SolaFide

I don't want to get too far off topic here, but I'd just like to throw out an idea that popped into my head. As we think about the design of our future convention center, medical mart, hotels, etc. what if we considered ground floor arcades along the street. I'm not talking about the completely enclosed kind like our famous arcade. Think Bologna Italy, or even the Amtrust Building. This may be an interesting way to entice conventioneers to venture out into the surrounding streets in any weather. Given the prevalence of crummy weather in our city, I think it's worth thinking about what it's like for people to walk around town. I know when I'm walking around on my lunch break and it's raining or snowing, I look forward to reaching the protected sidewalks of the Amtrust Building.

Since when have the flats been the center of the urban core? Few supporting amenities for a possible convention center exist down there. I'm assuming that the more a convention center is coupled with existing amenities (shops, restaurants, hotels, public square and the health line, direct rail access to the city's airport) the more likely it is to succeed.