Skip to content

Downtown merchants embrace new community approach

'We met people that didn’t know we existed,' says Barrie merchant who's had a downtown store for 28 years

The days of inviting the world to a downtown street closed for a long weekend every summer  with vendors from near and far, kids screaming on carnival rides, and games of chance  have given way to a calmer weekly street closure that's destined to return to Barrie's core next summer.

Promenade Days, that heady downtown festival which jammed Dunlop Street with peddlers and shoppers by day and revellers at local establishments by night, came to an abrupt end in 2020 when gatherings presented a health risk during the pandemic.

That same summer Open Air Dunlop was introduced with the eastern part of the downtown street closed to traffic on five Saturdays just as work on a revamped downtown streetscape and square was completed.

An expanded Open Air Dunlop dominated the main strip on Saturdays throughout this past summer, with Fridays tagged onto long weekends. Pedestrians were able to stretch their legs on Dunlop Street, patios filled with diners and merchants put out merchandise and even chairs in front of their shops.

“We met people that didn’t know we existed,” said Wendy Green, partner at the family run Our House, a home décor shop that opened in the core 28 years ago. “It’s just been a really positive experience.

“People are loving the look of the new downtown.”

Unlike Promenade Days, when outside vendors lined the street with an assorted collection of discounted wares, Open Air Dunlop was intended as more of a community gathering, something that would be sustained. 

Instead of wandering through booth after booth filled with discounted items during one crazy weekend, pedestrians would happen upon non-profits and community groups raising awareness about electric cars, Shak’s World, the Lion’s Club, or the Terry Fox Run on summer Saturdays. There were also free historic walking tours presented by the city’s town crier.

Every week, the foot traffic increased and shop owners and restaurateurs reported increased sales, says Downtown Barrie BIA executive director Kelly McKenna.

“That street was just vibrant,” she said. “It was just an outpour of community support.

“It really had that community feel and that’s what we were striving for," McKenna added. 

The weekly street closures have come to an end for the season, but there are pop-up events planned.

Open Air Dunlop returns Oct. 30 for the Rotary Club of Barrie’s Frightful Family Day, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Meridian Place. The day will include a children’s costume contest, a pumpkin-carving contest, a pizza event by downtown pizza restaurants, and live music. Downtown merchants have also organized a trick-or-treat trail.

On Nov. 20, the open-air concept returns for the Noella festival, organized with the Greater Barrie Chamber of Commerce and the city. It will include the annual tree-lighting ceremony at Memorial Square.

Next summer expect more of the same. But Dunlop Street will be closed to traffic on Sundays during the long weekends instead of on Fridays as the downtown board looks to further refine the Open Air concept.

“We will just keep expanding the days as our businesses feel it is adding to the environment downtown and helping all of us raise out of this COVID restriction,” said McKenna.

The downtown board will also look at expanding the closure to perhaps include Dunlop Street West and Collier Street, looping in the city’s farmers’ market at city hall into a larger pedestrian concept.

Meanwhile, the many patios in the core are getting ready to welcome patrons in the colder weather with patio season now going right to Nov. 30, many having installed heaters with some even offering blankets. McKenna says some have expressed interest in extending the season even further.

“These are conversations that have been happening for a long time. Let’s have patios, let’s have open spaces, let’s have pedestrianized streets,” she said.

Greene says the result of all the initiatives has resulted in the development of a community downtown. Shop owners have become a more cohesive group; they’re not just about their own store as much as before.

“We think of it more as a neighbourhood now,” said Greene.

Sales at Our House increased on Saturdays and that traffic provided the much-needed exposure coming out of a pandemic, which had forced shutdowns and also resulted in the closure of a number of businesses.

And from her perspective, Greene is happy to say good riddance to Promenade Days, which she felt had more of a bargain basement or garage sale vibe, particularly in its later years.

Greene likes the idea of gradual expansion of Open Air Dunlop, building on the happy, community vibe it’s developed.

She envisions a Christmas street closure with sleigh rides down Dunlop Street and maybe Santa Claus perched in his majestic chair at Memorial Square.

“I can see that as being really fun,” she said.