Yeggy said:
I dont think anyone is ramming it down our throats
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Yes, they are.

As it is clearly evident, other major cities in Canada don't suffer nearly as much from this same issue. Out of curiosity, I went to look at Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal, too (and Halifax, for fun). Even Halifax, being A LOT smaller, has more urban format stores than Edmonton.

If you are still claiming that this is not an Edmonton issue, I wonder what kind of evidence you need of that. Out of all 6 1M+ cities in Canada, Edmonton suffers the most with this issue, by a substantial margin. Even comparing with smaller cities, like Halifax, Quebec City and Winnipeg, we're behind, or at the same level. This is not only big corporate decisions, because opening stores is something that is also decided on a regional level.
 
The limited number and lack of retail choice is a huge problem for those who live and work downtown for those who would like to walk to businesses nearby, but are forced to drive elsewhere.

It is not as bad with food as other things, but it really undermines the attractiveness of living downtown if you have to drive everywhere and is a big reason it is difficult to attract more people to live downtown.

We have dug ourselves into a big hole with poorly thought out choices over many years and we really need to seriously consider, do we want to be a real city or just a big suburb.
 
hold on now. I live DT/Oliver. I don't have to "drive everywhere" as David A states, in fact, Oliver has one of, if not the highest walkability score of any neighbourhood in Edmonton. In fact, the only retail I cannot access without a vehicle at the moment is a hardware store; it's almost like I already live in one of those 15 minute cities. Several new coffee shops / bars / restaurants / retail stores have opened around me and a Red Robin and a Starbucks have left. Big whoop...stores open and close in cities all the time. So what exactly is the big hole we've dug, (not me, don't have a shovel); is it that suburban format fast-food brick and mortar, stand alone venues have taken over downtown? No, and the existing ones are leaving...I see that as upward, positive evolution. And what exactly, as another poster stated, "is being rammed down our throat"? especially if it isn't being rammed down the throats of those feisty Haligonians? F*** boys, we're talking about a mall. Oh, and the fainting spells over having to ride up 2 (TWO!) escalators to get to the ECC food court? Sort yourselves out.
 
What exactly? - that was about drive throughs, rather than fast food places with street front access that other cities seem to have in their downtown cores.

I would consider the McDonalds in Oliver to be a suburban format, which might be ok for the location, but it is sure not easily walkable say for those who lives east of Oliver and is now the closest one for them also.
 
David A said:
What exactly? - that was about drive throughs, rather than fast food places with street front access that other cities seem to have in their downtown cores.

I would consider the McDonalds in Oliver to be a suburban format, which might be ok for the location, but it is sure not easily walkable say for those who lives east of Oliver and is now the closest one for them also.
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I miss the McDonald's on 117 Street and Jasper which was unique in that it had no drive-thru and was actually located on the upper level of the building (you had to walk up a set of stairs to get to the front counter and dining room).
 
buildings said:
hold on now. I live DT/Oliver. I don't have to "drive everywhere" as David A states, in fact, Oliver has one of, if not the highest walkability score of any neighbourhood in Edmonton. In fact, the only retail I cannot access without a vehicle at the moment is a hardware store; it's almost like I already live in one of those 15 minute cities. Several new coffee shops / bars / restaurants / retail stores have opened around me and a Red Robin and a Starbucks have left. Big whoop...stores open and close in cities all the time. So what exactly is the big hole we've dug, (not me, don't have a shovel); is it that suburban format fast-food brick and mortar, stand alone venues have taken over downtown? No, and the existing ones are leaving...I see that as upward, positive evolution. And what exactly, as another poster stated, "is being rammed down our throat"? especially if it isn't being rammed down the throats of those feisty Haligonians? F*** boys, we're talking about a mall. Oh, and the fainting spells over having to ride up 2 (TWO!) escalators to get to the ECC food court? Sort yourselves out.
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and a hardware store is jjst a short hop away on the #5.
 
Yeggy said:
Like they exist in a vacuum?
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Distance does matter particularly to those that don't live in your area. If you live on 103 Ave and 117 St, it is a short walk to Unity Square, which while it is a suburban style mall, does have a lot of services.

If you live in the downtown core on 104 St and 99 Ave, it is not walkable to go there. and it is faster to drive than take the bus. So the core, which may not concern you, is not as walkable as it should be.
 
David A said:
Distance does matter particularly to those that don't live in your area. If you live on 103 Ave and 117 St, it is a short walk to Unity Square, which while it is a suburban style mall, does have a lot of services.

If you live in the downtown core on 104 St and 99 Ave, it is not walkable to go there. and it is faster to drive than take the bus. So the core, which may not concern you, is not as walkable as it should be.
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When I lived in oliver i was in the core constantly.
 
Yeggy said:
When I lived in oliver i was in the core constantly.
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Anecdotal. Can't measure the average person's experience by your own. When I lived in Oliver, I had very few reasons to be at the core. And just because an adjacent neighborhood has certain things, does not mean another shouldn't have. Saying that DT doesn't need more street-facing, walkable food options (including, yes, fast-food chains, because they're what the average person consumes, hence why they're so big) because Oliver has them is laughable. Someone living on 104 st/Jasper Ave will not walk to 117st/104 Ave McDonalds, they'll most likely drive.

@David A has a point: the core should me more walkable, considering what it is. Oliver(Unity) Square/Brewery District serve Oliver well, because it is walkable for people living there, especially west of 112 st and north of Jasper Ave, but it is not as walkable if you're further away, especially in the winter.
I do believe the LRT will change this a lot, and It actually ties back into what I always say about low-floor LRT being great for short trips.
 
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