ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — The St. John’s downtown pedestrian mall — with both Water Street and sections of Duckworth Street — is a go as of July 2.
St. John’s city council made it official in its regular council meeting Monday.
As reported in Thursday’s edition of The Telegram, council had in-depth discussions about the downtown mall at the committee of the whole meeting last week, with staff presenting a detailed report.
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The report showed that based on public feedback, 98 per cent of people agreed the pedestrian mall should continue in the future. Eighty-nine per cent said it influenced their decision to go downtown, while 82 per cent indicated it increased their likelihood to shop or dine there in the future and 63 per cent said it helped them discover new services or businesses downtown.
The inclusion of the two sections of Duckworth Street — New Gower Street to Bates Hill and Cathedral Street to Prescott Street — will cost the city an additional $167,000, which would account for security, event staff and garbage removal. That cost is not allocated in the 2021 budget.
It was decided that certain sections of Duckworth Street would not be part of the pedestrian mall due to the number of parking garages and the need for access by trucks, Metrobus and other vehicles.
“We’ve worked diligently on this. This was not an easy task… ,” said Coun. Debbie Hanlon, who was council lead on the project. “We looked (the five sections of Duckworth Street) every which way to find alternate routes to make it work, but we came up with two that would work.”
The Water Street portion of the mall — from Adelaide Street to Prescott Street — will remain unchanged from 2020, with a current budget allocation of $200,000.
The downtown mall will operate until Sept. 6. Hours of operation will be from noon to 10 p.m. daily.
“It’s something I’m very proud of that our council was able to bring forward a downtown pedestrian mall,” Hanlon said. “The idea was to enhance the walkability and enjoyment of our city and I believe we’ve done that.”
She said with future conferences, concerts and returning cruise ship industry, the downtown will be bustling.
Coun. Shawn Skinner said it won’t be perfect, but they’re making progress with improving the mall.
“It gives us something to use as a comparison when we talk about it next year … I think that’s critical,” Skinner said.
“We’re build on that. It’s not perfection, but it is progress.
“I hope we’ll have more concrete data next year to make downtown pedestrian mall even better again.”
Coun. Sandy Hickman said what started out as a reaction to help downtown businesses during the pandemic turned into a great event.
“Let’s face it, we’ve stumbled upon something that is going to be a lasting thing for this city and it’s going to change life in this city, as it already has done,” Hickman said.
“There are other options for shopping and eating in the city that have other advantages … but downtown has been the focal point of our city, being wrapped around the harbour.
“Duckworth and Water streets will both be enhanced this summer …
“It’s important we do this to support the business, but also the people of the city.”
Rosie Mullaley is a reporter in St. John's covering municipal affairs
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Twitter: @TelyRosie