Market Square

[ijmorlan]

Interesting you think that. I dont mind the skybridges and think that there actually should be more of them. Most larger cities usually have some sort of footpath network downtown. 

I'd love to see them expand and create a mini path system reminiscent of what they have in Toronto. 

They should also connect the lrt stop at fredrick right to the one overpass imo

To access what? I would much rather see people walking on the street, which creates a more urban feel in my opinion. If KWC was one city like Winnipeg with one downtown I could see something like that happening. But there just isn't enough density downtown to justify. If they looked like the bridge from the bay to the eaton centre in Toronto I could see wanting to save them.

Everything. As far as I’m concerned if downtown was properly planned one could walk from Centre in the Square, through the Regional Headquarters building, to the Library, then on through the Police Station and old courthouse to the new courthouse. From there it’s just one more bridge to Market Square and the existing links. Over time, additional links could be added. For example, Duke Tower could be added in.

Furthermore, every new development on King, Charles, and Duke Streets should be required to have a covered portico parallel to the sidewalk, and they should link up with the porticos of neighbouring properties. Over time you would eventually build a continuous rain-free environment covering much of downtown.

To my way of thinking, I’m only wrong if people actually prefer walking outdoors. But in places where these systems are built, they are often immensely popular. I understand that retail space on the Toronto Path system is the highest value (per square metre of floor space) in the entire world, including places like downtown New York and other such insanely expensive places (sorry, no cite; if anybody has access to reliable confirming or contradictory information I’d be interested). My only complaint is that they tend to be isolated from the outdoors, which is often a pleasant place to be; I would prefer, where possible, for interior and exterior routes to be parallel to each other so moving between them it very easy, and so the same geographical intuition works in both realms. Part (not all) of the Winnipeg skyway system is like this: there is a 2nd-floor route running for several blocks along the same side of one street. It’s easy to understand where one is, one can see the street, and it’s easy to move back and forth between the street and the elevated walkway.

There is nothing magical about being at motor vehicle level and exposed to the weather that makes for a good experience.