Achi news desk-
A proposed new strategy aims to build a “dynamic and thriving” nightlife economy in Edmonton and some stakeholders believe it could transform the city’s arts and tourism sectors, and its overall nightlife.
Written by city staff, Explore Edmonton and Night Time Economy Solutions in the UK, Edmonton’s Night Time Economy Strategy seeks to play a central role in helping businesses thrive after the sun goes down.
The report, published Thursday, examines trends in the economy and tourism that would help Edmonton create a “dynamic and thriving night economy” that prioritizes togetherness, connectivity, protection, innovation and uniqueness.
Two of the report’s main priorities are improving transport and safety.
According to the report, many stakeholders, especially female participants, shared feeling uncomfortable taking transit or the LRT, as they were highlighted as “hot spots” for drug use, prompting towards driving or ride sharing services like Uber if they wanted to go out. .
Those questioned said they had noticed an increase in crime and disorder as the night progressed and wanted to see a more active and visible presence of police and peace officers.
Puneeta McBryan, executive director of the Downtown Business Association, told CBC News that the strategy does not contain much new information, especially when it comes to the importance of safety.
He said business owners have long called for measures to improve security.
“People need to feel safe if we want them to go places,” McBryan said.
“It’s really confirming that this thing that we’ve been saying for a long time has been validated … There’s a lot in here that validates for us, but not a lot that’s new.”
McBryan said she’s curious to see what Edmonton city council does with the information in the report, which includes what she calls “very useful data” to quantify the importance of an economy plan with the night
In terms of security, he said the landscape has changed significantly in the city centre.
“Our beat officers in the city are there during the day, but what that presence looks like at night has really changed since COVID,” he said.
“I’d be very curious to find out, even compared to 2018, how many officers we have out on a typical Friday or Saturday night.”
Tyson Boyd, co-owner of the Starlite Room, said businesses are itching to rebuild and strengthen the downtown core, and improving safety will be a big factor in helping grow foot traffic.
Some of his own staff have told him they feel nervous taking transport because of their safety concerns. It’s a hot topic for customers too, he said.
“When you have bigger events and people come down, it’s kind of a power in numbers thing,” Boyd said.
“When people all come down at a certain time, you get the comfort of being with a number of people riding the train, compared to when it’s a bit more of a slower time and there’s less people.”
Boyd said more measures in place, such as better lit streets and beat officers, would make people comfortable and create an overall safe environment downtown.
Rob Browatzke, co-owner of Evolution Wonderlounge, said the strategy looks great at first glance, but its success will depend on how the city executes it. Much of the plan focuses on transport and crime, two major issues that affect nightlife, he said.
“Downtown is a lot less safe than it was four years ago,” Browatzke said.
“People are very quick to scapegoat Edmonton’s homeless population. I get that, but that’s not where we see most of the security issues. I think people have forgotten how to be people during COVID. “
Improving transportation options and safety would change things for the better, especially since Browatzke’s location closes at 2:30 a.m. But he doesn’t feel a nightlife-focused committee should be tasked with fixing Edmonton’s bigger issues.
Instead, he will be curious to see if city staff can come up with promotional vehicles that businesses can use to spread the word about upcoming events.
“It’s all going to come down to who’s on this committee and how much power the committee really has, and what this committee can really do,” Browatzke said.
The proposed strategy is expected to be discussed at the council’s Working Committee on April 10.
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