Vancouver city council has voted to permanently close a section of Robson Street to vehicles, creating a public square in the heart of the city.
Councillors approved the closure between Howe and Hornby streets, the block that runs next to the Vancouver Art Gallery, during a meeting on Wednesday.
"There are more pedestrians than drivers travelling through this block of Robson Street, and having a permanent public square will encourage year-round programming," the city said in a statement. Staff will be looking for public feedback on the design for the square, which will be the largest public space downtown aside from the Seawall and Stanley Park.
The closure to traffic was first proposed nearly 40 years ago, as part of the original design for Robson Square. Decades later, the city expects to close the road to traffic sometime in June.
Over the next few months it will hold public consultations to find out how residents would like the plaza to look.
The city and designers may draw inspiration from summers when the street has been closed temporarily, transforming the section of the street into a pedestrian plaza.
The closures involved international design competitions provided a large space for art installations, but they also forced TransLink to reroute the Number 5 bus, a main route between the West End and downtown.
"Right now it goes down Robson and onto Granville so it's easy to make connections for SkyTrain and Canada Line," senior Don Allison told CTV News.
Allison said he went to a city information session to voice his objections to the Robson closure. He told those at the meeting that many seniors with mobility issues would have a hard time adjusting.
"It's almost like the decision was made before they even came to us. So there was a lot of discontent and we didn't feel like we were being heard."
With a report from CTV Vancouver's Ben Miljure
