 
Lowell
Board Administrator
Username: Lowell
Post Number: 4277
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 11:44 am: |    |
The rediscovery of downtown Detroit continues... The following is from this week's DetroitYES email bag.quote:
I went downtown last week and couldn't believe how vibrant and exciting downtown Detroit has become. There were people everywhere and the vacant buildings that used to line Woodward were replaced by new businesses. Bought a paperback at Borders and had an ice cream at the Ben and Jerry's next door. Downtown Detroit today reminds me of downtown Windsor from twenty years ago while downtown Windsor reminds me of the old downtown Detroit that most people avoided. Since I live and work in Windsor I'd like to ask you what Detroit is doing right when it comes to downtown development and what Windsor is doing wrong. I replied with the following:quote:It is great that enjoyed your visit to downtown Detroit. Your 'rediscovery' of its positive progress is slowly spreading and increasingly surprising other return visitors, many of whom had long written off downtown Detroit as hopeless.
However, I think you are unduly harsh on Windsor, a place I love to visit and think is doing many things right. This starts with its amazing and ever-improving waterfront parkways, something with which Detroit is just now catching up. Ascension Park with the sculptures is particularly outstanding. Ouellette, your Woodward south, remains vibrant, pleasantly walkable and dotted with outdoor cafes and coffeehouses. Walkerville, 'Italian' Windsor, Sandwich and the area around the University are all very cool outlying places.
In my view the grass is greener on both sides the fence. The problem is the fence. We need a treaty that will allow the free unimpeded flow across the border, just like exists between France and Germany, two countries that killed twenty million of each other citizens in the last century. Meanwhile we have been a peace for nearly two centuries.
The border places an unfair cost on our international metropolitan city, measured in the hundreds of millions yearly, that other North American cities, divided by a river, do not face. If 'lost opportunity' cost could be calculated, I think that loss would triple.
The border, with all the current security paranoia, places a huge psychological disincentive to travel across it. It stifles both downtown Detroit and Windsor tourism and dooms what should be our greatest mutual asset and center of activity, the riverfronts, to be commercial dead ends.
The borders helps maintain the crossing monopolies that tack on an additional $7 'tax' while the time and suspense of going through the roulette wheel of customs is waste of time and nerves. Instead imagine a border with no stops, a river with ferries and boats freely crossing.
"Mr. Prime Minister, Mr. President, tear down this wall". |
Ray1936
Member
Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 2148
Registered: 01-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 12:27 pm: | |
Nice letter, super response. Lowell B. for President! Well, Secretary of State, anyway..... |
Kathleen
Member
Username: Kathleen
Post Number: 2545
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 2:09 pm: | |
Couldn't agree more with your reply, Lowell. We enjoy our visits to Windsor and would definitely spend more time there if we knew that we wouldn't encounter any impediments on our return home. |
Parkguy
Member
Username: Parkguy
Post Number: 129
Registered: 04-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 2:43 pm: | |
I totally agree. There are a few places along the border where the history is the same, but for so many decades we lived as one metropolitan region, regardless of the border. Family lines cross the river, commerce crosses the river-- open it up! |
Texorama
Member
Username: Texorama
Post Number: 87
Registered: 12-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 5:50 pm: | |
He's right that, although Windsor's neighborhood strips are vibrant, downtown is looking a bit shabby--atypically so for Canada. Ouellette has a lot of vacant storefronts, and quality retail is sparse. The side streets seem vaguely sleazy. It's a fair question as to why--the Windsor metro area is growing, and there's no shortage of small entrepreneurs ready to move in. A few thoughts:
Downtown Windsor is perceived to be the domain of drunk 18-year-olds. There are other things down there besides teen bars, like the very classy restaurant and jazz lounge Le Steak at Fillmore East, but people don't look around to find them. Cooperation among merchants and restaurant people aimed at defining zones other than the bar area would help the whole scene.
Parking is perceived to be a problem. You can't park on Ouellette; easily visible structures are few, and it's hard to get close to the center on some of the side streets--Ouellette is hemmed in by the tunnel entrance on one side and the transit center on the other. Really there's plenty of parking; good signage would help.
I think the waterfront, although nice, is underutilized. How about an ice rink down there? Certainly has worked for Detroit. Small concerts at the dinner hour in summer would draw crowds. Sign Alexander Zonjic to run them--he's a Windsor native, and he's certainly shown he can turn out crowds in Detroit and elsewhere.
And I certainly agree about the border. The over-the-river tram would help both cities at a fairly minimal cost, and it'd draw outsiders. People love that kind of novelty. |
Charlottepaul
Member
Username: Charlottepaul
Post Number: 1882
Registered: 10-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 7:23 pm: | |
"Parking is perceived to be a problem."
perceived, yes, but in actuality rarely whenever I went over there as a 19/20 year old, did we have trouble parking. I think that the deck near Chatham and Goyeau was only like $.25 per hour and free for the first hour! Talk about encouraging people to drive...
"I think the waterfront, although nice, is underutilized."
Arguable a majority of Americans going to Windsor are going for the bar scene. That is Windsor's reputation. Do you think that you are going to get the Americans to entertain themselves by walking Windsor's riverfront? |
Douglasm
Member
Username: Douglasm
Post Number: 954
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 7:36 pm: | |
I wonder what Andrew's view is? |
Ray1936
Member
Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 2151
Registered: 01-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 7:45 pm: | |
Made many a trip to the Tunnel BBQ. Parking was free in the lot behind the building, although there was also substantial on-street parking alongside the building, also. |
Ghetto_butterfly
Member
Username: Ghetto_butterfly
Post Number: 769
Registered: 09-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 7:47 pm: | |
quote:We need a treaty that will allow the free unimpeded flow across the border, just like exists between France and Germany, two countries that killed twenty million of each other citizens in the last century.
Although I agree with your response and like it, remember this: since the creation of the European Community, similar to the United States concept, borders have been removed between countries in Europe such as France and Germany. They are now merely states within the Community, like being part of the same country. This is not the case with these 2 cities, one in Canada, one in the US. |
Walkerpub
Member
Username: Walkerpub
Post Number: 179
Registered: 12-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, October 28, 2007 - 8:49 pm: | |
Just back back to Canada after crossing today- the US side is ridiculous- cars backed up all the way to the Windsor side- a big deterrent for both Americans and Canadians- don't expect it to get any better until the Bush-Harper alliance is shattered... I like Lowell's comparison of Germany and France- that is a real eye opener- once we were the "friendliest border on earth"- today evidently both Canadians and Americans are the enemy! |
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