Staff to reconstruct the Wyndham Street North corridor as follows: Wyndham Street – Carden Street to Woolwich Street as one lane of traffic in each direction…

2:37:58common goal of renewing and revitalizing downtown resulting in a vibrant and thriving urban center

2:38:04it's certainly safe to say that the downtown 20 years from now won't be the same as downtown 20

2:38:09years ago we're getting ready for the future this work the downtown infrastructure renewal program

2:38:22advances our strategic theme of city building and people and economy and is reflected in each of our

2:38:28strategic objectives under these themes in particular the objectives of improving housing

2:38:33supply making downtown a vibrant place for everyone and making it easier to get around and

2:38:38greatly are greatly advanced by the downtown infrastructure renewal work the program under

2:38:44pins the strategic initiatives for our foundation themes as well as we prioritize infrastructure

2:38:48needs and schedule rehabilitation and construction activities in alignment with our asset management

2:38:53plan and certainly council direction around this program lays the cornerstone for community

2:38:59partners to help address our housing crisis unleash downtown's economic potential and realize

2:39:04council's vision for golf's core this program is also a part of the city's commitment of achieving

2:39:11more units under the housing accelerator fund and finally i'd like to highlight our work here is

2:39:16fully aligned with our CAO's council approved objectives to advance downtown projects that

2:39:20support a vibrant downtown community for everyone with the strategic considerations understood

2:39:29a common question we hear is why now so simply stated downtown golf has aging infrastructure

2:39:34such as water and sewer pipes and roads most of which are at the end of their useful life and need

2:39:40to be replaced before they fail dramatically this picture gives a sampling of the infrastructure

2:39:45challenges we're facing downtown and what we'll see if no action is taken this is exactly why the city

2:39:51has an asset management plan and policy and while there's an absolute need to replace the end of life

2:39:57and undersize essential infrastructure the renewal program provides the city with a once in a

2:40:02multi-generational opportunity to revitalize downtown golf and build on the character that

2:40:07makes downtown one of a kind investment in this critical and essential infrastructure will support

2:40:13the existing downtown community the growth in our housing pledge and we're working through the

2:40:21planning of the program as it relates to the downtown secondary area to implement our future

2:40:25ready downtown vision it takes a well coordinated multi-year program and works that minimize

2:40:30disruptions to citizens businesses and visitors we're planning so we optimize city resources

2:40:36and expenditures to achieve the intensification in golf's downtown while maintaining its cultural

2:40:41and historical assets and to do this community consultation and engagement is ongoing and will

2:40:46continue as we develop the capital implementation plan that best fits the broad range of needs

2:40:51in terms of our approach to construction the program team is actively reviewing best practices

2:40:56and experiences at other municipalities to make sure we consider innovative approaches

2:41:00and learn from others on what's been done elsewhere our consulting team is very experienced in this

2:41:06work and together we're developing a list of potential innovation excuse me innovative tools

2:41:10tactics and techniques to mitigate disruption on people and businesses that can be implemented as

2:41:15we go this along this journey so with that background and strategic information in mind

2:41:21i'm going to turn it over to reg rusk warm the city's manager of design construction

2:41:25who's overseeing the overall downtown infrastructure renewal program and reg is going to walk you

2:41:29through the findings of the ea good afternoon council thank you very much terry it is a pleasure

2:41:40to present to you today the findings of the windham street north and st georgia square

2:41:46environmental assessment in this study we considered technical social economic cultural

2:41:51heritage and natural environment factors and looked at options for the reconstruction of the

2:41:55corridor and the square the study area outlined on the map was that portion of windham street north

2:42:02between cardin street and willow wood street includes the st georgia square we often refer to

2:42:08this project area as windham street or the the corridor but keep in mind it always includes

2:42:13st georgia square as terry mentioned the study focused on the big picture form and function of

2:42:19the roadway for users of all ages and abilities and modes of travel and keeping with previously

2:42:25approved council policies and plans we will be maturing those specifics during final design

2:42:32to commence this year the program team is very much aware of the impact downtown construction

2:42:41will have on residents visitors and businesses throughout the study a concerted effort was

2:42:46made to consult engage with a wide range of members of the community and stakeholders

2:42:51both internal and external the highlights of these efforts are provided on the slide given the ride

2:42:57ranging impact on all departments and areas of operation in the city we have an internal list

2:43:03of over 40 subject matter experts that can be called upon specific to this staff report these

2:43:10experts were involved as a group and individually to create a short list from the long list of

2:43:16options we had the same group was also convened to provide input on the selection of the preferred

2:43:21options we'll continue communications engagement efforts as we advance the reconstruction from

2:43:28planning into design and ultimately onto construction since the program is not a typical project

2:43:35we'll not see typical communications staff are developing and will roll out an enhanced

2:43:41communication engagement plan over 2024 in particular we're developing a campaign to help

2:43:47the community envision and anticipate our future downtown we're not forgetting about the realities

2:43:55of this construction either we'll be asking about those challenges and how we can best help residents

2:44:02and businesses get through the coming disruption so four windham street itself four options were

2:44:12shortlisted the do nothing option doesn't mean we do no construction it means that the road is

2:44:19put back together in the same form as function as today with parallel parking on both sides

2:44:25after the underground works are completed the temporary angle parking on the north end of

2:44:30windham installed to offset the loss of the baker street parking is not planned to be reinstated

2:44:36option two is the proposed cross section from the 2024 streetscape manual with shared use

2:44:42cycling and a mix of parallel and angle parking options threes and four that we consider our two

2:44:49means to achieve the downtown secondary plan and other council approved policies regarding mode

2:44:55cheer targets all ages and ability cycling facilities and vision serial goals both options

2:45:01provide parallel parking on both sides option three provides protected cycling in the direction of

2:45:08traffic while option four provides bi-directional cycling on just one side of the road just to the

2:45:20recommendation after considering council approved policies and community input put

2:45:27staff are recommending option three two lanes with unidirectional bike path a concept drawing

2:45:34is provided here this option will see windham street reallocating four lanes of traffic to two

2:45:41lanes with parallel parking loading zones protected bike paths enhanced protest pedestrian zone

2:45:47activation and facilitating flexible uses such as the patio program equally on both sides of the

2:45:54road i mentioned this option satisfies the downtown secondary plan and fulfills the transportation

2:46:01master plan requirements for the corridor particularly regarding accommodation of

2:46:06pedestrians and cyclists of all ages and abilities i could pause here because we've heard concerns

2:46:13regarding implementing cycling lanes this concern is understandable especially since it's different

2:46:19from what is known and affects convenience parking fortunately we have economic study after study

2:46:26that it demonstrated that introducing protected bike lanes does not negatively impact sales and in

2:46:33many cases increases sales and patronage statistical evidence validates that adding

2:46:41facilities in town in urban cores means more visitors and more frequent trips even when the

2:46:47amount of on on street parking is reduced the city's planned intensification use of downtown will

2:46:54only increase the need for pedestrian activation zones cycling lanes and other local short trip

2:47:02options to attract and keep customers in the downtown area we have many case studies from

2:47:08across north america to draw upon but i do want to highlight a few ontario cities close to home

2:47:14kitchener has seen an increase of 218 percent in use of cycling lanes since they introduced

2:47:20dedicated cycling lanes similarly downtown oakville's transformation project reduced space for

2:47:29motor vehicles and expanded the public realm for pedestrian cyclists and small businesses

2:47:34the result the retail vacancy hasn't been lower and customer traffic is up 23

2:47:44an industry journal analyzed the local economic impact of reducing on street

2:47:50parking with bike lanes along bluer street in toronto and found monthly customer spending

2:47:55and the number of customers both increased now on the other end of the scale from bluer street

2:48:02is backworth street in town of smith falls a small rural eastern community town recently won

2:48:10taxis small municipalities achievement award for their project which included adding cycling

2:48:16facilities switching from angle to parallel on street parking and customs designed accessible

2:48:21parking spots a project video featuring the chair of the downtown business association

2:48:28stated that the project is going to bring new businesses and tourists and is enthusiastic

2:48:34about the future of their downtown i'll note that there were positive but no negative comments on

2:48:40this youtube video well done smith falls with respect to parking facilities downtown as we

2:48:48know from our downtown master plan it is key to remember that that the plan found public parking

2:48:54only 50 utilized during a typical weight work day there's ample public parking available it

2:49:02requires a change in behavior away from convenience parking and importantly we're also reimagining

2:49:10the pedestrian realm to make pedestrian experience better the recommended changes will increase the

2:49:17pedestrian activation zone and programmable space by at least 20 and with the seasonal patio program

2:49:24this space is increased to 80 percent through intensification change is coming in how the

2:49:32community accesses and uses downtown we need to build the infrastructure to maximize the potential

2:49:38that comes with having a lot more people living working and going to school downtown while change

2:49:44is filled with uncertainty all reliable evidence points to a net economic benefit the downtown

2:49:50community from the recommended works we've not forgotten about our successful seasonal patio

2:49:59program either the recommended design enables the flexible reconfiguration of the street by

2:50:06shifting the bike lanes into the parallel parking spaces that were installed this maintains the

2:50:11integrity of the protected cycling lanes for all users and during final design the project team

2:50:17and in consultation with the community and internal subject matter experts will determine

2:50:24the exact means and logistics to enable the reconfiguration the final design of the separation

2:50:30barriers is yet to be determined however those barriers will be that that are needed for warrant

2:50:35in separating a cycling lane from a lane of traffic the st. George's square is gulf's community hub

2:50:47the core public space in downtown and was a major component of the original john galt plan

2:50:54the city's goal is to enhance the space for a balanced use by all users of the topics discussed

2:51:02during the study none generated as much interest and debate from the community involvement as the

2:51:08future of the square although each option listed on the screen has their individual pros and cons

2:51:15the project team felt on balance each of the options was equally functional and technically

2:51:21feasible so there's no strong factors pushing one way or the other pointedly the project team

2:51:27was not able to make a preliminary recommendation for the public information session we had last

2:51:33september and felt that as part of that p.i.c. we required additional community feedback on the

2:51:40square the studies considered these three options that i'll step through there is the standard

2:51:49intersection improvement so option one provides an intersection very much in keeping with the

2:51:55current configuration of the square with open community space provided in three primary locations

2:52:01to the outside of the intersection pedestrian movement is in the areas outside of the roadway

2:52:06protected cycling lanes continue through the square the roadway will operate very much

2:52:14as like does today with some operational improvements such as left hand turn lanes pavement marking

2:52:20current radius etc the public realm is not changed this option provides a slightly larger area for

2:52:28special events over the other options however it is not contiguous and the cost of this option is

2:52:35the lowest option to realign's kubect street and dug with street into a conventional four leg

2:52:44intersection with community states still provided in the three quadrants the key difference is the

2:52:50intersection improves multimodal safety and operations from option one the offset intersection

2:52:57we just looked at and like option one protected cycling to carry through the intersection option

2:53:05two will require moderate adjustments to the public realm community and space but provides

2:53:11similar space as option one now this option is in the same cost range as our previous option

2:53:22option three the traffic circle this is the configuration very much in keeping with the

2:53:28recommendation from the 2014 streetscape manual this option consolidates the majority of the

2:53:34public space into one location the center of the circle that can support a broad range of potential

2:53:41programming there's concern however that pedestrians moving to the center of the circle need to cross

2:53:47traffic however that would be mitigated by geometrically slowing traffic movement and using

2:53:52signalized pedestrian crossings this extra section would not function like a high traffic roundabout

2:53:59we are maybe more familiar with a continuous bike path around the circle would be provided for the

2:54:08movement of cyclists by consolidating space in the circle there is reduced public realm area directly

2:54:14in front of businesses for pedestrian activation and patio space this option however provides a

2:54:21unique feature compared to other downtown areas for event gatherings the cost though is three million

2:54:28dollars higher than the other two options so to our recommendation after carefully reviewing internal

2:54:38and community feedback no option was a clear front runner the project team in consultation with the

2:54:45pro-jink steering committee selected option ones the standard intersection improvements as a recommended

2:54:51solution the primary reasons being the option has the lowest cost range and has characters similar

2:54:58familiar to the downtown community both options one and two are in the same cost range of around

2:55:0613 million three three million dollars less than the traffic circle option while option two checks

2:55:13more boxes than perhaps option one both options were considered equal on balance option two the

2:55:21realigned intersection may also impact the enjoyment of the family fountain since the road will be

2:55:28slightly closer while option one is in keeping with the previous vision of the squares functionality

2:55:35therefore staff considered the public preference for the same character as the current road

2:55:41configuration as the deciding factor between options one and two this solution will see

2:55:47similar operations to the existing condition with improved geometric design and optimized

2:55:52signals with the added safety improvements making it easier to drive walk and cycle through the

2:55:59intersections dedicated lanes for cyclists with separations from vehicles will be installed in

2:56:05accordance with the transportation master plan there will be marked crosswalks at all streets

2:56:10and with Douglas remaining one-way northbound the public space arrangement remains largely

2:56:17unchanged with the opportunity to build upon a familiar design now with council's direction on

2:56:24the preferred preferred road corridor and the st. George's square geometrics the program team can

2:56:33confidently move this project forward throughout 2024 i'm going to hand it back to terry to talk

2:56:40about what's next and do a wrap americastry would like these comments to be made as a wrap please

2:56:52mr. gayman okay i won't i won't quite go there but thank you reg all right so council you've heard

2:56:59you've heard about the ea and the preferred options um i'd now like to just take a moment to reiterate

2:57:03sort of where this milestone fits in the overall downtown uh journey and so as we've stated the

2:57:09great work to date has led us to the point of making a recommendation on the form and function

2:57:13of the windham street corridor once that decision is made this month staff will be back in front of

2:57:17council this coming april with a workshop to review the level of service for streetscaping

2:57:23and things like construction pacing after the workshop there are other milestones ahead

2:57:28that keep us on track for groundbreaking with construction starting in 2026 so that we can

2:57:33start rebuilding this thriving downtown for everyone and as you heard from reg earlier we're

2:57:39going to continue with communications and public engagement efforts as we advance through the

2:57:43construction journey from planning into design and ultimately onto construction since the downtown

2:57:48infrastructure renewal program is not a typical project we won't just be using typical communication

2:57:53efforts and in terms of in terms of the april workshop i'd like to give you a sneak peek about

2:57:59the scope so it helps you in framing and focusing your questions today in april we'll be leading an

2:58:05in-person workshop to discuss the streetscape investment alternatives that can be made in

2:58:09downtown the workshop will explore things like business disruption and construction impact

2:58:14mitigations as well as things like the pace of construction and after the workshop staff will

2:58:19bring a report to council in june that summarizes those findings and provides final recommendations

2:58:24for the streetscaping we'll use those recommendations and council direction from june

2:58:29to inform our multi-year budget confirmation process work and to close a few more details

2:58:37on the key next steps overall once april and june milestones are achieved the city staff will be

2:58:42preparing the capital implementation plan to be presented to council in fall the plan will set

2:58:47the stage for how construction will commence and be staged and phased in parallel we're also

2:58:51working on a macdenl and allen structure environmental assessment public engagement will

2:58:56occur over the remainder of this year with the staff report continuing uh excuse me expected coming

2:59:01to council in about a year's time and with the implementation plan in place we'll be able to

2:59:06work towards final designs utility relocations for those first stages of the program there's a

2:59:11significant amount of engineering work to do to get these projects ready for tender in late 2025

2:59:17so we can get started in 2026 and with that i want to thank the project team for their efforts to

2:59:22develop these options undertake the research engage with the community in innovative and

2:59:27interesting ways and recommend a solution for this environmental assessment this includes our subject

2:59:32matter and experts internally as well as our consultant team who provided their valuable time

2:59:36and effort in making this uh in front of you today so thank you thank you mr gayman okay we have six

2:59:44delegates and here's how i'd like to proceed uh we'll have the delegates come and present their

2:59:49delegations which take about half an hour in addition to some questions and then i want to

2:59:54take a 10 minute bio break after that before we table the motions and uh launch into our own questions

3:00:00okay so um ben cullen is a delegate from gulf coalition for active trans uh i think transportation

3:00:09i think the agenda might be incorrect there mr cullen you've heard me say this before you'll

3:00:17have five minutes you'll hear a chime at four minutes and 30 seconds and a second chime when

3:00:21your time is up at five and then stay at the podium because they're likely questions for you

3:00:25go ahead okay thank you councillor work um and just to clarify i'm a member of gulf coalition for

3:00:30active transport uh but otherwise just a ordinary citizen so my name is ben cullen i'm a business

3:00:36owner of father and daily user of gulf's active transportation infrastructure i am standing before

3:00:41you today to advocate for the implementation of bike lanes on windham street my wife and i had the

3:00:46privilege of settling anywhere in southern ontario when we chose gulf eight years ago and we chose

3:00:51gulf because we believe that this was a community where we could live our values we value a community

3:00:58that invests in accessible public life where sustainable lifestyle is made possible through

3:01:03good planning and smart public investment living this lifestyle is important to me for my own quality

3:01:08of life to lessen my impact on the planet to be a more engaged member of society and to model

3:01:13sustainable behavior for my children as such i'm a regular patron of various downtown businesses

3:01:19which i access access almost exclusively by bike year-round so that means since the beginning

3:01:26of january and i have the credit card statements to prove this i've made multiple trips to stone

3:01:30store where i'm on a first name basis flower barrel to market fresh in the farmer's market to meet

3:01:36virtually all of our daily grocery needs i've been to a legrette to pick up a poster for my

3:01:40business gulf tool library to borrow a carpet cleaner rbc for personal and business banking

3:01:46source for sports for skate sharpening rexall reeds in the dollar store in kebec street mall for

3:01:50medicine and valentine's canada posts to mail samples for my business windham tailors to have a

3:01:55jacket brought in and shorts repaired suffoke cleaners to have my shirts cleaned the bookshelf

3:02:00for two copies of the adventures of homer price my favorite book from childhood which i'm gifting

3:02:05to my nephews i've been to red brick planet being cornerstone common and jimmy jazz for the ample

3:02:10caffeine and beer the fuels this active lifestyle and to enjoy our vibrant downtown social life which

3:02:17is best enjoyed when i don't have vehicles belching exhaust in my ear what is often missing from these

3:02:24activities are the most important people in my life my wife and my son fact the most common

3:02:31reason people do not engage in cycling is for fear of personal safety as a fact at six two 250

3:02:38pounds my experience of cycling and traffic is vastly different than it is for my five three wife

3:02:44that is why she doesn't even though she works downtown at 211 and 45 pounds my son very seldom

3:02:51joins me downtown despite the fact we take the bike to take care almost every single day on a

3:02:56protected path creating an environment that favors vehicle infrastructure is an outstanding

3:03:01accessibility issue in our city fact one only canada is one of only seven industrialized nations

3:03:09where pedestrian deaths are increasing this trend is in contrast to the city of guelph's own

3:03:15vision zero goals argument users of active transportation are the most ardent supporters

3:03:22of downtown life and businesses on an average month i know that my hundreds of dollars spent on

3:03:26the downtown economy would be more easily spent elsewhere if i personally favored a car-centric

3:03:31lifestyle no amount of street parking would change that downtown in its business's greatest

3:03:37advantage against outlying strip malls and power centers is the density offered to non-automotive

3:03:42residents and i do own a car for the 20 or so parking spots in question which would only realistically

3:03:48provide parking for 20 to 30 shoppers at any given time the same real estate can accommodate

3:03:53many times more cyclists and pedestrians have you ever been seen downtown filled with cars yet the

3:03:59businesses and sidewalks are empty that is because cars simply do not command the space they occupy

3:04:06when it comes to animating our most valuable public real estate and i actually thought mr

3:04:11minnetz data really highlighted this that despite the fact that our roads are openly hostile to

3:04:16cyclists including right in front of his store and business a majority of shoppers locally still

3:04:23prefer to walk or bike now imagine if there was actually supportive infrastructure to do that

3:04:29fact investing in cycling infrastructure is an obvious low cast low cost an effective way to

3:04:35bring a larger and more diverse mix of guelph residents downtown to invest in and share the

3:04:40best vision of downtown life safely and sustainably so i urge council to take the

3:04:45anonymous view that this issue is shared as with city planners and our most concerned citizens

3:04:50now is our opportunity to build the city and planet that our children want to be a part of

3:04:56you got 32 seconds left excellent thank you stay where you are please you may have questions from

3:05:00council okay any questions seeing none thank you very much for your delegation thank you okay our

3:05:10next delegate is Doug minnet now it is mr minnet coming back okay great oh and for clerks just for

3:05:18our minutes i think that should be guelph coalition for active transportation it reads transit right

3:05:24now on the agenda okay we can note that mr minnet welcome back oh thank you councillor our work and

3:05:32the rest just before i give you the floor sir could you hear the chime at four and a half minutes

3:05:37i might have been talking too loudly to myself and therefore missed it would you like me to

3:05:42let you know when you hit four minutes and 30 seconds yeah that's okay i'm gonna be really quick

3:05:46because okay so i don't think we'll get near that thank you ben colon awesome presentation

3:05:54so um one of the things i'd like to say is downtown guelph customers far exceed the tmp

3:06:00targets the transportation master plan targets for green choices um when they can and that's a very

3:06:07important when they can you know my i tip my hat to ben that he goes through snow and rain and

3:06:13however the heck he gets downtown but but a lot of people can't and when you're talking about

3:06:18accessibility you're talking about older people you're talking about people with mobility issues

3:06:23and whatnot so it's really important um that those options be there and speaking to our mayor's

3:06:32comment about demand management demand management will not change transportation method it will

3:06:39change the destination it would appear that this is an intentional insult to the public who currently

3:06:46support the downtown retail community script constraints that i've mentioned earlier are real

3:06:53and these constraints will always make vehicles in a section part of the modal mix

3:06:59and induced command and demand an example is upper windham street angle parking

3:07:07really assisted people trying to support downtown business so my my main closing comment would be

3:07:14can guelph afford you ignore the clear advice of its customer base which i surveyed who live outside

3:07:21outside the immediate downtown and as our cio said wealth downtown is for everyone walking

3:07:29and driving predominate so you got to respect that and transit and cycling have an impact

3:07:36but it's minimal so those are my comments my closing comments and good luck to you all

3:07:42thank you thank you mr. man if you can just hang on i just want to see if there are any questions

3:07:46for you i see none so have an excellent evening thank you very much our next delegate is andrea

3:07:54biggood also with gcat all right you have five minutes you'll hear a time at four minute 30 seconds

3:08:14and the second time when your time's up go ahead hey good afternoon um council and mayor guthrie

3:08:22and city staff i'm standing here before you today as a representative of the gulf coalition for active

3:08:28transport you're gonna hear a lot from us today in gcat um essentially we're just committed to

3:08:33making sure that guelph is a place where every citizen can walk bike or roll around their city

3:08:39comfortably and positively contributing to their mental health their physical health in the environment

3:08:47so my name is andrea biggood i'm on the gcat board a newly vice chair to our advocacy committee

3:08:53and i run our social media accounts usually i'm behind the scenes so i'm a little shaky here

3:08:59okay um so over the past year i've had the privilege of engaging with our community members both

3:09:04virtually and in person at numerous events all over the city i've immersed myself in their stories

3:09:09both the good and the bad and i stand here not only today to represent them but also my own

3:09:15experiences as being a citizen guelph who's lived here for 11 years car free now in case i don't get

3:09:22to my closing statement i just kindly request that the community vote unanimously in favor of

3:09:27the well's researched and planned staff recommendations for our downtown so i want us to envision a

3:09:34downtown where people can enjoy events social gatherings a sense of community and achieving

3:09:40this goal requires prioritizing transportation equity ensuring that everyone regardless of

3:09:45income race age ability has access to safe affordable convenient and reliable transportation

3:09:51options every member of our community should have the freedom to choose and this is on choose

3:09:58or access their preferred method of transportation or use the options they have available to them

3:10:04and still make it home happy and safely at the end of the day transportation equity is not just a

3:10:10buzzword or something we check off our boxes because we spoke into a few who have been

3:10:15affected we must acknowledge the barriers that they face such as limited access to public

3:10:22transportation bike infrastructure and sidewalks people with barriers whether it be physical financial

3:10:28or perceived an actual safety matters face challenges that we don't often think about in

3:10:32our day-to-day lives and they don't deserve to be left behind because of it growing up in Ottawa

3:10:38i've always been car free i possess the confidence and skills to go on almost any roads and

3:10:48downtown is a great example of where i find myself vehicular cycling so that is where

3:10:54i put myself in the middle of the lane and have to assertively keep my own space for my safety

3:11:00us and this is particularly essential with the dangerous angled parking as a five foot three

3:11:11woman who also occasionally has some mobility issues vehicular cycling possesses a different

3:11:18general challenges it is perceived as bold and many like me would not choose to do so and i don't

3:11:26blame them our goals should be an inclusive infrastructure accessible to people of all

3:11:31ages and abilities and not just those with a personal vehicle or individuals like me who

3:11:37summon the courage to be able to do assertive cycling or have to be aggressive as a pedestrian

3:11:45for golf to be an active transportation connected grid proper bike infrastructure is crucial to

3:11:50downtown gossum station serves as a great example of connecting our citizens to intercity travel

3:11:57where transportation would benefit or active transportation but would benefit as a last mile

3:12:02trip our suggested solution is reserving the convenience on street parking for those who

3:12:10need it the most such as increasing accessible parking spots proper loading zones and strategically

3:12:16placing 10 to 15 minute convenience pickup spots at businesses who require it this would enhance

3:12:23the turnover and facilitate quick stops for businesses and this is drawn from successful

3:12:29examples from Kingston's princess street in essence this approach seeks to balance the diverse

3:12:40needs of our community providing accessible options for everyone while optimizing the use of our

3:12:44limited space while change is often faced with resistance or collective effort can mold the

3:12:51downtown that is no longer merely a thoroughfare but a destination for a residence and a model

3:12:56for communities so once again i'm kindly requesting that we vote in favour of the

3:13:03recommendations placed by the staff today so that we can show that our values for our

3:13:10downtown includes inclusivity sustainability and community engagement that is perfect timing thank

3:13:16you good uh appreciate you being here and that was an excellent delegation are there any questions

3:13:22for miss bid good well thank you very much enjoy your evening thank you our next delegate is

3:13:29Alison Stewart mr clerk is that over the phone or is that in person madam chair it's video okay

3:13:41should we there we go yep hello um hello your gathry and members of the committee of whole

3:13:49my name is allison steward i grew up in this fine city of guava ontario and i am currently

3:13:57a resident of toronto and part-time resident of guelph uh what keeps me coming to guelph on a very

3:14:04regular basis and part-time living is my mother who is aging as we all do and unfortunately has been

3:14:15losing her mobility over the past few years um and so i am experiencing our streets in a new light

3:14:27while i have experienced some form of disability over the years including um losing my site for

3:14:34six months which was terrifying as well as significantly injuring my knee and having to rely

3:14:41on crutches um navigating a city is is you discover all the barriers that we put for

3:14:49people of all ages abilities and mobility forms um and so while i am speaking to you today as an

3:14:57able-bodied woman i'm a year-round cyclist and walker i when i'm in guelph i do occasionally need

3:15:05to drive my mother somewhere and one of the frustrating things regarding um going to downtown

3:15:12which normally my mother has walked to all her life and i continue to is that while there is

3:15:18significant amount of parking and the city staff report certainly mentioned that when you know the

3:15:25past couple of times in less than a month i have been you know trying to bring my mom to some of

3:15:31her favorite stores and there has been no accessible parking and so whereas you know cities around the

3:15:39world are moving to adopting active modes of transportation that doesn't mean that it's barring

3:15:48those that really need to rely on their car such as those who cannot walk or bike or take transit

3:15:56as well as deliveries we need to make sure that they're pick up and drop off areas that there are

3:16:02times where people can deliver their goods so that they can then sell them to people

3:16:07and so one of the things that i would really like to leave with you is that you know as a 53-year-old

3:16:15woman one of the things that shocks me the most is my trip from the guelph train station to my

3:16:22mother's home which is near um exhibition park which is a wonderful walkable area to the downtown

3:16:28there has been absolutely no change to the inverbent the urban environment with with the

3:16:35minor exception of a new apartment building downtown and unfortunately a homeless camp

3:16:40campment in the downtown square which is a blight for other reasons and so the fact that gordon

3:16:49and will it still does not have a protected bike lane and just a painted edge line is something that

3:16:55perplexes me and so a few years ago i began volunteering for gcat because i am a cycling

3:17:05advocate in toronto and in fact volunteered on the blur love bike campaign which led to the creation of

3:17:13the vibrant bluer street west bike lanes the most studied one and a half kilometers in north america

3:17:20and since have got to discover and continue working with the city of toronto to expand

3:17:25their cycling network plan so really please um i would like to echo the calls of the deputants

3:17:34before me um in supporting the city staff recommendations that will help move guelph to

3:17:41the current century which must include active modes of transportation for everyone um so that

3:17:48i can bike and guelph as freely and safely as i do when i'm in toronto um so please vote unanimously

3:17:57to show your support to council thank you for your time mr. it if you can just hang on in case

3:18:04there are questions from members of council just looking around um i would have a question for you

3:18:11just for clarification so i also had parents both of whom had significant mobility issues

3:18:16at different times and it wasn't clear to me whether you were saying we need we need more

3:18:22parking so that you can drop off somebody who who can't walk very far or so so can you clarify for

3:18:29me what what that advocacy piece looks like in terms of accessibility thank you for your question

3:18:36i really appreciate that what i am specifically calling for is that any on-street parking which

3:18:44represents the most valuable real estate in any urban center such as downtown guelph be you know

3:18:50prioritize accessibility followed by business and pick up and drop off so what we've seen this in

3:18:57toronto as well currently the toronto parking authority is needs to revisit their parking

3:19:03because their on-street parking is currently cheaper than it is um a block away at their

3:19:11parking park aides and so we need to spin that so that the able-bodied people that would like to

3:19:18but to drive downtown and have access to car ownership can park and walk the five minutes

3:19:23from the park aid to the stores downtown versus those that have no option but to drive get prioritized

3:19:30so that my mother and her weekly lunch friends can dine more often at the you know at gusto

3:19:36um or at the at la reina as opposed to driving out to where there are you know the malls have

3:19:44parking and she would also like to shop at mismary mac and unless there's accessible parking it's

3:19:51hard for her to do so okay i appreciate that clarification thank you i don't see any other

3:19:56questions so thank oh councillor downer has a question for you just so i just for further

3:20:01clarity through you madam chair so you also are advocating for the protected bike lane bike lanes is

3:20:07that yes absolutely it's for both okay and the pedestrian well i'm advocating specifically for

3:20:13the city staff recommendations which include the protected bike lanes and the improvements to the

3:20:18pedestrian realm um around the intersection of st. george okay and and increased accessible parking

3:20:26yes with the reduction i mean yes prioritize accessible parking but certainly follow the

3:20:33staff recommendation to reduce that and get rid of the angled parking which is very dangerous

3:20:38to prioritize accessible parking okay i get it thanks okay seeing no further questions thank you

3:20:45very much for your delegation mr. stewart and your correspondence next up is uh mike darman

3:20:50who's in the room with us also from gcat mr darman you have five minutes you'll hear a chime at

3:20:58four minutes and 30 seconds and uh then you'll hear a chime again when your time is expired

3:21:07i've got two slides but i just need one i think it's the pie chart actually

3:21:15that's it thanks uh good afternoon members of council maric got three and city staff my name is

3:21:22mike darman and i'm chair of the gcat advocacy committee as i was contemplating what i would

3:21:27present to you today i realized that your ultimate decision on the plan for the future of our down

3:21:32town and beyond is a pivotal moment moment in history do you want to continue to fully car

3:21:37centric downtown or design a complete street plan for our downtown that is more equitable and

3:21:42sustainable for all to enjoy the staff recommendation also aligns well with other city plans quote

3:21:49other city plans and policy documents such as the transportation master plan downtown master plan

3:21:55downtown secondary plan and race to zero direct staff to conduct city businesses in a way that

3:22:00supports growth modal share and modal choice the economy and the environment you've heard me

3:22:06delegate many times and the importance of expanding safe active transportation infrastructure to

3:22:11attract users to shift away from always using a car for everyday short trips this recommendation

3:22:17will will enable existing and new high density developments like the approximate 1500 future

3:22:22residents of the woods development from duke to here on street and the 6000 plus gid fusion

3:22:27residents to get downtown via safe active transportation but we all know this will never

3:22:33happen unless we enable it to happen and connecting downtown active transportation infrastructure to

3:22:39the planned grid is critical to success we all know that home ownership costs have risen sharply

3:22:45and one way to reduce overall expenses is less car or no is a less car or no car lifestyle it costs

3:22:51an average of $1100 a month to own a car according to a recent article for instance residents of

3:22:57montreal are embracing winter bike riding with 100 000 bike trips just in the first half of january

3:23:03of this year a big part of this amazing increase is their safe biking infrastructure and great winter

3:23:10maintenance along with the availability now of e-bikes and cargo e-bikes enabling a viable way

3:23:15to commute year-round i would also like to concentrate another important consideration

3:23:20mentioned and linked in the report a commitment to the un city's race to zero campaign this is also

3:23:26a pivotal moment to our commitment for real climate action on climate change and quote on the link

3:23:32in the staff report on december 20 21 council confirmed the city of guelph's commitment to the

3:23:38race to cities race to zero as part of the united nations race to zero campaign quote there's a

3:23:43significant alignment between the city of guelph's climate change targets and actions and the city's

3:23:48race to zero requirements cities race to zero requirements and the city of guelph climate change

3:23:53initiatives and action alignment to publicly endorse the following principle commit to putting

3:24:00inclusive climate action at the center of all urban decision making to create thriving and

3:24:05equitable communities for everyone so you notice on the slide that 26 percent trans transportation

3:24:11is the highest emitter of greenhouse gases so anything we do to reduce vehicle use and induce

3:24:16more transit and active transportation will be a positive move in the right direction

3:24:21um just last evening actually we had a meeting with the dgba at um the invitation of city staff

3:24:27our gcat chair and i met last evening with two members of the dgba to discuss the staff recommendation

3:24:33and see if we could come to some agreement on what is best for everyone we all want a thriving

3:24:38downtown wherever we do represent active transportation users and the staff recommendation

3:24:43with protected bike lanes including a flexible design that moves the position of the bike lanes

3:24:48depending on the season is a compromise we can agree to when the patio season ends parallel

3:24:53parking spaces return the current temporary added angle parking due to the loss of the baker street

3:24:59surface parking lot is a safety hazard to cyclists and pedestrians when the new library is constructed

3:25:04on baker with 154 additional spaces returned it will make up for the loss of angle parking and as

3:25:10within close proximity to upper windows street businesses we all agreed on a future vision

3:25:16of a much more pedestrianized and beautiful downtown the beauty of the current plan is its

3:25:22flexible design which could easily be changed for many uses sorry got to turn the page the

3:25:30inclusion of bike lanes adds adds a visual and noise buffer from the traffic lanes to

3:25:35pedestrians and patio users in conclusion the staff recommendation is a great balance to

3:25:41consider all users of the street more accurately it allows for safe enjoyable spaces for walkers

3:25:46cyclists patio users and car drivers it will also calm the street and make downtown an amazing

3:25:52destination where one will want to stay and definitely not just another way to get somewhere

3:25:57else more quickly there's also a pivotal moment for the future success of our downtown as a great

3:26:02destination for all street users while addressing our commitment to real climate action and for the

3:26:07record and report reporter Adam a dollinson a bike to the meeting today thanks okay mr darman

3:26:16sit tight we'll see if there are any questions for you counselor goller thank you and through

3:26:25your chair work mr. van rights i wanted to clarify just in the point did you mention that you had a

3:26:32meeting with the representatives from the dgba who did you meet with yesterday i met with the

3:26:39chair and the treasurer okay okay and i really i really appreciate you taking the time to do that

3:26:47one of the one of the concerns that that has been raised by by business owners in the downtown

3:26:55is the the loss of parking in the angle parking and and the question i i hear all the arguments for

3:27:03for for wanting to have those bicycle lanes in the downtown but i was just wondering from from your

3:27:12perspective is there any downside for for people you know with different abilities that may not

3:27:18be able to to cycle downtown by having those fewer parking spaces because of the other bicycle lanes

3:27:26sorry could you repeat that last part of the question i've been quite here yeah yeah um

3:27:30able-bodied people who are fit who are active can cycle year-round i'm wondering

3:27:38whether you know from from your perspective and then the folks that you represent

3:27:43whether there is any any downside to to having fewer parking spaces to

3:27:50grow up for those bicycle lanes um i think like our previous speaker who was also advocating for

3:27:58protected bike lanes we also want obviously some accessible parking spots and for people who

3:28:05with disabilities um we have the park aides all over the city um we just don't see them being

3:28:11utilized enough and asking for even more parking at this stage uh just doesn't make make any you

3:28:17can make sense to us either to be honest with you um it's just a short walk to most of them and with

3:28:22Baker Street returning we can put lots of accessible parking spaces on the street yeah

3:28:29and still have all the things we need you know to make it a complete street yeah yeah that is an

3:28:34excellent point thank you very much and thank you for your presentation thank you chairwoman thank

3:28:38you councillor Goller any other questions for mr darman okay thank you mr darman i don't see any

3:28:44additional questions thanks your delegation and our last delegation is charlie nash of the downtown

3:28:54wealth business association mr nash same rules apply five minutes you'll hear a chime at four

3:29:01minutes and 30 seconds letting you know you have 30 minutes 30 seconds remaining welcome

3:29:11thank you good afternoon council staff and friends uh the downtown business district

3:29:17i think we can agree is the center of commerce within that center of commerce we have three

3:29:22major categories those are services hospitality and retail between those three retail is the most

3:29:31important let me explain if we lost all our restaurants and services retail could likely

3:29:37fill the vacant spaces but if we lost all our retail spaces service and hospitality would not

3:29:45fill those vacancies this is important to note why but because it means that our downtown is first

3:29:52and foremost a shopping district our shopping district is not comprised of chains and national

3:29:58brands it is made up of small passionate and independent merchants while services and hospitality

3:30:05are not under the pressure or threat of the amazons of the world or every major chain and brand having

3:30:11an online store the retail merchant is that threat is enormous and it is growing we have recently

3:30:19lost several retailers and just last week on the verge announced after 26 years they will be closing

3:30:26on march the second many of our anchor anchor retailers are currently reporting record low

3:30:33sales small independent retailers simply can't compete on price selection or the convenience

3:30:40that a few clicks of a mouse can provide this applies to people who live in all ends of the

3:30:47city whether it's the south or west end as well we have to consider what is their incentive to come

3:30:53downtown when they have the same amenities and ample parking in a much more convenient location

3:31:01quite frankly whether you are a cyclist motorist or a transit rider it is more convenient for you

3:31:06to shop online or at the nearest mall to you so the question then becomes how do we compete

3:31:14and what is our competitive advantage in our downtown the answer is experiential we have to

3:31:23provide an experience that is compelling enough to visit downtown and that experience must consider

3:31:30and be be geared towards pedestrians first and foremost if a cyclist transit rider or motorist

3:31:41doesn't transition to be incoming a pedestrian then they add no economic value to our merchants

3:31:46and to our downtown therefore our only our one and our only competitive advantage is that of the

3:31:54pedestrian experience what leads to the best pedestrian experience is beautification there

3:32:02is no substitution for this big beautiful sidewalks with big beautiful patios coupled with facade

3:32:09improvements lighting is critical to that experience it creates an atmosphere and a vibe that draws

3:32:16people in best of all we know it works we created that with the patio program and the dgba recently

3:32:25created that with the spirit of the season weekend with beautiful european style huts and a lit up

3:32:30parade at night which created an atmosphere and experience which shattered all previous attendance

3:32:36records it is for this reason that the dgba supports the same plan that we currently have on cardin

3:32:42street big beautiful sidewalks that have flexibility in their use while providing up to 20 more percent

3:32:5020 more parking on windham street than the current plan being put forward has the city

3:32:57put forth a forecast that says the number of cyclists coming to downtown is set to grow from 3

3:33:04percent to 10 percent by the year 2051 this is a nominal growth and suggests that bike lanes will

3:33:13not have a big impact on bringing people downtown the force the forecast provided translates to one

3:33:22quarter of one percent growth in converting motorist transit riders into cyclists or motorists into

3:33:32cyclists it is simply not impactful and the opportunity cost of parking and beautification

3:33:39that is missed is too great there are just too too few cyclists to incentivize by adding 450 meters

3:33:49of bike pass we have been given comparisons to cities like Toronto like bluer street and why it's so

3:33:57successful the big difference in why it's so successful and we've had abdantation on streets

3:34:03like that is convenience it's simply more convenient to ride a bike than it is to drive with the

3:34:11with the congestion and the gridlock that Toronto experiences thank you mr. nash let's see if you

3:34:19have any questions yes councillor downrass question for you you shouldn't have a question should I thank

3:34:26you through you i know you've been commenting on the bike lanes on windham street but check if you

3:34:34could just comment on the dgba's position on st george's square because i think i don't know

3:34:42whether that'll be a discussion tonight but i think it's important like the the the intersection more

3:34:49or less the way it is versus the circle because i think there is a position we support the the

3:34:55plan being put forward for the square we didn't support the traffic circle or the amended changes

3:35:01to that intersection the traffic circle goes back to the pedestrian experience we didn't think that

3:35:07it was a very good option for pedestrians and the amendment to the the intersection making it

3:35:16more of a straight intersection we thought one that uh was most concerning to us is that we

3:35:25think that douglas treat with that little curvature in it adds a lot of character to our downtown

3:35:29and to that street in particular and that we would lose that any other questions for mr. nash

3:35:40um i have a question so am i understanding that you would prefer the alternative where there

3:35:49there's a two direct bi-directional bike lane on one side and angle parking on the other like do

3:35:54you have a preferred model or is your your recommendation just maximize the parking

3:36:02no i mean parking is certainly a concern um while we have adequate parking right now we do have

3:36:08concern with the parking that supply that might come or restrictions that might come with connoisseur

3:36:15college and with just the natural growth of the city um but our biggest our biggest what we're

3:36:22advocating for is the plan that's on cardin street because of the beautification and i think what we

3:36:28have to imagine is imagine having cardin street on both sides of windham street with a facade

3:36:34improvement program and what kind of experience that would provide and kind of draw that would be for

3:36:41all guile fights uh no matter what your mode of transportation is um i would i think that

3:36:50that is our only competitive advantage when we look at you know the generations coming behind us

3:36:57and how isolated they're becoming society be more becoming more and more isolated with laptops

3:37:02and app for everything with netflix and from working from home we have to give people an experience

3:37:10that is compelling enough to bring them downtown we have tens of thousands of people at all ends of

3:37:16the city that infrequently do not come downtown uh and some never and we've we've heard stories of

3:37:25some of the program we've done where people have come downtown for the first time since they've moved

3:37:29to guelph because of it um so there is a big target that we are missing by not providing an

3:37:36experience in our downtown and so our concern is you know while staff's plan is well intended in

3:37:43everything it doesn't provide or maximize the experience of downtown or what it could be okay

3:37:52thank you and just a follow-up question we're going to be looking at there's a slide in here that

3:37:55talks about the phasing is there anything that you would like council to consider when we're

3:38:00looking at all of the phasing we know the businesses on your cat a really tough time

3:38:05with some your growth improvements so and i know that your report back in through the dgba and we

3:38:11have representatives there but i'm just curious and i have a question later around how that phasing

3:38:17will work so that people can potentially still park at baker or you know next to the cooperators and

3:38:24still access windham but i'd like to hear from you what the concerns of the dgba are with that

3:38:29so a couple of things that we've put forward to staff is

3:38:34one we'd like to see that construction take place in two shifts during the day

3:38:42to expedite the disruption two i think a lot of delays that happen in construction from what i can

3:38:48see and something that's really frustrating is when a project sits with no activity week after week

3:38:55so we've recommended that you know as far as any no construction begin

3:39:00unless those supplies until all the supplies needed from the project from beginning to end

3:39:06are actually on site or stored somewhere with regard to whether to do the whole street at once

3:39:16or to do it in sections or parts we we haven't really come to any we want to hear more from

3:39:24staff and and consider that more as as to what might be best whether we disrupt the whole

3:39:31street at once or we do it half at a time all that i think there's probably pros and cons to both

3:39:39but we're not there yet okay thank you very much so i'll just go look around the horseshoe one more

3:39:45time to see if any questions for mr. Nash i see councillor buildings has a question for you

3:39:51chair and i just want to be really clear because you're comparing what's positive on cartons so

3:39:57are you are you then wanting to see the angled parking on the one side of windham it's a yes or no

3:40:05yes thank you okay margaret three and then councillor Klassen has asked my question

3:40:16uh councillor billings asked my question i was going to ask so thank you

3:40:21councillor Klassen yes through you chair or work uh to um chuck um so i i i'm kind of

3:40:32continuing with the carton street angle um because i think that's an important one so um there's a

3:40:39lot of places in europe for example where um when traffic can slow down quite significantly

3:40:44it becomes a lot safer for both pedestrians and for cyclists and a lot of that for my

3:40:51understanding isn't what's in the discussion today because we're going to be talking about

3:40:56some of the more beautification components of this project later on in the year so you know but this

3:41:02this is an important part of to inform that next part of the conversation so i don't want to

3:41:07leave something on the table um so i just wanted to talk to you a little bit more about that in

3:41:12terms of like what that would mean from a beautification perspective you know what style of

3:41:18road that would mean um and how the visual component of it would also help to slow things down and

3:41:24make things safer well i think i think going to a single lane each way is going to slow things down

3:41:33and i think if you add to that uh 30 kilometer an hour speed limit as well as any other traffic

3:41:41slowing elements like a speed bump between uh say mac danelle and clubeck street on windom

3:41:47and same for the other side on windom between clubeck street and willowit street i would think

3:41:54that that would provide a lot of additional safety and make most cyclists comfortable

3:42:01but let's assume it doesn't why can't we ask cyclists at every have we're at every point

3:42:08of entry coming downtown because the cycle paths there's bike lanes coming downtown are great but

3:42:13why can't we ask cyclists to dismount and lock up their bikes and have a bike lock up at every

3:42:18point of entry downtown and ask them to walk to their destination as we do cars because what we're

3:42:26because what we're what we've been pushing for cars to do is to use the park aides and walk and

3:42:31not to have an expectation to pull right up front to the store and be able to walk and get out i mean

3:42:36that's unrealistic so why don't we put that threshold on cyclists as well sorry i'm having

3:42:47some troubles with the button but thank you did i answer your question i'm sorry yeah i you partially

3:42:53did i think you gave some actual justification for you know what we're talking about today which is

3:42:57important i was also hoping for you to talk a little bit more about some of the you know we're

3:43:03trying to create a destination and just some of those important elements and i know we're going

3:43:07to have that conversation down a little bit further down the road so i didn't want to like put too much

3:43:12emphasis on it but maybe just if you had any comments on on on that second piece of what's

3:43:18coming down the pipe um i'm sorry i am a little hard of hearing so it's okay you know what i'm

3:43:30just it's not it's not it's uh we're gonna have the conversation in april and so i'm just going to

3:43:34take that question off yeah i'll just touch on i think what you're what you asked beautification

3:43:42is key and so this plan that we're putting forth from the dgb's perspective our number one priority

3:43:50is for it to maximize beautification because we believe that the threat is real we're hearing from

3:43:59the merchants in downtown gualph right now and a lot of them are under duress

3:44:05really duress so how are we going to bring people downtown and you know my friends who you know i

3:44:13commend for their for their dedication and the lifestyle that they live and i fully respect it

3:44:20simple fact is there's just not enough of them and by staff's own numbers uh 27 years from now

3:44:30the growth is nominal so we need to take this gun this big elephant gun of opportunity that we have

3:44:37and not try and shoot a mouse with it we have to try and and uh point that at the biggest target

3:44:44and the biggest target is transit riders and motorists and the reality is is that's not going to change

3:44:57thank you check okay thank you very much councillor classon we don't see any additional questions so

3:45:04thank you very much for your delegation and your work on the dgb thank you for your time and consideration

3:45:08okay as promised we are going to take a 10 minute bio break before we table the recommendations

3:45:15and go to council for staff questions i have a request for 15 this is not an auction so 15

3:45:24we'll make it 15 and no more all right thanks mega three okay uh just to those who are joining us

4:02:35online this is your 30 second call to join us again okay great welcome back everybody

4:03:08uh just before i go to the tabling of the recommendations and to council questions i

4:03:14just want to go to staff and see if they have responses to any delegations if there's just any

4:03:21framing that they would like to provide before we start our questions yeah thank you chair work

4:03:29maybe there are a few things that we can help clarify from staff's perspective as relates this

4:03:34work and maybe just another reminder that the the focus of the conversation today is around the

4:03:38environmental assessment and the options that are in front of council certainly conversations

4:03:42around construction phasing and sequencing and those types of things are part of the the

4:03:47forthcoming steps in the process that i've outlined for council through our presentation

4:03:52and then in terms of some of the information heard certainly with respect to things like parking

4:03:57cycling lanes pedestrian space maybe a few clarifications so the the pedestrian realm and

4:04:02pedestrian space something we certainly heard of about from community engagement throughout

4:04:06this process is being very important and so the proposed plan does in fact widen the pedestrian

4:04:11realm i think you heard from from mr. rustworm around 20 so from about five meters wide to

4:04:17about six meters wide the the parking itself is essentially coming back like for like in terms

4:04:25of windham street i know that there is temporary angled parking there now to help offset some of

4:04:30the losses from baker street but certainly pre pre the loss of the bigger parking the amount of

4:04:36spaces proposed through this ea versus what was in effect physically now is the same and so there's

4:04:45not a net loss in terms of things like accessibility and parking certainly the town parking master

4:04:51plan the policies that council approved late last year are there for staff to direct us on how

4:04:57we would you know implement those spaces from an equity you know diversity and inclusion

4:05:02perspective all of those good important factors will be part of the design work that we do do

4:05:07to operate the space and the ultimate road design work that is to come following this ea decision so

4:05:13i hope that provides some clarity um from staff's perspective just around some of the information

4:05:18that was shared okay thank you very much uh just a reminder uh to council to be focused on the

4:05:26recommendations um as indicated okay i will start a speaker's list for questions i see

4:05:33councillor Caton can kick us off thank you through you chair to staff um i was just wondering do we

4:05:42have any stats on accidents or safety issues when it comes to angled parking versus parallel parking

4:05:50because i know just from an experiential point i find trying to back out of those very stressful

4:05:55especially because i have a small car and there's lots of big trucks parked around me so through

4:06:04the through the chair to councillor Caton i i don't have stats like that handy um certainly road

4:06:09safety and our vision zero work was was a factor in the process overall and our staff are all aligned

4:06:16in the recommendation that is put forward um but if that is is something you need i would have to

4:06:21get back to council with that information ahead of uh council at the end of the month

4:06:25i don't i don't need it personally i was just wondering if we had the stats on here thank you

4:06:33okay council gibson there mayor guthrie thank you through chair rork it's it's not a street

4:06:38scraping question but it kind of you might think it is at the beginning but it's there's a justification

4:06:43behind it so how do staff envision separating the bike lanes will it be the waterfilled ball

4:06:49alerts that we use now for the patio program will it be like cemented in um steel posts how does that

4:06:55how do the staff envision separating the bike lanes and i'll get to my operational question

4:07:00for that so through the chair to councillor gibson certainly at this point to your point the detail

4:07:04design work isn't isn't done but certainly the vision is around providing flexibility you may

4:07:10notice visual differences for example you may see things like flexible ballards that can move from

4:07:15point a to point b for example to support the patio program and cycling at the same time and so

4:07:20as much flexibility as possible as the aim so that's that's my question right there so

4:07:25i listened to both both sides of the delegation i think they were terrific i come downtown to the

4:07:30patio program and i see cyclists i see the bike tours happening i think at certain times of the

4:07:34year the cycling infrastructure is going to be terrific but then in winter time you know when

4:07:39the cycling kind of tails off i think the the the vehicular parking will be even more important

4:07:44because that's when people kind of transition a lot of people not all people would transition to

4:07:48using a more vehicle um sort of pathway downtown so is there flexibility in the program to per se

4:07:55expand uh through the patio program and cycling lanes and then retract if we do see patterns in

4:08:02sort of block movements of people using vehicles and using more cyclists in the summer and winter

4:08:07through the chair to councillor gibson so we will we'll go through that with you certainly in

4:08:12the april council workshop but certainly the intent is the flexibility so that you can enable all

4:08:16those programs okay so that's great so if we see big trends summertime huge infliction of

4:08:22cycle tours we know those that infrastructure is important but then in the winter time we're seeing

4:08:26you know one or two a day or we're seeing a lot less traffic on the cycle lanes and perhaps we

4:08:30want to create a more pedestrian friendly environment we can have that conversation at the april meeting

4:08:36through the chair and i think it's it's not an either or conversation um certainly there's just

4:08:41ways to accommodate both okay um i'm satisfied with that answer i have comments but i'll wait

4:08:46till the end if that's okay thank you thank you mayor Guthrie thank you so actually uh councillor

4:08:54gibson asked my exact question i was going to ask the word about flexibility so i'm good um if you

4:09:00would like i'm happy to move the recommendations so they're at least on the floor madam chair

4:09:05yes thank you mayor Guthrie do i have a seconder

4:09:08councillor Goller great thanks sorry councillor class and i saw you just just afterwards

4:09:13you made the podium but not the second mayor Guthrie do you have any questions

4:09:20no okay any other questions i have a couple of questions um

4:09:28i'm just wondering um if we anticipate any impact on transit if there are

4:09:36delivery trucks that are blocking that so if we go from two lanes to one um and there there's a

4:09:42delivery truck there do we expect that there'll be an impact on on transit times so to you chair

4:09:51or work certainly we we did this work in alignment with our transit staff in terms of the multiple

4:09:57workshops the internal expertise and all of that good stuff and and they did not identify those types

4:10:02of concerns i think they were satisfied that the transit program would function um perfectly well

4:10:07with the proposed plan okay and in a similar vein through me to staff um right now on on macdennell

4:10:16you'll often bike or drive down by either both um there's trucks parked right in the middle sometimes

4:10:25because that's where they have to be to make their deliveries so does does the road stay wide enough

4:10:31to enable deliveries because those businesses will all still need those deliveries right through

4:10:38mr. gerrard and councillor orc the the plan is during the final design and in consultation with

4:10:46the business community we will identify loading zone areas where the trucks can get off and where a

4:10:53central location would work so we're not blocking a lane of traffic and holding up transit and

4:10:57the commuting public but that's we'll get into that type of discussion when as we get into the

4:11:02tail design all right thank you i'm i'm trying to be sensitive to the needs of businesses and

4:11:08folks with reduced mobility absolutely and to keep you know in i'm not an engineer and so it

4:11:13needs to be simplified for me so i appreciate that okay those were my questions um yep those are my

4:11:21questions thanks and yeah oh councillor class and questions no comments why don't i go to you first

4:11:28for comments then sure i will try to keep it really short but sweet um thanks to staff um i just

4:11:38want to say you know it's exciting to see this project coming into fruition um i know it's been

4:11:44a long time coming and i i also know that we have to do the infrastructure replacement but i'm also

4:11:49equally excited about the opportunity uh for what that entails and the beautification of the downtown

4:11:56and making it that that hub that you know central location st george's square has the potential

4:12:02of really attracting a lot of people and becoming a a place for programming more so than it already is

4:12:08so i'm really excited to see this coming to uh be and i will be supporting it i too really want to

4:12:16support the business community um i know what a lot of businesses are going through um and i think

4:12:22that this project is a way to get to that um and and all of the opportunity for that is going to come

4:12:29in april there's going to be so many discussions um and i know that even just with the ea component

4:12:34of this project there's been ample opportunity for public consultation and i participated in a lot of

4:12:39it uh so thank you very much for everything that was put together and um look forward to the next steps

4:12:49okay i have councillors gibson coran uh downer and mayor guthrie with comments councillor gibson

4:12:57yeah thank you through you chair roark so i as i read through the report this week and i looked

4:13:01through the presentation i just i remembered uh late uh councillor bell and i just thought i would

4:13:06share it i told a couple of councillors of my first week at council he uh he said hey councillor

4:13:10gibson you want to you want to do something with me and i said sure what is that he said well let's

4:13:14do a notice of reconsideration for st george's square and i was super naive and i said sure yeah

4:13:19that sounds great councillor bell and you know his his uh his communication didn't always land on

4:13:25council but i'm telling you he had great ideas he always had ideas he always he always had a an

4:13:29opinion so um credit to him he had the idea he didn't like the design of the big circle round

4:13:34about him st george's square and he wanted it revisited and here we are you know 10 years later

4:13:39changing that design so i want to give a little hat tip to him and um and thanks staff for for

4:13:44the work they've done re-engaging the community i think it's a good outcome and i'm excited for it

4:13:48to move forward but i wanted to share that story because he comes to mind off of when i'm reading

4:13:51reports thanks okay councillor Caron thank you and thank you councillor gibson for for evoking

4:13:59that memory because you're right we we we come up with a plan and then 10 years later things

4:14:03change conditions change the the commercial environment changes um and certainly our downtown

4:14:09is one of those places that's constantly evolving so i'm voting uh to support staff recommendations

4:14:14and my number one reason is is the word i heard from every question was flexibility flexibility

4:14:20flexibility and uh we we want more street trees i know we're going to get into all of the the

4:14:26details in april and that we're only talking about um i like the acronym derp downtown

4:14:33infrastructure renewal tonight um but we've got the basics for that level of flexibility and i

4:14:38think the beautification and speaking to the dgba delegation beautification is is is the top layer

4:14:45and today we're talking about the bottom layer uh or the middle layer and and i do see that that

4:14:51that april meeting is going to be crucial to giving the downtown community the confidence that they

4:14:57need to be making investments in their businesses investments in public realm um and and and and

4:15:03that beautification is is coming and i look forward to that discussion thank you councillor Caron

4:15:10councillor doner yes uh so thanks and um thank you to the dba for when i got on it convinced me

4:15:18that the traffic circle was not a good idea because i was a big fan of that for many years um

4:15:25and and and i can see what they're saying just so it's just was didn't take long the visual was not

4:15:32good um however i do i do disagree respectfully on the the issue of the bike the bike lanes that i

4:15:39and i agree with you know and again i'm really happy that chuck came and reminded everybody

4:15:45about the beautification issue because we did cut that budget um and that's really important for us to

4:15:51remember in april that um you know we said we'd have that discussion then about going from best to

4:15:58to good and that the people's experience in the downtown is what brings them there um it's it becomes

4:16:04a desert how do you turn it into a destination where people have a great experience um i like the

4:16:10flexibility too i think the if i put the bike lanes on one side i see confusion for people biking

4:16:19downtown they're gonna still come up the street on the other side where there is no bike lanes and

4:16:25then if you have angle parking there's it's it doesn't feel safe to me i know it's added our

4:16:30extra parking spaces while we've lost baker um which is helpful and yet it's easier to pull into

4:16:37but it's not easier pulling out of um so i would i would say that uh in even on cardin street but

4:16:44i do like the flexibility and and where councillor gibson was going about the summers and the winters

4:16:50and like what can we do around that and overall i look forward to the whole redevelopment of the

4:16:58infrastructure and the streetscape in the downtown it is so long overdue those are my comments thank

4:17:07you councillor down and councillor Caton thank you through you um i am really excited about this

4:17:15i love the protected bike lanes i am a big fan of the patios in the summer and i go down with my

4:17:21daughter all the time but i never let her drive on the road because she is 12 and she will veer into

4:17:26something and she's short so people don't see her as well as they see other cyclists and this is just

4:17:32going to increase the time that i spend downtown eating and probably increase my poor credit card

4:17:39but um i think that it's going to be generally great for everybody i love the fact that it's going

4:17:44to be on both sides of the streets because there are folks like me who use their bicycles

4:17:48for accessibility devices and i know there are more seniors out there getting adult trikes

4:17:53so so long as we start getting more bike parking in the downtown as well then um i i love this plan

4:18:02thank you councillor Caton mayor guthrie thank you and madam chair i did have one quick question

4:18:08before a comment if you if you wouldn't mind thank you and through you i was just wondering

4:18:12is there a possibility for april um you know like there's all this like virtual reality and like

4:18:21three-dimensional flyovers and stuff like that that sometimes we see developers do when they

4:18:26have like a building that they're doing like is there is there an option for us and the community

4:18:32to be able to see like in a real visual three-dimensional way what the downtown could look like

4:18:44so through the chair to you mayor guthrie thank you for that uh that feedback and

4:18:48i don't want to provide any spoilers but i think you will be satisfied with the visuals at the

4:18:54engagement session okay we're on the same wavelength that's good uh yes or we're wrapping together

4:19:03it's good so good um i was going to go further with that but i'm going to stop uh

4:19:11so uh my only comment is is that i am viewing this moment as more of a technical decision

4:19:24and and that's what's grounding me here uh about supporting it because to me the biggest issue is

4:19:31going to be like april and and those conversations as councillor coston has said as well um and i just

4:19:40as a preemptive sort of comment to april though i'm really good to be focused on this flexibility

4:19:47part as councillor Caron and councillor gibson brought up is and so you know i look forward to

4:19:53that discussion there um and yeah and that hopefully we all rally around this opportunity of this like

4:20:00literally once in a lifetime opportunity to do amazing things in our downtown core so um yeah

4:20:07looking looking forward to the discussion uh come april and uh thank you to staff uh in the

4:20:12community to get us this far thank you mayor guthrie councillor chou thank you through you

4:20:20madam chair i'll just be quick just to add my two cents for for someone that represents the south

4:20:26end in particular like i have to refer back and look at the transportation master plan and look at

4:20:33the framework as a whole and you know i'm looking at schedule one of the recommended network and

4:20:38i i do think to be fair the expectation has been set a long time ago that there is some kind of barrier

4:20:44free free um separation um or barrier separation rather for cyclists and i do think flexibility

4:20:54is the work here and also i think just to remind everyone as well in the audience this is still

4:21:00very high level the role plans that which we saw today have no dimensions they have the texture

4:21:05the materiality i think all of those things we need to remind be reminded not to set our subconscious

4:21:11preconception preconceptions too early because there is a lot of room for a conversation i think

4:21:17for me that was kind of the selling point that we're going to have this broader conversation

4:21:21in april and be able to tackle on like the details so i think with that being said uh i will support

4:21:28this as well so thank you for all your work thank you councillor chou i'm excited we're going to get

4:21:34pipes in the ground that will allow for a lot more housing downtown um i mean that's what this is all

4:21:41about right we've got to tear up the roads to fix those pipes and then we're thinking while we're

4:21:44doing that work how do we realign i think it's a historic investment in downtown when you look at

4:21:51baker uh windham street um all of the intensification that's going to be coming including some

4:21:58institutional anchor tenants so this is an enabling conversation and i find that really

4:22:05exciting both from an economic development and a housing perspective so as a chair of infrastructure

4:22:11i'm digging that um i am digging that and and to councillor chou's good point you know there

4:22:19there are plans that call for a separate bike infrastructure from clear road all the way down

4:22:24to wellington and uh and we are going to improve that connectivity i have heard comments this week

4:22:30about you know if you've got bike lanes downtown that don't connect to other things or that aren't

4:22:35cleared that that is a challenge and a barrier that's an operational question but i just want

4:22:39people to know those comments were heard and i think uh it's important to continue to encourage

4:22:44people to go downtown now throughout the construction and then definitely when there's this fantastic

4:22:51new unveiling so with that i will call a vote i'm just taking one less scan for comments i don't see

4:22:59any and so i will call a vote or any opposed to the recommendations on the floor i see none and that

4:23:07is unanimous okay i need somebody to move adjournment oh i will go to sorry any staff announcements