Project update, March 2023

Project update, March 2023: Work is ongoing to develop a permanent design for public realm improvements on Sixth Street and an expanded Uptown Plaza, based on what we heard through community engagement in 2021 and 2022.

While we work on this permanent design, the City will implement an interim plaza space this spring using the full width of Belmont Street and extending from Sixth Street to the laneway mid-block between Sixth and Seventh streets. The expanded space will enable community events and other programming to take place in the plaza during summer 2023, and to give people a chance to experience and get used to a bigger plaza. We’ll be asking for your feedback following the summer activities in the expanded space!

Interim changes to the plaza this spring will include the addition of tables and seating, and removal of some of the existing elements in the space to make it more flexible for both neighbourhood gathering and opportunities for events and activities. Temporary water and power connections have also been installed to support more community programming.

These interim changes will enable the community to experience a larger plaza in the Uptown neighbourhood with better opportunities for community use – for example, small markets, musical performances, recreational activities, etc. – and to get used to traffic and parking changes. The expanded plaza will also allow the City to learn about the community’s interest to program and use the space through a summer season.

We’ll be seeking feedback on your experiences in Uptown Plaza this summer when we re-engage the community on this project in fall 2023. This feedback will help inform the design of the future permanent Uptown plaza.