More door-to-door in Valleyview

I continued my "fall check-in", as described in my last two posts, doing the remaining homes in Valleyview this afternoon.

Once again, a lot of people said that they are generally satisfied with a lot of town services, but they also mentioned some suggestions for areas that could be improved.

The same three items (the appearance of the renewed Banff Avenue, the recycling program, and the busses) got the most positive mentions.  Banff Avenue was described as a "vast improvement". 

One household also mentioned how pleased they are that a good map is now available for the trails right around the town - Tunnel Mountain, etc.  Another noted with pleasure the preservation of the Peck house, and expressed hope that we can do more for heritage home preservation.  And another commented positively on how much hard work had gone into the logistics of making Banff Live happen.

In considering areas for improvement, after Banff Live (which once again got top billing), the greatest area for concern was traffic congestion.  People are really looking forward to having the construction work at Banff and Buffalo completed, and seeing some improvement to the congestion across the bridge.

Some suggestions that were made by individuals ...

 First, some that echoed comments from yesterday's door-knocking:

• More speed limit reminders/enforcement on Mountain Avenue
• a pedestrian mall on Banff Avenue
• do some soul-searching about who we are, what we're marketing
• concern about the transition to fewer garbage bins

And some that were new:

• Looking forward to having that commuter bike trail Banff-Canmore
• Would like to see the pedestrian bridge built
• do everything possible for affordable housing - maybe a 3rd Rocky Mountain co-op building?
• look for more ways for the Town and the Banff Centre to work together
• a concern was expressed about the level of salaries and perks at Town Hall, compared to what the taxpayers are making
• a concern was expressed about the Rec Centre project, and a hope that it will be kept as low-end and low-cost as possible
• a recommendation for pedestrian scrambles at main intersections (where all the pedestrians cross at once, in all directions)
• a question about whether there should be bylaw considerations for temporary signs.
• a question about the mandate/accountability of the Tourism Bureau, and whether we need a Chamber of Commerce
• a request for a transit route to the Banff Centre