Collingwood and The Town of the Blue Mountains may be neighbours, but they've taken different approaches for the 2021 patio season and summer tourism crowds.
For ... reasons ... the restaurants and retailers of Collingwood and The Blue Mountains are preparing for another mostly-outdoor dining/shopping experience this summer. Municipalities are being pushed to change bylaws and allow different physical set ups to accommodate more space (for ... you know).
In Collingwood, the town is again allowing restaurants to add patio space on street parking areas provided they use barriers and, preferably, a raised platform to keep people safe from traffic.
The Town of the Blue Mountains tried to block street parking on Bruce Street using concrete jersey barriers to add pedestrian and patio space, but the idea was ... not well received.
This year the barriers are out and a pop-up park is in. The town now owns land – earmarked for a future parking lot – near the downtown and plans to turn it into a picnic area so people who are shopping downtown have a place to go and sit with lots of room for physical distancing.
So, what do you think of the plans?
