Best of the Princess Street Promenade
For those of you who were away from the Limestone City this past weekend, you missed a unique event that is already being called a highlight of the summer. The second annual Princess Street Promenade took place this past Saturday, attracting thousands local residents and tourists to the downtown core. Princess Street from Division to Ontario was transformed into a car-free, pedestrian-friendly festival, whereby local businesses and community organizations flooded the streets with fun-filled activities, racks of merchandise, live performances, and much, much more. Whether you wanted to shop, eat, be entertained, or simply walk down the middle of one of Kingston’s busiest streets, there was something for everyone. This week, we’re taking a look back on all the action, and asking the tough question:
The best part of the Princess Street Promenade was:
- All of the Above (65%, 137 Votes)
- Car-Free Street (14%, 29 Votes)
- Free Public Transit (12%, 25 Votes)
- Businesses Moving Outside (5%, 11 Votes)
- Activities and Performances (4%, 9 Votes)
Total Voters: 211
Loading ...The Princess Street Promenade incorporates many ideas from conversations we’ve been having here on Kingstonist including car-free days, free public transportation, and a renewed focus on the heart of the city of Kingston. Not only do I think the Promenade has proven its worth, but I strongly believe that it could become much more than a one-time per year event. Those who would argue against such a claim need only look at massive crowds, and the oustanding feedback, which clearly demonstrate the strong support for this grassroots event. If you missed the second Princess Street Promenade, rest assured you can relive the magic of our stroll up and down Princess Street via our YouTube channel and Flickr set.
What was your favorite aspect of this year’s Promenade? How often do you think Kingston should consider hosting such an event?
Only report I got was from a cab driver who was filling in for someone on a Saturday. Said LOTS of early drunks stumbling around the downtown area in the afternoon. I did see bars with signs having some sales on drinks. Princess Street blocked off of course, but he said seemed the ones who had a few were forgetting the side streets are still used by cars. Some walking against the lights and right in front of traffic. He said he had to slam on the brakes at one point to not hit a drunk who decided to run across a road. Luckily he stopped in time.
Honestly that's the only mention I heard all weekend about the Promenade. I forgot it had happened till Sunday morning and I saw Saturday's paper. And I work downtown. Go figure. More people were talking about the Triathlon for what it's worth.
As someone who made multiple trips up and down Princess Street on Saturday, I saw nothing but good behaviour on the main drag. We did lunch at a downtown resto as well, and the atmosphere was definitely not rowdy nor drunken…sadly. While many will remember this weekend for the tri, I will remember it for the Prom. That said, whoever decided to schedule the two on the same weekend should be given a big high five. Job well done.
I was up and down Princess a few times Saturday … Just LOTS of people having a great time … no sign of drunks or other bad behaviour .. Excellent turnout for Triathlon .. found the respective events to be very complimentary..
All I saw were a lot of happy people. And, as someone who was completely sober, I too found myself forgetting that some streets were still open to traffic. Perhaps they could make them all stops for the duration of the festival since I know I wasn't the only one who accidentally crossed against the light a few times.