DOWNTOWN

@ a glance

We must stop grasping at the first opportunities to boost downtown density and residential neighborhoods through development proposals and reflect on what it is we really want as a community. We must wake up to the reality that we have so many other options that fit the visions of our citizens and provide sustainable potential for economic and social growth. We have to stop accepting the ways we:

- Support the first plans that promise to meet unwritten civic expansion objectives based on insufficient criteria

- Approve development plans lacking vision and innovation in leading world-class development locations

- Neglect sustainability potential under development pressure.

- Rely on neighbourhood associations, non-profit agencies and NGOs to provide basic and essential consultation and research services while failing to consider their suggestions and insight.

Here's some things we can do instead:

- Expand identification of historic elements downtown with outdoor markings, signs, photos and interactive features for all ages.

- Increase downtown resident density through designs reflective of existing downtown neighbourhoods.

- Alter heritage designation definition to preserve unique structures from different eras and promote continuing downtown diversity.

- Boost the development of more supported, transitional and long-term housing throughout the downtown area with self-supporting facilities and resources to reduce cross-class conflict and miscommunication.

- Increase the amount of grassroots art projects and entertainment festivities in Market Square and other open venues.

- Increase the number of supervised or automatically-secure public washroom facilities, payphones, water fountains/dispensers and other basic services for tourists and citizens, male and female, homeless and housed, alike.

- Form a collective, community-owned, moderated and operated system of security cameras and features downtown, with a universal privacy policy to ensure complete transparency.

- Explore alternative methods of distributing information on local services and tourist attractions as well as self-guided tours using technology such as interactive texting for mobile phones, maps for GPS units, and bluetooth 'broadcasts' for PDAs and other devices.

- Preserve downtown greenspace at every opportunity, and encourage more green-themed development preserving a cohesive Garden City image.

- Create more 'park & ride' style lots on the outskirts of the core to encourage the use of public transportation downtown.

- Test the potential of car-free segments of the core by celebrating select 'car-free' days and exploring unique ways of getting car-free visitors and residents to the front doors of stores and services.

- Revive the municipal 'blue bike' program with local funding and added safety and security features.

- Review options for guiding the late-night entertainment scene to select downtown areas to accommodate business interests while improving safety and law and order.

- Provide clear pedestrian routes to and from existing attractions and create more public walkways around the waterfront to preserve public viewpoints and access.