General Urban Kitchener Updates and Rumours

[tomh009]

I do believe that church owns the retirement apartment building, yes.

Which church?  The one on Madison or St Joe’s?

St Joseph is located at 148 Madison Ave S ... am I misunderstanding the question?

[panamaniac]

Which church?  The one on Madison or St Joe’s?

St Joseph is located at 148 Madison Ave S ... am I misunderstanding the question?

When I said "church on Madison", I meant the Romanian church, thinking that their property abutted the site.  It does not, so I now understand that you mean St Joe's.

[CedarHillAlum]

St Joseph is located at 148 Madison Ave S ... am I misunderstanding the question?

When I said "church on Madison", I meant the Romanian church, thinking that their property abutted the site.  It does not, so I now understand that you mean St Joe's.

I grew up as a parishioner of St Joseph's Catholic Church. I believe the church has zero ownership interest in the senior's residence across the street.

[Tony_Plow]

I drove down King St DTK last night around 7pm from Ottawa St. to Victoria. On a warm Sunday night, I thought there'd be a lot of people out walking. With the exception of the patios at La Cucina and Bobby O'Briens, out of all the people I saw on King St., all were homeless, except maybe a handful, and the street looked like a ghost town. I did see one homeless man on a bike having a verbal altercation with a motorist. My question is, what will it really take for DTK to turn the corner - will the additions of Charlie West, DTK and Young Condos change things overnight? If not, how many more years do you think it will take before DTK becomes a bustling area?

[panamaniac]

I drove down King St DTK last night around 7pm from Ottawa St. to Victoria.  On a warm Sunday night, I thought there'd be a lot of people out walking.  With the exception of the patios at La Cucina and Bobby O'Briens, out of all the people I saw on King St., all were homeless, except maybe a handful, and the street looked like a ghost town.  I did see one homeless man on a bike having a verbal altercation with a motorist.  My question is, what will it really take for DTK to turn the corner - will the additions of Charlie West, DTK and Young Condos change things overnight?  If not, how many more years do you think it will take before DTK becomes a bustling area?

Why would you think that?  DTK, other than Victoria Park, is not somewhere people go "out for a walk", even when there's not a pandemic.

[Bytor]

I drove down King St DTK last night around 7pm from Ottawa St. to Victoria.  On a warm Sunday night, I thought there'd be a lot of people out walking.  With the exception of the patios at La Cucina and Bobby O'Briens, out of all the people I saw on King St., all were homeless, except maybe a handful, and the street looked like a ghost town.  I did see one homeless man on a bike having a verbal altercation with a motorist.  My question is, what will it really take for DTK to turn the corner - will the additions of Charlie West, DTK and Young Condos change things overnight?  If not, how many more years do you think it will take before DTK becomes a bustling area?

Why would you think that?  DTK, other than Victoria Park, is not somewhere people go "out for a walk", even when there's not a pandemic.

It's also a lot different when we aren't in a pandemic, because there are plenty of people walking too and from restaurants, the Apollo, and so on. I've met plenty of other dog walkers on King St., for example.

[tomh009]

Normally, there are more people out and about on weekday evenings, but Sundays are always pretty quiet. And with COVID, it's even quieter.

It doesn't change overnight, but more people living downtown will gradually bring more people to the streets. And there is a huge number of units in active construction now: Young Condos, Charlie West, DTK, Station Park, 100 Victoria, Drewlo, Market Flats, Arrow 2 and Weber/Scott. And a lot more at the planning stages.

But "overnight" just doesn't happen. This is a long game.

[tomh009]

\Why would you think that?  DTK, other than Victoria Park, is not somewhere people go "out for a walk", even when there's not a pandemic.

There are a lot of very nice, very walkable neighbourhoods in DTK, on both sides of the core, from East Ave to Westmount. And a fair number of people walking there -- including us, as we avoid the crowds at Victoria Park.

[panamaniac]

\Why would you think that?  DTK, other than Victoria Park, is not somewhere people go "out for a walk", even when there's not a pandemic.

There are a lot of very nice, very walkable neighbourhoods in DTK, on both sides of the core, from East Ave to Westmount. And a fair number of people walking there -- including us, as we avoid the crowds at Victoria Park.

Yes, I was thinking in terms of the King St strip.  It would be decades since it's somewhere people would "go for a walk".  King St east of Scott has never really been such a place.  That's not to say that you CAN'T "go for a walk" there, just that you're not likely to encounter many people out doing the same.  There are, as you note, other areas in DTK where one would be more likely to "go for a walk", "walk the dog", or whatever.

[tomh009]

There are a lot of very nice, very walkable neighbourhoods in DTK, on both sides of the core, from East Ave to Westmount. And a fair number of people walking there -- including us, as we avoid the crowds at Victoria Park.

Yes, I was thinking in terms of the King St strip.  It would be decades since it's somewhere people would "go for a walk".  King St east of Scott has never really been such a place.  That's not to say that you CAN'T "go for a walk" there, just that you're not likely to encounter many people out doing the same.  There are, as you note, other areas in DTK where one would be more likely to "go for a walk", "walk the dog", or whatever.

Fair enough! But, then, not many people in Toronto would go for a stroll on Yonge, or Queen, or King, or Spadina either ...

[danbrotherston]

Yes, I was thinking in terms of the King St strip.  It would be decades since it's somewhere people would "go for a walk".  King St east of Scott has never really been such a place.  That's not to say that you CAN'T "go for a walk" there, just that you're not likely to encounter many people out doing the same.  There are, as you note, other areas in DTK where one would be more likely to "go for a walk", "walk the dog", or whatever.

Fair enough! But, then, not many people in Toronto would go for a stroll on Yonge, or Queen, or King, or Spadina either ...

Indeed, King St. is often busy with people going places, but on a Sunday night, few people are going places, ergo, few people on King. This comes back to different types of walking.

[BruceAshe]

We actually went for a walk downtown yesterday afternoon. I'm tired of walking around our neighbourhood and thought we'd walk downtown just to check out the construction progress at Charlie West and see the glass at the old Mayfair. No destination in mind, just a stroll somewhere close but not our area. I realize we might be in the minority though.

[Acitta]

If Waterloo Region was a single city with a single downtown then you would probably see more people walking downtown, but the Region has six downtowns so people are more spread out.

[jeffster]

If Waterloo Region was a single city with a single downtown then you would probably see more people walking downtown, but the Region has six downtowns so people are more spread out.

This is true, and it would be busier. How much, though, I am not sure. I was in the Hammer on Saturday, and drove home in the evening and down King St E, and it was really quiet, except for the homeless and shirtless guys passing drugs. The waterfront was jammed full of people though. So it makes me think that we may never have a really bustling DT area, not like Toronto anyway.

[Momo26]

I can appreciate where Tony_Plow is going with this. I am one of the folks really excited to see the revitalization and return of a bustling DTK. A lot of these projects are set to be completed in 2021/2022 and newer ones in 2023 (even taking into account COVID). For me the biggest indicator is going to be how many new businesses decide to move forward with plans of moving into or expanding their DTK presence. Jobs = people living close to work = businesses opening to serve this population.

All with A wrench in it due to COVID. 3 years to even 5 years is what I consider 'over night'