Skywalk provides a perfect passageway
Maria Canton
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Mar 16/01) - The joining of two buildings through a glass encased, climate-controlled, seating-for-four skywalk, never to be parted -- unless, of course, Yellowknife falls victim to an earthquake.
To date, however, the city's only skywalk hasn't had any run-ins with disaster.
"We've felt a few tickles from underneath, but nothing major, truckers know it's there," says Ter Hamer, property manager for Polar Pandas Developments Ltd., whose office, by the way, is on the "skywalk mezzanine."
The sidewalk in the sky spans 48 Street, connecting the Panda II Mall and Yellowknife Centre. And with a drug store on one side and a grocery store on the other, Hamer says thousands of people use the elevated passageway every day.
Constructed in 1987, at the same time as the Panda II Mall, Hamer says he doesn't remember the cost, but thinks it would run close to $1 million by today's standards.
A skywalk makes perfect sense in the North. Think of it, a downtown completely connected by heated, elevated walkways. Gone would be the days of pulling on parkas and waiting at traffic lights just to get a coffee on the morning break.
Originally based on the City of Calgary's +15 concept, which means the skywalks are 15 feet above street level, Yellowknife had to make its skywalk a +17, or 5.1 metres above the street.
"We had to make ours higher to accommodate the snow accumulation on the streets," said Hamer.
The "Welcome to Yellowknife" sign on the outside of the skywalk makes it not only a tourist attraction, but also a unique place to hang out.
Just in from Rae for the day, Brian Rebesca was spotted with his feet up in the skywalk on Tuesday morning.
"I like waiting up here for my family when they're running around shopping, it's easy to keep an eye out for them," he said.
"And I like watching the vehicles go by -- it's an awesome view."
Similarly, Rebesca's friend Allan Mantla says it's the perfect place to take a break after walking around all day.
"I need some place to sit down and take a break and this place has a good view, you can see everything from up here," he said.
