THUNDER BAY -- While less than desirable weather conditions might have dampened community involvement, the city’s second Open Streets event went ahead Sunday.
More than five kilometres of roadway on Algoma Street were blocked off to vehicular traffic, paving the way for pedestrians and cyclists to take over the street.
Chilly temperatures, sporadic showers and threatening skies resulted in fewer people taking to the streets than when it was held on a warm, sunny day but there were still positives, said EcoSuperior program coordinator Ashley Priem.
“We’re still seeing people out on the streets. We’ve had the roller skiers already, some runners and some cyclists and more families as the weather has perked up,” she said.
The Open Streets initiative is a pilot project, with organizers paying close attention to feed back to deem the value of the event and any changes that needed to be made.
There was plenty of response after the first event, which was held in July, for organizers to make modifications.
“It definitely was mostly positive. We had a lot of Facebook comments and feedback and of course there are always some comments that weren’t positive but the responses to support Open Streets totally superseded that,” she said.
“People actually said they wanted the event to happen more and actually wanted it to happen for a longer period of time during the day.”
Priem said one of the biggest changes to the second version of the event was the introduction of their traffic barricade adoption campaign.
In addition to guaranteeing volunteers, it was also a way to spread involvement in the project beyond just the Algoma area.
“It was open to all groups or individuals and it’s a great way to bring more of the community into Open Streets,” she said.
One group that took advantage was the city’s 55 Plus Centre, who set up an exhibition on the southern portion of the route. This was the organization’s first time participating in the event.
Carol Davis, the volunteer coordinator at the 55 Plus Centre, said Open Streets is perfect to allow them to interact with the broader public.
“It’s meeting with different people, seeing different activities going on and being a part of the community,” she said. “I hope it (becomes a regular occurrence).”
Priem said it is too early to say if the event will return in 2015, though she said organizers would be open to holding Open Streets in other areas of the city as well if it were to come back.
