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By frank (registered) | Posted April 09, 2010 at 09:38:42
Couple of comments:
Jason wrote: 'I remember sitting outside in Bogota thinking, "even a city in Colombia with a bad rap is totally kicking our butt"'
Sorry to pick on you Jay, but I've been to Bogota too and while they have great patios I wouldn't trade their city for mine any day. What I do love is the atmosphere that you see if you forget that behind that thin atmosphere is a roiling dangerous city filled with smog. (Not to mention the polluting "candy train" and the open storm water drain) That atmosphere is something we should be trying to replicate here and it's the fact that it's actively being prevented (Mr. Meister) that generates my dissatisfaction with things the way they are. In fact, it's people who make comments like that who tend to prevent forward momentum from occurring. (Btw Mr. Meister, you say you move when you don't like where you are...my question to you is "if you so dislike your neighbourhood why are you still living there?") I understand the reservations for patios however just because something happens somewhere else doesn't mean it will happen other places. When a red car gets into an accident I don't go sell my car because red cars get into accidents so why should I equate a bad patio in one area to a bad patio in another? Jason's right about enforcement...the reason those "evil" patios are the way they are is because of a long history of lack of bylaw enforcement.
Jason wrote: "The north, west and south sides of downtown are where it's at IMO."
You forgot the East side. Yes there was a stabbing on Robins Ave, however I don't think there's anywhere else in the city that has potential like the east end from the areas around Kenilworth to Gage and even up to Ivor Wynne. I say that because for so long it's been the dumping ground for the lower end of society it's got nowhere to go but up. I live on Robins (no one got stabbed near my house :) ) and have only been there for 4 months and already love it. Since I've moved there, 4 houses have been doing some major renovating, including mine. I can walk to the community centre, I can walk to Ottawa Street, I can walk to Centre Mall (in all it's glory ;) ) where I can exercise my jaywalking skills, I can walk to Kenilworth Ave where my favourite model (the plastic kind, not the living kind) shop is.... I love going out into my backyard (which doesn't have an alley) and not be able to hear traffic on the QEW or Barton but I can hear children playing hockey in the street... There are at least 2 schools close by that I can send my kids to if I choose. The problems? Kenilworth is built to handle massive amounts of traffic for the morning and evening rush hours, too many storefronts have been allowed to be changed into residences and people around the city consider the East end as the part of the city for people who can't make it.
Glass Half Full wrote" "before they're cruising the side streets. That's the kind of stuff that gives BIAs pause."
The reason that gives BIAs pause is because the neighbourhood starts to dislike the business district if that happens... IMO, that should be more than enough parking for the amount of people there provided things like transit access, cycling access and pedestrian access are maximized. For FAR too long we've developed with the idea that people drive to get where they're going and while that may be what's happening, it's not what should continue to happen. Developing with vision and maintaining a balance between current and future desires is what we need to start doing if we ever want to get out of the mess we're in now.
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