A St. John’s city councilor is providing some information on why the city has chosen to end the downtown pedestrian mall after Labour Day.
Public discussion has picked up recently about possibly extending the popular downtown attraction.
Jamie Korab stresses that he is not the downtown council rep, nor is he the ward councilor for the area. However, he is giving some rationale behind the dates chosen.
(Jamie Korab. File photo.)
He notes the impact on businesses, particularly those outside the pedestrian mall footprint, who have reported a drop in sales when the mall is open. As well, Korab says not all businesses within the mall want it extended, noting that many are happy with the current dates and feel their businesses would be negatively impacted if it were extended.
Other reasons that Korab notes include challenges with delivery services and issues with obtaining staff for security services at such a late stage.
He says council is open to the discussion, and this is not the first time they have been asked about extending the dates. However, that would need to be done in consultation with downtown businesses.
