The Downtown Victoria Business Association says it will support a motion by two Victoria councillors that could open a motor-vehicle lane on the pedestrian-only section of Government Street from April to October to allow cruise-passenger shuttle buses.
Jeff Bray, executive director of the DVBA, said allowing the shuttles — and other traffic — through would help struggling businesses on Lower Government Street regain their financial footing after two consecutive summers of no cruise spenders and declining tourism dollars. A lot of these businesses are hanging by a thread. Some have taken out second mortgages … there’s a lot of anxiety,” said Bray. He wants the city to open the pedestrian walkway on Government to vehicle traffic for at least this season “so some of these businesses can at least get some cash flow going.”
The cruise season gets underway in less than 60 days when the first of 365 cruise-ship visits start at Ogden Point.
Because of the closure of three blocks of lower Government Street to vehicles, from Humboldt to View — which began during the pandemic — the city changed the routing of the shuttle buses. The buses will now travel via Blanshard and View streets, skipping the picturesque view of the Inner Harbour, and drop off passengers a block north at Government and View, near Yates Street.
The motion going to council’s committee of the whole on Thursday asks the city to consider opening Government Street to traffic for the cruise season. It is being put forward by councillors Stephen Andrew and Geoff Young.
Andrew said limiting the street to pedestrians may prove to have “unintended consequences,” and suggested allowing the street to open to traffic for at least this season.
But Mayor Lisa Helps wasn’t budging on keeping lower Government Street as a pedestrian walkway that’s only open to vehicle traffic during early-morning hours for deliveries to businesses. Most cruise passengers arrive downtown in the afternoon and evening.
She said the pedestrian-friendly zone has been part of the city’s strategic plan to build back Victoria during the pandemic, and create a business-friendly zone for patios and shoppers.
Helps said the new route into downtown — which follows Dallas Road to Douglas and Blanshard, then cuts across View Street into downtown — also helps residents of James Bay, since the buses will travel on Belleville and through the neighbourhood on only their return trip, instead of twice.
“I don’t think the majority of council will support the motion,” Helps said Tuesday. “If [the shuttle drop-off] were a half a kilometre away, we would need to look at a compromise. The pedestrian walkway is here to stay.”
The new shuttle bus stop is 140 metres from the previous one.
Helps said city staff have spent two years working with businesses on Government Street.
“I get it that they’re hanging on by a thread. I sympathize with that,” she said. “The fears won’t go away until the cruise passengers walk back along Government and visit these wonderful stores.”
The mayor said the new shuttle stop, which is a block north of the old one, will spread the cruise passengers into other shopping zones, such as Lower Johnson and Chinatown.
Tara Savrtka, co-owner of Baggins Shoes and an organizer of the Lower Johnson Business Group, said she’s in full support of the shuttle-stop change.
“The far side of the corridor is often overlooked when it comes to the tourist season and it’s great to see that businesses on the other side of Yates who have also been on hard times are being considered and the wealth that is our tourist season is being shared more appropriately,” said Savrtka, who is working to gather further support from the 50 businesses on Johnson Street and Market Square, almost all of which are run by local operators.
Savrtka notes that many downtown businesses have lost revenue during the pandemic and are counting on the summer season — and cruise spending — to bounce back. “I want to see this cruise stop go forward to spread the wealth around a bit,” she said.
Helps said the changes present a “real opportunity for the DVBA” to do promotional work to educate cruise passengers about the attractions downtown.
Bray said that’s already in the works. Destination Victoria’s downtown ambassadors will be at the shuttle stop, directing cruise passengers, and promotional materials and maps from Attractions Victoria will be given to passengers onboard the ships and before they launch in Seattle.
“At the end of the day, the DVBA works to support everyone that benefits from tourism,” he said.
