04-07-2019, 03:41 PM
(04-05-2019, 11:33 PM)Lens Wrote: Has anyone else been downtown Galt lately? I was there earlier this evening and it was a ghost town. I know it wasn't exactly nice weather but we probably only saw 5 or 6 others out walking around 6-7PM. I also noticed what seems to be a significant increase in vacant space, especially on the Main St block between Ainslie and Water where it's at least 50% vacant. Overall the number of vacant units seems like it's at least 30% in the whole core right now. It seemed like Galt was on a good kick for the last year or so but it looked BLEEK today. The northwest corner building of Ainslie and Main is finally almost done and looks great but next to it is a new? sketchy looking liquidation store. Perhaps the development and influx of new residents across the river will help?
The City of Cambridge has to deal with it's social issues of homeless and drug use in all three of it's 'downtown" districts: Galt, Preston and Hespeler.
It will be a challenge to get the residents buy into the idea that it is 2019 and not 1999. The LRT issue is just a symptom related to allowing the city/districts to move ahead.
Lastly, the terrible three kilometer long, world's longest and ugliest shopping mall called Hespeler Road/Region Road 24 needs ... something ... something that I am not sure that the Phase 2 LRT will resolve or re-envision.