As the ByWard Market District Authority moves forward with its mandate to revive the popular area, executive director Zachary Dayler says there’s one underrated contributor to increased safety in the Market: people.
“We’re making good strides in terms of putting people on the streets,” Dayler told OBJ Thursday. “The (authority) needs to make sure we’re continuing to have events that bring large amounts of people. Why? Because that creates more eyes on the street, that creates more people to create a sense of collective safety.”
The pandemic dealt a particularly significant blow to the ByWard Market, which saw a drop in foot traffic and an increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness and mental health issues. Resulting crime and safety issues made headlines, making some residents and tourists hesitant to stop by.
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The authority, which was created last year and officially launches this spring with the kickoff of the farmers’ market season, is part of the city’s efforts to revitalize the Market. According to Dayler, this summer is expected to be the beginning of a revival.
“There’s a real difference about this year,” he said. “From an observation perspective, we’re starting to see school tours return in a way I haven’t seen in the last four-and-a-half years. We’re starting to see more tourists from France and more of that international presence in the Market. Personally, it feels like we are back to a bit of normality.”
Looking at the data, Dayler said traffic in the area has been steadily increasing and time will tell if this year’s numbers return to pre-pandemic levels. To help measure the Market’s recovery, the organization will track more than just foot traffic this summer.
“We’ll have to closely monitor (consumer) spending and a lot of factors can impact that,” he said. “I think we can expect a minor economic boom. There’s still a bit of savings dollars that are in people’s accounts from before. But I do think one of the challenges we need to be aware of is where people are spending their dollars domestically. That’s why tourism is really important.”
With a view to attracting more people, Dayler said his team is making sure there’s something for everyone all summer long.
“We have a full season of programming lined up that the team has been working hard on, with the focus of drawing people down with events that we know are going to be of interest,” he said. “As the district authority, we’ve been able to program a lot more of a robust season down here and that really is just the result of the amalgamated authority being able to work efficiently and effectively in stride with the city.”
For vendors, the authority has begun replacing the 30-year-old metal canopies with retrofitted containers.
“There was wear and tear and some of them were beyond repair. They needed to be replaced,” said Dayler. “In talking to vendors, for a lot of them, the biggest impediment to setting up is storage.”
The containers, which are fabricated with roll-up doors that can be secured overnight, were tested in a pilot program last summer. This summer, there are plans for a total of 14 containers to be used by vendors.
Dayler added that the new setup opens up options for a winter market as well.
“There’s a lot of flexibility at a low entry point,” he said. “There’s a lot of success there. Plus, they’re almost like these perfect little Instagram snapshots. Businesses have done a really great job dressing them.”
Beautification efforts, which form part of the ByWard Market Public Realm Plan, are underway. The authority has partnered with the Canadian Tulip Festival to fill flower beds and local artists will brighten up the streets and the new containers with colourful murals. There’s also a new program to keep the area clean after events. While Dayler said the effects won’t be obvious right away, regular cleanings will eventually wash away decades of built-up dirt.
“You should start to see the general quality and beautification standards increase over time, which is within our mandate,” said Dayler.
While Dayler hopes having more people around will help everyone feel safer, he added that other security measures are being introduced in the Market to address issues from drug use and break-ins to homelessness and mental health.
For example, the new police operations centre being set up in the Rideau Centre will increase police presence on the ground.
“That is a significant, significant resource,” said Dayler. “One of the logistical issues was that when police made an arrest in the Market, they had to bring the person up to the Elgin Street station. Once they’ve made that trip, (the officers are) less likely to come back. With the neighbourhood operations centre being here and being a hub of activity, I don’t think we’re going to see the dropping of service levels the same way we have in the past.”
Police will soon begin summer night patrols and two by-law officers will be present in the Market, cutting down on response times.
Dayler says the authority will continue to advocate for business owners on all issues, including those related to safety.
“We need to continue with some of the larger advocacy efforts and things that are going on that the (authority) has no say in,” he said. “All of those issues are critical and the role the (authority) plays is making sure our approach is balanced between public market space and providing a safe environment.”
