Improving vibrancy: Oakville’s commercial districts

NRU
July 30, 2014
By Leah Wong

Following a long winter and competition from other municipalities, Oakville council is looking at ways to encourage more people to visit its downtown commercial districts.

Retailers in the area are in need of help. A recently released report from J.C. Williams Group, commissioned by the Town of Oakville, shows pedestrian traffic has declined and most retailers’ sales are also down. A harsher winter, fewer workers in the downtown and parking problems are all to blame.

“There are different variables, all affecting the economic environment for downtown,” economic development director Dorothy St. George told NRU.

In an attempt to improve the environment downtown, council approved the implementation of six immediate initiatives and five long-term revitalization initiatives for the Downtown, Kerr Village and Bronte Village Business Improvement Areas. These actions are part of a continuous effort to improve the town’s retail areas said St. George.

From surveys and economic analysis St. George said residents want more patios downtown and merchants want to be able to sell goods on the street. Initiatives for the three BIAs will reduce fees for a patio pilot project and an outdoor display program, which allows merchants to display and sell products from the boulevard. These two pilots will run into the fall with reduced fees allowing owners to test the program without a large financial commitment.

There are also two initiatives for Downtown and Kerr Village BIAs, which will improve parking signage, introduce short-stay parking spaces and new pay display machines. Staff is also studying the feasibility of constructing a second parking garage downtown.

“The more we can get people down and strolling, the more chance we have for businesses,” Downtown Oakville BIA director Sharlene Plewman said during a July 21 deputation to council. “We need to get people to come down just to stroll.”

The town is looking at ways to get more people out on the street and improve the vitality of its downtown though a series of staff studies. At the July 7 Planning and Development Council meeting council approved recommendations from the Downtown Report and its companion reports, the Downtown
Cultural Hub Study and the Downtown Transportation and Streetscape Study. Brook McIlroy and Hatch Mott MacDonald assisted staff with the transportation study.

The cultural hub study is examining downtown facilities as part of an effort to improve culture in the district, while the transportation and streetscape study is considering improvements to pedestrian and cyclist activity and revitalizing the town square.

Both studies are ongoing, though the transportation study is expected to be completed before the end of the year.

As part of the longer term revitalization initiatives the town approved the creation of a retail strategy for the Downtown and Kerr Village BIAs similar to one tested in Bronte Village in 2012. Council approved retaining J.C. Williams Group to undertake the retail strategies for both BIAs. The strategies will be developed by looking at marketing, events and retail recruitment and then the town will work with the BIAs to deliver the strategies. The strategies will also inform staff about what is needed to further enhance the downtown—whether it’s improving wayfinding or adding streetscaping such as benches and planters.

While the BIAs are supportive of the initiatives approved by council, there is a push for free parking initiatives in the commercial districts. Plewman suggested extending free parking to Saturday as a way of enticing people to these areas, something with which Kerr Village BIA executive director Doug Sams agrees.