Let’s Make Calgary’s Downtown BRIGHTER!
For a long time I have been thinking one of the key things missing from most downtowns today are the fun mid-century neon lights that were synonymous with downtowns 50+ years ago.
In 1964, Petula Clark in her iconic song “Downtown,” sang about how “lights are much brighter downtown, and the neon signs are pretty.”
Today, night life and vibrant pedestrian urban spaces are STILL associated with places that are BRIGHT. Think New York’s Times Square, London’s Piccadilly Circus, Tokyo’s Shibuya Crossing and West Kowloon Cultural District in Hong Kong. They are full of not only neon signs, but huge outdoor TV screens, LED light displays and colourful banners
Many of Tokyo’s streets are bright, colourful and cheerful.
Downtowns have become dark and drab
It seems to me over the past 50+ years, the streets of most downtowns across Canada have gotten much darker; to the point where they are no brighter than those in the burbs.
Nashville’s downtown music row aka Broadway Street is full of neon signs even today.
Perhaps one of the key strategies to converting Calgary’s downtown (and other struggling downtowns) into attractive places to live, visit and play, is to make them BRIGHTER.
Not only have Canada’s downtowns become darker, but they have become more and more dominated by office buildings that take up entire blocks and are closed (think dark) evenings and weekends.
FYI: Calgary’s downtown core has one of the highest concentrations of office buildings in North America, (40 million square feet within 50 blocks) meaning the negative impact of office towers and their darkness is greater than most cities.
In a 2015 I wrote, “In the '50s and '60s bright, bold, flashing lights were synonymous with the nightlife fun that downtowns used to offer. Today, most of our downtowns are visually sterile, corporate and just plain banal for my taste.”
Perhaps the City of Calgary could use some of its $200+ million downtown enhancement fund to entice downtown building owners to add funky signage and light shows to their buildings at street level, in an effort make our downtown more fun.
Could/Should Calgary’s Stephen Avenue Walk look like Nashville’s downtown music row with street level restaurants, theatres, bars, lounges, cafes, live music venues. Could the Palace Theatre become Calgary’s equivalent of Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium attracting 1,000s to come downtown almost every night? I digress.
Benefits of Neon Blade Signs
The great thing about traditional neon blade signage is they are permanent, not just something that happens for a week or weekend like Calgary’s GLOW Festival (don’t get me wrong GLOW is fun and attracts lots of people, but we need to improve the downtown experience on a permanent basis, not just for special events).
Neon signs are also functional in that they tell people what there is to see and do in the area – art exhibitions, concerts, plays, restaurants, shopping and pubs etc. One of the great things about neon blade signs are that they look great day and night and can also become part of the downtown’s wayfinding system.
FYI: Blade signs are the ones that hang off the façade of the building so pedestrians and drivers can see them from a distance as opposed to signage that is installed flat on the building’s façade making them visible only when you are next to them or from across the street.
Imagine The Downtown Calgary Experience If….
If Arts Commons was covered in several huge screens that showcased was is playing or coming soon. Wouldn’t it be great if the facade of the building was alive with colour and moving images.
If all the downtown historical buildings had white lights tracing their unique architectural silhouette.
If The Bay’s tera cotta façade glowed at night with changing coloured lights. Holt Renfrew’s entire building could also glow at night, like the department stores do in London.
If along Stephen Avenue each restaurant, bar and lounge had a neon blade sign with fun animated food and drink icons (cocktail glass clinking, beer pouring out of a glass, couples dancing, saxophones flashing etc.) Sometimes I find the restaurants are so dark I wonder if they are even open.
If the canopies on the 7th Avenue LRT stations had light and music shows like Freemont Street in Las Vegas.
If the Glenbow, Convention Centre and Marriott commissioned local artists and lighting engineers to create ongoing light shows on the blank façade of their buildings
If Chinatown was an oasis of neon signs that are traditionally associated with Chinatowns around the world.
If downtown’s public parkades all had a huge neon blade sign marking their entrance so drivers could see them from blocks away.
Recent Downtown Lighting Improvements
Over the past 10 years, contemporary new lighting has gradually been added to our downtown. The TELUS Sky façade light show is unique, the Calgary Tower now has a changing light show at the top, the new +15 link on 9th Ave SW at the east end of Gulf Canada Square lights up at night and the downtown 7th Avenue LRT Stations have decorative lights, as does Reconciliation Bridge.
However they lack the critical mass and continuity needed to capture the public’s attention.
Last Word
In my opinion, making Calgary’s downtown a brighter, more visually interesting place, should be the first step in its revitalization. People need to immediately see downtown has changed from being dark, drab, corporate place, to a fun, colourful and playful destination, if we are going to successfully convert it into an attractive place to live, work and play 18/7.
This is true not only for Calgary, but for many downtowns across Canada.
If you like this bold, you will like these links:
Calgary’s Downtown Night Lights Revisited
Downtown Fun: Spokane vs Calgary!