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Time to re-open Winnipeg intersection Portage and Main?

Two Winnipeg Jets fans congregate near the barrier around Portage and Main in 2012. Photo via Reuters.

The intersection of Portage and Main is at the heart of Winnipeg and is considered among the greatest places in Canada, despite treating street-level pedestrian traffic as an unwelcome addition to the neighbourhood.

Barriers block pedestrians from crossing at the downtown intersection, creating a cumbersome labyrinth that pushes passersby underground. This wasn't enough to stop the intersection from being nominated for celebration by the Canadian Institute of Planners earlier this year.

But it is enough to prompt at least one Winnipeg architect to rally for the removal of those longstanding barriers. CBC News reports that city council is considering, again, what to do about the intersection — the latest iteration of an ongoing debate.

Earlier this month, Brent Bellamy, senior design architect for Number Ten Architectural Group, called for the removal of the Portage and Main barriers, suggesting it would be integral in a larger strategy to rejuvenate the downtown.

[ Related: Portage and Main at crossroads of re-opening to pedestrians ]

On that topic, Bellamy writes:

The number of people who spend each day working at Portage and Main is nearly equivalent to the population of Steinbach. If the intersection were a city, it would be one of the five largest in the province, yet few street-level amenities exist to support that market.

Enticing even a portion of these people back onto the sidewalks might increase foot traffic to a level where the first three blocks of Portage Avenue no longer have more empty storefronts than the rest of its 14-kilometre length combined. Albert Street, an adjacent toothless grin of vacant lots, derelict buildings and empty retail units, might finally fulfil its potential as a trendy urban strip and connection point to the burgeoning Exchange District.

Portage and Main, which is tangentially considered the windiest place in Canada, was first blocked to pedestrian traffic in the 1970s when a development project connected the intersection's four corners by an underground plaza.

The city signed an agreement with downtown property developers not to allow construction of a pedestrian crossing for 40 years. That agreement remains in effect for another five years.

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But that hasn't stopped a constant stream of debate on the subject. Overtures have been made in the past to re-open the street, but unanimous approval was not received.

The maligned state of the intersection even left some questioning its nomination as a one of the "Great Places in Canada" earlier this year.

The intersection, for whatever it is worth, is key to the city. It is perhaps the best-known address in Manitoba. It is at the heart of the action. When the Winnipeg Jets returned to the city, Portage and Main was shut down by the celebrations. When grain farmers protested, this is where they congregate.

"The Canadian Institute of Planners' recognition of Portage and Main, even in its current condition, shows it is a place the story of which still resonates in the imagination of Canadians," Bellamy wrote. "With no other Winnipeg location holding that level of prominence, its current utilitarian function is a lost opportunity in a city that cannot afford to squander its few noteworthy attributes."

City council may now be preparing for when pedestrian traffic is again allowed at Portage and Main. But there must be something we can do before then.

Getting a plan in place now could allow time for horse trading, could ensure everyone involved that street-level pedestrian traffic would be a positive thing.

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