Though summer is still a few months away, plans are already in the works for the return of the downtown pedestrian mall.

The mall will open sooner this year—mid-June—to coincide with summer break for schools.

Council approved the motion, but they did not approve recommendations made by city staff to remove the portion of the pedestrian mall from Prescott Street to Cliff Baird’s Cove in order to support downtown traffic.

Councillor Maggie Burton says there are already enough issues with pedestrian accessibility in the city and removing a portion of the mall would not be an improvement.