April 14, 2010
Robson Street may soon hark back to the raucous party atmosphere it played host to during the Olympics, if City of Vancouver staff support a motion to close parts of the street to cars on weekends during summer.
COPE councillor David Cadman brought forward the motion in council April 6, asking City staff to report on the viability of the idea. The effect, Cadman says, would be similar to the traffic closures on Robson during the 2010 Winter Games in February: Pedestrians, not cars, would fill the street, creating a festive environment.
“When I looked at the difference between the way in which we celebrated the Olympics and what has sometimes happened on Granville Street, where essentially you have a bar culture and you have adults, it’s very different,” Cadman said in an interview with WE, adding he was particularly pleased to see families and people of all ages on Robson and Granville streets during the Olympics. “I think this just opens up the possibility of us really beginning to look at, and cooperate on, creating a new dynamic to our downtown core that is celebratory, that is pedestrian, and that brings people together.”
The Vancouver Public Space Network (VPSN), a non-partisan advocacy group, wrote a letter to the City in support of Cadman’s motion, with a few suggestions. The letter points out that the motion is not precise in identifying which parts of Robson would be closed. “Given that the pedestrian areas created along Robson were in some state of flux during the Games (in terms of number of blocks closed and degree of closure), some clarity is needed here,” VPSN members wrote in the letter. “We suggest that the space on Robson that is closed be restricted to an area east of Burrard and west of Granville — and ideally less than this.”
The VPSN recommends a closure of the area surrounding Robson Square, which is currently under renovations. “We are concerned about the lack of information presently available about the extent of the renovation work,” wrote the VPSN. The letter urges City staff to confirm the extent of the renovation taking place at Robson Square, and also encourages the Province to make that information available to the public. These and other communication strategies on the part of the City could make for a more successful street-closure process, they say.
Cadman is hopeful that City staff will consider implementing the Robson closures this summer instead of waiting until next year, even though he’s mindful of the project’s short timeline. “I know we’re a little behind the ball in terms of timing on this,” he admitted. “[But] one needed only to go down there during the Olympics to see that [Robson] had become an iconic place for celebration in Vancouver. I think it opened the eyes of a lot of people to what anyone who’s been to Europe knows: Walking [pedestrian-only] streets can be very dynamic, very interesting, and very good for business.”
