And with more LRT in the core, mobility will be improved some more. I don't think it's a lack of demand, it's more so a lack of supply (as has been pointed out) is improving. The real problem in the core is certain properties, including ice district land north, former bmo property, former legion property, property south of Epcor tower have sat idle for way to long. If the last three properties that I mentioned had mixed use or residential buildings there, how do you think that area would feel?
 
Edmcowboy11 said:
And with more LRT in the core, mobility will be improved some more. I don't think it's a lack of demand, it's more so a lack of supply (as has been pointed out) is improving. The real problem in the core is certain properties, including ice district land north, former bmo property, former legion property, property south of Epcor tower have sat idle for way to long. If the last three properties that I mentioned had mixed use or residential buildings there, how do you think that area would feel?
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Yup. OEG not completing the residential tower in Connect Centre as proposed was a big missed opportunity to bring more people (#1 priority and need for dt) - and they even had a tax incentive provided by the city to do it.

Would have been 400 or more people perhaps using Loblaws food store, supporting a potential cafe, and other retail and just more people walking around the area daily.

Might have even been the difference for 1 or 2 less banks in the area as opposed to other commercial.
 
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You make it sound like OEG is the bad guy here. Last I checked, they are a business. And the Connect Centre tower made no financial sense. It's clear there was no ROI, and potentially that banks would not finance the project.

It's easy to cheerlead from the sidelines. But the lack of private sector investment in the core is not a problem of the private sector.
 
For any Ice District resident, you’re within two blocks of LRT, and everything it reaches. What I’m not sure about is whether Legends and the Marriott are fully occupied. I’m sure if they were close to capacity, the third tower would go ahead.
 
Edmcowboy11 said:
And with more LRT in the core, mobility will be improved some more. I don't think it's a lack of demand, it's more so a lack of supply (as has been pointed out) is improving. The real problem in the core is certain properties, including ice district land north, former bmo property, former legion property, property south of Epcor tower have sat idle for way to long. If the last three properties that I mentioned had mixed use or residential buildings there, how do you think that area would feel?
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LRT is underrated in how much it’ll help downtown vibrancy imo. Yes, the construction will be done and that’s huge.

But the thing I love most about the LRT is how it creates pedestrians.

Cars are so direct that they rarely contribute to street activity. People park in underground parkades and walk straight up to their office. Or around the corner from a restaurant. But the train will lead to thousands of more people walking at least a couple of blocks each downtown. And that means a much busier feeling for everyone else that’s walking around.
 
What gets me is that four hours parking downtown is more expensive than three people taking transit.
 
The_Cat said:
What gets me is that four hours parking downtown is more expensive than three people taking transit.
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Is it? One deterrent to more transit use for me is that I can often find 5-10 dollar parking for an evening event. But transit for both my wife and I will be 12 and often 15mins vs 30-40mins during the evening when rush hour is done. Makes the equation for transit hard.
 
thommyjo said:
Is it? One deterrent to more transit use for me is that I can often find 5-10 dollar parking for an evening event. But transit for both my wife and I will be 12 and often 15mins vs 30-40mins during the evening when rush hour is done. Makes the equation for transit hard.
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For me one other factor that I toss into the equation is how much gas I use up to drive to the downtown and back. I can drive from home to Davies in less than 5 minutes and then take the train to 102 station. Anyone else that I might travel with already has a monthly arc card so no additional cost really and overall saving on gas.
 
There is a construction crane cutout in the 2nd floor slab and roof of the tenant space being fitted out. I don't know if this quite closes the door completely for a future tower but it does hinder it.
 
thommyjo said:
Is it? One deterrent to more transit use for me is that I can often find 5-10 dollar parking for an evening event. But transit for both my wife and I will be 12 and often 15mins vs 30-40mins during the evening when rush hour is done. Makes the equation for transit hard.
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The LRT isn’t for everybody. Some people will choose parking, especially if there’s a carpool. It’s the same kind of preference like commuting to work.
 
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