News   Apr 03, 2020
Pastel Morning
 4.8K     1 
News   Apr 02, 2020
A Message to Our Readers
 6.6K     3 
News   Apr 02, 2020
Soon to be Gone
 3.8K     0 

General Construction Updates

AccUnit said:
I've always thought that connecting 7th st. from downtown to the beltline would be the best option for this. The areas on both sides of the tracks are a bit quieter and make great walking and biking roads already.
Click to expand...

A 1 St SW connection would probably be best. There has already been some development & street improvements between 11 Ave & 14 Ave. The block between 10 Ave & 11 Ave could you use some work (get rid of that strip plaza for instance).
Then you have from 14 Ave all the way down to 17 Ave that could be re-imagined. Result is a connection between Mission and downtown.
 
It may not be obvious, but I think 6th street would be a great candidate for a pedestrian link, especially though Beltline. It already has a walkway through the Lougheed house, has a view terminus of Western High School, few driveway accesses, and several park spaces adjacent. Start with temporary closures in summer, then make them permanent in Beltline, then build an underpass, then extend into downtown.
 
Interesting discussions around adding another north-south connection. I also do agree that public realm improvements need to be more consistently applied or at least keep a similar theme for each area. Would also like to see 4th, 8th, 11st SW, plus 9, 10, 11, 12 ave upgraded to a similar level or better than 1st SW. The pedestrian infrastructure is definitely still lacking along certain streets. Perhaps can be better addressed in City Centre's new plan here: https://www.engage.calgary.ca/centre-city-plan-refresh
 
@CBBarnett for council!

Globally, I see people want to live in cities, travel to cities, and spend longer and longer portions of their lives in cities. Every year driving is more of a nuisance and less of an enjoyable luxury. There's still a big market for SFH, but the price is ever climbing and the commute ever lengthening.

Nearly every city in the world is tripping over itself to develop a livable core for pedestrians. People are looking for experiences more than possessions and extending their "20s" into their 50s.

It's a rough change that takes time. We'll get their - but I think it'll be the market that takes us there. Planners have got to be ready.
 
Speaking of car free lifestyles...
This parking lot (lot 106) was being fenced off with a "parking lot closed" sign when I got off the train at the end of the day:
https://www.google.ca/maps/@51.0474599,-114.0870492,43m/data=!3m1!1e3

I think Cidex is planning to start construction on their zero parking Hat 7th Ave project:
7Ave2.jpg

http://cidexgroup.com/hat-7-ave
 
I think either 6th or 7th would be good and happy with either one. Just having a 'cyclist/pedestrian only' passageway connecting in from the Beltline would be great. 6th with the Lougheed Park might have the edge, but 7th also has the cycle track already built through the downtown. I'm happy with either one. If 9th ave could ever get changed to a two way avenue, we'd really be on a roll.
AccUnit said:
I've always thought that connecting 7th st. from downtown to the beltline would be the best option for this. The areas on both sides of the tracks are a bit quieter and make great walking and biking roads already.
Click to expand...
retrofiturbanism said:
It may not be obvious, but I think 6th street would be a great candidate for a pedestrian link, especially though Beltline. It already has a walkway through the Lougheed house, has a view terminus of Western High School, few driveway accesses, and several park spaces adjacent. Start with temporary closures in summer, then make them permanent in Beltline, then build an underpass, then extend into downtown.
Click to expand...
 
6th for sure doesn't seem like a street that would see heavy traffic to begin with (for the Beltline portion at least). That part of it also looks like it could use a street-level upgrade. Lots of run-down single story shops placed haphazardly, unwelcoming, cold highrises and concrete walls, some with barbed wire fence??, over head powerlines, etc. With Lougheed House and the railway tracks splitting up the road as it is, it's probably not a large commuter route anyways.

Even if they only did the Beltline portion of 6th street, it would still be a massive improvement. Could really revitalize the area, and give those walking on 17th ave an easy and safe way to walk/bike to the core.
 
MichaelS said:
Speaking of car free lifestyles...
This parking lot (lot 106) was being fenced off with a "parking lot closed" sign when I got off the train at the end of the day:
https://www.google.ca/maps/@51.0474599,-114.0870492,43m/data=!3m1!1e3

I think Cidex is planning to start construction on their zero parking Hat 7th Ave project:
7Ave2.jpg

http://cidexgroup.com/hat-7-ave
Click to expand...
Honestly, whats with westside downtown getting all these mediocre designed buildings? that whole area looks depressing to drive through compared to the rest of downtown. Also given the location (right on the LRT), the developer is going with only 66 units? What wasted density boost. This project would be great in the beltline, not so much for downtown. So far West Village towers are looking like the only hope for westside downtown.
 
I have a feeling the small parcel size limited the size of the building. Not sure what the final FAR on the project is, but given the small parcel, seems like they maxed it out as best they could. And, this is perhaps the best location for a zero parking arpartment building.
 
The quality of renders and/or finished product is concerning with some of these developers. Get rid of the random dark blue glass and chose a darker yellow and this at least wouldn't be as offensive. Wouldn't cost more either.
 
retrofiturbanism said:
It may not be obvious, but I think 6th street would be a great candidate for a pedestrian link, especially though Beltline. It already has a walkway through the Lougheed house, has a view terminus of Western High School, few driveway accesses, and several park spaces adjacent. Start with temporary closures in summer, then make them permanent in Beltline, then build an underpass, then extend into downtown.
Click to expand...
6th Street would be my choice. 7th is more central, but 6th has more potential IMO. Could you close it permanently though?
 
Cowtown said:
6th Street would be my choice. 7th is more central, but 6th has more potential IMO. Could you close it permanently though?
Click to expand...
It doesn't necessarily have to be completely closed to vehicles necessary, but just so prioritized for walking and cycling that vehicles would never travel on in and it's clear the streets role is pedestrian first and far above. A really high-quality shared street would have the same desired effect but maintain local access for any parking garages.
  • Bollards to prevent large trucks and vehicles from proceeding, while not interfering with the efficient movement of pedestrians and bikes
  • A single lane of one-way traffic, alternating each block making it impossible to use as a through-street as cars keep having to turn (Montreal does this trick to prevent cut-through traffic and it works really well)
  • No/minimal curb distinctions, pedestrians and cyclists have priority (like Stephen Ave today)
  • No/minimal parking, space instead used for wide sidewalks, street trees, benches, bike racks etc.
  • Raised crosswalks/intersections at all cross-streets
  • Traffic signals that make walking/cycling efficient and encouraged (e.g. no 45 or 60 second waits to cross each of 12th, 11th, 10th, 9th Avenues as is current practice)
Cars access could be maintained but be so disincentivized, few would drive it.
 
Might be a stupid question but is this our third project with the word "Hat" in the name? Does Hat stand for something?
 
RyLucky said:
The more I live and commute and travel the more I think the future of streets is for people. Yes, transit and emergency vehicles and delivery trucks and uber and Lyft and taxis and private vehicles, but ESPECIALLY pedestrians and cyclists. I think we are going to realize that nearly every downtown street needs a bike sidewalk and a bike lane. You almost can't have a dense and happy city without this.

Toronto downtown not has a bike lane on more than half of the streets (though outside of downtown is sorely lacking). The next generation is not going to have money or space for owning a car (let alone a house).

Over time I could see wider sidewalks and bike lanes serving more purpose than roads for the entire grid-network part of Calgary.
Click to expand...

Bike lanes on every avenue would be overkill in creating a balance between motorists, cyclists and pedestrians. Some streets will always need to favour one mode over another to keep the things moving. Bike lanes are popular among political circles and I've seen them hastily installed on heavy traffic supply routes throughout the country where they have no business being. It just creates traffic chaos and cyclists almost always have better options and will avoid the street anyways. It's similar to transit planning. You can add rapid transit on every street too. There will still be routes that are heavily used and routes that are ghost towns.

Our weather is also not conducive to cycling like the places used as examples for pushing the cycling agenda. It'll grow as a means of transportation for sure but, I don't think it will ever become the preferred mode for a downtown population that is decidedly business class and feminine. My wife's hair is frightening after cycling. A quick shower at the office isn't going to make her presentable.
 
You must log in or register to post here.

Back
Top