Granville Street Pedestrian Zone to be extended after World Cup ends - BERITAJA

Vancouver metropolis assembly voted connected Thursday to widen the Granville Street Pedestrian Zone to Labour Day.

This intends that the eligible FIFA-related impermanent patios and nationalist realm description s will besides remain.

In the assembly gathering connected Thursday, Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said he has not seen the metropolis this live since the 2010 Olympic Games and he wants to support the power going passim the summer.

According to the City of Vancouver, the costs to widen the area for an further 7 weeks is an estimated $4.75 million.

Weekly engineering costs are $300,000, including sanitation services, postulation management, washrooms and different operational costs.

Weekly policing costs are $200,000, according to the city.

The full fig besides includes a assistance up to $1.25 cardinal to the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association for activations and programming, the metropolis added.

“Vancouver has rediscovered what’s imaginable erstwhile we put group astatine the bosom of our city,” Sim said.

“Granville Street has been afloat of energy, section businesses are seeing much customers, and residents and visitors person told america large and clear that they want this momentum to continue.”

Restaurants, bars and different businesses person seen grounds income since the 5 blocks betwixt Georgia and Davie streets closed to autobus and conveyance postulation successful early June for the FIFA World Cup.

Coun. Sean Orr was absent for the ballot and councillors Rebecca Bligh and Pete Fry opposed keeping the area pedestrian-only until Labour Day.

“We had 2 days’ announcement connected this motion,” Fry said.

“We saw it spell from 3 and a half cardinal dollars to 4 cardinal dollars to $4.75 cardinal successful little than 48 hours. To me, that suggests that the politician didn’t person a really actual scheme and it’s conscionable benignant of throwing money astatine an thought and arsenic stewards of nationalist funds, we, I think, request a small spot much clarity.”

Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung said she thinks that spending the money is worthy it.

“This is thing that residents person been asking america for loudly and proudly,” she said. “We’ve heard from the section businesses that really, really want to spot this continue.”

When it comes to moving nutrient trucks backmost into the instrumentality zone, the metropolis said it is reviewing the safety, creation and operational requirements of the pedestrian zone.

A nutrient motortruck usability told BERITAJA that he was sidelined from his regular spot connected the Granville Strip during the FIFA pedestrian zone.

The metropolis told BERITAJA astatine the clip that nutrient trucks cannot move successful and retired of the instrumentality area each time owed to the information standards of the closure design.

The nutrient truck, Downtown Hotdog, could stay successful the instrumentality area because its commissary room is connected the aforesaid artifact arsenic its vending location, allowing the business to run without moving its trailer.

Vancouver metropolis assembly besides directed unit to research the feasibility of temporarily reactivating the Granville Street Pedestrian Zone successful November 2026 to support a imaginable Christmas Market and stitchery further operational and economical capacity data, according to a release.