Support growing for pedestrian-only Water Street during pandemic

Business owners on Water Street say cutting off access to vehicles will help bring people downtown — and help businesses get back on their feet.

"We feel very positive about it," Debbie Northover, co-owner of East Coast Quilt Co. told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show Thursday.

"We feel that it will make downtown a destination, so that people will be more likely to explore other shops besides the ones they're coming down to specifically visit on a particular day. So we're feeling good about it."

Turning Water Street into pedestrian-only traffic is one option Mayor Danny Breen said the city is considering to assist businesses, allowing restaurants and businesses to expand into public spaces this summer. The idea is also supported by an online petition with more than 1,100 signatures.

Chris Mercer, head chef at Adelaide Oyster House, said the idea could be a big boost for the restaurant industry.

"We're gonna have a need to make up for a lot of lost revenue," he said. "So having that extra space, being able to expand a bit onto the sidewalk would make a big difference … I really can't see any particular downsides."

Summer of '69 remembered

Northover, who remembers Water Street as a pedestrian-only area back in 1969, said the street almost felt like a park, bringing people from all over the city together.

"I really enjoyed coming downtown and just walking about," she said. "As long as it's pretty, as long as they've got a lovely scene, it's quite nice."

Josh Smee lives downtown and has travelled to cities that have more pedestrian-oriented spaces. He said he would love to see the idea develop in Newfoundland and Labrador.

"It's such a freeing thing," Smee told CBC. "Downtown St. John's is in many ways the heart of the pedestrian experience in the city, but can feel really dominated by cars," he said.

"The idea of having a little more of that kind of freedom that you can when a space is turned over to people, I think that's really attractive to me and lots others."

If the idea of limiting vehicles on the road is to move forward, issues such as parking would have to be considered. However, those connected to the downtown say it doesn't have to be a major issue.

"We think it's doable," Northover said. "We think parking is not as horrific as sometimes people feel it might be."

"It would be really good for us to think about as a city — how do we manage that?" Smee added. "One of the things that's been coming up over the years ... could there be [a] shuttle bus service? We do that for special events but there might be a case for making that a more regular part of downtown life."

Smee said his dream scenario of a pedestrian-only downtown has changed due to the pandemic, but says the time also gives the city a chance to experiment for the future.

"This summer, where we're going to have to have quite a lot of space, particularly between, say, restaurant tables or clothing racks, I'm kind of envisioning all the businesses on Water Street spilling over into the road," he said.

"Let the businesses take over the street. I think this allows us to pilot some things, and once we realize how great the experience is, of streets where we maybe rebalance the use of the street a little bit in favour of people, that experience has so much value."

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