logo
  • News
    • Community
    • Local Government
    • Sports
    • Alberta Politics
    • Opinion
    • Deke
  • Events
  • Jasper Builds
  • Peaks & Valleys
    • Wildlife
    • Hiking and Climbing
    • Biking
    • Fishing
    • Snow Sports
  • Culture
    • Jasper Arts & Culture
    • Local Dining
    • Local Literature
  • Jasper History
  • Support
    • News
      • Community
      • Local Government
      • Sports
      • Alberta Politics
      • Opinion
      • Deke
    • Events
    • Jasper Builds
    • Peaks & Valleys
      • Wildlife
      • Hiking and Climbing
      • Biking
      • Fishing
      • Snow Sports
    • Culture
      • Jasper Arts & Culture
      • Local Dining
      • Local Literature
    • Jasper History
    • Support
Is Jasper Municipal Council distancing itself from decision-making?
Editorial, Opinion
By Bob Covey
Monday, July 27, 2020
Is Jasper Municipal Council distancing itself from decision-making?

Did Jasper miss an opportunity to make its downtown better? Or at least safer? 

Now before you get all up in my grill, save your breath (and please wear a mask). I’ve heard the arguments against closing the 600 block of Patricia Street to vehicle traffic: Essential services like grocery stores and pharmacies need storefront parking. How are you supposed to haul your clothes to the laundromat? Seniors can’t walk very far. There’s no room for extra traffic in the alleys or on Geikie Street. The street has no “anchor tenants.” 

I heard all those points last week, and the week before, and the time before that. I heard them loud and clear 13 years ago when, as editor of the other newspaper in town, I advocated for a car-free Patricia Street.

And here I am stirring the pot again. 

Except that I’m doing nothing of the sort. The pot has been stirred many times, by many different straws. It’s no longer a radical idea. Urban planning around pedestrians not only reduces congestion and has low environmental impact, it has social and recreational value.

Urban planning around pedestrians not only reduces congestion and has low environmental impact, it has social and recreational value.

Now please don’t think I’m dismissing the needs of our mobility-challenged residents. But when was the last time you decided to go to the pharmacy, or the grocer, and snagged a spot right outside the store? We’ve all done the Patricia Street crawl, swerving between lanes in hopes that the guy idling in his lifted diesel truck will move just as we pull up. We’ve all waited for an obnoxious amount of time with our blinker on, to no avail. Admit it! Half the time we go hunting for a Patricia Street parking spot we end up circling the block in vain and end up parking two dozen car lengths away anyway. Is this what we’re defending? 

Without bringing up Canmore and Banff’s seemingly successful pedestrian-friendly experiments (oops, just did!), allow me to draw on another small tourism community, one in which I also plied the trade of newspapering. In Sidney, B.C., next to where the ferries unload their passengers at the Swartz Bay terminal, there exists a quaint little night market that takes place every Sunday. I recall a vibrant streetscape with all of the amenities you’d expect at a showpiece festival: artisans, open-air cafés and music. Local businesses (Sidney is also known as BookTown) didn’t dare miss it. 

That was in a community full of retirees, who loved their cars surely as much as we do here in Jasper, long before the term social distancing ever gave residents there a reason to prioritize such a project. 

Every summer, getting around downtown is an exercise in patience. But this year in Jasper, thanks to COVID-19 and the lack of protective measures most downtown denizens seem to be taking, walking the sidewalks is akin to running the gauntlet. Would this not have been the year to try out a pedestrian-friendly Patricia Street?

Did we miss our opportunity? I suppose we’ll find out.


Bob Covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

Articles You May LIke ›
Council votes to keep pop up businesses on Connaught
Business
Council votes to keep pop up businesses on Connaught
Peter Shokeir, Local Journalism Initiative, Jasper Fitzhugh 
Thursday, April 3, 2025
Pushback on the proposed Patricia St. location swayed council to keep with administration's original proposal. The pop up business village is expected...
this is a test
Jasper, we have a problem: Paid Parking Pilot sputtering on takeoff
Editorial
Jasper, we have a problem: Paid Parking Pilot sputtering on takeoff
Bob Covey 
Sunday, August 1, 2021
I know it’s a pilot project but Paid Parking in Jasper isn’t exactly off to a soaring start. We all laughed when the MOJ had to delay the initiative d...
this is a test
Most Read ›
The dukes of hazard trees
Environment
The dukes of hazard trees
Bob Covey 
Monday, July 7, 2025
When normal forestry practices don’t cut it: With a light-on-the-land touch, specialized arborists are cleaning up Jasper’s burn debris It’s a widely-...
this is a test
Float on: Canada Day Parade gallery
Arts & Culture
Float on: Canada Day Parade gallery
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
Jasperites donned their red and white, kitted out their floats and paraded around the community with pride on Canada Day (Tuesday, July 1). Local busi...
this is a test
Walking Through Fire: Wildlife
Environment
Walking Through Fire: Wildlife
Kirsten Schmitten 
Friday, July 4, 2025
Part 2: Home is where the hearth is In Part 1 of our Walking Through Fire series , we discussed how post-fire vegetation bounces back. But what about ...
this is a test
Aussie folk artist topping live music event at JPP
Arts & Culture
Aussie folk artist topping live music event at JPP
Sophie Pfisterer, freelance contributor 
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
One of Jasper’s most popular restaurants will soon be dishing up live music and good vibes. On July 4 at 8:30 p.m., Jasper Pizza Place will host a roo...
this is a test
Latest ›
Two hikers killed by rockfall event at Bow Glacier Falls
Environment
Two hikers killed by rockfall event at Bow Glacier Falls
Friday, June 20, 2025
The Rockies hiking community is mourning the loss of two of its members today. Calgary's Jutta Hinrichs, 70 years old, a member of the hiking group Sl...
this is a test
The bear necessities
Environment
The bear necessities
Bob Covey 
Thursday, June 19, 2025
Collars, fences and attractant elimination keys to bear management Jasper National Park bear biologists are keeping a close eye on area grizzlies. At ...
this is a test
CONGRATULATIONS Class of 2025
Community
CONGRATULATIONS Class of 2025
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
Congratulations to the 2025 graduates of Jasper Jr/Sr High School and École Desrochers! These bright young individuals are now stepping confidently in...
this is a test
Meet the locals: Fran Jones
Community
Meet the locals: Fran Jones
Georgia Ristivojevic 
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
While Jasper's mountains, rivers and lakes get plenty of (deserved) air time, it's the people who live here that make the community welcoming and incl...
this is a test

NEXT ARTICLE

An invisible hazard: Alpine guiding in times of COVID-19

Business, News, Peaks & Valleys

Most Read ›
The dukes of hazard trees
Environment
The dukes of hazard trees
Bob Covey 
Monday, July 7, 2025
When normal forestry practices don’t cut it: With a light-on-the-land touch, specialized arborists are cleaning up Jasper’s burn debris It’s a widely-...
this is a test
Float on: Canada Day Parade gallery
Arts & Culture
Float on: Canada Day Parade gallery
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
Jasperites donned their red and white, kitted out their floats and paraded around the community with pride on Canada Day (Tuesday, July 1). Local busi...
this is a test
Walking Through Fire: Wildlife
Environment
Walking Through Fire: Wildlife
Kirsten Schmitten 
Friday, July 4, 2025
Part 2: Home is where the hearth is In Part 1 of our Walking Through Fire series , we discussed how post-fire vegetation bounces back. But what about ...
this is a test
Aussie folk artist topping live music event at JPP
Arts & Culture
Aussie folk artist topping live music event at JPP
Sophie Pfisterer, freelance contributor 
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
One of Jasper’s most popular restaurants will soon be dishing up live music and good vibes. On July 4 at 8:30 p.m., Jasper Pizza Place will host a roo...
this is a test
Latest ›
The dukes of hazard trees
Environment
The dukes of hazard trees
Bob Covey 
Monday, July 7, 2025
When normal forestry practices don’t cut it: With a light-on-the-land touch, specialized arborists are cleaning up Jasper’s burn debris It’s a widely-...
this is a test
Walking Through Fire: Wildlife
Environment
Walking Through Fire: Wildlife
Kirsten Schmitten 
Friday, July 4, 2025
Part 2: Home is where the hearth is In Part 1 of our Walking Through Fire series , we discussed how post-fire vegetation bounces back. But what about ...
this is a test
Float on: Canada Day Parade gallery
Arts & Culture
Float on: Canada Day Parade gallery
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
Jasperites donned their red and white, kitted out their floats and paraded around the community with pride on Canada Day (Tuesday, July 1). Local busi...
this is a test
Aussie folk artist topping live music event at JPP
Arts & Culture
Aussie folk artist topping live music event at JPP
Sophie Pfisterer, freelance contributor 
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
One of Jasper’s most popular restaurants will soon be dishing up live music and good vibes. On July 4 at 8:30 p.m., Jasper Pizza Place will host a roo...
this is a test
This site complies with Jasper requirements
Contact us
Privacy Policy
Advertise With Us
About The Jasper Local
Accessibility Policy
Support

Follow Us

Advertise with us

Measurable, targeted, local. Email example@thejasperlocal.com

ePaper
coogle_play
app_store

© Copyright The Jasper Local