There is going to be quite the BBQ on Annette St.
Here is what is happening in a nutshell. Cyclists want bike lanes on Annette St, businesses on Annette want nothing to do with them. Ergo, you have a conflict. This is a “battle” that neither is going to win.
Here are the losers in this.
Cyclists want a bike lane on Annette and have done a very good job of communicating that. They were offered ‘sharrows’ which were wisely rejected. Win or lose, future bike lane requests will be reminded of the ugliness of this battle. The future ramifications of this is no reason for cyclists to give up on Annette nor is the ugliness their fault.
Merchants are fearful for their livelihoods. They have every right to be, it is how they put food on their families table. Contrary to people saying that it is a simple issue it is not, we are talking about affecting some pretty personal issues. The merchants believe that taking away parking will affect their business, although shortsighted, they do have a point. This is not a Bloor St where the main transportation is anything but the car. Councillor Mammoliti today punished merchants in his ward by reducing their parking spots in an effort to control the business’ seedier clients. So contrary to any City studies that tell us the reduction of parking will not hurt business the good bare chested Councillor uses parking reduction as a bat to do just that.
Even still, I think the merchants are missing the long term issue of how they will get customers the next time gas shoots above $1.50 litre. Win or lose, the merchants will suffer. Either they will spend years being bitter about the bikelanes or will have lost an opportunity to attract future customers who do not rely on cars. Those customers will sooner or later, probably as soon as the next hurricane, make up the majortiy of consumers.
So are there winners in this? Most definitely. Councillor Heaps and Saundercook.
If they go in, Heaps claims it as a victory which he uses to cover the year’s shortcomings. Loses and he has a perfect scapegoat, a new Case Ootes, he can parade around the neighbourhood before slicing its throat and throwing it on the coals. Well, actually he would probably ensure he is around for a long time as the real Ootes is getting pretty long in the tooth.
If they do not go in Saundercook becomes champion of the Annette merchants. If they do go in he will have a powerful scare tatic and will give him free riegn to interfere in other wards.
Essentially they both get scapegoats no matter what happens.
Not a very pretty picture. There could have been another way around it. The merchants and cyclists could be on the same page and making their politicians what they should be, political servants. Recognizing one another’s issues and making the street more attractive to consumers and cyclists then telling the politicians how to do it. The onus to take this path is not on the shoulders of the merchants or cyclists, they simply do not have the resources. This should be facilitated with their tax dollars, instead of the money being used as it is now on hapless City staff and their endless studies. The problem is not the merchants nor cyclists, it is the politicians who only need the meat for their BBQ.
I wonder if scapegoat is better served on the BBQ or curried.
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