quiet but significant renaissance, driven in part by traffic flow, but also by a younger crowd less concerned about the reputation of the James Street strip.
Merchants report much more activity, particularly in the hospitality sector, he said. Retail businesses have also seen small increases.
"It seems to have started about the same time the city made James North into a two-way street" in 2002.
"I ... was always skeptical about that, but a lot of merchants in the area swear by it."
Now James North, with its strong Portuguese and Italian presence, is undergoing a rebirth.
"It seems to be acquiring a kind of status as a go-to strip, attracting people from different parts of the city and even from out of town," Dolbec said.
"It's attracted a lot of artists ... and any place that attracts those bohemian types, there seems to be a certain hospitality traffic that follows that and boosts the local retail traffic at the same time."
http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/NASApp/...
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--Stuart Chase