Pick a Peck of Posts
Mark your calendars!
Saturday, March 22 from 9 ‘til 2 ish at the St. Clair College Centre for the Arts - Planning for Our Future. This event will feature three speakers on Urban Planning a round table discussion and an open mic, question and answer period. The speakers will be; Jim Yanchula, representing the International Downtown Association, Larry Silani, representing the Inter-Municipal Planning Coordination Committee and Veronika Mogyorody, talking about green/sustainable urban development. Participants will be asked to complete a survey based and encouraged to discuss the information introduced by the speakers.
The objective of this event is to shed some light on the planning process and to introduce some viewpoints that the general public may not be aware of. I am hoping that everyone that comes out will go home with some new ideas and knowledge.
More Freshness
I met with some out-of-town friends at Colosanti’s on the weekend. We made sure to grab some fresh veggies while we were there. Eating a tomatoe that hasn’t spent the last 2 weeks on a truck or in a warehouse is a delightful experience. It actually tastes like something. We got a bag of fresh peppers for a buck and a half, English cucumbers for a dollar and eight big tomatoes for two-fifty. Now, imagine going into Sobey’s or Zehrs and being able to buy produce that was picked locally and brought straight to market.
A reader on another blog was amused by my outrage over the fact that it’s almost impossible to find local produce at a grocery store around here. If Windsor and the region are going to do anything for ourselves we need to start with the basic resources available to us. Agricultural products are something we could start with.
Think of the local jobs in packaging, processing and distribution that would exist if we ate our own local produce. Think of all the diesel fuel saved from moving up and down the 401 and the energy saved from all the cold storage facilities and centralized distribution centres.
A Little More on “Cities…”
Jane Jacob’s “Cities and the Wealth of Nations” has been my evening reading for the past little bit and it has fascinated me how her economic theory, supported by empirical evidence, is so relevant to our situation and its causes. It is strange how vibrant and diverse our economy was one hundred years ago and now in the miracle age of globalization we’re a one horse town and our horse is looking more and more like a broken-down old nag.
Jacobs tells her readers that vibrant economies are based on innovative, import-replacing cities. She cites examples throughout history of cities like Venice that began by trading salt with Constantinople. In time they started to make, crudely at first, some of the things that they got in Constantinople and so they could trade their salt for different things. Once they improved their production of import-replacing goods they started trading them to other European outposts for different raw materials. These goods then were traded to Constantinople and all the while the artisans of Venice kept improving their crafts and replacing ever more imports and diversifying their trade and economy.
We have done the opposite. We have over time lost our smaller industries and parts producers and we have not replaced them with new import-replacing industries. We put this down to the global economy and that specialization is more efficient. Transplanting factories is done to make things cheaper not more efficiently.
What consumer goods could we make and market in Windsor/Essex?
Want to do something cool with the old barn?
They did it in London with the Knights old arena - The Ice House - at Wellington Road. Build an indoor velodrome.
The short track distance and steep banking make for some very exciting human powered racing. In the winter in Europe “Six-day Races” are very popular. They are run in the evening usually from 7 - 1 am and feature several shorter events. The infield is usually set-up with café tables for dinner and drinks and the arenas are packed. I thought of this while reading an article on velonews.
Jack Simes III, a member of the U.S. Olympic team in 1960, ‘64 and ‘68, and coach of the 1976 Olympic team, has booked the arena at Mandalay Bay resort on the Vegas strip, and plans to hold the events on a new 166-meter plywood track. The races would be held September 23-25, with events from about 7 p.m. until 1 a.m. each night.
Also, in Japan they have Kerien racing which is bicycle track racing with bets placed similar to horse racing.
Tags: adaptive reuse, arena, City Centre West, community building, Downtown, Education, Green Building, Lecture Series, local economic development, london, planning department, Regional cooperation, relocalization, revitalization, scaledown, Urban Design
Post Feedback
Why not make it a Speed Skating track? if i recall correctly, the local speed skating club uses adstoll arena, which i dont believe really offers great facilities for speed skating. that and the fact it will be shut down soon. The velodrome is a great idea, too. Both indoor bike racing and speed skating are exciting sports.
If cash were not an issue, selling it to either St. Clair or the University for their mens and womens hockey programs to use. Im pretty sure the University currently plays at Adie Knox while St. Clair plays at South Windsor.
Veering away from sports, how about something along the lines of St. Lawrence Market in Toronto? It houses a great Farmer’s Market and a place for arts and culture to thrive and be the money maker the city wants it to be so they can stop the “free ride”.
come to think of it, the velodrome would be excellent. it can help spur growth in the sport in our area which would also help an event like the Giro di Via Italia (Erie St. bike races) grow back into a prominent tourist attraction.
my family goes to watch every year. it really is an exciting and unique event. i love it.
St Lawrence Market type purpose would be a natural !!! No doubt about it! local foods, produce, products. In toronto, StLawrence is the centrepiece of the neighbourhood! Imagine all that foot traffic all day long, everyday!! It would be like a real neighbourhood. where people can go on foot. C’mon!! The old barn has to be a market!!
As a velodrome the floor is open allowing for multi-uses. Concerts, markets anything you want.
I would love to be able to buy more local produce in my grocery stores. As it stands it is a nightmare to travel all over the city just to buy my weekly groceries. Also, the cost of such produce would be lower than compared to the gouging we are currently getting at the national chains. But no wonder when they pick the tomato in Mexico and it is nearly frozen on the weekly trek to the processing plant which in turn ships it to Windsor. I have even heard (though cannot confirm) that some apples we eat are almost a year old! But with injections of water and near freezing as well.
I think local farmers and restaurants should get together to figure out a way to serve their produce in our local restaurants. Nothing worse than getting some bland tasting vegetables with your food.
As for innovations in Windsor…why not build more medical supplies mike diagnostic machines or surgical tools (especially surgical tools). Considering the knowledge base and our machinist in this city we could be the new medical equipment supplying city in N. America.
I hope others will be going to the seminar, I know I will be there for sure.
Apples will keep for a long time if you wrap them in newsprint and keep them cool. A few years ago we got carried away at Theissens and found this worked well.
Medical tools, anything our tool makers could make.
What about products for local consumers? Garden/household tools or kitchen wares…
St. Clair college just announced a new sport facility for the suburban campus, which kind of puts a wash on them using the Old Barn, which was great idea!
Does the Barn rate a heritage designation? It should! I like the idea of a velodrome, that would go hand in hand with the bicycle races on Erie Street and increase the interest in bicycle use in city wide, not just for sport but transportation and recreation. We can build a new market right beside it for locally grown produce, or even have our own greenhouses/botanical gardens attached for year round use. Imagine buying fresh from the vine tomatoes in January as Chris did this weekend..in the city! Turn empty parking lots into greenhouses all over the city and start using our too green grass front lawns into vegetable gardens!
James,
I don’t think gardening tools would work beause the cost would be much too high to make those locally. Most are made in 3rd world countries which is why they are so cheap to begin with. I also believe that unless we change our ways of cheap=good, we will continue in our current downward spiral.
Urbanrat,
I believe there is heritage designation on the arena.
That’s kinda my point here Dave. I would have no problem paying 5 or 10 dollars more for locally made products. The message should be local=good. Of course a shop of this type won’t employ as many people as an auto plant but, imagine 100 small shops turning our locally made goods. If business can return to earning a living instead of giant profits for shareholders then we can relocalize our economy.
I so agree! however we have to change the mindset of others and that is going to be very difficult to do. Why hasn’t the CAW try to do this? Support local business and give the finger to the big box stores?
Yep. There’s more to supporting one’s local economy than just making sure there’s a Chrysler in the driveway.
There’s too much GREED when it comes to shopping retail. It’s all about price, price, price for the consumer. When it comes to protecting a Big Three job, we’re expected to pass on the Hyundai, but somehow the $2.99 t-shirt at Walmart is just too good to pass up while another indy retailer closes up shop because he couldn’t buy 100 truckloads of these cheap shirts from India.
Hypocrisy.
From the BBC today: What England is thinking on railways:
‘Big shift’ to rail urged for UK
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7277757.stm
Why can’t we farm the roofs of this city, well the flat ones anyways. even raise chickens on them and cool the city at the same time. Use sheep to cut grass in the parks and along the roads as I think they do somewhere in California or such. You would have wool and meat ! Wouldn’t the job of shephard be a great. Grow hemp for all kinds of products including T shirts on ground that can’t be used for much more than..industrial brown lands. A city can almost be self sufficient if it thinks about it and wants to.
How about the old barn as being the sight for a new farmer’s Market downtown with hours that people actually can attend to?
I have no problem finding time to get to the Market Square. That place is awesome. It’s worth it for Nizam’s alone. And of course… it actually *exists* which gives it the clear advantage over the downtown farmers market which is still a concept we are entering another decade of talking talking talking about. Hey let’s put it here, no let’s put there…..yada yada. With all the vacant space downtown it’s amazing this can’t be easily done. And it would go a long way to making downtown a place one can LIVE, having access to a large variety of farm fresh produce, meat, etc. The old armouries has long been suggested as another good site for a farmers market. But it continues to sit empty most the time. The old barn has potentional too, I agree, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it sat empty after the WFCU Centre opens for business. So much ignored potentional downtown!
James, excellent posts and news all around. I am looking forward to the event at the Cleary.
As for buying local, it can be done. However I fear for the Ottawa St. market. Rents from what I hear have been skyrocketing for tennants, and several have already moved out. I think the conversion of the Windsor arena would be an excellent idea. The only problem of course is that there isn’t acres of parking in front of it
This is however an excellent chance to bring back some vibrancy to the core. Farmers markets, flea markets, etc… It would be a destination location that would attract people from all Windsor and Essex County. Taking the market out of the core in the first place was a terrible idea.
If you read this posting on WindsorEats, eating at local restaurants also goes a long way in supporting our local economy. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like Windsorites as a whole care too much about local restaurants.
let me correct that. it’s not that people don’t care, it is that many don’t make local restaurants their first, second or even third choice when dining out.
As I posted over at Windsoreats…
“Humm.. Dissapointing results. We have one of the best and most varied dining scenes in Canada. You could go out to eat every day for probably two weeks in Windsor and not have the same type of cusine twice!
It’s a shame that Applebee’s and Moxies and the like are the first thought for many. ”
To me chains aren’t the fourth or fifth or fiftityth choice. They all serve the same bland food, the only difference is the sauce they smother it in.
There are so many varied dining choices in this city it is scandalous to even contemplate eating at a fake neighbourhood restaurant like Applebee’s.
Even in times of prosperity there is no excuse to eat at a chain in this city, even less so when money is tight. Support your local business.
I wrote under ‘Windsor a Happy City?” we some of the best restaurants for very reasonable prices…
I lament the loss of the Steakhouse, or Brigatino’s but I still frequent Erie and have my Shwarma with extra garlic sauce.
The indian is good and the thai fbulous, and know we have some competitve sushi! Do I need to mention the Chinese cuisine (Oh Shin-Shin…). These are just the reasonably priced places…
Why would I eat crap like Crapplbee’s or Swiss Chalet when I have the aforementioned in the same pride range?
Has anyone noticed the one restaurant chain that actually failed miserably to bust up Windsor’s dining habits… Olive Garden! NO ONE screws around with our already superior local Italian dining establishments. Although it’s preferred, you don’t even have to go on Erie street if you want Italian dining - it’s downtown, it’s on Ottawa street, it’s on Tecumseh road, it’s everywhere. Windsor spanked Olive Garden and sent it back from where it came from.
Now we just need to clean up the rest of the riff-raff.