Granted I’ve only lived here for two years, but the only reason we go downtown is for appointments or work.
Calgary is a little weird in my experience, in that the neighborhoods tend to feel like little towns. People like to stick to their local areas instead of migrating to other areas for activities.
I’m hoping that the office buildings turning into residential apartments will help this. And it’s been so nice to see street patios for the last couple years!
Downtown can be so hit or miss. Friday and Saturday nights are pretty busy, but outside of that, it can definitely feel pretty empty. There’s been a long tradition of most businesses down here closing at 6pm and a lot of people only coming downtown for work… so they go home.
I’m sure it’d be a different story of most of the buildings weren’t empty office towers lol
I think it also has to do with the lack of pedestrian only zones. No one really likes to spend time beside a busy road with the sounds and stink produced my cars (unless they’re really drunk ofc).
There’s always Stephen Avenue. Or the river pathway. I don’t know if I would fully agree that we don’t have many pedestrian only zones. We have just as many as any other cities our size. Plus a banger pathway system.
And parking wasnt $30 in busy spots. And if you werent swarmed by degenerates at every turn.
No idea about parking myself, since I live down here and don’t have a car.
Downtown is designed for Monday - Friday 9-5pm. That needs to change.
I never occurred to me how weird it would be for tourists to see Calgary’s strange dynamic. Neat to read that.
