Cheers, Ken Hanly
G20 security is bad news for merchants
Vito Pilieci The Ottawa Citizen
Thursday, November 08, 2001
NEWSLETTERS
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Plans to block off downtown streets for a meeting of G20 finance ministers could spoil some of the busiest shopping days of the year.
Ottawa police announced yesterday that numerous streets around the Conference Centre on Rideau Street, including portions of Colonel By Drive and Sussex Drive, would be blocked off Nov. 16-18.
Some parking lots near the Rideau Centre will also be closed. Only conference centre workers or people attending the G20 meetings will be allowed to pass through the police barricade, said Staff Sgt. Leo Janveau.
"There will be a significant increase in police presence in the Market and that includes the Ottawa police, RCMP and the OPP ... walking around the whole Market area."
The G20 meetings were originally scheduled to take place in India, with the IMF meetings planned for Washington, D.C., but both were moved to Ottawa after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.
Police are trying to keep protests at the meetings from turning into the riots seen at the Summit of the Americas in Quebec City last April. Ottawa Mayor Bob Chiarelli said earlier this week that at least 500 protesters are believed to be planning to travel to Ottawa.
Heightened security and fears protests will turn into riots are a recipe for a devastating business weekend, said Garth Whyte, senior vice-president of national affairs for the the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. The federation represents 4,500 small shops in Ottawa.
Many independently owned stores do 50 per cent of their business in November and December, he said.
"In some areas, they are going to be on a forced holiday," said Mr. Whyte. "It's a critical time for them."
Johannas Hagos, manager of A Buck or Two in the Rideau Centre, said the security measure are bad news for business.
"It is going to be tough for us," she said. "The traffic in here is usually just from people passing by. This is going to affect the whole mall."
Others tried to put a positive spin on it. Jantine Van Kregten, executive director of the Byward Market Business Improvement Association, said merchants already deal with a Canada Day closing once a year.
"It's basically going to be like Canada Day," she said. "People still get down to the market and still make it down to the rest of downtown. This will be no different."
Talk in the business community has ranged from security measures to putting up a fence like the one in Quebec City to closing all of downtown.
"The reality is it is not bad at all," she argues. "We have to accept that these meetings are going to go on and it is business as usual in the Byward Market."
Right now, the Rideau Centre and shops within the Byward Market will be open next weekend, said Staff Sgt. Janveau. But all that could change quickly.
"Everything is based on the information we have to this date. If that changes, the people at the Rideau Centre will be informed," he said.
Cindy VanBuskirk, a Rideau Centre spokeswoman, said whether or not the shopping centre stays open is up to the police, not the centre's management.
Mr. Whyte said it's too bad small businesses have to suffer. But he said perhaps consumers will make up for lost time in the weekends following the G20 meetings.
"Hopefully the consumers will come back and business will pick up (before Christmas)," Mr. Whyte said.
© Copyright 2001 ----- Original Message ----- From: "Kevin Robert Dean" <qualiall_2 at yahoo.com> To: <lbo-talk at lists.panix.com> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2001 8:33 AM Subject: Ottawa anyone?
> I haven't been hearing much about people planning to
> go to the Ottawa actions. Is anyone from this list
> planning on going? I'll be there.
>
> =====
> Kevin Dean
> Buffalo, NY
> ICQ: 8616001
> http://www.yaysoft.com
>
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